Final Rating: 3.5 Stars

The Smoke Thieves is a story set in a fantasy world, following the lives of 4 characters - A princess, a traitor, a hunter and a thief - and how their destinies meet.

The first thing I liked about this book is that we get to follow each individual character as they all get their own chapters. This could however be a little overwhelming if you are not used to multiple POV. My favourite character were Catherine and Tash (and I have to admit I tended to not really care about the other 2).
The world was also complex enough and not too hard to understand. I really love a very in depth world building, which is usually lacking in YA Fantasy books, but was pleasantly surprised here.

I found the pacing very irregular as the first part of the book felt quite slow and not much happened. All the action and plot twists were packed in the last quarter of the story.

All in all I thought this was a strong first book in the series and I cannot wait to read the next one.

There is so much to enjoy in this story (and not just for the intended YA audience).

With five heroes being led to a pivotal time and place you may be thinking you would get ‘lost’ in each narration but you would be wrong. Sally Green has given her lead characters different roles and very different voices so it’s easy to stay with the narration you’re reading and pick it up again when the time comes. I’ve enjoyed each one and although I don’t have a favourite character, Catherine is awesome. Always questioning directives, her determination and initiative make for some entertaining as well as heartbreaking scenes. She is on the brink of growing into a formidable leader who will gain loyalty and love because she puts people first. I loved the banter between Tash and her boss Gravell, this relationship caused me laughter and tears. Having five different places with all the associated customs and people makes for an interesting read.

There’s plenty happening on the separate quests and each of our characters find out more about themselves as they face and overcome challenges. Themes include sexual identity/orientation, a love triangle, forbidden love, war/assassins, betrayals, tyranny, court intrigue, secrets and prejudice.

Demon smoke is the one thing that draws them together. Leaving our heroes at the start of the plateau, I’m intrigued as to where the story will go next. I’m thinking there’s a different perspective to come on this, that it’s not what we understand on the surface of things… I’m looking forward to finding out more about the world of the demons (hopefully we will!).

The Smoke Thieves by Sally Green sets the foundation for this YA fantasy series and in my opinion does it really well! I’ve thoroughly enjoyed getting to know the characters as they’ve made their way to Pitoria and excited to see what happens in the next story now they’re all together.

If you’re looking to get stuck into a new trilogy this could be exactly what you’re looking for.

After a very strong start - demon hunting goes awry, told from the perspective of a feisty 13-year-old girl - the book quite quickly went downhill. Firstly, the title feels quite misleading - apart from Tash's opening chapter, there's not really any more demon hunting or demon involvement. Secondly, the pacing for the rest of the book - after such a heart-racing start - was all over the place and overwhelmingly slow.

It was hard to tell if this book was meant to be character-led or plot-focused - the multi-perspective implies character-led, but the balance between different-perspective chapters was all wrong, and some characters were (I'm sorry to say) plain boring. But if the novel was meant to be plot-focused, then the pacing issues threw that way off course.

Catherine was one of the most appealing characters - she's got her head on straight, wants a better, fairer world for everyone and has enough gumption to stand up against tyranny when necessary. But her romance with her bodyguard, Ambrose, was dull and unbelievable. There's nothing worse than being sold a romance that has essentially already happened - where's the tension? And more importantly, in this case, where's the chemistry?

Here is where Edyon and March's burgeoning relationship should have filled in the gaps - but March was too passive and quiet a character to really engage with, and I found Edyon frankly annoying, so that relationship didn't have a spark either (particularly sad given its 'forbidden romance' element).

There was so much potential for this story, but throughout reading it I kept feeling frustrated - like there was always something just out of reach which would have made the chapter I was on more gripping, or nuanced, or insightful.

It's been a while since I read a YA fantasy with multiple point of views and after reading The Smoke Thieves, I don't know why I don't read it more often. I loved all the intrigue, change of perspective (and most of the time, country/nation) and waiting to see how it'll all tie together in the end - or will it do that at all. It made the world more alive to see it through different eyes and to learn more about the four countries/nations through the eyes of natives there. Princess Catherine's perspective offered court life and responsibilities, while March was a servant so his chapters gave insight to the another end of the social spectrum. Then there was Edyon, who was son of a merchant and a bastard, which caused social stigma for him, and young Tash who was a thief. One of Catherine's guards, Ambrose, also got some chapters from his point of view, which also drove the plot forward.

