A girl turning into jewels, a shapeshifting bestie, and a plot that keeps turning the screws? You had me at jewels! For a 500+ page fantasy book, I never felt as though the book was slow or dragging and that's mostly due to the characters. Vanja is selfish, conniving, and clever as all get out, and it's a joy to watch her struggle with her greed. Though rooted in German folklore, this was no fairytale. We're presented with moments of rape, abuse, and PTSD, but through a lens that doesn't mean to retraumatize the reader. There's so much care in the crafting of this story and it really shows. It's rare that I find a book where there's nothing I would change, but Little Thieves is it.
---blurb---
A fresh twist on a classic Brothers Grimm tale, Little Thieves is an irreverent YA fantasy that reveals the fickle hands that deal the cards of fate and fortune by Margaret Owen, author of The Merciful Crow series.
Seventeen-year-old Vanja Schmidt is the thirteenth daughter of a thirteenth daughter, and wherever she goes, misfortune follows. Luckily, her godmothers are Death and Fortune, each of whom blesses Vanja with magic in exchange for a life of servitude when she comes of age.
But when the time comes, Vanja flees, swiping an enchanted string of pearls that allows her to impersonate a princess. So begins a life of merry mayhem posing as a royal to rob the nobles blind. At first, Vanja is thrilled with her luck, but soon, she crosses the wrong god, and is cursed to turn into the jewels she covets, gem by gem, unless she can right her wrongs and pay back her debts—quickly.
A fresh twist on a classic Brothers Grimm tale, this is an irreverent YA fantasy that reveals the fickle hands that deal the cards of fate and fortune.
---blurb---
A fresh twist on a classic Brothers Grimm tale, Little Thieves is an irreverent YA fantasy that reveals the fickle hands that deal the cards of fate and fortune by Margaret Owen, author of The Merciful Crow series.
Seventeen-year-old Vanja Schmidt is the thirteenth daughter of a thirteenth daughter, and wherever she goes, misfortune follows. Luckily, her godmothers are Death and Fortune, each of whom blesses Vanja with magic in exchange for a life of servitude when she comes of age.
But when the time comes, Vanja flees, swiping an enchanted string of pearls that allows her to impersonate a princess. So begins a life of merry mayhem posing as a royal to rob the nobles blind. At first, Vanja is thrilled with her luck, but soon, she crosses the wrong god, and is cursed to turn into the jewels she covets, gem by gem, unless she can right her wrongs and pay back her debts—quickly.
A fresh twist on a classic Brothers Grimm tale, this is an irreverent YA fantasy that reveals the fickle hands that deal the cards of fate and fortune.