The Spirit Rebellion
81. Rachel Aaron, The Spirit Rebellion
Warning: contains spoilers for The Spirit Thief.
This book, which takes place shortly after the events of The Spirit Thief, begins with Spiritualist Miranda Lyonette returning to the Spirit Court after helping to defeat the would-be usurper of Mellinor. Miranda expects praise and gratitude from her fellow Spiritualists, but when she arrives, she finds herself promptly arrested and charged with treason. Meanwhile, Eli Monpress - the self-designated “greatest thief in the world” - has just been hired to steal an ancient and valuable sword. The problem is, it’s in the treasury of the Duke of Gaol, whose citadel is famously impregnable. Then again, Eli never could resist a challenge....
After enjoying The Spirit Thief so much, I promptly acquired the next two books in the series. This novel is book 2, and it’s every bit as good as its predecessor. Once again, Eli - aided by his loyal friends Josef and Nico - is propelled into an adventure much bigger than the one he expected; and once again, he rises magnificently to the occasion. There’s a bit more development of his character in this book, as we learn a few interesting things about his history before becoming a thief. The secondary characters become more developed as well, and there are some great scenes with Josef and Nico in particular. This series has a lot of stories going at the same time, and while it never gets confusing, it makes me impatient to read the next book and learn more about these characters! Luckily, I have The Spirit Eater ready to go, and book 4 comes out next month. This is rapidly becoming one of my favorite fantasy series.