YA Sorting Hat: Slytherin Edition

By Julia Bergen

I think we can all agree, Slytherin house is COMPLICATED. Most Slytherins in the original books are at best mid-level evil, and even the exceptions aren’t the most heroic. Their house traits aren’t necessarily evil, though – ambitious, cunning, clever. That describes a lot of my favorite people, and a lot of my favorite YA characters. After all, we all know that the best protagonist is also pretty complicated.

Aeduan from Truthwitch by Susan Dennard

opens in a new windowAeduan gets sorted into a lot of different houses by Witchlands fans. But we’re taking the author’s word for it, and in a 2016 blog interview Susan Dennard revealed that Aeduan is indeed a Slytherin. She did include “or is he?” afterward, but we’re going with Aeduan being a Slytherin. And hey, even if Aeduan has a squishy middle, that doesn’t mean he can’t be a Slytherin. The house has a tendency to be crazy protective over the people they love, which totally explains Aeduan’s loyalty to Iseult. Remember, just because someone’s a Slytherin, doesn’t mean they can’t cuddle.

Jude Duarte from The Cruel Prince by Holly Black

Honestly, you could probably sort most characters in The Cruel Prince into Slytherin, except for Vivi, as we’ve discussed. But Jude stands out because of her ambition. Sure, all the faeries are dying (frequently literally) to improve their stations, but Jude isn’t just trying to move up a few rungs on the ladder – she’s trying to go from the bottom all the way to the top. A human growing up in faerie, she refuses to accept that she can’t compete with, and even win against, magical beings who are naturally far more powerful than she is. Jude would be the seeker on the Slytherin Quidditch team and she would win every time, probably by cheating.

Isoka from Ship of Smoke and Steel by Django Wexler

opens in a new windowThis was a hard one, since Isoka is a such complex character who changes a great deal throughout the course of the book. She would kill someone just for convenience, but she’d also lay down her life for someone she cares about. So, we went straight to the source, and asked the author. Django Wexler was kind enough to confirm that, as we suspected, she definitely is a Slytherin. At least, she is in the beginning of the book….

Brynn Hilder from The Deceivers by Kristen Simmons

opens in a new windowBrynn fits right into the Slytherin house, because not only is she a pro at coming up with intricate plans, but this is a girl on the rise. Coming from a poor background, she jumps at the chance to go to a school that will offer her better advantages. When that school turns out to be a school for con artists, she takes it in stride and just works that much harder.

Kaz Brekker from Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Seriously, how could we have a list of literary Slytherin’s WITHOUT including Kaz Brekker? His ambitions know no bounds and his clever plans constantly keep his enemies—and frequently his friends— struggling to keep up. Kaz would be headboy of the Slytherin house, if he wasn’t too busy running cons on his fellow students, of course. The Weasley twins would have nothing on Kaz’s contraband ring (and he’d probably insist on getting a cut of their money as well). BRB: writing Six of Crows as an AU Harry Potter fanfiction.

Did we leave out your favorite Slytherin? Are you mad we included someone who totally belongs to another house instead? Send us an owl, or if your owl is sick, you can just leave a comment.