Introduced in the ''Shadow and Bone'' trilogy
Alina Starkov
The Darkling
Nikolai Lantsov
Nikolai Lanstov is introduced disguised as the privateer Sturmhond. He is revealed to be the younger prince of Ravka and courts Alina for a political marriage, and the two grow close. After being transformed into a shadow demon and turned back into a human, his consciousness is tied to a demon. Despite being illegitimate, the throne passes to him upon the king's exile and his brother's death. He wants to help his people but struggles with his position, and ultimately relinquishes the throne to Zoya. After forming a reluctant acceptance over his demon, he allows it to stay within him and uses it to fight for him in various battles against Fjerda. He is in a romantic relationship with Zoya Nazyalensky. Nikolai is introduced in ''Siege and Storm'' and is one of the main characters of the ''King of Scars'' duology. He will appear in the second season of ''Shadow and Bone'' and will be played by Patrick Gibson.Zoya Nazyalensky
Zoya Nazyalensky is a competitive Grisha Squaller with the ability to summon wind. Prior to the events of the novels she was an admirer of the Darkling. She is hostile towards Alina at first, but joins her and turns on him when her aunt is killed by the expansion of the Fold. She becomes a member of the Grisha Triumvirate, who replaced the Darkling in commanding the Second Army. After she learned under Sankt Juris, she gains the ability to tap into Grisha powers other than her own and receives his mythical dragon powers. She is appointed Queen after Nikolai relinquishes the throne. She is in a romantic relationship with Nikolai Lantsov. She is introduced as side antagonist turned protagonist in the ''Shadow and Bone'' trilogy and a main point-of-view in the ''King of Scars'' series. She appears in '' Crooked Kingdom'' in a minor role. Zoya is played by Sujaya Dasgupta in the Netflix series.Malyen Oretsev
Mal is a skilled tracker in the First Army and Alina's childhood friend who is popular with girls. Despite being Alina's love interest, they have an argumentative, on-off relationship, and he is skeptical of her powers and newfound role saving Ravka. Despite his reluctance, he leads the revolution. Throughout the series, Mal is involved in a 'love square' revolving around Alina Starkov, also involving Nikolai Lantsov and Aleksander Morozova 'The Darkling' In ''Rule of Wolves'', Mal is critical to the Darkling's escape after he is stabbed by a piece of thorn wood allowing the Darkling to gain some of his power over darkness. Although he is introduced in ''Shadow and Bone'', he has a more prominent role in the following two books. He also makes a cameo in ''Rule of Wolves.'' He is played byBaghra
Genya Safin
Genya Safin is a Tailor known for her beauty. She helps Alina when she arrives at the Little Palace. Unlike the rest of the Grisha, Genya is assigned to work for the Queen. However, she is sexually abused by the King and the Queen resents her for it. Genya remains loyal to the Darkling, but his nichevo'ya mutilate her when she betrays him to help Alina escape in ''Siege and Storm''. She joins Alina and helps in taking the King down. She marries David Kostyk and becomes a member of the Grisha Triumvirate. She later appears in ''Crooked Kingdom'' to free Grisha captives being transferred in Ketterdam and restore Wylan's original face. In the ''King of Scars'' novels, Genya helps rule Ravka and is involved in all of the important war talks. Genya is a prominent character in the original trilogy. She also appears in ''Crooked Kingdom'' and the ''King of Scars'' duology. She is played byDavid Kostyk
David Kostyk is a bookish and unassuming Durast. A shy but intelligent figure, he crafts weapons and other gadgets for Alina and the other Grisha to use. In the first novel, he forges the Stag's amplifer together into a collar for Alina. He becomes a member of Ravka's ruling Grisha Triumvirate due to his contributions to the war effort, and creates military weapons in the war against Fjerda. He is killed when Fjerda bombs Os Alta but his blueprints continue to be used and eventually help lead to Ravka's victory over Fjerda. At his funeral, Genya, Zoya, and Nikolai are emotionally affected by his death not only because of his intellect but because of how loyal and steadfast he was to their cause. He is played byTamar and Tolya
Tamar Kir-Bataar and Tolya Yul-Bataar are Heartrender twins who are part of Sturmhond's crew. They become loyal to Alina and recognise her sainthood. Tolya is a hulking but gentle man, steadfastly loyal to Nikolai and Alina with a passion towards poetry. Tamar is smaller, lithe and a warrior who uses twin axes to fight against enemies. Despite their Shu Han heritage, they see themselves as Ravkan, however Tamar joins the Shu Han cause to overthrow their corrupt queen in ''Rule of Wolves''. The pair both survive to the end of the series and are present at Zoya's coronation. They are introduced in the second book. They will appear in the second season of the Netflix series, with Tolya being played byNadia and Adrik Zhabin
