Thank you so much, NetGalley, Hodder & Stoughton and Hodder Paperbacks, for the chance to read this book in exchange of an honest review.

Eugenides, Gen, can steal anything, or so he says. When his boasting lands him in the king's prison, he gets the chance to get out when the king's magus invites him on an impossible quest: steal a legendary object and win his freedom back. In a long journey, with the magus, Pol, a soldier and two magus apprentices, Sophos and Ambiades, Gen finds himself with his own plans, very different from the magus'

The thief is the first book in a YA fantasy series of six ones, where Megan Whalen Turner introduces intriguing characters, vivid worldbuilding, politics and gods and goddesses, with plot twists, deep characterization and interesting bonds.
I liked reading this book, even though I've found the pacing a bit odd. At first, the story is very slow and it picks up from the middle, giving the readers revelations, twists, surprises and intriguing moments.

The characterization is amazing and I loved Gen as main character. He's smart, witty and he has his own plans and goals. Mistreated because his upbringing and "work" as a thief, Gen answers with snarky remarks, smart conversations and deep knowledge, against prejudices and superiority from the others. The story is intriguing and I loved reading about the twists and revelations and how the author mixed the story with gods and goddesses' myths and their influence and part in the world itself.
The writing is compelling, the characterization good and I liked how the bonds between characters change and deepen.
Very thrilling and, after this ending, I'm very curious to read the other books.

I've heard so many great reviews of this series so was eager to read the reissued first book. It was witty and richly detailed with engaging characters and an interesting plot. Will continue to read the rest of the series.

2.5 stars

Headlines:
I hyped this up for myself
Not a lot goes on for the first half
Interesting characters

The Thief is a book I've been wanting to read for a few years and it's finally getting a UK publisher this year. I bit the hand off netgalley and Hodder for this but I think the hype I'd got myself into over it ultimately made me crash and burn.

This is a character-driven, plot light ya fantasy, pitched around a thief (Gen) and his troop of keepers. Basically, for the first half, not a lot happens but there was enough to just about keep me engaged and that was because I really liked Gen. Surprisingly, I came to like his keeper, the Magus.

When things did pick up (a bit) plot-wise, I think I'd got beyond feeling invested. When I look at the other reviews for this book (it's been released elsewhere for decades), many talk about the slowness of this read but that the investment is worth it for the series. Feeling as I do, I'm unsure whether I will continue.

I'm sad I haven't nicer thoughts to share, but we can't always share our book friends' love for recommendations.

Thank you to Hodder Books for the early review copy.

This was well paced with good characters and some really good political intrigue. It does occasionally feel dated but the world bulding is strong and I enjoyed reading it.

Thanks to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for providing this eARC in exchange for an honest review.
I really enjoyed reading The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner. It's a rather slow-paced book full of twists and turns, set in a world inspired by Greek mythology. I can really recommend this book. It's really fun to read. And the ending leaves you wanting to read more. I can't wait to see what happens next.

So glad to have finally started this series!

I devoured this book a couple of days - fast-paced, fun characters and a fairly simple plot that hides a more interesting world, politics and plot to come - a really great first book to a series.

The Thief follows Gen, master thief, currently languishing in prison. He's given the opportunity to earn his freedom when the king's magus comes calling. A small group must travel in secret across borders to steal something extremely valuable for the country.
The first half of the book is mostly the classic long, fantasy journey with Gen complaining about everything and being generally as annoying as he can manage 😂. The second half is where everything kicks off and you realise that there's a lot more going on than you first think.

I really enjoyed the ancient Greek inspired setting with allusions to Greek mythology and locations inspired by the classical world- particularly Mycenae.

I can't wait to read the rest of this series.

This book was recommended to me by NetGalley, and although it isn't normally something I'd go for, I loved the characters, I loved the premise. I'm not usually a fantasy/adventure fan, but this book had great heist vibes and some interesting morally grey characters. Overall a bit wordy and long winded for my style though.

Gen is a thief who is released from prison on the acceptance that he'll steal an item the king desires. Gen agrees, after all what else has he got to lose?

A large portion of this book was the characters traveling to their destination. I loved the world-building and the little stories that the magus and Gen would tell on their travels. I had a feeling that the two had plans for the item Gen was set to steal but didn't forsee the other twists and turns.

My favorite character was Pol. He seemed to genuinely care about everyone, including Gen and keeping everyone safe on their journey.

Unfortunately, this one wasn't quite for me. I did have to DNF at about 40%, because I just couldn't get through it. It seems like the first part of the book is just a really long journey and conversation between the characters, which you might enjoy. Personally, I didn't.

