The Thief

By: Megan Whalen Turner

Narrated by: Steve West

Length: 7 hrs and 41 mins

Publisher's Summary

Discover and rediscover the world of the Queen's Thief, from the acclaimed series launch The Thief to the thrilling, 20-years-in-the-making conclusion, The Return of the Thief.

New York Times best-selling author Megan Whalen Turner’s entrancing and award-winning Queen’s Thief novels bring to life the world of the epics. This first book in series introduces one of the most charismatic and incorrigible characters of fiction, Eugenides the thief. The Queen’s Thief novels are rich with political machinations and intrigue, battles lost and won, dangerous journeys, divine intervention, power, passion, revenge, and deception. Perfect for fans of Leigh Bardugo, Marie Lu, Patrick Rothfuss, and George R. R. Martin. 

Eugenides, the queen's thief, can steal anything - or so he says. When his boasting lands him in prison and the king's magus invites him on a quest to steal a legendary object, he's in no position to refuse. The magus thinks he has the right tool for the job, but Gen has plans of his own. 

The Queen's Thief novels have been praised by writers, critics, reviewers, and fans, and have been honored with glowing reviews, "best of" citations, and numerous awards, including the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, a Newbery Honor, the Andre Norton Award shortlist, and the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award. 

A Newbery Honor Book

An ALA Notable Book

A YALSA Best Book for Young Adults

A Horn Book Fanfare Book

A New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age

A Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books 

Blue Ribbon Book

A Junior Library Guild Selection

“The Queen’s Thief books awe and inspire me. They have the feel of a secret, discovered history of real but forgotten lands. The plot-craft is peerless, the revelations stunning, and the characters flawed, cunning, heartbreaking, exceptional. Megan Whalen Turner’s books have a permanent spot on my favorites shelf, with space waiting for more books to come.” (Laini Taylor, New York Times best-selling author of the Daughter of Smoke and Bone novels and Strange the Dreamer) 

"Unforgettable characters, plot twists that will make your head spin, a world rendered in elegant detail - you will fall in love with every page of these stories. Megan Whalen Turner writes vivid, immersive, heartbreaking fantasy that will leave you desperate to return to Attolia again and again.” (Leigh Bardugo, number-one New York Times best-selling author of Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom)

©1996 Megan Whalen Turner (P)2017 HarperCollins Publishers

Critic Reviews

"In addition to its charismatic hero, this story possesses one of the most valuable treasures of all - a twinkling jewel of a surprise ending." ( Publishers Weekly)

"A literary journey that enriches both its characters and readers before it is over." ( Kirkus Reviews)

"A tantalizing, suspenseful, exceptionally clever novel." ( The Horn Book)

Narrator is wrong choice

I've read the book many times so it seemed natural to add this to my audible collection. The book itself is fantastic. Unfortunately the narrarator choice isn't great. Him reading other books would be fine but his deep scratchy voice was totally the wrong pick for a whiney adolescent that probably hasn't hit puberty or is just going through it. It didn't fit the character at all and this book is written in first person!

Exceptional Story, Inferior Performance

The story is one of my all-time favorites. And I probably would have enjoyed this audiobook if I hadn't already heard the amazing performance by Jeff Woodman.

Great book, wrong narrator

I first listened to The Thief as a book on tape (yes cassette tape, I am that old) preformed by Jeff Woodman when i was in middle school. Mr Woodman gave a much better performance than Mr West has. Mr West has a slow, monotone, deadpan voice during most of the narration that gives the story the feel of an uninterested and uninteresting person recounting a series of events in a business setting, only injecting feeling and emotion into the performance during character dialog. This style of narration glosses over much of the humor, sarcasm, and wit that really brings this book to life and makes Eugenides such an interesting and enjoyable character.

Its not that Mr West is a bad narrator, i am sure that someone who had never encountered Mr Woodman's performance would find this to be an acceptable audio book. i just remember this audio book being so much more than just acceptable.

The first of many great stories

This writer is one of the funnest riders to read. This story The Thief is one of the best. This is a good safe clean story for young folks and adults alike. I have waited many years for audible to finally pick up this writer and I am so glad they have. Probably because of the popularity of the book that was just released it has caused publishers to notice how many people are looking forward to stories from Megan Whalen Turner. It is a good fiction story with a fun plot about mythology. I hope you enjoy it as much as our family has. RPR

A favorite

Wonderful story, wonderful narration. While there is a bit of a slow start, by the end I couldn't wait for the next book. I hope people give it a try, because it is very much worth a credit.

Story fantastic, narrator not great for this book

I loved the story. The book is a memory from teenagehood. The narrator was not the perfect choice for this book, I didn't feel he was engaged with the story, It might as well have been read by AI.

Still one of my all time favorite stories!

I read this series as a teenager and listened to them recently as an adult, they completely hold up and still remain one of my favorite series. They are perfect for any age and anyone into fantasy, war, intrigue, or romance. Everything is expertly written. I just love how fleshed out the world Megan Whalen Turner created is, the history and little details is outstanding. There are so many little scenes that I keep going back to in my mind thinking about how great they are. Eugenides is just everything, he is witty, brilliant, a true romantic, an idiot, and a big baby. I just love love love him and bet anyone who listens or reads this series will agree.

Loved the Story & Narrator

It's rare for me to stumble upon a book that I really love, but this is one of them! Action, adventure, mystery all rolled into one story. The characters and plot movement took priority over stereotypical pitfalls that most books fall into. At first I really disliked Magnus' style of voice, but it got his first-impression character across quickly. Then I grew to like him as Gen did as well. Plus, a couple plot twists at the end! Very well done and can stand on it's own feet! I was confused as to the narrator's very aristocratic style for the first-person POV, but I think it all comes together in the end. :) Worth a credit or a purchase!

Outstanding book

This is a simply amazing story, narrated expertly. It is nice to see one of my favorite books from my childhood done so much justice.

Decent enough

I will keep this brief. This book is very slow and overly descriptive for 3/4 of the story as the characters travel together. Character development occurs through dialog; world-building through poorly conceived legends. The last 1/4 of the book is marginally more eventful, but in the end the book is at best a "making of the legend" precursor.

Fun book! Yet I am not convinced in it's twist.

Maybe I am wrong, but the twist in the end seem like a fabrication in the last moment. And most of the book seemed like the writer was not pre planning anything. With that said, a fun book, enough for me to buy its successor.

give me book 2

LOVED IT. NEED MORE NOW.
Going between the physical book and audiobook because i couldnt put it down.

Not a lot of substance

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

Would not read the rest of the series. Not a likable leading character.

Has The Thief put you off other books in this genre?

No but I will read more reviews.

Which character – as performed by Steve West – was your favourite?

Steve was pretty good.

If this book were a film would you go see it?

No but then some bad books make OK films,