'I can steal anything.' After Gen's bragging lands him in the king's prison, the chances of escape look slim. Then the king's scholar, the magus, needs the thief's skill for a seemingly impossible task - to steal a hidden treasure from another land.

To the magus, Gen is just a tool. But Gen is a trickster and a survivor with a plan of his own," (Taken from the back cover).

How is it that I have not written about Megan Whalen Turner's wonderful series up until now? Probably because I am lazy, but we'll ignore that fact for now.

Before the incredible Jamie Fraser of Outlander fame came along, Gen was my main literary squeeze. I don't want to give too much away about him, because it's important to the story, but know that he'd fit right in with my family with that sassy mouth. I love his observations of the other characters and the names he calls the magus's apprentices (i.e. Useless the Elder and Useless the Younger).

It may not seem like much is going on in the book for a while as this group journeys toward their destination, but this is the introductory book to a series where we get to learn about the characters who will make appearances in the next books, so do pay attention to every detail that Gen shares. I will say that the last section of the book explodes with action and unexpected twists and turns, so don't get discouraged and put this book down - you will regret it.

I know this doesn't seem enough to entice you to read The Thief, but dang it, I can't say too much about a book filled with mystery and intrigue without giving it all away. Just go out and get this book (as well as The Queen of Attolia and The King of Attolia) - you'll thank me later.

Psst . . . I like chocolate.

Cross-posted at Reading Is Good For You (http://readingisgoodforyou.wordpress....) ( )

I really enjoyed reading this book because it does not talk down to its audience. Turner writes books for children; this book won a Newberry Award. But she is aware of the fact that children are intelligent and that they deserve intelligent writing. She does not write for children, specifically. She writes a story and children read it. As an adult, I found the story engaging and complex- even the vocabulary was at a more advanced level. I love authors who do this because I think it's important to challenge and stretch your readers, whatever their age. Turner does this very well, adding a twist to the story and giving her characters depths that you don't often find in books for children (and sometimes in books for adults).

Turner also builds up a multi-layered world in her story. The book is fantasy, and while she doesn't include a map of the world, she certainly builds up the culture. I love fantasy that comes complete with religions, superstitions, fairy tales and history. Turner has all of this in a very thin book. The history and religion in The Thief is based loosely upon ancient Greece and early medieval Europe. We are even treated to three mythical stories in the course of the novel. All great!

We also learn that the countries in the novel- Eddis, Attolia and Sounis- all have long, intertwined histories centering around old gods, new gods and invaders. Really, the amount of detail that Turner manages to pack into the pages is amazing. She creates a fully-fleshed out fantasy world, and I can't wait to read more about it.

I do think that this book was a bit slow going in some ways- not much happened for pages at a time. But Turner meticulously builds a world that readers can believe in, and creates characters that readers can cheer for. And I fully intend to move right on to the next book.

Truncated from full review at:
http://aartichapati.blogspot.com/2009... ( )

I read a review that had a spoiler, so the ending didn't come as a surprise, but this journey fantasy was wonderful all the same. I do enjoy a good quest, and the questing gang was entertaining, the world was interesting, and the mythology skewed enough from Greek standards to be eerie. I'm really looking forward to spending more time with several of the characters. I'd give this to someone looking for a straight fantasy/swordplay story, or someone who enjoys mythology. ( )

On the positive side, I did like the mythology and I liked a couple of the characters. But the only reason I kept reading is that I expected that something interesting would eventually happen; there had to be a payoff somewhere. The surprising revelation at the end offered a decent resolution to the story (I suppose), but wasn't worth slogging through the previous two hundred pages. ( )

The story of Gen, an imprisoned thief since he bragged to everyone that he was the biggest thief in the world - in front of the King's spies. He is freed and forcibly enlisted by the King's Magus to travel to Attolia to steal a mythical object, one that can only taken by a masterful thief. The party includes the Magus' two apprentices and a bodyguard and they all must work together on the quest.

Honestly, the book was mediocre. Gen is a charming, charismatic thief (as he should be), but that's not enough to pull a novel along. I didn't care about the other characters and they seemed one-dimensional. The big "Thief Trial" was boring and didn't live up to the hype when Gen figures it out. There were some amusing twist and turns, but somehow this book is lacking that certain something. The person who told me about this series said that this book was only okay but you have to go through it to get to the next two, which are stellar.

