The Thief

Megan Whalen Turner

Sep 2009 · Queen's Thief Book 1 · Sold by Harper Collins

About this ebook

Discover and rediscover the world of the Queen's Thief, from the acclaimed novel The Thief to the thrilling, twenty-years-in-the-making conclusion, The Return of the Thief. The epic novels set in the world of the Queen’s Thief can be read in any order.

New York Times-bestselling author Megan Whalen Turner’s entrancing and award-winning Queen’s Thief novels bring to life the world of the epics. This first book in series introduces one of the most charismatic and incorrigible characters of fiction, Eugenides the thief. The Queen’s Thief novels are rich with political machinations and intrigue, battles lost and won, dangerous journeys, divine intervention, power, passion, revenge, and deception. Perfect for fans of Leigh Bardugo, Marie Lu, Patrick Rothfuss, and George R. R. Martin.

Eugenides, the queen’s thief, can steal anything—or so he says. When his boasting lands him in prison and the king’s magus invites him on a quest to steal a legendary object, he’s in no position to refuse. The magus thinks he has the right tool for the job, but Gen has plans of his own. The Queen’s Thief novels have been praised by writers, critics, reviewers, and fans, and have been honored with glowing reviews, “best of” citations, and numerous awards, including the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, a Newbery Honor, the Andre Norton Award shortlist, and the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award.  

This edition of The Thief includes an exclusive piece by Megan Whalen Turner about her inspiration for the setting of the story, an introduction to the characters from the world of the Queen's Thief, and a map of the world of the Queen's Thief.  

A Newbery Honor Book

An ALA Notable Book

A YALSA Best Book for Young Adults
A Horn Book Fanfare Book
A New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age
A Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books Blue Ribbon Book
A Junior Library Guild Selection

“The Queen’s Thief books awe and inspire me. They have the feel of a secret, discovered history of real but forgotten lands. The plot-craft is peerless, the revelations stunning, and the characters flawed, cunning, heartbreaking, exceptional. Megan Whalen Turner’s books have a permanent spot on my favorites shelf, with space waiting for more books to come.”—Laini Taylor, New York Times-bestselling author of the Daughter of Smoke and Bone novels and Strange the Dreamer

"Unforgettable characters, plot twists that will make your head spin, a world rendered in elegant detail—you will fall in love with every page of these stories. Megan Whalen Turner writes vivid, immersive, heartbreaking fantasy that will leave you desperate to return to Attolia again and again.”—Leigh Bardugo, New York Times-bestselling author of the The Grisha Trilogy and Six of Crows

“Trust me. Just read it. Then read it again, because it will not be the same river twice.”—Lois McMaster Bujold, acclaimed and Hugo Award-winning author of the Vorkosigan Saga, the Chalion Series, and the Sharing Knife series

"In addition to its charismatic hero, this story possesses one of the most valuable treasures of all—a twinkling jewel of a surprise ending." —Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“To miss this thief’s story would be a crime.”—Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books (starred review)

“A literary journey that enriches both its characters and readers before it is over.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“A tantalizing, suspenseful, exceptionally clever novel.”—The Horn Book (starred review)

Ratings and reviews

A book about a master thief? SIGN ME UP. When I saw that Harper Collins India was going to be publishing the first four books in Megan Whalen Turner’s The Thief series here in India with the GORGEOUS new covers, I was beyond excited. I only requested the first two, but being the awesome sauce humans that they are, they sent me all four books and now I’m going to have an amazing time bingeing through the series! #BingesAreTheBest My thoughts about The Thief: · As I said before, I was VERY VERY excited about this book. Say the words ‘Master Thief’, and my mind automatically shifts to Kaz (aka Dirtyhands) in the Six of Crows duology. I couldn’t wait to experience Gen’s world, see the cunning thief that Gen promised to be and pretty much find myself a new favourite character. · The Thief was a very informative book. It had a lot of world building and introduction to the political climate. If I didn’t have the next three books to read right after, I probably wouldn’t have enjoyed it as much. · While this book had GREAT WORLD BUILDING, it had very little else. In Gen, I didn’t find a master thief or a skilled manipulator. Instead, rather than a Thief, I would call him a very skilled explorer. For three quarters of the book, we saw him being taken out of prison, walking across countries and complaining about food. He seemed like a half acute observer, and until they reached the Temple, there was NO THIEVEING HAPPENING. · Honestly, if there was one thing I could have changed, it would have been to describe HOW Gen stole, or rather, made him more shrewd and cunning – something. Even as plot twists are revealed, it seemed like the entire book was based on an uncalculated risk and pure luck. · Obviously, Gen wasn’t ALL I wanted him to be, but that didn’t mean I didn’t like him anyway. His carefree attitude, how he admitted that he could be wrong, and the promise of who he would be from the next few books, all seemed promising, I just didn’t get it in book one. · I LOVED THE RELIGION AND THE STORIES. Gen and the Magus (the King’s right hand man) tell these stories about the Ancient Gods that I really loved for the pure amount of thought that went into them, and how much they contributed into building this world up. · The Thief was a quick read, but it didn’t feel like a great book itself. It felt like a prequel – setting us up for the real adventure, which I am very excited to read about. Do I recommend this series? Yes, but I would consider this book a prequel to it. It’s a simple, quick and fun read that I’m hoping gets more complex as I dive in deeper. 3.5 stars.

Picked this up after reading several good reviews. The story plot is a bit thin, with the main character coming across rather childish... I guess I'm probably too old for this book, my 14y old self would have loved it.

Gen's wit. And the series had some great twists.

About the author

Megan Whalen Turner is the New York Times–bestselling and award-winning author of five stand-alone novels set in the world of the Queen’s Thief. Return of the Thief marks her long-awaited conclusion to the epic and unforgettable story of the thief Eugenides—a story more than twenty years in the making. She has been awarded a Newbery Honor and a Boston Globe–Horn Book Honor and won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Young Adult Literature. She has twice been a finalist for the Andre Norton Award and won the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Children’s Literature.