A revisit review of Giant Thief

Ahead of the publication of Prince Thief at the end of September, let's revisit the first in the trilogy, Giant Thief. Look out for a revisit of book two, Crown Thief, in the next few weeks!

Many folks want to be the kind of people that only engage with high-brow literature, even if their first love is speculative fiction, they only want to read the best speculative fiction there is. That's not the sort of reader I am (or TV and film watcher come to think of it). I love the high, the low and the middle and that's why Giant Thief was such a great read. For every author struggling to carve the new niche in epic fantasy, there still a few that take the main ingredients, give them a quick stir and the couple of shakes of herbs and spices that are going to make the story fresh without inventing a new genre.

The tale of the rather inept thief Easie Damasco and his run-in with tyrants, giants, politics, war and other greater matters he wishes he was as far away from as possible is just such a story. Sure, there's taverns and ladies of the night, fantasy landscapes and mythological creatures and no great bold strokes that we haven't all seen before. But it's the subtle shadings that make all the difference and make Damasco the kind of character you're going to want to spend time with again. 

David Tallerman's great skill is the humour in the book, always bubbling under the surface of each harebrained scheme and witty riposte, but occasionally erupting in descriptions and dry asides that will have you sniggering inappropriately on your commute to work, such as:

"Near the peak was a smooth, cupped indent, just wide enough that I could have sat up there if I could have climbed it. Unsurprisingly, however, the giants had chosen not to use the rock as a highchair for passing midgets."

The only dud note is that Damasco skates a little too close to downright unlikeability. He's irascible, irredeemably criminal and more than a little self-centred and that's all to the good, but you don't  really want to see him be petty, snide or cold-hearted. These dips are few though and Tallerman has assembled a great supporting cast, particularly in Mayor Marina Estrada, who's thrust from her small town politics to lead a ragtag resistance against a far superior foe and carries her new mantle with a great combination of sneakiness and grit while never losing sight of her decent, moral core. Neither Estrada, Damasco nor the third main character, the giant Saltlick are indestructible fighters, devilishly intelligent strategists or unambiguous do-gooders, but luck and laughs carry them through some thoroughly enjoyable adventures.