Her history is explored so we fully understand (and sympathise) with the actions she takes, and she’s written to be likeable due to her wit and humour. Our main character Vanja is well rounded as the villain of the tale, whilst being the hero of the actual story. She also acts as a contrast from Vanja’s godmothers as she treats her own daughter, Ragne, much better than they did. Her inclusion brings about the start of the story and is what pushes Vanja into becoming not just the antagonist of Gisele’s story but the hero of her own. One such god was Eiswald, the Lady of the Forest. This distinction made the Gods and their system even more interesting. If Vanja could raise enough money to leave to another country, then she is potentially exempt from the deals she’s made with gods in hers. The Small Gods are both good and bad for the people in this world, and gods differ per culture. Fortune and Death are Vanja’s godmothers, and there’s a plethora of Small Gods that we hear about with some more that we encounter in the story. The magic and fantasy lies closely with the inclusion of gods in the story. There’s a talking horse head at one point, and the entire story feels fairytale-like at times due to Margaret Owen’s writing. Little Thieves is a loose retelling of the Goose Girl, and whilst I do not know much about the original tale there’s definitely little snippets that are fairly accurate to it. And with a feral guardian half-god, Gisele’s sinister fiancé, and an overeager junior detective on Vanja’s tail, she’ll have to pull the biggest grift yet to save her own life. Vanja has just two weeks to figure out how to break her curse and make her getaway. Then, one heist away from freedom, Vanja crosses the wrong god and is cursed to an untimely end: turning into jewels, stone by stone, for her greed. Now, Vanja leads a lonely but lucrative double life as princess and jewel thief, charming nobility while emptying their coffers to fund her great escape.

The real Gisele is left a penniless nobody while Vanja uses an enchanted string of pearls to take her place. That was when Vanja’s otherworldly mothers demanded a terrible price for their care, and Vanja decided to steal her future back… by stealing Gisele’s life for herself. Vanja, the adopted goddaughter of Death and Fortune, was Princess Gisele’s dutiful servant up until a year ago. Vanja Schmidt knows that no gift is freely given, not even a mother’s love–and she’s on the hook for one hell of a debt. Once upon a time, there was a horrible girl…

Margaret owen little thieves