Book Review: The Diamond Thief

Title: The Diamond Thief

Author: Sharon Gosling

Genre: Steampunk

Book Blurb: 

No one performs on the circus trapeze like 16-year-old Rémy Brunel. But Rémy also leads another life, prowling through the backstreets of Victorian London as a jewel thief. When she is forced to steal one of the world’s most valuable diamonds, she uncovers a world of treachery and fiendish plots.

Meanwhile, young detective Thaddeus Rec is determined to find the jewel and clear his name. Will Thaddeus manage to rescue the jewel? Or is it really Rémy that he needs to save?

Review:

An insane lord. An ingenious professor. A thief. A policeman. Add them together and you have the adventure of the lifetime. Let me introduce you to the cast:

There's Remy, aka Little Bird. She's a trapeze artist by day and a jewel thief by night. There's Lord Abernathy, a seemingly harmless lord who lives a double life as well. There The Professor. He's a guy with a good heart, master of all things steampunky (ie. any steam powered machine) and caught up in a sticky web of secrets. And of course, there's Detective Rec, a young member of the Scotland Yard police force. Unfortunately, he isn't exactly the most respected police on the force due to his background. Orphaned on the streets at a young age, Rec was lucky enough to meet the Professor who gave him an education and a chance to be someone more than a beggar.

Under the most curious circumstances, Remy and Rec must team together to retrieve a stolen diamond. Remy had attempted to steal the diamond earlier, but someone beat her to it. Meanwhile, Rec, who was in charge of safeguarding the diamond, is now blamed for the theft. Both want the diamond back, but for very different reasons.

Of course, a little touch of magic never hurts a steampunk book. So let's add in the Curse. Remy is cursed--she will (involuntarily) drive away anyone she loves. And the only way to break this curse is for her to retrieve the stolen gem and return it to the rightful owner. So yeah...basically she realizes she loves Rec but keeps on driving him away.

I loved the world building and the scenery/description (that's one of my favorite aspect of steampunk books--the imagination used in world building.) The plot was good and moved at a brisk pace. Some of the parts were predictable, but still a fun read.

However, I think my favorite part of the book was the ending because it was haunting and beautiful. This book was a fun read and I will definitely look into reading the 2nd book if there is one. I would recommend this book for readers ages 9+.

Rating: