Once upon a time, a debut author wrote a book about a thief, and that book was so good that it won the Newbery, spawned a series lasting over twenty years, and inspired an entire generation of fantasy writers you know and love. Your faves? Leigh Bardugo, Marie Lu, Laini Taylor, Cassandra Clare… yeah, they’re all fans.
Of course, we’re talking about Megan Whalen Turner’s The Thief.
Maybe you’re just getting into the books now, or maybe you read The Thief when it first came out in 1996 (OMG) or any time since. To prep for the series finale, The Return of the Thief, we’re taking a deep dive back into the world of Megan Whalen Turner’s beloved series. But these books are all about the hidden details, the subtle winks, and the shocking twists, so…
Consider yourself warned. Now that we’ve covered that, let’s get to the official The Thief recap!
What Happened in The Thief?
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW
• Sounis: Where we begin. Sounis is a coastal country, ruled by a king, that amasses its power by warring to take land and property away from its neighbors.
• Attolia: Sounis’s main rival in size and power, Attola is ruled by a queen and is inaccessible by land—except through the Eddisian path.
• Eddis: A small, rural country high in the mountains between Sounis and Attolia, also ruled by a queen. Though easily overlooked, unlike its neighbors, Eddis has never been conquered by outside forces. Sounis is hoping to change that…
• Eugenides: AKA, Gen, is an arrogant, stubborn young thief who claims that he can steal anything—and whose mouth often gets him into trouble. Gen speaks little of his own life, but we know his mother died when he was young and that his father wanted him to become a soldier.
• The magus: The king of Sounis’s most powerful advisor, the magus is well-respected (and feared) by others for his knowledge and sway with the king. He is also a bit of a scholarly snob.
• Ambiades: Gen refers to him as “Useless the Elder.” The elder of the magus’s two apprentices, Ambiades is full of his own self-importance and loathes Gen.
• Sophos: Gen refers to him as “Useless the Younger.” Shy, sweet, and naive, Sophos seems to idolize Ambiades, though he is also fascinated by and shows kindness to Gen. He is smart and seems full of potential, but is poor at swordfighting and standing up for himself.
• Pol: A soldier and the expedition’s protection. As the captain of Sophos’s father’s guard, even the magus treats Pol with respect.
• “You’re Probably Wondering How I Got Here…”: We meet Gen in the king of Sounis’s prison, having stolen the king’s seal and bragged about it all over town before being caught and sentenced. He’s finally taken before the magus and the king of Sounis after weeks of languishing, and they tell Gen that he can earn his freedom with one job: Steal an item for the king of Sounis. They won’t tell him what it is or where they’re going, but that shouldn’t matter, because can’t Gen steal anything?
• On the Road: Gen and the magus leave the next morning with three traveling companions: Ambiades, Sophos, and Pol. On the road for the next few days, Gen learns more about his troupe: Ambiades is good at riding and swordsmanship, but wants to put Gen in his place; Sophos is the son of the duke and book smart, but lousy at most other things; and the magus can be provoked into making serious threats. Also, Gen complains about wanting more food.
• Climb Every Mountain (🎶): The group begins their climb into the mountains and cross the border from Sounis into Eddis, while the magus finally reveals what they’re after. Hamiathes’s Gift was a mythical stone given by the gods to King Hamiathes of Eddis, and the magus has tracked down where it was hidden. He needs Gen to steal the gift, so that he can give it—and the right to rule Eddis—to the king of Sounis. The king would marry the queen of Eddis, rule two countries, and have access to invade Attolia.
• Storytime: The magus recites the Eddisian creation myth of the world, prompting Gen to mock Sophos for thinking that the Eddisians actually believed that the Earth created her husband, the Sky, and their children, the world’s features and gods. Gen even goes so far as to correct the magus’s recitation, as his mother was from Eddis and taught him the stories when he was young. The magus insists that he knows best, since Gen’s mother was poor and uneducated—and dead, besides.
• Sharing is Caring: The next day, they start down the other side of the mountain and find an old temple tucked into a mountainside cave. Gen learns that the magus wanted Pol on the trip, and so Sophos came along as part of the deal. Sophos and Pol learn that Gen’s mother was a thief, which is why he was named after the god of thieves.
• Storytime, Pt. II: The magus asks Gen to tell the story of his namesake. Eugenides was a gift from the Earth to a childless woodcutter and his wife, and the Earth brought Eugenides gifts of her own as he grows. Jealous, the Sky tried to kill Eugenides, so the Earth turned on humans who worshipped the sky. Their eldest child, the Great Goddess Hephestia, intervened and brokered a truce, which is why humans turn to her in times of need.
• The Tragic Rich Boy’s Backstory: Now off the mountain and in Attolia, the magus warns the boys to keep their mouths shut when around others. Their accents might give them away, and if the Queen of Attolia learned why they were in her country, they would all be publicly beheaded. Gen pokes fun at a sulky Ambiades to keep himself entertained. After a fight, Sophos explains that Ambiades’s grandfather was a noble who attempted to overthrow the king. He was executed and his assets seized. Ambiades’s father gambled away what little was left.