The book also could have greatly benefited from the inclusion of a map. I was sorely confused most of the time since the party travels through three kingdoms, among numerous rivers and across fields and mountain ranges. The author often refers to these landmarks to describe where the party is travelling, and I don't have enough of a visual memory (or the patience) to keep track of these things in my head. If I can't, I don't know how many kids will be able to do it. ( )

http://books.moonsoar.com/archives/20... ( )

This is an excellent book for children and teens. The writing style is neither difficult nor simple, so kids 10+ and even adults can read it without being bored or frustrated. The main character is incredibly personable, and readers just can't help cheering for him. The story may seem predictable at first, but don't let that fool you! There are dozens of plot twists you would never expect, and the ending is something no one could guess. I gave this book to my little brother who hates reading, and he loved it! The style is engaging and urges readers to never put the book down. ( )

I read this book with high hopes after seeing many a person glee happily at seeing it on my tbr list. Sadly, I was rather disappointed.

The Thief is a somewhat mediocre adventure story filled with characters who are not terribly interesting, likeable, or fleshed out. The one thing that stands out here is the world. The landscape and myths Turner lays out are fascinating and well done, and the latter especially pay off nicely in the end. The final twist is another lovely point - it might almost be worth the entire experience for the gut-wrenching shock of that.

That said - this book is absolutely worth reading, if only to get to The Queen of Attolia and The King of Attolia. The two sequels are immeasurably better, building on the first book's strengths and discarding many of its weaknesses. The characters are more engaging, the plots more interesting, and the narrative structure tighter and better crafted.

I wonder if much of the enthusiasm for this book isn't tinged by the experience of reading the later books. I imagine Gen looks rather different on a re-read. ( )

I highly recommend this book. Gen, the main character, is excellent, though it took me a bit to settle into the tone of the book and his character's style. I was impressed that Turner managed a book with such a major revelation while writing from Gen's pov. I liked the little nods to the ancient Mediterranean and the myths scattered throughout the story. I also liked the lack of purely evil characters. Everyone was given depth. I thought the plot could have moved along a tad bit quicker, but I'm a fast reader so I suppose it doesn't matter.

And if you need another good reason to read this book, the next two books are even better;) ( )

"Do you mean," I squawked, "that we are out here in the dark looking for something from a fairy tale?"

In the genre of young adult fiction, one sometimes runs across a Newbery Honor book that is so overwhelmingly good, it makes one wonder why it did not win the Medal. Megan Whalen Turner's The Thief (1997) is one such book.

The thief of the title is Gen, a young pickpocket who has stolen the king of Sounis' seal and, after giving himself away by bragging about it, is now serving time in the royal prison. Gen boasts that he can steal anything, even himself out of prison, but he has not quite gotten around to doing so when he is summoned away by the king's magus, who is not so much a magician as a scribe and advisor. He offers him an opportunity for freedom, providing he make good on his boast, and steal that which no one else has yet found; but if he cannot make the theft or tries to run away, the king will give him cause to regret it. The idea flatters Gen's vanity and, so he sets out with the magus in quest of the mysterious object. Accompanying them are Ambiades, the magus' standoffish pupil, Sophos, a nobleman's son, and the warrior Pol. As they travel, the difficulties and conflicts of their journey are intermittently lightened by stories that the magus and Gen tell about the ancient gods, deities who have long been forgotten outside of their cultic rituals. The characters' minds, however, are firmly set on the trials ahead.

I had the most terrible attitude in approaching this book. Perhaps due to the overwhelming amount of praise I had heard showered upon it, I worried it would be a letdown. Even after the lovely opening description of light changing in the dark prison, I thought that this was going to be a typically dry YA book (a ridiculous notion, since for the most part I love YA). But after the setup of the first chapter I was intrigued by the central predicament, and soon the characters themselves began to win me over, Gen particularly. He is a humorous but flawed narrator, making both a multi-dimensional character and a spellbinding storyteller. I cannot recall laughing so much at a book since I read a P. G. Wodehouse novel last semester. Everyone else is similarly well-defined and -developed, though none are as they seem.

Though I had been forewarned about twists, I had not expected so many—and I would not have guessed the final one in a million years. When I read it, I blinked at the page and thought, Is she even allowed to do that? But it works. Trust me, there is nothing like it.

