The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner (3.6 Stars)

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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 and feature one of the most charismatic and incorrigible characters of fiction, Eugenides the thief. Megan Whalen Turner’s Queen’s Thief novels are rich with political machinations and intrigue, battles lost and won, dangerous journeys, divine intervention, power, passion, revenge, and deception

 Premise: How compelling or unique is the overview of the story?
----- 6/10: For me, this was a major complaint throughout the story. It has a very linear plot line where the main character is going from point A, to B, and then somewhat unexpectedly, to C.  

 Plot: How well does the action of the story fulfill or even expand the potential of the premise?
----- 7/10: Actions taken by the protagonist allow you to learn a little more about the epicness of the world. Yet all the actions seem a bit lackluster throughout the book, with little redemption coming at the end.  

 Characters: Overall feelings towards the characters. Are they memorable? Exciting? Human? Do we even like them?
----- 7/10: Despite doing everything in his power to get the audience to not like him (coming off as very whiny throughout the whole book), I think most people will like our protagonist. However, most other characters are very one dimensional and seem to be there for the soul purpose of making our protagonist look good. 

 Pacing: How strong is the momentum of the story? Is it hard to put the book down?
----- 9/10: This was one of the strongest points for me. The event that you think will be the climax of the book actually comes much faster than expected and leaves you with a strong desire to see how the rest of the story will play out. At the start of the book I mentally prepared for long trips on dirt roads but was pleasantly surprised when that only happened a little. 

 Prose: Does the author have strong writing skills? Is the text easy and enjoyable to read and not jarring or distracting?
----- 6/10: Writing skills didn’t really add or subtract from the story. 

 Depth: Do elements of the story combine to form an immersive setting? Is it easy to visualize and well thought out?
----- 10/10: This book managed to be extremely immersive despite being relatively short. It managed to hint at political intrigue, supernatural happenings, and super high stakes without taking up 1000 pages. Although there were points where it was painfully clear that an “info dump” was happening, it felt relatively organic. 

 Epic-ness: Are cool things happening? Are story elements used to creating plot action that is exciting and satisfying?
----- 6/10: There are multiple “epic” things that happen, but they sort of fall a little flat. You get the feel that certain events should have just been… bigger?   

 Total: 51/70: I think that I am going to go ahead and give this a 4 point bump because I feel like it set things up well for later books. Although I have only read the first one, it managed to set the stage for an interesting world and one that I wouldn’t mind being shown by a bit of a winey Queen’s Thief. 
Content warning: Some graphic descriptions of violence

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