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Reviews tagging 'Adult/minor relationship'
Little thieves. C'era una volta una ragazza cattiva by Margaret Owen
24 reviews
r_a_bell's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Classism, Murder, Sexism, Violence, Abandonment, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Death, Gaslighting, Blood, and Gore
marleywrites's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Margaret Owen, I love you forever for writing this book. I’m writing this review after reading this book for the second time in preparation for Painted Devils.
Vanja is incredible. I adore Emeric. I could not create a more perfect duo. Add Gisele and Ragne to the mix and you’ve got the perfect conniving crew.
This story had action, adventure, sleuthing, chaos, and beautiful romance(s). It features a queer normative world. It has magic and gods and politics. It has thieving and scheming.
This story made me cry both times I read it. Vanja is such a strong character, I love her and I see so much of myself in her story and her fears and her hopes. She is an excellent example of how to write PTSD in characters, without glorifying or romanticizing their traumas.
Emeric is possibly one of my favorite book boyfriends ever. I’ll leave it at that! 💛
I cannot wait for Painted Devils! I’m posting this review 8 days from the release date!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Death, Grief, Child abuse, Abandonment, and Animal death
Moderate: Death of parent, Gaslighting, Violence, Infidelity, Police brutality, Murder, Toxic relationship, and Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Fire/Fire injury and Sexual assault
There are moments when a character is triggered by her previous sexual assault. But the sexual assault does not occur on page.cassie_roberts's review against another edition
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I absolutely loved this book, it took me on a rollercoaster ride of emotions the whole way through it. The book is a wonderful re-imagining of the Goose Girl that is beautifully written, well-paced, and extremely well-thought-out. Despite its length and complexity Little Thieves never lagged for a second.
This story was happy, sad, bitter, sweet, frustrating, and wholesome in a way that was thrilling and impossible to put down. The humor, wit, and banter are well-written and perfectly executed to have you laughing out loud at the most unexpected moments.
The characters are diverse, witty, charming, morally grey, righteously independent, and full of growth. The story follows Vanya, the goddaughter of Death and Fortune. Vanya is the horrible girl at the heart of the story. She is morally grey, she steals lives and she exposes thorny truth. She is positioned as someone who will do anything to survive but she may surprise you yet or not if you love her character like I did.
Each relationship whether it was romantic or otherwise in the story was developed in such a way that it felt real. You got to follow along as characters developed their thoughts and feelings towards one another and it all made sense.
The world itself was incredible. It was atmospheric, dark and mysterious. The story is told like a fairy tale and it had me hooked. The book setting has heavy Germanic influences from the setting, to the food and the language used throughout the book. The books magic system has gods, grimlings, kobolds and general creatures of nightmares. As well as Perfects who are humans connected to the Godly Court who can use witch ash or witch oil to perform magic to protect against the grimlings or to help heal injuries but it comes with a price as most magic does. Overall the magic system is intensely intricate and intriguing and I completely loved the high fantasy nature of it.
I cannot wait to get my hands on the next book - Painted Devils 😍😍
This story was happy, sad, bitter, sweet, frustrating, and wholesome in a way that was thrilling and impossible to put down. The humor, wit, and banter are well-written and perfectly executed to have you laughing out loud at the most unexpected moments.
The characters are diverse, witty, charming, morally grey, righteously independent, and full of growth. The story follows Vanya, the goddaughter of Death and Fortune. Vanya is the horrible girl at the heart of the story. She is morally grey, she steals lives and she exposes thorny truth. She is positioned as someone who will do anything to survive but she may surprise you yet or not if you love her character like I did.
Each relationship whether it was romantic or otherwise in the story was developed in such a way that it felt real. You got to follow along as characters developed their thoughts and feelings towards one another and it all made sense.
The world itself was incredible. It was atmospheric, dark and mysterious. The story is told like a fairy tale and it had me hooked. The book setting has heavy Germanic influences from the setting, to the food and the language used throughout the book. The books magic system has gods, grimlings, kobolds and general creatures of nightmares. As well as Perfects who are humans connected to the Godly Court who can use witch ash or witch oil to perform magic to protect against the grimlings or to help heal injuries but it comes with a price as most magic does. Overall the magic system is intensely intricate and intriguing and I completely loved the high fantasy nature of it.
