Tavera, or Tavi, as she’s known is the young half-elf girl at the heart of this short novel. Orphaned as a child, taken in by prostitutes, then sold to a man to raise as his own daughter and train as a fellow thief, Tavi has a better life that one would expect. Thieves at Heart tells her story as she grows up (with all the tribulations puberty entails), trains as a thief, and sets off on her own.
It’s a quick, entertaining read. I’m not sure I’d say there’s anything deep to the story; it doesn’t feel like something with a profound message. Of course, many books are just written to be entertainment and that’s good, too. It does speak, I think, to experiences a lot of women have as they’re coming of age (I can only speculate here, as I am not a woman). Thieves at Heart does this in a way that doesn’t feel cheap or exploitative. It feels real.
I may be overthinking or overanalyzing. I enjoyed Thieves at Heart. I was curious to see how the author’s long-form fiction was since I enjoy the webcomic she writes. Give Thieves at Heart a shot, you might enjoy it, too.