Thief’s Magic (Millennium’s Rule #1)

by Trudi Canavan.

Thief’s Magic starts the tale of two different young people, both suddenly thrust into a world of magic. Tyen is a archaeology student in a steampunk type world, where industrial pursuits are fueled by magic. On one of his digs, he unearths an unusual book: it can read his thoughts and respond to him, and claims to have once been human. It contains centuries of information, dating back to one of the greatest sorcerers of all time. Its existence sets off a chain of events as different parties vie to claim or destroy it. Elsewhere, Rielle lives in constant fear. In a religious culture where magic is forbidden and using it considered stealing from the Angels, she must keep secret her ability. Overzealous priests, a new love interest, and the temptation to learn more about her magic put Rielle in an untenable position. Both youths find themselves in danger, and swimming in magical waters over their heads. The world of magic is not quite what they’ve been taught.

I’m a longtime fan of Trudi Canavan (I loved her Black Magician trilogy), so I was excited to read this. And for the most part, it delivered on my expectations. Both worlds are well-developed and full, and provide an interesting contrast to one another. The characters within those settings feel real, and the events in Tyen’s half are well-paced. I admit I was WAY more interested in Tyen’s story than Rielle’s; he just resonated with me more as a character, and her super religious world wasn’t somewhere I wanted to spend time, honestly. Her storyline also felt like it dragged on and on without much happening. I did expect their two stories to eventually converge, which did not happen, at least in this book. But, the more that is revealed about Tyen’s ancient sorcerers and Rielle’s Angels, the more it’s clear there IS a connection between those worlds. Especially given where Tyen’s story left off at the end of this book.

If anything, my biggest issue with this book is that neither story got as far along as I would’ve wished for a first book in a series. I almost wish she had split Tyen and Rielle’s stories into different books, so that we could get more of each on its own. It felt like things were just getting started (especially in Rielle’s story) and then the book ended.

That said, I will definitely be picking up book 2 stat now that I’ve read this first one. 🙂

I give it 3.5/5 stars.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.