The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner

In a land far away, there are three kingdoms: Sounis, Eddis, and Attolia. They live side by side in a fragile peace. Sounis desires the hand of Eddis in order to fortify his own kingdom against the aggressive Attolia. The Queen of Attolia wishes to take over all three lands. Eddis remains the impartial in-between, desiring not only her own freedom, but the neutrality of her own throne and lands. In the middle of this political turmoil, there is a thief: Eugenides (or Gen).

Gen's mouth has landed him in a bigger batch of trouble than he anticipated: he's landed in the King of Sounis' jail after bragging that he could steal the royal seal. The Magus, the King's most trusted advisor, offers him a deal. If he wants out of jail, he must help them steal the legendary Hamiathes's Gift. The stone is reputed to hold the power to claim the throne of neighboring Eddis. In return, Gen is promised fame...and his life...not really a deal he can turn down.

The party consists of the Magus, himself, two young people Gen has nicknamed Useless the Younger and Useless the Elder, and Pol. Pol, we learn, is the head of a Duke's guard, and tasked to train and guard Useless the Younger (Sophos). On their path, they encounter various trials, but it is the legendary temple where the stone is reported to be held that proves most difficult.

To reach it, they must pass, not only through neutral Eddis, but into aggressive Attolia, risking not only their lives, but war between their countries. All this for a stone that many believe to be a myth. Can Eugenides (Gen) live up to his namesake, the god of thieves?

This is a Newbery Honor book from a while back, and I mistakenly read the fourth book in the series first. I fell in love with it, but was worried I had spoiled it for myself. I waited a year to read this one, and was so enchanted. Turner does a fantastic job with the dialog and the mythology. Spot on, and highly recommended for middle grade readers, or anyone interested in knights, fantasy, and politics.

“'I want you to steal something.'
I smiled. 'Do you want the king's seal? I can get it for you.'
'If I were you,' said the magus, 'I'd stop bragging about that.' His voice grated.
My smile grew. The gold ring with the engraved ruby had been in his safekeeping when I had stolen it away," (Turner, 1996). 

*Library Link*

If you liked this, check out:

The Queen of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner (The Queen's Thief, Book 2)
The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielsen (The Ascendance Trilogy, Book 1)
The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson 

Turner, Megan Whalen. (1996). The Thief. New York: Greenwillow Books.