[Review & Giveaway] Thief of Lies

 

Thief of Lies (Library Jumpers #1)

by Brenda Drake

Publish date: January 5, 2016
Genre: YA fantasy
Rating: 3.5/5

Goodreads summary

Gia Kearns would rather fight with boys than kiss them. That is, until Arik, a leather clad hottie in the Boston Athenaeum, suddenly disappears. While examining the book of world libraries he abandoned, Gia unwittingly speaks the key that sucks her and her friends into a photograph and transports them into a Paris library, where Arik and his Sentinels—magical knights charged with protecting humans from the creatures traveling across the gateway books—rescue them from a demonic hound.

Jumping into some of the world's most beautiful libraries would be a dream come true for Gia, if she weren’t busy resisting her heart or dodging an exiled wizard seeking revenge on both the Mystik and human worlds. Add a French flirt obsessed with Arik and a fling with a young wizard, and Gia must choose between her heart and her head, between Arik's world and her own, before both are destroyed.

My thoughts

I'll be honest. It took me a long time to gather my thoughts and feelings on this one. There was a lot of typing, followed by a lot of deleting; then more typing and more deleting. I'll start of by saying that the cover for Thief of Lies and I had a moment of insta-love. I mean look at it... it's so darn pretty. How could I NOT want to get my hands on a copy just to stare at it?

Thief of Lies was not entirely what I was expected, both in a good way and in a not so good way. In the beginning, I had a hard time getting into it. I don't know whether it was because I hyped it up in my mind so much and it didn't match what I had thought it would be, or if it was the distraction of my hyperactive, 46-pound puppy trying to sit on my lap while I read (Note: 46-pounds is not for sitting on laps, Stella). Whatever the reason, I decided to set it aside for a while and come back to it. 

That decision to take a moment to reset was the best one I've made in a while. When I got back to it, I discovered a book with so much action going on that I couldn't put it down until I got to the very end (Curse you 6 a.m. alarm clock). There's a lot going on in Thief of Lies. Our MC, Gia, discovers that not all is as it seems and soon she's whisked away to another world to learn about her new found powers and heritage. She makes new friends, discovers new family and finds out that she's the prophesized Doomsday Child. 

Now, I'm a good guesser when it comes to plot twists and so-called shocking reveals. I can usually see them coming a mile away and I usually like to make a bet with myself to see if I'm right. It's a good thing those bets are with myself for imaginary money or I would have lost it all with Thief of Lies. There's some great twists I didn't see coming. 

Gia, I'm just going to come out and say it. I like you, girl. Gia is smart, funny, quirky, awkward, clumsy, adorable and everything in between. She trips over things, puts her foot in her mouth, but still manages to kick some ass when the moment strikes. I think I really connected with her because she reminds me of myself, a bit of a know-it-all booknerd with a penchant for correcting people. 

When it comes to the romance with Arik, I have to admit, it just didn't do it for me. He seems to be the romantic interest solely because he's just there and he's pretty. I just didn't get what was so great about him. For me, his character was really flat and I don't really see any reason for Gia to be so madly in love with him, and vice versa. Their relationship doesn't really develop as they get to know each other, it just seems to be there. 

I also would have like to see more world building here. I had a hard time creating images of the mystical places and creatures in my head. There's not a lot of explanations about the different creatures, what they are, where they come from, their powers and weaknesses or where their loyalties lie. 

In the end, I decided on a 3.5 star rating because the action and storyline in Thief of Lies is phenomenal and Gia was so endearing, but Arik was a big whomp whomp for me. I wanted to love him so much, but I just couldn't. Either way, this still get a nice thumbs up and recommendation from me, and I'll be looking out for book two as well. 


** I was provided a copy of this book in return for an honest review

Get it here
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About Brenda Drake

Brenda Drake, the youngest of three children, grew up an Air Force brat and the continual new kid at school. Her fondest memories growing up is of her eccentric, Irish grandmother’s animated tales, which gave her a strong love for storytelling. So it was only fitting that she would choose to write stories with a bend toward the fantastical. 

When Brenda’s not writing or doing the social media thing, she’s haunting libraries, bookstores, and coffee shops or reading someplace quiet and not at all exotic (much to her disappointment).

Author links
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Giveaway

Grand Prize of the Kindle Fire 7” Display Wifi 8GB + Coffee Table Book that inspired the Library Jumpers series, THE MOST BEAUTIFUL LIBRARIES IN THE WORLD + Swag Pack (US/Canada)

$50 Amazon Gift Card (INT)


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