Nadia is a Squaller and former student at the Little Palace, friends with Marie, and later became instrumental in the effort to depose the Darkling. She becomes friends with Alina early on, a clingy but loyal figure. Like Alina, she was trained by Baghra. She later marries Tamar and helps lead the nation of Ravka several years after the war. Her brother, Adrik, is introduced in ''Siege and Storm'' as a young up-and-coming Grisha who joins the rebellion with Alina and her makeshift crew to hunt down the final amplifier. After having his arm shorn off by ''nichevo'ya'', he becomes grumpy and moody, a character trait for which he becomes notorious several years later. Despite that, he continues exemplifying his loyalty to the throne and sticks with Nikolai even after he witnesses the other man's demon killing others. Nadia is played by Gabrielle Brooks in Season 1 and will be played by Joanna McGibbon in Season 2. Marie is played byIvan and Fedyor
The Apparat
Introduced in the ''Six of Crows'' duology
Kaz Brekker
Kaz Brekker, also known as Dirtyhands, is a 17-year-old master thief with a reputation for doing anything for the right price. He has a personal vendetta against Pekka Rollins, who swindled Kaz and his older brother Jordie out of all their money when they first arrived in Ketterdam. He is a lieutenant of the Dregs, and as the mastermind of the group, the de facto leader of the Crows. He is severely haphephobic due to a traumatizing incident in his childhood, and thus always wears black leather gloves. He has a limp in his right leg from an improperly healed break. He is described as very pale, with dark hair and dark brown eyes. He uses a cane with a crow's head top as a mobility aid and occasionally, as a weapon. Kaz is a main character of the ''Six of Crows'' duology. He is played by Freddy Carter in the Netflix series.Inej Ghafa
Inej Ghafa is a sixteen-year-old Suli girl from Ravka known as the Wraith. She is a spy for the Dregs, and considered the best spy in Ketterdam. Her family were travelling performers and her act was the tightrope, so she is extremely agile and lightfooted. She is rather superstitious, and, with the exception of Matthias, the most religious out of the Crows. Her preferred weapons are knives, and she always carries her six favourites with her. She was kidnapped by slavers and tricked into working in a brothel called the Menagerie until Kaz bought her indenture. Since then, she has proven invaluable to Kaz and the Dregs, working as their spy to pay off her indenture and be free to travel or return home. She's described as short, with bronze skin and black hair, worn in a braid. Inej is a main character of the ''Six of Crows'' duology. She is played byJesper Fahey
Jesper Fahey is a seventeen-year-old Zemeni-Kaelish sharpshooter with a gambling problem. His father believes that he is studying in a university at Ketterdam, his occupation until he discovered gambling and found himself deep in debt. He is described as being tall and lanky, with dark skin and grey eyes. Like his late mother, he is a Grisha but hides it to avoid being kidnapped or killed. However, this has led to him becoming very impulsive and loose-lipped, which has put the Crows in danger a few times. He is almost never seen without his weapons of choice, twin pearl-handled revolvers. He is in a romantic relationship with Wylan van Eck. Jesper is a main character of the ''Six of Crows'' duology. He is played by Kit Young in the Netflix series.Nina Zenik
Nina Zenik is a seventeen-year-old Grisha Heartrender and former soldier of the Ravkan Second Army — until she was captured by Matthias. She betrayed his trust to protect him from Grisha spies, choosing to stay in Ketterdam in the hope of finding a way to free him from Hellgate. She was initially recruited to join the Dime Lions, but after meeting Inej, who brought a counteroffer from Kaz, decided to join the Dregs instead. She works at the White Rose brothel, specializing in altering clients’ moods. She has fair skin, thick brown hair and green eyes, and is described as round and voluptuous. After Matthias's death she embarks on aMatthias Helvar
Matthias Helvar is an eighteen-year-old ''drüskelle'' from Fjerda. A year before the story, he and his fellow ''drüskelle'' kidnapped Nina and other Grisha, but were shipwrecked on their way back to Fjerda. He washed ashore with Nina and they were forced to work together to avoid freezing to death, eventually coming to trust one another and pursue something of a romantic relationship. However, Nina then accused him of being a slaver and he was incarcerated in Hellgate prison in Ketterdam. He is conflicted because of his hatred for Grisha and his feelings for Nina. Kaz frees Matthias from Hellgate because of his knowledge of the Ice Court and bribes him into working with the Crows in exchange for a pardon, which would allow him to return to Fjerda. He is the oldest, tallest and most muscular of the group with pale skin, shaved blond hair and blue eyes.'' ''He develops an understanding and care for the Grisha but is killed for it by a young ''drüskelle'' in ''Crooked Kingdom.'' He appears in the ''Six of Crows'' duology. He is played by Calahan Skogman in the Netflix series.Wylan van Eck
