Thief of Lives (Noble Dead)

Features

• Cover Type: Mass Market Paperback with 416 pages
• Published by: Roc January 6, 2004
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 0451459539
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-0451459534
• Book Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 1 inches
• Weighs: 6.4 ounces

From Booklist
Former con-artists-turned-vampire-slayers Magiere (a half-vampire, half-human called a dhampir) and her half-elf partner, Leesil, return in this sequel to Dhampir [BKL Ja 1 & 15 03]. After she had taken care of the vampire problem in Miiska, her and Leesil's adopted village, Magiere assumed her vampire-hunting days were over. Now a successful tavern owner, she wants nothing more than to forget about vampires. But when a vampire kills a councilman's daughter in the city of Bela, Miiska officials pressure her to go hunt down and kill the vampire. At Leesil's urging, she reluctantly agrees. The trip gets off to a terrible start when three hired thugs try to kill Magiere aboard the ship to Bela, and when she and Leesil begin investigating, Magiere is puzzled by the deliberate nature of the crime. Clearly, someone was trying to send a message. But was the sender a vampire or some other sinister, dark force? Readers will turn the pages of this satisfying medieval thriller with gusto. Kristine Huntley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Description
On the heels of Dhampir, Barb and J. C. Hendee's acclaimed fantasy debut, comes a new novel featuring Magiere and Leesil, slayers of the undead

Magiere the dhampir and Leesil, her half-elf partner, are called out of their self-imposed retirement when vampires besiege the town of Bela-and are discovered to be in a league with the town's most prominent elders

Reader Reviews
When I read Dhampir, I wasn't sure if it was intended for an extended run or not, but here is the next volume of what now appears to be at least a trilogy. This is good news, as the Hendee's have managed to create two strong characters and put together a plot that still maintains it's mystery and draw at the end of two volumes. Magiere is a dhampir, daughter of a vampire and a human. At the end of the previous volume (in which a vampire killing scam suddenly turns out to be serious) she discovers that dhampirs have significant and deadly powers of their own. Her companion is half-elven Leesil who also hides many mysteries. Trained as an assassin, Leesil was happily pursuing a life of crime until he met Magiere. Just for a moment, at the beginning of Thief of Lives, the couple has settled into the routine of running an inn. Nothing lasts, of course, and in short order Magiere, Leesil, and Chap the wonder dog have been maneuvered into heading for the capital city of Bela to hunt the vampire responsible for killing the daughter of a prominent councilman. They arrive to discover that they are not particularly welcome - even less so when they announce that the killer may be one of the privileged classes. And instead of one vampire there are two, or maybe three, or ... Add a dog with unexpected skills, another elven killer, some mages, and a return visit by Welstiel Massing (who has hidden agendas of his own) and you have a good picture of what life is like for Leesil and Magiere. Not counting their own relationship, which has become clouded by their discovery that being a dhampir is more than having a funny ethnic designation. The events of the previous volume (which include Leesil feeding Magiere his own blood to save her life) have triggered a series of psychological and physical changes in the young woman. Not feeling in control of herself, Magiere has taken to avoiding Leesil out of fear that she might hurt him. This has put their normally close alliance is under a strain and has left both of them prone to emotional mistakes. The Hendee's manage this complex set of factors like long time writers, and the result is an active, flowing plot with a wealth of character and setting detail. While revealing a lot, they always manage to hold enough back so that there is always something new on the horizon. While this is a Gothic world, with Gothic vampires, there is a fresh newness to the plot that defies the stereotypes it works with. The book stands fairly well on its own, generally explaining what it inherits from the previous volume, but you are best of starting from the beginning - if for no other reason than the first book being equally enjoyable. Comment | | (Report this)