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Series Review - Queen's Thief: A Series by Megan Whalen Turner

Series Reviews discuss at least three books in a series and cover the overarching themes and development of the story across several books. Thank you to Patron Case Aiken who receives a monthly shoutout. Full Audio Here Eugenides, the queen’s thief, can steal anything—or so he says. When his boasting lands him in prison and the king’s magus invites him on a quest to steal a legendary object, he’s in no position to refuse. The magus thinks he has the right tool for the job, but Gen has plans of his own. PUBLISHER: Greenwillow Books LENGTH: 300 to 450 pages per book, there are six books as of spring 2025 AGE: Young Adult GENRE: Fantasy, Romance RECOMMENDED: Highly Queer Rep Summary: Gay/Achillean Secondary Character(s). TITLES IN SERIES The Thief (1996) The Queen of Attolia (2000) The King of Attolia (2006) A Conspiracy of Kings (2010) Thick as Thieves (2017) Return of the Thief (2020) Moira's Pen (2022) Minimal Spoiler Zone Series Premise Queen's Thief begins as the story of one...

Salt Magic, Skin Magic by Lee Welch

Lord Thornby has been trapped on his father’s isolated Yorkshire estate for a year. There are no bars or chains; he simply can’t leave. His sanity is starting to fray. 

When industrial magician John Blake arrives to investigate a case of witchcraft, he finds the peculiar, arrogant Thornby as alarming as he is attractive. John soon finds himself caught up in a dark fairytale, where all the rules of magic—and love—are changed. 

To set Thornby free, both men must face life-changing truths—and John must accept that the brave, witty man who’s winning his heart may also be about to break it. Can they escape a web of magic that’s as perilous as love?

CONTRIBUTOR(S): Joel Leslie (Narrator)
PUBLISHER: Tantor Audio
YEAR: 2019
LENGTH: 267 pages (9 hours 14 minutes)
AGE: Adult
GENRE: Fantasy, Historical, Romance
RECOMMENDED: Yes

Queer Rep Summary: Gay/Achillean Main Character(s).

The opening hooked me immediately. I was intrigued instantly and wanted to see where things would go. The rest of the book did not disappoint. SALT MAGIC, SKIN MAGIC is a mysterious and sexy book where the man try to unravel why Lord Thornby is trapped on his father’s estate. I enjoy books which drop me right into the world and show the worldbuilding through the characters actions and conversations. This did a step further and placed me alongside Lord Thornby who doesn't have any reason to think magic or anything supernatural exists... except that he hasn't been able to leave when he desperately wants to be anywhere but here. John knows about magic, but the way he learned was tied up in issues of class and gate-keeping by the upper crust, which means that he has a mix of what he was told and what seems to be happening. 

I enjoyed the relationship between the main characters. There's a bit of a rocky start and then they come to trust each other. The main issue I had with the narrative is that one of the characters is revealed late in the book to have a physical disability due to a childhood injury, then at the end it's cured as a side effect of other things happening. Magical cure narratives for disabilities are frustratingly common, and the instance here mars an otherwise very enjoyable story. I liked basically everything else, but unfortunately this keeps me from highly recommending it.

Graphic/Explicit CW for sexual content, confinement, torture.

Moderate CW for grief, homophobia, classism, alcohol, blood, emotional abuse, domestic abuse, physical abuse, violence, injury detail, parental death, death.

Minor CW for vomit, excrement, bullying, child abuse, neglect, forced institutionalization, murder.

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Two pale men stand on a beach with a tidal wave. One is in an open shirt with glowing gold symbols on his skin, the other is in a tan jacket, holding a golden ribbon of salt which winds between the two of them


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