I read The Thief in one day, going late into the night in order to finish it, and when I was done I could not believe it had taken me so long to discover it. I turned around immediately and recommended it both to a preteen neighbor, who is an avid book lover, and to my sixteen-year-old brother, who is not. This is a compliment I rarely pay, to urge others to read a book as soon as it's finished. The Thief is a treat for people all ages who love adventure and intrigue. Some mild swearing aside, there is no reason not to put this treasure on your family's bookshelf. ( )

http://tamaranth.blogspot.com/2009/03... ( )

In this children's book, Gen is an unlikely hero: he's cocky, disrespectful, relentlessly practical, and the best thief around. He begins his story in the prison of Sounis, where he's been incarcerated for stealing the king's seal. He's sprung from prison by a magus, who needs his help stealing an artifact that confers the kingship of Eddis (a neighboring land) on its bearer. The first half of the book is very slow, as it simply relates Gen's travels with the magus and his companions. About midway through the book, though, things pick up. We learn that the gods, whose various legends are told by Gen and the magus throughout the novel, are still very relevant and effective in this world. We also learn the whereabouts of this mysterious artifact, as well as more about Gen's identity. My issue with the book was that it took way too long to get going. Gen's character was barely developed at all throughout the book, but we suddenly get a lot of new information at the end. By the end of the novel, though, I was definitely interested in Gen's character, and I will read the sequels (The Queen of Attolia and The King of Attolia) at some point.

The link to my review.

This was another book my wife insisted that I read. It was our before-bed read aloud book last month.

Reading 10-15 pages a night, the first half of the book was enjoyable, but unfolded rather slowly. I was a bit puzzled about why my wife was so enthusiastic about the book. Then, about half way through, the excitement and tempo increased a few notches, and it become a real page-turner.

This is a fantasy novel, but it is not your typical swords and sorcery adventure. There are swords, and even a couple of fights, but the closest we get to sorcery are some mysterious occurrences that could best be described as super-natural. Turner's alternate reality evokes the feeling of Greece. The landscape is rocky, somewhat mountainous, and filled with olive trees. The "old" religion has the feeling of Greek mythology although the divinities are mostly different. And the political backdrop is a set of small rivalrous kingdoms that could be stand-ins for the city-states of ancient Greece.

The story is told (first person) by Gen, a thief who opens the book imprisoned in the kingdom of Sounis. He is freed by the King's Magus---a wiseman-type councilor---who needs a skilled thief to help him recover a lost artifact. They set out on this expedition, accompanied by the Magus's two apprentices and a soldier. In the first half of the book, we slowly get to know the characters through Gen's eyes, and learn something of the world where this story is set. Turner does a good job developing and describing the mix of relationships between the members of this quest---rivalries, respect, jealousy---and as we get to know the characters better, it becomes apparent that there is a bit more to each of them than meets the eye.

Midway through the book, just when it seems that the entire plot is going to be character-driven, the tempo increases dramatically. There are fights, escapes, chases. Amongst this action there are still the puzzles of characters whose motivations we don't entirely understand---including our narrator, who carefully hides a few secrets of his own until the end.

All-in-all, a well-told story, with a good combination of plot, characters, and an interesting setting.

Once again, Lady Wombat picked a winner. I should pay more attention to her recommendations.

The Thief is a very interesting fantasy novel. The story is about Gen, a thief who is caught and jailed for stealing the King’s Seal. The King’s magus, by the orders of the King, takes Gen out of jail and sets off on a dangerous quest to find the Hamiathe’s Gift. Hamiathe’s Gift is suppose to be held by the true leaders of the neighboring country and the King wants an alliance so he can attack his enemy on the other side. The book creates characters that are very believable within the author created world. The author even explains the mythology within the story, so you learn more about the world and why people act the way they do. The theme isn’t totally the normal good vs. evil, though it can be seen. I see it as the theme of the underdog triumphing against all odds. The added humor, plot twists, and surprising ending make it a good book to have in Middle School and High School libraries. ( )

The "Queen's" thief connives a way to steal and ancient stone assuring her of the throne. Confusing, surprising, withholds info to reader. Newbery Honor Book. ( )

Megan Whalen Turner's The Thief is a Newbery Honor book, and one can only wonder why it didn't win the medal. This book is sheer brilliance.

The story is narrated by Gen, who is languishing in the prison of the king of Sounis after nicking the king's seal to prove his boast that he could steal anything. Gen defies any attempt at placing his age; he is probably 15–16 in this book, and alternately acts much older and much younger. His narration is uproariously funny with its dry humor and snarky observations of his companions.

