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A review by caitlin_bookchats
Return of the Thief by Megan Whalen Turner
adventurous
dark
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
5.0
I found this to be a fitting ending to Whalen Turner's Thief series. We are introduced to a largely new narrator who is privy to much of the action that takes place so we are held apart from but able to see much more of Eugenidies & Co than in books 3-5. We see the aftermath of much of the planning and threat from the rest of the series, and I found the resolution largely satisfying, if getting there was emotionally fraught.
One thing of note: the narrator here suffers from some form of visible disability that limits his movement and does not allow him to speak aloud. The disability runs in his family but previous members with it have been hidden from society or not allowed to live to adulthood. I don't know if we get enough description of the disability to know what the modern name for it would be and I am unsure if the portrayal is "accurate" but there is a lot of ableism aimed at the character from various figures throughout the book and it's important to know that going in.
One thing of note: the narrator here suffers from some form of visible disability that limits his movement and does not allow him to speak aloud. The disability runs in his family but previous members with it have been hidden from society or not allowed to live to adulthood. I don't know if we get enough description of the disability to know what the modern name for it would be and I am unsure if the portrayal is "accurate" but there is a lot of ableism aimed at the character from various figures throughout the book and it's important to know that going in.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Death, Violence, and War
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, and Torture
Minor: Death of parent, Miscarriage, and Vomit
The main difference between this book and previous books in this series re: content is the death and violence associated with a war and the ableism directed towards our narrator. This waxes and wanes over the course of the book but it's relevant to note there are some extremely harsh views directed at him including re: the value of his life. Other content is on par with previous books.
After the previous book many people wondered about the nature of the relationship between the main characters of that novel. There is no clarity about those two in this novel, but there are other prominent side characters who are in a confirmed m/m relationship and there is no particular judgment for the relationships being m/m in the text from any characters.