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A review by the_ya_assassin
Among Thieves by M.J. Kuhn
5.0
Thank you Gallery Books, Saga Press, Netgalley, and M.J. Kuhn for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review of this amazing book.
"Long after gold had lost its charm and men no longer had a taste for bread and wine, words would still hold their value."
*4.5 stars*
Content Warnings:
- LOTS of cursing
- Gorey
- Brutality
- Imprisonment
- Fighting
This book was such a fun, wild ride. It definitely lived up to my expectations of being compared to Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo - it was almost, if not as good, as it. There was so much action, the characters were hilarious, and the worldbuilding was good. However, the two reasons I could not give this book 5 stars were:
1. The setting was described only when it was opportune for the characters - only when it was interacted with. Every other time, the scenes were not described clearly at all.
2. The twists that were supposed to be huge were really obvious, to me at least.
In Among Thieves, we follow five characters - Ivan, Tristan, Ryia, Nash, and Evelyn. Evelyn is an ex-guard, but thanks to Ryia, aka the Butcher of Carrowick, she lost her high-ranking officer position. Ryia works for the infamous Callum Clem, the leader of the Saints (kind of like Kaz Brekker and the Crows). Their rival gang is offered the job of a lifetime, but when the Crowns decide not to take it, the Saints steal it for themselves. And it could honestly be a lifetime with the level of stakes - 400,000 of their money but they are stealing from the Guildmaster, the most powerful man in the whole world. From here, the worldbuilding went downhill - the world was very 2-D - the scenes didn't pop out at me for their setting, although I knew there were five countries. Ryia escaped from the Guildmaster's clutches once before and she has not been able to take a breath since. She has been tracked and followed. But thank goodness she has the sharpest tongue and quickest wit in the Lottery, for she may be the only one to steal the item from the Guildmaster's Island. With the help of her fellow Saints, of course.
The two twists in the story - who Tristan and Ryia really are - weren't really twists in my opinion. I thought they were quite obvious and I put them together pretty quickly. Needless to say, it was a predictable plot.
The action and how much I enjoyed the grittiness made this read an exciting one for me. With that cliffhanger, I anxiously await M.J. Kuhn's sequel. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves some thievery, assassins, political tensions, betrayment, and magic.
"Long after gold had lost its charm and men no longer had a taste for bread and wine, words would still hold their value."
*4.5 stars*
Content Warnings:
- LOTS of cursing
- Gorey
- Brutality
- Imprisonment
- Fighting
This book was such a fun, wild ride. It definitely lived up to my expectations of being compared to Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo - it was almost, if not as good, as it. There was so much action, the characters were hilarious, and the worldbuilding was good. However, the two reasons I could not give this book 5 stars were:
1. The setting was described only when it was opportune for the characters - only when it was interacted with. Every other time, the scenes were not described clearly at all.
2. The twists that were supposed to be huge were really obvious, to me at least.
In Among Thieves, we follow five characters - Ivan, Tristan, Ryia, Nash, and Evelyn. Evelyn is an ex-guard, but thanks to Ryia, aka the Butcher of Carrowick, she lost her high-ranking officer position. Ryia works for the infamous Callum Clem, the leader of the Saints (kind of like Kaz Brekker and the Crows). Their rival gang is offered the job of a lifetime, but when the Crowns decide not to take it, the Saints steal it for themselves. And it could honestly be a lifetime with the level of stakes - 400,000 of their money but they are stealing from the Guildmaster, the most powerful man in the whole world. From here, the worldbuilding went downhill - the world was very 2-D - the scenes didn't pop out at me for their setting, although I knew there were five countries. Ryia escaped from the Guildmaster's clutches once before and she has not been able to take a breath since. She has been tracked and followed. But thank goodness she has the sharpest tongue and quickest wit in the Lottery, for she may be the only one to steal the item from the Guildmaster's Island. With the help of her fellow Saints, of course.
The two twists in the story - who Tristan and Ryia really are - weren't really twists in my opinion. I thought they were quite obvious and I put them together pretty quickly. Needless to say, it was a predictable plot.
The action and how much I enjoyed the grittiness made this read an exciting one for me. With that cliffhanger, I anxiously await M.J. Kuhn's sequel. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves some thievery, assassins, political tensions, betrayment, and magic.