Thick as Thieves

Information

Status

Ongoing

Year

2022

Author

AlexaLee

• Enter: The Guard
  Mar 2, 2025
• Enter: The Witch
  Mar 2, 2025
• Enter: The Musician
  Mar 2, 2025
• Audiobook and update!
  Jun 14, 2023
• The Penultimate Update
  Sep 21, 2022

Reviews

Community Reviews(10)

• thatonepersonthatdoesstuffRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  I'll start by giving my thoughts, first off, I am not done with this story. But from what I have read...oh my god is this fantastic to read. The format is easy on the eyes, making it a joy to read. But formatting doesn't tell how good a story is, so how good is Thick as Thieves? Well buckle up buckaroos.
  Thick as Thieves is one of those books you heard about from a friend of a friend so you go into the local library to look for it. Then when you get your hands on it and begin reading you won't want to stop, and soon you find yourself reading at 2AM and see that you've finished the story and you have to go looking for book 2.
  The characters are all extremely well written, and they're personalities are show almost as soon as you meet them. For the people in the outer rings, it's extremely on edge and untrusting of others.
  Something this story does, that I absolutely love, is that you know the main goal of Darcy, before you really know Darcy herself. Only when you know the goal does it go into the world around her and what she's experienced in her life do you get to know more about who she is, or the parts you didn't get to see in the world-building. Everytime Darcy meets a new character, she is distrusting of them, even days after the initial meeting. When she doesn't trust someone, you can tell it takes a long time for her to actually trust them. Always feeling like there's always a threat. And it transfers to the reader, it makes you worried that they aren't to be trusted and makes you question your initial gut feeling, until you can confirm with 100% certainty that they are possibly, maybe, trustworthy.
  Then the story begins to unfold, and then you get to see what she has done in her life, where she's been and what she wants. All before she arrives to her destination, in the very first chapter.
  Not to mention the world building that starts the story off. And when I say world building, by whatever god you believe in, do I mean world building. It's some damn juicy wo
• CasualDarkSoulsRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  It is really good, I absolutely recommend this to everyone.
  The emotions and fear/uncertainties you feel really drives how they feel and is amazing. World building and magic systems seem great. Grammar is also great.  Character growth may also be happening, but is a tad too soon to tell.
  The cons I can even find is that it is a bit slower (which most of the time I like). There is hints that this is a distopia (specifically even for the elites since obviously the poor suffer) and they should trust no one, but the actual characters seem to be mostly good.
  Basically it is really good and I want more.
• Chaos JesterRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  Once again, I agree to check out a story by Alexa. And once again, I find myself completely in love with it. The setting is amazingly set up, the pacing is perfect, the characters and detail and dialogue are gripping and keep you interested in what happens next.
  Honestly, what more could one want from a story? I have to figure out how I'm going to balance catching up on both of these amazing stories, but as far as having problems, that one's a good one to have.
• Consistent MilkRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  Verdict - Thick as thieves excels in all four major categories as outlined by the site, but this is an experimental review. The overall ability to hold a consistent tone, philosophy and psychology while making the story flow in an attention retaining way makes this title a must read for a specific target audience.
  Concept (2/5) - Conceptually, Thick as Thieves hasn’t come up with anything new up to now. It uses known plot devices quite well. But the magic and the fictional world is still obscure at this point, the score might change after reading more.
  Experience (5/5) - As bad as it sounds, I don’t know why I like lead female characters going through tough situations and trying their best to overcome them. The journey of Darcy, the protagonist, satiates that desire to read about such characters quite masterfully. The story being written in first person further enhances that experience as we are always aware of her thoughts and emotions.
  Tone (5/5) - The overall tone of the novel felt suspenseful to me up to now. The author does well to hold the tension throughout each of the chapters. An interesting example from the story I can think of is, the protagonist tells a bedtime story to her sick sister, and the author still manages to build up tension in that situation in interesting ways. Quite a rare talent. The author also does well to give some relief from the default tone from time to time so that it doesn’t become overbearing.