Wylan Van Eck is a 16-year-old merchant's son with some talent for demolition, whom Kaz takes on as a member of the crew in the hopes of using him as leverage against his father, Jan Van Eck. He is curious, contemplative, and sheltered and, as opposed to the rest of the Crows, is uncomfortable with displays of violence. He is dyslexic but is an excellent alchemist, mathematician, and musician. For several weeks after the successful Ice Court heist, he is tailored by Nina Zenik to look like Kuwei Yul-Bo, but he recovers his appearance afterward. He is described to have curly red-blonde hair and pale skin. He is in a romantic relationship with Jesper Fahey. Wylan Van Eck will appear in season two of the show and will be played by Jack Wolfe.Kuwei Yul-Bo
Kuwei Yul-Bo is the son of Bo Yul-Bayur, the creator of ''jurda parem''. Like his father, he is intelligent and a cunning scientist but often hides his wisdom so as to appear nonchalant. In ''Six of Crows'', he is kidnapped by Fjerda in the hopes of creating more jurda ''parem'' to torture Grisha, but his research is burned down. He tags alongside the Crows thereafter when they recover him, fakes his own death at the end of ''Crooked Kingdom'', and later is relocated to Ravka under a new identity where he helps create an antidote to ''jurda parem.''Pekka Rollins
Pekka Rollins is a Kaelish crime lord and leader of the Dime Lions, the primary rival of the Dregs and one of the leading gangs in Ketterdam. He owns the Emerald Palace, the Sweet Shop, and the Kaelish Prince. When Kaz and his brother first arrived in Ketterdam he conned them under the alias Jakob Hertzoon which led to Kaz's long-standing hatred for him. He competes with the Dregs in their mission to infiltrate the Ice Court but is caught and imprisoned. Kaz breaks him out and later he gives the weakened Crows a loan after Inej was kidnapped. In ''Crooked Kingdom'', Kaz threatens him by holding his young son hostage and he leaves Ketterdam alone. As part of Kaz's plan Nina uses her new corpsewitch abilities to create a false plague at his businesses, closing them through quarantine and crippling him financially. He is played byJan van Eck
Jan van Eck is Wylan's father, a wealthy merchant who cons the Crows and looks down on those below him as lesser. He is intelligent and cunning with a sole focus on maximizing profit and gaining dominance over the merchant houses of Kerch. A manipulative man, Van Eck is the main antagonist of the ''Six of Crows'' duology, appearing as a major character in ''Crooked Kingdom'', where he barters Inej's life to get the Crows' subservience. He is later arrested for his crimes and exposed by his son (whom he abused for eight years).Per Haskell
Per Haskell is the former leader of the Dregs, a jaundiced elderly man who prefers to stay out of trouble and keep the Dregs away from taking risks. He lets his subordinates do all his work for him and stays in the sidelines whenever disruptions plague the Barrel. Despite having adopted Kaz and become a surrogate mentor figure to him, Kaz is known to everyone else in the Dregs as its true leader and source of power. He is egoistical, lazy, and easy to set off. Kaz later usurps him and becomes the official leader of the Dregs in name and position.Tante Heleen
Heleen Van Houden is the owner of the Menagerie, a successful brothel located on the West Stave in Ketterdam. An oily and psychologically abusive person, she laments and prides herself in her dominance over the girls in her brothel. She deals in human trafficking, despite it being an illegal trade so she can obtain her employees, who she sees as objects rather than people. She notably purchased Inej, who would later see her as a major figure corrupting her life. Kaz later plants a false plague at her brothel leaving her in financial ruin. She is played by Deirdre Mullins in the television show.Colm Fahey
Colm Fahey is a ''jurda'' farmer and Jesper's loving yet protective father. He is described as "classically Kaelish" with dark red hair, pale skin, and grey eyes. Honest and overprotective, he sticks with his values that he and his deceased wife hoped to impress onto Jesper. After his wife's death, he steadfastly forced Jesper to repress his Grisha abilities, fearing he would be persecuted if the world were to know. He appears in ''Crooked Kingdom'', where he aids the Crows in their effort against Jan van Eck and confronts his son.Jarl Brum
Jarl Brum is the captain of the ''drüskelle'' and a fierce anti-Grisha activist. He is prideful and obstinate, a trait that allows him to continue to rule over the ''drüskelle'' and gain continued influence over Fjerda even after the botched protection of the Ice Court.Introduced in the ''King of Scars'' duology
Hanne Brum