Of all the perspectives and characters, Tash was only one I couldn't stand at all; with everyone else, there was something I could identify with and understand their motives. Tash was just annoying, spending all her time jabbering about new boots, and her chapters didn't seem to drive the plot forward. I liked everyone else's chapters, but I must say that Edyon and March were my favourites. March's grumpy and guarded while Edyon was bubbly and outgoing, and that contrast was everything.

It's difficult to say much, because I don't want to spoil anything. The Smoke Thieves was a clever mix of character and plot driven story. I enjoyed the whole book thoroughly, because I liked connecting the dots and trying to guess what might happen next. There's a map on the book, which I consulted a lot, because I love to see where everything is and where the characters are going.

I highly recommend The Smoke Thieves, because of how captivating beginning for the series it is. I yearn to learn more, especially since there was a lot happening by the end of the book. Also, I just need to know that Edyon and March are going to make it!

I will start off by saying that I have read 'Half Bad' by the author Sally Green a few years ago. When I heard that she had written another novel, I was a bit intrigued to see what she would do with a different story line.

I have found that I enjoyed 'The Smoke Thieves' a lot more that I did with 'Half Bad', which I will eventually re-read.

So this book is a fantasy, and fantasies aren't normally my forte.

'The Smoke Thieves' is the first book in a new series, and I actually look forwards to when the sequel comes out.

This book for me was quite slow-paced. There is a lot of being introduced to all characters and their back story, as well as watching them travel through the lands.

There are several characters who hold sections of the book: Princess Catherine, Ambrose, March, Edyon and Tash. Each introduction is explained well, and I didn't find myself confused.

When reading the book, one of the things that I found, was that I could picture the scenes well. I can honestly see this book as being a TV show.

Two characters I despised was Boris, the brother of Catherine, and Catherine's father, King Aloysius. However, we as a reader are meant to have a dislike for these two. I was suspicious of Boris about fifty or so pages into the book.

There is a big event around three quarters of the book where there is a plot revealed, and I really enjoyed finding this out, and it kept me going.

The ending contained some suspense and action, which leas me to wanting to read the sequel when it's out just to find out what happens next.

I think the reason I docked half a star was because there were some of the sections I found more exciting than others, however I still persevered, and ended up enjoying the book in general.

In general, I definitely recommend people to give this book a read. It's different, and I think if more people read it, it will go far.

Impressive start to what promises to be an intriguing trilogy from the author of the Half Bad series. The five perspectives and balanced and compliment each other, with none of the characters crowding the other voices out. I'm especially looking forward to learning more about the smoke of the title.

Fantasy is one of my favourite genres and this book didn't disappoint. Very good start to what has the makings of a great series. The cliff hanger conclusion makes reading the next in the series, essential

The Smoke Thieves is the first in a fantasy series bringing together the lives and stories of four different characters: a princess, a traitor, a hunter and a thief. Catherine's father and brother dictate her every move, and are preparing her to marry a prince she has never met to strengthen their alliances. but she might just be in love with one of her guards. Tash is working with Gravell hunting demons and capturing their smoke to sell (side note: that's illegal). March is looking for revenge and Edyon is moving around from town to town stealing things. The stories are all very distinctive and well-written, but Catherine and Tash's interested me most, and I did find myself skimming the other chapters at times to get back to their stories. The Smoke Thieves is a very political novel. I found it slow to start and couldn't understand how the different story-lines worked together, but it grew on me and I cannot wait to read more.

Major apologies for how late this review is! Unfortunately The Smoke Thieves was one of the books caught up in my dissertation month but better late than never, right? Personally it took me a little too long to get into this story than I would have liked, and it left me needing to go back and read a little at a time to finish it.

In the end I was relieved but it was only down to three of the main characters, which left two perspectives that I cared less for. First up, Catherine’s character (the Princess) was my all time favourite from the book. I loved how strong and smart she was and her side to the story is really what kept me reading. The hunter, Tash, was my second favourite. I didn’t like her at first because she was like a 12 year old who swore like mad and I guess that’s just one of my personal pet peeves with a character but just because I’m not a fan of swearing generally even when the character is like 50. Edyon was another I found endearing – the Thief – he was quite the joker and I loved how open he was with his feelings too. He’s also a character who is either bisexual or gay whilst technically being a prince, and I’m always a fan of seeing LGBTQ+ representations like that in fantasy because I guess in a sense it makes the world more believable for me?