  World (3/5) - The world of Thick as Thieves is ruthless, intriguing and at the same time quite believable. We get to see the world being slowly built up through the eyes and thoughts of the Protagonist Darcy. It is well thought out and if I am not wrong the author has a good grasp on what he/she wants this world to be. The only problem is that such worlds are not new to me. There are tags of post-apocalyptic and steampunk which haven’t been developed well enough up to now though. It may make the world more unique if those concepts were develo
• crueloptimismRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  I planned to write a review when I finished the first book, but instead, I kept reading. If that tells you anything at all about how great of a read this is.
  Style is easily readable and balances between moving the plot forward, having tender moments, and giving detailed, rich worldbuilding. Grammar was fine. The POV is first person, and so you get to follow Darcy closely and really get to know her. It doesn't limit the action at all, either, and maybe even heightens it. For me, Darcy and the other characters are what get me the most.
  I'm a sucker for thieves and tortured backstories, so I'm a sucker for Darcy's character and many of the others. Sticking closely to her POV means you get to know her really well. She has an edge from living in rough situations, and I appreciate that it never goes away. Her love for her little sister also stands out as so genuine and compelling. Darcy and her sister also play off each other really well, both as characters and just narratively in scenes.
  The story takes a few chapters to pick up, but this gives you a chance to understand that there are two different worlds in basically the same city. These early chapters also set up Darcy's motivations and beginning skillset so that when she begins training at the Palace, the way she reacts to her new surroundings creates a lot of tension that keeps you reading. I do wish that book one had maybe more of a climax, but it blends seamlessly with the beginning of book two.
  Just overall, a job well done, and I'm sticking around.
• lemniscateRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  Note: I have read further than suggested while not logged in.
  This is an action-packed romance with danger lurking everywhere.
  Style
  The style is easy to read. Descriptive enough, though with a lot of allowance for the reader to fill in gaps. I feel that it would be interesting to get more of a sense of culture, as it feels pretty generic in a dangerous world that is anything but generic.
  Grammar
  There are a few misspellings and grammar issues, but they are quickly addressed by the author.
  Story
  The story follows Darcy, who is doing her best to protect her little sister after the death of their parents. There is danger everywhere, especially given that they're poor in the beginning. Even after they move to the school/training institute, there is almost even more danger. This gives the impression that although everyone thinks the "invading" nation beyond the waters is the villain, in reality the villains are all around. Among all of this danger, though, I don't get a clear sense of direction for where the story is headed, nor do I have much of an idea of exactly what types of powers Darcy and her sister have, even as far into book two as we are. Still, there is so much intrigue otherwise, the story keeps you interested and on your toes.
  Character
  The characters are interesting. Darcy is easy to like, and her protectiveness over her sister is a driving force in the story. Her sister is sick in the beginning, and so when you get a chance to actually see her personality, it's easy to understand why Darcy is so protective. Lac is an interesting character as well. Described by others as cold and closed off, he's actually quite the opposite, so he's rather likable as well. Other than these characters, though, many of the others feel less well-rounded. The characters we are introduced to in the beginning are barely mentioned afterward.
  This is an easy read set in a dangerous world with likable characters that you'll want to follow to make sure they stay out of harm's way.
• DreameroftheUnknownRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  I'm going to start off this review by saying that I haven't read all that many stories here on RR. However, out of the ones I did, I can easily say that this is the best. The world-building, the characters, the mystery, the sense of danger. . .it just works so well together!
  Style: Really well done. The story is set in the first person, which I view as more tricky than the third person, but the author has managed to pull it off perfectly. The story flows seamlessly, and you can actually envision what's happening. The descriptions paint a lovely image, and the author also managed to incorporate this tension into the story. It's a bit hard to put into words, but the moment you start reading, you can feel this underlying worry, which I think fits the setting magnificently. There isn't any part of the story that was too much of a slog for me to read through, nor was there any that was too short. The paragraphs were just the right length for this story, which I think is harder to accomplish than most people realize. To top it all off, the author successfully made this story easy to follow chronologically. Overall, pretty darn close to perfect.