The king's magus releases Gen from prison to help him on his quest to steal Hamiathes' Gift, a stone that was said to have been given to the ruler of Eddis by the Great Goddess Hephestia herself. The king of Sounis wants to marry the Queen of Eddis, but Eddis isn't having any of it. The magus reasons that if Sounis has Hamiathes' Gift, Eddis will have to capitulate and marry Sounis. But Hamiathes' Gift has been lost for hundreds of years, and it is tradition that only an exceptional thief can steal it from under the noses of the gods. Gen is about to learn whether his skills really are as good as he boasts.

Along for the journey are Pol, a hardbitten soldier and the magus' two apprentices: Sophos, the self-effacing heir of a duke, and Ambiades, the ambitious and bitter son of a de-ranked nobleman. The relationships between these characters and Gen become quite interesting as the story moves forward and they come closer to the place the stone is hidden.

The main narrative is peppered with folk tales about the creation of the world and man's place in it. The culture is loosely based on ancient Greece, but there are guns, books, and glass windowpanes, which make it more like a setting from the Byzantine period in our world. The cultures of the three countries — Sounis, Attolia, and Eddis — are convincingly distinct.

There is a huge, huge twist at the end of this story that I don't think anyone could have seen coming. On rereading, you can see the little pieces clicking together, but you have to hand it to Turner for writing a story with the main character narrating it and keeping back huge chunks of information about — well, lots of things.

I read this book as a teen and loved it then. I was beyond thrilled to find out years later that there were sequels, there was more about Gen. If you haven't yet discovered the next two books in the series, I'll leave you with a sense of anticipation and excitement for what happens next. If you thought the twist in The Thief was big, just you wait till you get to the next book! The Thief is actually the weakest of the three so far, but it is a wonderful book in its own right and suffers little when compared to the sequels.

The Attolia books are among the few books I constantly want to reread, and they never disappoint. Excellent writing, characters you'll never forget, and tight plotting combine to make these books some of the best YA fiction/fantasy ever written. Highly recommended! ( )

Gen is an extremely engaging character with a strong voice. ( )

After not being able to find this book for a long time, I was thrilled to get my hands on it recently. I read it as soon as I was able, and I must say, I enjoyed it very much, despite certain narrative devices that I will not name here. :) Readers who enjoyed Scott Lynch's The Lies of Locke Lamora will enjoy this one, I think, provided they don't mind the YA flare. The character of Gen sounds like I would imagine a young Locke Lamora would with a first person POV, but unlike The Lies of Locke Lamora, which I felt ran away with the world-building a wee bit, this book is rather grounded, a fast read, with a cooling setting based on Ancient Greece to boot.

The premise: Gen is a thief who boasts he can steal anything, which lands him in the King's prison. He's stuck there until the King's magus has use of Gen's skills--to steal something that might not even exist, a stone blessed by the gods with the gift of immortality, and the right to rule a kingdom. To his captors, Gen's only a tool, but he's got plans of his own.

The full review, which does include spoilers, can be found in my journal. As always, comments and discussion are most welcome. :)

REVIEW: Megan Whalen Turner's THE THIEF

Happy Reading! ( )

Summary: Gen, the self-proclaimed best thief in the world, is nevertheless languishing in prison when he is pulled from his cell by the king's chief advisor, the magus. The magus intends to use Gen to steal an ancient and valuable artifact from a neighboring country - a treasure said to have been given by the gods, that will confer immortality, along with the right to rule, on its bearer. Gen has no choice but to go along with the quest, and so he, the magus, the magus's two apprentices, and a hired soldier strike out towards fame and glory - or, more probably, swift and merciless death.

Review: The Thief is a Newbery Honor Book, and had been highly recommended by folks on LibraryThing and elsewhere for fans of YA lit. And, perhaps because I went into it with such high expectations, I came out of it a little disappointed. I certainly enjoyed it, but I don't quite get what all the fuss was about; the writing was good but nothing extraordinary, and the plot was a little more complex than your standard quest-adventure fantasy fare, but it wasn't revolutionary. Also, the pacing and structure was weird, with a very slow beginning that spends more time than it should on the early stages of the quest, where there's not much for the characters to do other than whine about lack of food and poor accommodations. (Can you tell that I also had a hard time identifying with Gen, and found him somewhat whiny, especially in the first half of the book?) The best part of the book was easily the fantastic/religious aspects of the book and how they intertwined with the characters and the rest of the action, including several strongly Greek-flavored myths and stories of the gods and goddesses of Gen's world that were set apart from the rest of the narrative. So, I'll keep reading the next two books in the series, particularly after a well-executed twist near the end of The Thief throws the story into a different track, but this one on its own wasn't as good as I'd hoped it would be. 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Recommendation: A quick and entertaining read, although I didn't think it quite lived up to the hype. Teenage fans of historical fantasy (or historical fiction fans who don't mind some religious mysticism thrown into the mix) are going to be the most likely to enjoy this book. ( )