Hanne Brum is Jarl's child, a fierce and rebellious person who would rather fight or ride on horseback as a soldier rather than engage in feminine courtly activities. Hanne is secretly a Healer and has a blooming relationship with Nina. Hanne eventually fakes death and is tailored to look like Fjerda's Prince Rasmus, becoming engaged to Nina sometime afterwards. Hanne is implied to be transgender, non-binary, or gender non-conforming.Isaak Andreyev
Isaak Andreyev is a Ravkan soldier who served under Nikolai during his tenure as King of Ravka. He is a close friend of Nikolai and disguises himself as the King with Genya's tailoring when Nikolai is away dealing with the Saints. He is killed by Shu Han's Mayu Kir-Kaat, who has disguised herself as Princess Ehri.Mayu Kir-Kaat
Mayu Kir-Kaat is Princess Ehri's bodyguard and a soldier for Shu Han. She develops feelings for Isaak while he is disguised as Nikolai but kills him to fulfill her duty. She would later feel great remorse for what she did and rebel against Shu Han's Queen Makhi, freeing the ''khergud'' Grisha soldiers being fed ''jurda parem'' including her twin brother Reyem. She later attends Zoya's coronation.Sankt Juris of the Sword
Sankt Juris is a Grisha saint from the Wandering Isle who slew a dragon in his youth. He is revealed to still be alive trapped inside the Shadow Fold alongside Sankta Lizabeta and Sankt Grigori. He becomes Zoya's mentor and trains her to become a more powerful Grisha using the older and more proper ways of using the Small Science. He is a Squaller, a Tidemaker, an Inferi, and a Fabrikator. He is killed by Lizabeta, but continues to live on inside Zoya. He is based onSankta Lizabeta of the Roses
Sankta Lizabeta is a Grisha saint and Fabrikator who possesses a swarm of bees as her amplifier. She is revealed to still be alive inside the Shadow Fold alongside Sankt Juris and Sankt Grigori. She tries to revive the Darkling believing he is the true king of Ravka, but is killed by Zoya.Sankt Grigori of the Woods
Sankt Grigori is a Grisha Saint and Healer who can transform into a bear. He is reveled to still be alive inside the Shadow Fold alongside Sankt Juris and Sankt Lizabeta. He cannot resume his original form and thus constantly switches from form to form, earning the name "Grotesque". He is later killed by Lizabeta trying to stop her from reviving the Darkling.Minor characters
* Vasily Lantsov is Nikolai's maternal half-brother. He is the heir and only biological son of Alexander III, King of Ravka. He is described as having "eyes so heavy-lidded that it is hard to tell if he is bored or drunk." He is killed by ''nichevo'ya'' when the Little Palace is overwhelmed, after having inadvertently allowed the Darkling into Ravka. He is played by George Parker in the Netflix series. * Dubrov and Mikhael are trackers in the First Army who were Mal's friends. They are killed by Fjerdans while helping Mal track down the white stag. Dubrov is played by Andy Burse and Mikhael by Angus Castle-Doughty in the show. * Aditi Hilli is Jesper's mother and Colm's wife. A caring and altruistic woman with Grisha abilities, she saw her son as "zowa", or blessed. While helping a little girl, Leoni, she accidentally ingests poison herself and dies as a result. * Marya Hendriks is Wylan's mother and Jan's ex-wife. She is declared insane and sent to a mental institution, but Wylan later rescues her and they live together thereafter. She has memory issues and fades in and out of clarity. * Anika is a member of the Dregs' gang run by Per Haskell and is heavily loyal to the gang * Bo Yul-Bayur is a Shu chemist and a Grisha Fabrikator. The inventor of ''jurda parem'', he is heavily sought after by countries around the world. He created ''parem'' as a way to hide his and his son Kuwei's powers from Shu Han, but inadvertently created a solution that would amplify Grisha powers. He is killed in the crossfire between Fjerdans and the Kerch in Ahmrat Jen. * Dunyasha Lazareva is a Ravkan assassin trained at a monastery in Ahmrat Jen, Shu Han, who claims ancestry to the Lantsov bloodline. She is described as Inej's "shadow", a fierce and possibly insane killer. During the events of Crooked Kingdom, she is hired to kill Inej but fails - in fact, Inej ends up killing her. * Specht is a member of the Dregs and a former member of the Kerch navy. He is described as having a "grizzled jaw and tattoos extending halfway up his neck." He is deeply loyal to Kaz, assisting the Crows to Fjerda for the White Court heist and taking on odd jobs during ''Crooked Kingdom'' for them. * Rotty is a member of the Dregs often mentioned with Specht, also loyal to Kaz and the Crows. He is present at the parley between the Dregs and the Black Tips and accompanies them on the ''Ferolind.'' * Jordan "Jordie" Rietveld is Kaz's older brother. Hoping to one day become a successful merchant, Jordie searched for jobs in Ketterdam's financial district and met Rollins (disguised as Hertzoon). The pair were led into a false business venture, forced into the streets, and caught the Ketterdam plague. He dies and Kaz uses his body to swim to the shoreline.Introduced in the ''Shadow and Bone'' television adaptation
Season one
References
{{Grishaverse Grishaverse Grishaverse