• Storytime, Pt. III: The magus continues the myth. The Sky promised to give his thunderbolts to Hephestia but didn’t, so Eugenides stole them on his godly sister’s behalf. After fleeing the Sky’s mountain, he hid the bolts in Hephestia’s temple and told the Sky where they were in exchange for a drink of the waters of immortality. Angry at being tricked, the Sky added poisonous coleus leaf to Eugenides’s drink. Though now unable to die, the bitter leaf made Eugenides’s life just as bitter.
• Gen Throws Hands: The magus and Pol discover that their food has been stolen. Pol pins Gen down while the magus beats him with a riding crop. Gen, enraged, fights back so viciously that he bests Pol and scares the magus. While both adults go back into town to get more food, the two Uselesses decide to fish. Ambiades ties Gen’s hands too tight, and his fingers turn blue while the boys are away. Pol returns before the magus, frees Gen, and gives him pain medicine, but forbids him from telling the magus for fear Sophos will be punished for Ambiades’s crime.
• The Dream in the Dystopia: The group reaches the dystopia, a plain of volcanic rock from an ancient eruption from the Sacred Mountain. The magus mentions that there’s a related myth, but is too tired to tell it. They rest for the night, and Gen dreams of a woman in white, standing in a marble-walled room. He wakes from the pain in his wrists. Pol gives him more medicine, and Gen thanks him, saying “Be blessed in your endeavors.”
• “Who Do You Serve?”: The adults leave to scout while the Uselesses spar. Gen tries to give Sophos tips from the sidelines, but Ambiades challenges Gen to fight. When Gen declines, Ambiades calls him a self-serving coward—Gen counters quickly, asking, “And who else are you serving?” That night, the magus leads the group across the dystopia to the banks of the river and a large waterfall. Ambiades is left behind with the horses, as he can’t be trusted with Sophos any longer. When Gen falls asleep, he once again dreams of the woman in white. She asks who brings him (“myself”), whether he comes to offer or take (“to take”), and warns him to not offend the gods. She places a checkmark next to his name on her scroll.
• Storytime, Pt. IV: Close to midnight now, the magus tells the story of the dystopia, of Eugenides and the Great Fire. Eugenides’s human parents had more children, but their second eldest son, Lyopidus, was jealous of the brother who took his “rightful” place. Tricked by the Sky into betraying his brother, Lyopidus journeyed to his brother’s house as a friend but then baited Eugenides into restealing, then using, the Sky’s thunderbolts. Gen, however, was unable to control them. The world caught fire. Immortal Eugenides tried to save his brother, but Lyopidus died in his arms. In the mountain, King Hamiathes saw the fire and convinced a river to save Eugenides. When the magus finishes his tale, Gen confesses that he doesn’t like that particular myth and explains that while intelligent people are said to be “clever enough to steal Hamiathes’s Gift,” thieves that try and fail are thrown over the side of the mountain to their death.
• Go Time: The river stops flowing at midnight, revealing a door cut into the stone behind the waterfall. The magus warns Gen that the water will return at dawn and gives him a lamp with six hours of oil, along with his thieving tools. Gen has three nights to steal the Gift.
• The First Night in the Temple: Inside the temple, Gen recognizes the marble-walled room from his dreams. Behind stone, Gen finds a corridor with locked metal doors at each end. He picks open the first door and steps inside, only to notice that there is no keyhole in the door at the far end. He turns back to the first metal door, leaps, and catches it just before it closes. Had the door shut, he would have been trapped and drowned when the river returned. But in his panic, he dropped his pry bar and lamp. He tries the second door, props it open, and continues on to find himself in a maze. At its end is the other side of the trap hallway, so Gen rescues his lamp and pry bar. At its very back is the lowest point where all the water will rush to, and there Gen finds centuries-worth of bones. The lamp sputters and Gen begins to panic, unsure how much oil he has lost or what time he has left. He leaves, panic receding only once he is back in open air.
• Dem Bones, Dem Bones: Gen dreams again of the woman, who places a second mark next to his name. Upon awaking, Gen tells the magus of the maze, the trap, and the bones, wondering why they’re all in the back with none in the trap. He warns the magus to move the camp, worried that the water will come back faster, jump the falls, and wash them away.
• The Second Night in the Temple: Gen is better prepared this time. He blocks the doors open with stones from the river and measures the maze as he goes with twine. He searches the bones for the Gift and doesn’t find it, but does steal a ring from the pile. At the end of the night, as panic sets in, he runs for the exit—only to find his stone blocks pushed away. He escapes, then uses paper and charcoal to map out the maze. When he dreams again, the woman in white calls him by name and warns him that if he enters the maze a third time, he won’t leave without the Gift. She cautions him once more not to offend the gods. She then checks his name on her scroll a third time. Later, Gen tells Sophos of the moved blocks and his panic, and Sophos asks if he thinks there’s someone (or something) in the maze with him.