Catherine’s soldier Ambrose was fairly interesting but sometimes I found myself a little bored with his character, he was fairly one-dimensional with a sole interest in protecting Catherine though that did make him a believable love interest simultaneously. Oh yeah and then the last character was the traitor, March. I just didn’t like him. He seemed very easily manipulated and I think because I liked Edyon so much I hated him more because I thought he could do better for a love interest?

The ending “revelation” discovered by Catherine was a little frustrating because it’s something that the reader sees several times throughout the book, personally I found myself just getting annoyed that it hadn’t been realised sooner, especially as the nature of it seems like something many would have come across before it’s reveal? My favourite scenes were most definitely Catherine’s travels around Pitoria, which were made better by her purposefully going against her brothers wishes (you’ll hate him, just trust me) because he’s vile.

I don’t know if I’ll be in a rush to read the rest of the series, but it’s something I possibly would pick up at some point further down the line.

I have never gotten over Sally's Half Bad trilogy and I went into this thinking I will never love it as much as them. I remember seeing the inscription Sally had written in the special edition of Half Lost and crying on the shop floor! However... The Smoke Thieves goes to show how brilliant Sally is. Its a completely different feel and style to Half Bad with many more characters and threads yet it easily equals the high quality of that trilogy. I may not yet be openly crying about it but I am deeply invested in where this story is going. Fabulously well thought out plot, great range of characters and a level of writing I wish I could achieve.

Gonna go with my first rating I was going to give this for around the first 90% of the book. It would have been an extra star if the whole book was like the last 10%.

It took me like a thousand years to finish this book and I'm so tired. I could literally only get through this when I was commuting places.

Just keep the characters together and I think all will be better. Catherine's POV wasn't bad, March's and Edyon's were okay, more meh than anything. Ambrose's was boring. Tash's POV was the best tbh. She's like twelve and a demon hunter at that. I would just gladly read about her and be happy.

Ah. I'm glad I've finished, not sure if I'll read the next book but we'll see.

This is my first time reading a book by Sally Green. I know loads of people read and loved her Half Bad series, but I haven’t had the chance to pick it up yet. I was therefore unsure what to expect with this book, but I thought it was an excellent start to what I’m sure is going to be a phenomenal series.

The book has been dubbed “Game of Thrones” for a younger audience and I can totally see the similarities. The world building is good, with this wide world full of magic and different kingdoms. I loved the politics in this book, so many of the characters were scheming and vying for different things. There were plenty of battles and fighting and the book was a real page turner.

The story really sucked me in and I raced through the final few chapters. The story follows five main characters (a princess, a soldier, a traitor, a hunter and a thief) and each chapter alternates point of view for them. Although I liked all the characters I did feel like five was maybe too many. There were certain ones I preferred over others – I really liked Catherine and Ambrose, but was less interested in March. The characters were well fleshed out and I’m really looking forward to seeing how they develop as the series continues.

The chapters are really short so it definitely made me say ‘oh just one more chapter’ until it was the wee hours of the morning. Fast paced and exciting, The Smoke Thieves is a fantasy book that you definitely don’t want to miss

3.5 stars

Boot-obsessed Tash lures demons to their deaths and sells their smoke for a living.
Catherine is a princess and daughter of the king of Brigant, a ruthless man who has no love for her. Catherine has feelings for Ambrose, her guard, but cannot act on them as she is soon to marry the prince of Pitoria. The match is one Catherine's father has arranged, and she has no choice but to do as the king wishes.
Ambrose is loyal to Catherine. He will protect her at all costs but must keep his feelings for the princess secret lest someone finds out - in which case, Ambrose might just lose his life.
March is a servant to the prince of Calidor, a man March detests for allowing March's people to be slaughtered. March will do anything to get revenge.
Edyon is a thief whose bad habit might just get him into trouble one day.
Can Catherine be happy in her marriage and new home?
Will March get his revenge?
Can Edyon trust the foreigner with the strange eyes?
But, most importantly, will Tash buy those boots?

