Author: Margaret Owen
Publication Date: 19 October 2021
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co
Page Count: 512
Dates Read: Feb 22 – 26
Reading Method: Physical / Illumicrate Backlog
Review
What a treasure of a story! Wrapped in this gorgeous Illumicrate packaging, I would expect nothing less. This cover – freaking stunning. The edges – divine. The naked hard cover – a work of art. Even the inside of the book is lovely, with illustrations with each of the mini stories at the beginnings of each section. I would expect nothing less than a magical experience for something so flinging-flanging pretty!
Despite having a few of Owen’s books on my shelves, Little Thieves was my first experience with her writing and I have to say, I am in love! Little Thieves is the story of Vanja, the goddaughter of the low gods Death and Fortune. She has been disguising herself as Princess Gisele in an attempt to steal from the rich to fund her escape. Unfortunately, she encounters some disruptions to her plans – a curse, a pesky investigator, the real Gisele, and Gisele’s monstrous betrothed, and an impossible two week time frame… just to name a few.
Tell me you didn’t fall in love with these characters. Go ahead. I won’t believe you. This cast is impeccable and I am obsessed with each and every one of them. Vanja is funny, brave, and determined, though I think Ragne was my favorite of the main circle. Ragne was chaotic and hilarious and the epitome of a cinnamon roll character. There are so many characters in this circle of friends, and I think trying to keep up with all of them and their differing personalities is half the fun. I love how diverse this group is and how they all interact with each other.
The story itself is quite complex as well. In fact, there is so much going on that it can be a little tricky to remember everything that is happening. Sometimes this can be a little frustrating in a book, but I think it really works in Little Thieves because when something does pop back up as a twist, the seeds have been planted so it’s not completely unbelievable. And boy does this story have twists. It’s full of humor, magic, and moments that catch you off guard. Owen also uses little stories at the beginning of each section, which adds just a little sparkle that I absolutely love.
I cannot wait to see what is in store for book two… there’s going to be a book two, right?!
About the Book
Vanja Schmidt knows that no gift is freely given, not even a mother’s love―and she’s on the hook for one hell of a debt. Vanja, the adopted goddaughter of Death and Fortune, was Princess Gisele’s dutiful servant up until a year ago. That was when Vanja’s otherworldly mothers demanded a terrible price for their care, and Vanja decided to steal her future back… by stealing Gisele’s life for herself.
The real Gisele is left a penniless nobody while Vanja uses an enchanted string of pearls to take her place. Now, Vanja leads a lonely but lucrative double life as princess and jewel thief, charming nobility while emptying their coffers to fund her great escape. Then, one heist away from freedom, Vanja crosses the wrong god and is cursed to an untimely end: turning into jewels, stone by stone, for her greed.
Vanja has just two weeks to figure out how to break her curse and make her getaway. And with a feral guardian half-god, Gisele’s sinister fiancé, and an overeager junior detective on Vanja’s tail, she’ll have to pull the biggest grift yet to save her own life.
About the Author
Born and raised at the end of the Oregon Trail, Margaret Owen first encountered an author in the wild in fourth grade. Roughly twenty seconds later, she decided she too would be an author, the first of many well-thought-out life decisions.
The career plan shifted frequently as Margaret spent her childhood haunting the halls of Powell’s Books. After earning her degree in Japanese, her love of espresso called her north to Seattle, where she worked in everything from thrift stores to presidential campaigns. The common thread between every job can be summed up as: lessons were learned.
Fortunately, it turned out that fourth-grade Margaret was onto something. She now spends her days wrestling disgruntled characters onto the page, and negotiating a long-term hostage situation with her two monstrous cats. (There is surprisingly little difference between the two.) In her free time, she enjoys exploring ill-advised travel destinations, and raising money for social justice nonprofits through her illustrations.
[…] Little Thieves by Margaret Owen […]