When his small mountains country goes to war with the powerful nation of Attolia, Eugenides the thief is faced with his greatest challenge. He must steal a man, he must steal a queen, and he must steal peace.

But his greatest triumph-as well as his greatest loss-can only come if he succeeds in capturing something the Queen of Attolia may have sacrificed long ago.

Reviews

This spellbinder of a sequel to the Newbery Honor-winning The Thief is every bit as devilishly well plotted and grandly conceived. As it opens, Eugenides the thief has fallen into the clutches of the queen of Attolia, who still seethes from his besting of her (relayed in The Thief). Unwilling to execute him, lest she start a war with the queen of Eddis (Eugenides's cousin and ruler), she orders his hand cut off. The drama is high, and the action grows only more engrossing. As Eugenides tries to reconcile himself to the amputation, war breaks out, involving Attolia, Eddis and Sounis, tiny countries modeled on ancient Greece and other Mediterranean nations. For the most part, Turner eschews battle scenes, although she executes these with flair. Instead, she emphasizes strategy, with brilliant, ever-deceptive Eugenides a match for Odysseus in his wiliness and daring, perpetually catching readers by surprise. When, fairly late in the novel, Eugenides decides that he must wed the fearsome queen of Attolia in order to achieve a more lasting peace--and that he loves her--it requires a certain leap of faith to accept that his terror of her coexists with desire. But Turner's storytelling is so sure that readers will want to go along with her--and discover whatever it is that Eugenides will do next. Ages 10-up. (Apr.) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.

Gr 6-10-In this sequel (HarperTeen, 2000) to The Thief (Greenwillow, 1996), Megan Whalen Turner continues the saga of the Queen's Thief, Eugenides (Gen), and his impact on his homeland, Eddis, as well as the neighboring countries, Sounis and Attolia. When Gen is discovered in the Attolian palace, the Queen cuts off his right hand as punishment. Sent back to Eddis reeling from his torture, Gen becomes a changed man. No longer able to perform the feats that allowed him the title of Queen's Thief, he become depressed. Meanwhile, Eddis has declared war on Attolia and the two countries are also embroiled in a conflict with Sounis. The gods, the Queen of Eddis, the Magus from Sounis, and his father, the Minister of War, all contrive to draw Gen out into the world again. Gen devises plans to steal the time his Queen needs to find peace for the kingdom and for Eugenides. The tale is full of plot twists and excellent characterizations, and Jeff Woodman excels at narrating the action sequences and dialogue. The slower paced sections that focus on war strategy become monotonous and boring. However, those who persevere will be captivated. For large audiobook collections.-Jessica Miller, New Britain Public Library, New Britain, CT Copyright 2009 Reed Business Information.