The Smoke Thieves was an interesting read with some intriguing ideas - in particular, that of demon smoke.
The novel is told from five different perspectives - Catherine, Ambrose, Tash, March, and Edyon. I found Catherine, Ambrose and Tash's chapters the most interesting. I wasn't as keen on March and Edyon. I really liked Tash and Gravell's relationship.
I was worried that I might find five perspectives to be too many, but I didn't have any trouble switching between them.
The romance wasn't a huge part of the book, which I appreciated as it might have taken away from the story.
The plot was interesting, but the action scenes didn't grip me as much as they should have.
I liked the writing style, which was easy to follow.
This did feel a tad too long at over five hundred pages, but it only dragged once or twice.
I'm definitely intrigued to see what happens in the next book.

Overall this was an enjoyable read and a good start to the series.

This is a really enjoyable book!

The world building behind this title really immersed yourself into Brigant, albeit slowly, and you felt for each and every character you met a long the way. The multiple POV didn't confuse too much, it actually helped explain a lot when seeing the same event through different eyes.

It has the camaraderie of Six of Crows and the world building of A Daughter of Smoke and Bone.

Started well then got bored after about 30%, the story just did not move on fast enough, might give it another try one day.

I loved Sally Green's previous books, so I was really excited about this one. Sally is amazing at crafting vivid worlds and characters that you care about. It took me a while to get into the multiple perspectives but then I raced through the book. The Smoke Thieves is a really intriguing start to a series and I can't wait for the next book!

THE CHARACTERS….

I really enjoyed the characters in this book, especially Princess Catherine, Tash and Ambrose. March and Edyon's storylines and relationships were quite predictable so I was not that excited for their perspective, especially since I had a feeling from the beginning that what March has been told may not have been entirely true. Their personalities really come through and shine, including those of the side characters that are around them. I felt that I got a good enough understanding of them and felt emotionally invested in their story. 

I really LOVED how Princess Catherine was written, her storyline was incredible and she kept me going through. She has grown so much from the beginning of this novel and her transformation is incredible! Also... that ending!

THE PLOT…

The plot was interesting and the politics of this world were construed and reminded me quite a bit of Game of Thrones in the sense in which power was a key element, especially in Brigant were Princess Catherine resides, to begin with. I thought that it was all well pulled together towards the end and it all made sense. To be honest, the way this was crafted it's what blew me away so much, even more than the writing or the characters.

THE WRITING…

The writing was really good, the characters and the plot were well pulled together, although slightly predictable at times. I wanted to know a bit more about the demons, where they were coming from and how all of that worked, but I believe that this might be, hopefully, picked up on the sequel. Sometimes I did feel a little bored and struggled to continue, but fortunately, the chapters were quite short so that helped with the momentum. I did like the fact that it did not shy from violence. 

THE ENJOYMENT…

I did enjoy this book, I do recommend this book, especially if you are a fan of multiple POV's and intersecting storylines.

I really enjoyed this book a lot. All of the characters voices were strong and clear and none of them got on my nerves which can sometimes happen. Though I admit there were one or two which I loved a little more than others. The writing style was great and the storyline compelling and engaging. That cliffhanger ending was a killer thought and I cannot wait for more.
I gave this book 4.5 out of 5 stars.

It took me a long time to get in to this book, could not work out the links in the beginning between all the different characters. Once I worked it out, I enjoyed the book. and the characters, well thought out.
Had the feeling at the end that there could be a sequel, I hope so.

I enjoyed this book quite a bit. It tells the intertwining stories of Tash, a demon hunter, Edyion, a thief, Katherine, a princess, Ambrose, a soldier and March, a young man hoping to avenge the deaths of his people. The world building is good - there is nothing too challenging here in terms of place, character or plot, but I think that sometimes, it is a real pleasure to read something uncomplicated. Again, many of the characters are somewhat stereotypical for a fantasy novel, but it does feel more of an homage than derivative and I didn't feel like the narrative suffered as a result. There are some interesting ideas at play here too - I like the demons and the way they interact with the environment and I enjoyed the way the narrative switched between different characters. There were times when I became a little frustrated with the pacing of the revelations and I did feel that we were given information from one character too soon for the plot to retain a lot of suspense. Overall, though, I thought it was an enjoyable book and I will continue to read the series to find out what happens next.
I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.