Review: The Thief

The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



I thought for a long time that this book was slow to get going. Five chapters in, we were still on the way to the scene of the theft, still having back and forth between the various characters, establishing their relationships. I finally decided that, in a way, that was the story, that the journey was the destination. But then we actually got to the theft, and it became the story I'd been expecting all along, and now the journey looked overlong again.

I also had some issues with the worldbuilding. It starts out Greek, apparently ancient Greek, but then we get metal breastplates, and then we get guns, and then (after at first sticking closely to flora and fauna found natively in and around the Mediterranean) we get a random eucalyptus. And none of this is necessary. The plot would have worked identically if it had stayed ancient Greek the whole way through.

Regardless of those issues, the ending served up a twist that was different from the twist I'd been expecting, always a pleasant surprise. The writing and editing were excellent, and the story ultimately satisfying.

I'm not sure I'll rush out and buy the next one, given that this was near the upper end of my preferred ebook price band, but I'll keep it in mind for the future.



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