Actually, the reason why I am rating this 3 stars rather than nothing at all, is because even though I found the overall plot a little boring, I really enjoyed the writing style. The characters tell us old stories and myths along the way, and I thought those were really fun and unique.

I was hoping to enjoy this one, particularly because I've heard the sequel is fantastic, but it just wasn't for me.

Unfortunately, this book was just not for me. It was too slow-paced and the characters felt very two dimensional. Gen’s POV was fun but the rest of the story just didn’t live up to my expectation. I was expecting a lot more action but the whole book was just the journey to the place where he had to steal the item

I've wanted to read this book for so long that I figured the invitation to view it on NetGalley was a sign. So thank you to Hodder And Stoughton & Netgalley for sharing a copy of The Thief with me.

The rating is for the stories of the gods and the last two chapters only. They really made up for the fact that a lot of this book was just boring. The majority of this book was just a group of men meandering but at least Gen was funny.

Don't get me wrong, there are interesting bits and lovely scenes in between. The world-building and little sneaky things that Gen does add to the experience, it just couldn't combat the fact that I felt like I was getting a play by play of every move they made on this trip.

Thank you so much Hodder And Stoughton & Netgalley for sharing a copy of The Thief with me. I had such a fun time reading it.

First things first, I have to admit I was tad confused when I saw that it was published in 1996 but loved that it was being rereleased outside of America. Especially because this book is perfect for Throne of Glass fans. This book reminds me of the books my parents would read and one of the reasons why I was so excited to read fantasy books.

I wanted to read those types of books when I grew up. Reading the beautiful books with the yellowed pages and creased covers because they were so well loved. This book fits into that category perfectly.

If you want to dive into a more classic fantasy novel from the nineties then this book is one for you!

I saw this book on #netgalley and I was immediately transported back to when I was 8 and stumbled across it in the school library. I'm a bit wary about rereading books i loved as a child. Some books are diminished, tarnished when you read them as an adult but The Thief is just as bright and sparkling a gem as when I first read it.
Eugenides is the best sort of adventure hero... he's so human, he doesn't win every battle of wits, we see him bruised and lost for words. But he's also is cunning, daring and reckless. Megan Whalen Turner writes her supporting characters brilliantly too, they don't follow narrow gender roles and they are all well rounded characters in their own right, not just foils for Eugenides.

I would recommend this to anyone, great for about 8 onwards, bonus if you have an interest in Greek mythology.

Completely and utterly forgettable. I finished the book a couple of days ago and can't remember what it was about. I will not rush to read the rest of the series.

A perfect fantasy read for anybody who loves to delve deep into fantasy. The narrative was lucid and engaging..I liked the protagonist and I loved how the story built itself up.

this book had an interesting story, excellent writing, a fantastic protagonist who’s narrative was very entertaining throughout. i loved the world building here and would love to see how it develops. one of the twists i thought was slightly obvious, but the story was throughly entertaining regardless. guessing the twist didn’t ruin the story at all, and i still loved this fast-paced fantasy read!

Missed this one when it first came out. 3.5 stars because it got a bit repetitive but rounded up as the characters where engaging and the world was intriguing and I am going to read the second In the series to see if it build on this promise

This book was a lot of fun to read, books that have a heist / thief plotline are usually some of the most engaging stories to me, as they have great characters and big adventures that read like some of the most action packed movies in cinema. Which is what I got, when reading the thief. Admittedly, I was unfamiliar with the book, but very interested when netgalley invited me to read an arc.

The main character was witty, and really likeable, the banter between characters was light, and funny, and the imagery was well described, making it easy to visualise the story. I did feel like the pace was a little slow at the beginning, but once the story peaks, the intensity and pace pick up.
The book is aimed at younger readers, and so the writing was quite simple, which made it an easy read, however there were a few times where the story became repetitive, and slowed the story down again.

I am now aware that this is a series, and am looking forward to reading the rest of the books.

I really enjoyed this thoughtful, clever fantasy. Gen is a thief, released from prison by a magus who has need of his extraordinary skills. Battered, bruised and starved, the last thing Gen wants is to go on a long road trip with a man who treats him like a dumb, wayward instrument, a soldier and two supercilious apprentices with an unknown destination and no task, but he has little choice.

A good half of this book is an entertaining road trip as Gen watches and learns his companions weaknesses and intentions, the second half a twisty, fun adventure full of surprises and revelations. Beautifully written and absorbing this is a series to savour.

I geuinely had a fun time reading this book. I really enjoyed the book. Perfect for those looking for a quick enjoyable fantasy book