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Title: Steal the Sky
Series:
Scorched Continent #1
Author: Megan O'Keefe
Rating:
3.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Fantasy
Pages:
340
Words: 117.5K
From Kobo.com
Detan
Honding, a wanted conman of noble birth and ignoble tongue, has found
himself in the oasis city of Aransa. He and his trusted companion
Tibs may have pulled off one too many cons against the city’s elite
and need to make a quick escape. They set their sight’s on their
biggest heist yet - the gorgeous airship of the exiled commodore
Thratia.
But
in the middle of his scheme, a face changer known as a doppel starts
murdering key members of Aransa’s government. The sudden paranoia
makes Detan’s plans of stealing Thratia’s ship that much harder.
And with this sudden power vacuum, Thratia can solidify her power and
wreak havoc against the Empire. But the doppel isn’t working for
Thratia and has her own intentions. Did Detan accidentally walk into
a revolution and a crusade? He has to be careful - there’s a reason
most people think he’s dead. And if his dangerous secret gets
revealed, he has a lot more to worry about than a stolen airship.
I read this back in 2016. I wasn't that impressed then, as I had some
real issues with the story structure. I've been seeing lots of
positive reviews for O'Keefe's Protectorate series though, so
wanted to give this series another chance. It was a smidge bit
better, enough to bump it up half a star and to get me onto the
second book, unlike last time.
Reading my review from '16, I can still see what I meant. It just
didn't bother me the same way, as I was already familiar with the
characters. I've also realized that I enjoy the “Lord and Servant”
trope. Detan & Tibbs. Wooster & Jeeves. Whimsey & Bunter.
It simply works for me.
I did find Detan to be more of a useless ass this time around than
last. I rather dislike using pejorative body parts as descriptions
for someone, but really, it seems to be the most accurate, universal
fit. Tibbs was less involved than I remember while all the women (the
rest of the cast) played a much more decisive role.
Upon some investigating, it turns out that O'Keefe wrote a prequel
novel after she finished this series. If she had written that first,
even if not published it, it would go a LONG way towards explaining
some of the “familiar” banter between Detan and Tibbs and would
give some weight to their obvious history in this book. In that same
investigating I have come across enough issues that I have decided to
not delve into the Protectorate series. Now I just have to hope she
doesn't tip me off a cliff with this trilogy.
Honestly, I can't say if I enjoyed this more than last time. I
certainly had much less “dislike” than last time though. I'm
pretty ambivalent and this review definitely reflects that.
★★★✬☆