Gen, a thief whose tongue tends to run away with him, is in prison for stealing the king's seal - after boasting openly that he could do so. He's released by the King's magus, who wants him to steal an ancient treasure which is very close to the hearts of the old gods.
This is the second time I have read this, and enjoyed it a lot - Gen is very likable, the tales of the gods and goddesses interesting and the story exciting.

Sometimes you start out reading a fairly normal, average book. Then somewhere in the second or third chapter your eyes widen. Your brain starts to work. You realize “oh man, this is good.” Such was my experience reading The Thief, which is about Gen, a famous thief in an alternate ancient Greece set free from jail in order to steal a precious treasure for the king’s magus.

I’ve heard a lot of good stuff about this book and its sequels. The first few chapters left me a little sceptical because they seemed like your typical “roguish teenager goes on quest with mismatched companions” but I was wrong. Turner knows how to delve into her creation and plumb it for every drop of potential that it contains. It’s terrifically atmospheric, especially with the parts in the cave. I shivered along with Gen. The places feel real. The mythology feels real. The characters feel real. Gen is smart and witty and roguish, but then you see him rolling around yelling in pain like a baby. It’s amusing, to say the least, and endearing. And just when you think you know how the plot is going to go, it doesn’t.

I love a book that can surprise me, and this was a very good book with lots of surprises. ( )

Fun, clever, tricky, and I'm SO glad I have The Queen of Attolia sitting here to read next.

Children's Books Too Cool For School

Wow.

I'm tempted just to leave it at that. There are certain book that make notions of categorization like "Children's Book" seem just silly... and these books are some of them. These aren't just great Children's Books -- these are great books.

All three follow the life and journey of The Thief who travels through a greek-inspired series of nation states. The first novel begins in the kingdom of Sounis, where the thief has been imprisoned for being, well, a theif. But he may earn his freedom if he accompanies an expedition through the kingdom of Eddis, and into Attolia, to regain an important, (and possibly mythical) item. For a journey story, it is really intense, and full of political intrigue, personal conflict, and mystery. These are good books for those ready to move on from Harry Potter.

The kingdoms Turner has created have a very real feel -- especially considering the fantasy locations. The people have pretty detailed histories, religions and mythology, and cultural traditions, which add up to a very realistic fantasy trilogy.

Although, to label these stories fantasy may be slightly is slightly deceiving, since there is only a little bit of the supernatural, and the the setting, while imagined, is wholly realistic.

All three of these are real page-turners, with perhaps the exception of the last -- The King of Attolia -- which gets bogged down in a few sections. The Queen of Attolia is probably my favorite of the three, as it was terrificly suspenseful. However, all three are full of great writing, fascinating storytelling, and fabulous twists. That is my favorite part. The endings of all three novels are totally unexpected.

These books will have really broad appeal -- the fantasy and adventure aspects will appeal to boys, but they don't have the usual feel of a "boy book." Instead of being targeted at a certain age, or sex, or group, they are just good books. Ages 10 and up.

And I think they may be my new favorite kids' books. ( )

The thief of the title is Gen, a young man whose public boasts and subsequent theft of the king’s seal have led him to a cell in the king’s prison, shackled and without means of escape. After a few months in jail, he gets the chance to leave his cell, but only if he takes a journey with the magus, the king’s chief advisor, to steal something for the king.

I’ve heard a lot of good things about this book, and none of the praise has been undeserved. Gen is an engaging narrator, and taking the journey with him and his companions is a lot of fun. I had only two quibbles with this book. First, there is some exposition at the end that Gen gives straight to the reader, which I think would have been much less obtrusive if he’d been speaking to another character.

I also found the set-up of the world Gen lives in a bit unbelievable, in a way that would be problematic if the story was written for adults. Since it’s not, I’m more than happy to let it slide. Megan Whalen Turner has used bits and pieces of Ancient Greek history, geography, culture, and religion to create her countries of Sounis, Attolia, and Eddis, and on the whole I think it works well. ( )