Cover of Return of the Thief

Return of the Thief

core novel 2020 The Queen's Thief

Record

First published2020
Original language EN
Work typenovel
Canon statuscore
Reader rating4.48 (12,712 ratings, collected 2026-08-26)
First-edition ISBN9780062874474
Internal chronology6

Synopsis

Return of the Thief is the sixth and final novel in The Queen's Thief series. It is narrated by Pheris, the previously unrecognized heir of the disgraced Baron Erondites, who is sent to the Attolian court to serve as an attendant to King Eugenides. Though Pheris has a physical disability and is treated by most of the court as a fool, Eugenides quickly recognizes his intelligence and keeps him close. By this point Eugenides has become High King, uniting the three peninsular nations of Sounis, Eddis and Attolia, and the story follows the mounting crisis he faces as the Mede Empire prepares a major invasion while internal political rivalries and fragile alliances among the allied kingdoms threaten to unravel from within, with Pheris an unlikely witness to the court's efforts to hold everything together.

Where it sits

Notes

  • From the series record (The Queen's Thief): A YA political fantasy series following the thief Eugenides across the fictional Mediterranean-inspired countries of Sounis, Eddis, and Attolia; the author has stated the series ended with the sixth book.

Neighbouring works

Publication order and internal chronology are tracked as two separate orderings, but they resolve to the exact same sequence for this book, so one combined line is shown instead of two identical ones.

  • Reading order, within the series The Queen's Thief: position 6 of 6: previous Thick as Thieves (2017)

Sources

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