• The Final Night in the Temple: Gen searches the entire maze again and finds nothing. In a panic, he hits the wall with his pry bar, hurts his hand, sits down, and cries. But, you know, once that passes, he looks up and studies the massive pieces of obsidian that stud the walls of the maze. Inspired, he smashes the largest piece with the pry bar, revealing a hidden door and a staircase leading up. At the top is a room filled with statues. Walking among them, Gen recognizes the images of the old gods, including Moira—recorder of fates, and the woman in white from his dreams—and the Great Goddess Hephestia herself, seated on a throne. Hamiathes’s Gift is on a tray in her lap. Gen reaches for his prize—but freezes. Hephestia is breathing.
• Confronted: These are not statues, but the gods themselves. And they are watching him. The god Eugenides steps forward and commands Gen to take the stone. Gen dares one more look at Hephestia, then grabs the Gift and flees. On his way out, Gen slips and falls into the returning river. Trapped against the stone door by the pressure of the water, he blacks out.
• (Almost) Triumphant Return: Gen wakes on the banks of the river Aracthus, the Gift still in his hand. The magus, Pol, and Sophos are relieved to find him alive, then overjoyed to see that he has the stone. The magus says the river overflowed the banks just as Gen had predicted and that they would have drowned had they not moved camp. They reunite with Ambiades, but on their way back to Sounis are attacked by a group of Attolian soldiers. Gen hides in the trees while the others fight off their attackers, but when the skirmish is over, they realize the Gift is gone. It was cut cleanly from the leather cord around the magus’s neck. Gen and his party search for it but can’t find the stone. Afraid of more attacks, they are forced to leave, their prize lost.
• Livin’ on a Prayer: Now on the run, Gen is sent into a nearby town to steal the group horses. He prays to the gods to silence the horses—and is horrified when they do. Of course, the theft is discovered an hour later, and the group is pursued by mounted Attolian soldiers. The magus schemes to disappear up the cliffs of the mountains, but Gen refuses to return to Sounis. He believes the magus plans to put him back in jail. Instead, he requests a sword, offering to slow the soldiers down as much as he can before disappearing himself. The magus is offended. Sophos gives up his sword. Gen hides atop a boulder, then launches himself onto an Attolian riding past and scatters the troops before fleeing into the olive trees, hoping to get far enough away to hide. He doesn’t make it.
• Betrayal: Gen wakes injured in an Attolian prison with the magus and Sophos, who fills in the pieces. Ambiades and Pol are both dead. Ambiades betrayed them to the Attolians, who were also waiting at the top of the cliff. Down below, Gen revealed his talent with a sword, scattering the soldiers and killing a man before being impaled from behind. Ambiades gloated, and Pol shoved him over the edge of the cliff. Two Attolians attacked Pol, and the three of them went over the side together.
• The Queen of Attolia: The magus tells Gen and Sophos that the queen of Attolia didn’t believe they had actually lost the Gift and was coming to question them herself. When the queen arrives, she offers Gen a position as her thief. He turns her down, pleading a sweetheart back home who is less beautiful but more kind. The queen, known for her cruelty, orders her physician to tend to Gen’s wound, to give him time to reconsider.
• Escape!: After two days of healing, Gen picks the lock of the cell and frees himself, the magus, and Sophos. Together, they escape the castle prison and follow the river out of town. When a troop of the queen’s soldiers catch up, Gen leads the magus and Sophos across a hidden bridge into Eddis, then destroys the bridge so the soldiers can’t follow. They continue on—only to be captured by Eddisian soldiers and brought before the queen of Eddis. Upon seeing Gen, the queen says, “Oh, it’s you, Eugenides.” Gen, it’s revealed, is already her Queen’s Thief. He steps forward, removes the Gift he had hidden at the base of his braid, places it in her hand, and faints.
• Home at Last: Gen wakes in his own bed and listens as the magus relays their adventures to Eddis’s Queen and Minister of War—Gen’s cousin and father. Gen learns that he has been unconscious for several days and that, in the meantime, the queen of Attolia, having recognized Gen in her prison, sent a veiled threat, while the king of Sounis sent four emissaries. The emissaries were sent to prevent a war and to plead for the safe return of Sounis’s magus and heir—Sophos, the childless king’s nephew.
• The End: The queen of Eddis is officially crowned Queen of Eddis again by virtue of possessing the Gift. The magus and Sophos are sent home, but not before Sophos reveals a fledgling crush on the queen of Eddis. The queen tells Gen that she plans to throw the Gift into the Sacred Mountain and destroy it. Moira visited her and told her to.
Want to read more in the Queen’s Thief series?
- Find more recaps here
- Buy The Thief now, or the next book in the series, The Queen of Attolia
- Prepare for the epic finale, The Return of the Thief