I cannot wait to get my hands on the next book - Painted Devils 😍😍
Content Warnings
Moderate: Physical abuse, Sexual assault, and Child abuse
Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Animal death
The author said it best - “this is a story about many things, beautiful and ugly, painful and true. There are discussions of child abuse and neglect, navigating abusive environments, and trauma from a past attempted assault. For many of us, these are wounds, and I have tried to give them air here without tearing at the hard-won stitches. Still, I trust you to know your scars.”diorra's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
It was a fun read. I love the protagonist and her humor and the adventure element was very fun. The world was very magical and the world building was great. It's really charming and the characters are wonderful. I find Vanja very relatable and i understand her feelings completely. Yes she can be happy for others and she cares but she's bitter, kinda selfish, and she does want attention as she was neglected so much. She also craves other's validation and really wants to prove herself. Her development was great. I also loved the romance sub-plot. My only complaint is that some parts in the beginning bored me. It's not like things didn't happen, lots did. I just didn't fully connect with the characters before. I liked the ending though. This book also has great representation of queer characters and non-binary characters.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Drug abuse, Bullying, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Abandonment, and Sexism
Minor: Body shaming
mpbookreviews's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Blood, Alcoholism, Animal death, Violence, Death, Sexual violence, Abandonment, Murder, Child abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Vomit, Sexual harassment, Gaslighting, Domestic abuse, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
aformeracceleratedreader's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
This was a surprisingly heavy story using folktales/fairytales and the typical princess imagery as a backdrop to a sinister situation rife with magic. It's a tale of growth, of hurt and healing, of reclaiming autonomy, and ultimately of justice. Seriously enjoyed it but def recommend anyone to check out content warnings first.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting, Grief, Sexism, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Classism, Death, Abandonment, Alcohol, Fire/Fire injury, Misogyny, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Child abuse, Mental illness, Emotional abuse, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, and Violence
quillify_'s review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Gaslighting, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Grief, Sexism, Violence, Toxic friendship, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Murder, Sexual assault, Animal death, and Blood
terrik_'s review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I haven’t been a reader of the YA genre for a while, mainly because I think most books do not delve in-depth into their characters. Little Thieves, though, was exactly the opposite.
For a YA book, and as a book in general, I loved the complexity of Vanja’s character. There are literally so many parts to her. First her actions can come off as childish. But when we get to know her backstory, I came to sympathise with her, wanted to protect her, and came to really hate some characters in the book.
The romance in this book was so refreshing to read. It was necessary for the plot to move forward and it helped to unravel the last few layers to Vanja that really showed us who she was as a character. I also enjoyed that there was a gradual build up to their romance that made it feel more real (for lack of a better word).
Apart from the character developments in this book, I would say that the events that took place were all well spaced out. Everything had its own time and place.
That said, I think that the world wasn’t built up as strongly as it could’ve been. We are never really given a crash course of the sort about how humans coexist with the gods and other spirits. We don’t know how magic works and who has them. I didn’t mind it that much, but there were gaps that made me go ???.
The reason why this book doesn’t get a five star rating for me is because Vanja’s character doesn’t seem to really match her age. At 17, she draws butts for fun and she seemed too shy with the topic of sex for someone who’s lived such a hard life. (And, well, at 17, sex wasn’t a topic I shied away from).
Overall a great book!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship and Violence
Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, and War
sarahaf712's review against another edition
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Blood, Body horror, Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Misogyny, Violence, Classism, Animal death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Lesbophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Fatphobia, and Ableism
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Drug abuse, Police brutality, and Toxic friendship
oddduck's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I like stories that are assembled with the precision of a watchmaker. Every detail matters. Each tiny piece works together to move forward. If one thing is even slightly off, the story doesn’t work the way it should.
This is one of those stories.
500 pages is getting to be on the long side for me, so I was expecting a little bit of drag. There was none. Every single scene in this book is there for a reason and 500 pages practically flies by. Yet it also didn’t feel like we were moving too fast at any point.
The plot came at just the right pace and with just the right amount of detail that it all came together perfectly in my head, without me figuring out the end too soon/easily and without me feeling frustrated because I didn’t have enough information until the very last second. I figured out part of Adalbrecht’s plan shortly before Vanja and Emeric did, which was ideal timing for me. And everything I hadn’t figured out fell into place as it was spelled out. This plot was like a carefully conducted symphony and it went off without a hitch.
I also loved all the characters, even when some of them weren’t particularly likeable. There’s such a clear motive for their actions that though I may not agree with them, I understand and feel sympathetic for them (except Adalbrecht and Irmgard, they’re both just terrible – that’s a compliment though). They were all so beautifully written, but Vanja and Emeric were the standouts for me.
Vanja’s character arc was incredible. I, admittedly, have a soft spot for characters who have been so hurt they think the only way to protect themselves is to close themselves off and harden their heart, and Vanja is no exception. I love this type of character because it’s moving to see them learn to love and be loved again (even if they’re dragged into it kicking and screaming, like Vanja). The way she grows over the course of the story - going from hating/resenting Emeric, Ragne, and Gisele to calling them her friends and making peace with her past and wanting Emeric to catch her - is brilliantly done. It feels natural and inevitable.
I fell for Emeric in exactly the way Vanja did (er, that is his façade, not the kissing part). It was absolutely delightful to find out how wrong my impression of him was. Like, I actually laughed out loud at the reveal and I’m gleeful just thinking about it. I liked the façade, but the real Emeric was even better. He’s smart and flawed and eager to prove himself and he cares so deeply. He’s just such a great character and Vanja’s many descriptions of him are both correct and hilarious.
There’s also the obligatory shout out for the art, which was done by Margaret Owen as well. She’s talked about a lot of the symbolism and composition of each piece on her twitter, and it’s definitely worth a read through. The art on its own is beautiful, but her explanations of it make it even better.
There is so much else to talk about in the book - the structure, the fairy tale, the casual queer rep, the demi rep (!), the magic system, the rest of the world building, the creatures (Poldi!) - and it’s all so, so good. Honestly, I loved every single thing about this book and I could talk about it for hours. The highest praise I can give it is this: I want to take this book apart like it’s a clock to see how it works. What an absolutely phenomenal book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism
Moderate: Abandonment, Body horror, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, and Violence
Minor: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Death, Drug abuse, Toxic relationship, and Vomit