  Grammar: Pretty much flawless. I think it may be because the author went back to edit pretty much all their chapters, but I couldn't spot a single grammar mistake. The spelling was wonderful, the punctuation was right where it should be (especially the commas). The vocabulary was rich in its depth, with some words I've never heard of but was easily able to figure it out thanks to context clues. Nothing sounded repetitive at all, even while re-reading it, which is a great feat all on its own!
  Character: The characters draw me in from the beginning. I am a sucker for sibling relationships (especially sister-sister), but seeing the desperate attempts of Darcy to help Sen. . .it just made me feel really empathic for them. I found myself cheering for both of them before I even knew what was happening. And it's not just the two of them.
• Freya StoneRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  Ah. Wow. This is pure perfection and there's no need to read this review. Just pop on up to Chapter One and feast your eyes on the magnificence that's been created here.
  If you'd like me to tell you why it's so good, however, buckle up because we have a lot of brilliance to cover.
  Style: 5/5 - First person done to perfection. We instantly dive into the mind, body and soul of the MC, Darcy. The clever use of inner dialogue, memories and the character's understanding of the world help tell this tale. It's all done so beautifully and it feels so natural. It's honestly difficult to step out of this world when you're in it because you feel like a part of the story, as if you can see it coming to life around you!
  Story: 5/5 - I don't know about you, but I like a story that thrusts me into a bad situation and forces me to care about the characters immediately. This story does that perfectly. We start in a brutal scenario, instantly empathizing with the characters introduced. You don’t need to question their motives because it’s so clear from the first page. The history and lore of this world are just as impressive. Each area we stumble into has identifiable features. There are already people to fear, a plethora of future problems and boundless tension. It’s a book that keeps you on your toes and makes you want to cover your eyes when reading for fear of something tragic about to happen.
  Grammar: 5/5 – I didn’t notice anything at all. If there were any mistakes, they weren’t apparent nor immersion breaking.
  Character: 10/5 – You know all that praise above this? Well, it all somehow pales in comparison to the characters created in this book. Everyone you meet in this book is real. Their actions, dialogue and personalities all feel natural and complete. The kids act like kids, goofy, free and naïve. The teens who’ve been given too much responsibility act exactly like they should, kids who grew up to fast and don’t trust anyone. It’s all there, the author obviously understands
• Genuine55Royal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  So I'm not usually interested in YA romances, regardless of how they mix in other genres. But... I'm also a sucker for orphan thief stories, so here we are.
  Frankly this story is simply a pleasure to read, and that's all there is to it.  Assuming the plot progresses to a satisfying ending, this could be the sort of book I'd want to put on my shelf to reread from time to time, just because it's nice.
  Style: Readable, smooth, a preference for plot and personality over exposition and description. That alone is going to encourage me to keep reading. The only portion I even felt tempted to skim through was a bedtime story told by one of the characters, and even there I really only wanted to skim in order to get back to the story.
  Story: So far we have a predictable Oliver Twist plot. We've got our starving orphan, an Artful Dodger, and a Fagin. Just waiting on Mr Sikes, really. :) But even though it's an old plot, there's a lot of comfort in predictability.
  The characters and dialogue are written well enough that the standard plot gets turned into anold cozy hoody instead of the usual ratty tanktop. So far I enjoy every character, every personality.
  Grammar: no errors bad enough to notice.
• GrindStormerRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  Overall: This is very well-written and immersive story. The first-person pov is masterfully-crafted by the author. It draws you in seamlessly. Nice world-building. I liked the class and cultural differences of the rings. 5/5
  Style: This book has a light style, which I really enjoyed. The pace is leisurely and it suits the story well. Alexa’s word choices are really unique/interesting at times; the sort-of phrasing where you think “What an effective way to express that.” I thought this, along with the vividly-detailed exposition, and the strong characters were the author’s greatest strengths. 5/5
  Story: The plot advances well with tension and conflict (both internal and external). This story has very lush descriptions, painting the imagery of the book for the reader. This was the aspect of Alexa’s style that I enjoyed the most. 5/5
  Grammar: Having been through previous editing, the grammar is well-executed and sustains the reader experience. 5/5
  Character: The characters are very-well rounded. You want to cheer for the two heroines. Darcy for her protectiveness of her younger sister and her rugged determination. Sen for her exuberant personality, wonder and silliness. Other characters are quite enjoyable. I really liked Mandia, but, of course, I also questioned her motives. 5/5