Review: Thief by Tarryn Fisher

Note to Self
Love is patient; love is kind.
Love doesn't boast or brag.
There's no arrogance in love;
it's never rude, crude, or indecent-it's not self absorbed.
Love isn't easily upset.
Love doesn't tally wrongs.
Love trusts, hopes, and endures no matter what.
Love will never become obsolete.
I'll fight for her.

Thief.




5 Star Review by Lisa Kane

Thief stole my heart. There, I said it. After much anticipation on my part, I expected good, maybe even very good, but I didn't expect great but that is what I got. Every unanswered question, every stone I felt was unturned by the first two novels was vindicated. Thief is more than worth its weight and was so much more than the sum total of all of its parts. I didn't think reading Caleb's side, after 2 other books, would make such a difference. But it did, and it does and it changed the way I viewed all 3 characters (although I still have nothing but loathing for Leah-Thief did not change that for me). I rarely give a book a 5, not because I hold myself above other readers, but because I feel they are given too easily and 5's are reserved for the best of the best; to inspire others to achieve that pinnacle. From the very first words I read, my gut screamed 5, and until the last word, that same thought stayed in my head.
 

"I know, I know, I know that I am the match and she is the gasoline and without each other we are just two objects void of reaction." 

The primary focus on Thief is Caleb and Olivia (exactly where I want the spotlight to shine). Olivia is married to Noah, but even that relationship is fraught with drama, albeit understated. Caleb is divorced from Leah, otherwise known as Satan's daughter, (too harsh?) having been told at the end of Dirty Red that he is not Estella's father. He has drifted into a sexual friendship kind of thing with a blast from his past, one who hurt him and took away his early chances at fatherhood. Of course she and Olivia still despise one another.

  

Caleb, after all these years of running from the truth, is a different kind of Caleb than he was in The Opportunist and Dirty Red. He is a little wiser and has a lot more clarity regarding Olivia. These two still dance around each other and return to their respective corners. But both know without each other there is no music in their lives. There may be others, but they will always just be the second string until they return to one another again.

'My heart. If my heart had knees that’s where it would be — doubled over, throbbing from the pain. I pull my arm from behind my head and rub my eyes. 

“Olivia…” my voice catches.'
 
This story unfolds in a series of chapters past and present. So many questions are answered; why did Caleb do what he did with Sydney knowing Olivia was coming to meet him, why did Olivia run so many times, why did it all fall apart in Rome, why did this beautifully flawed couple, who fell in love under a beautiful tree, never quite grasp that beautifully elusive brass ring?
 
“Olivia, I once told you that I would love again, and that you would hurt forever. Do you remember?”

She nods. It’s a painful memory for both of us. 

“It was a lie. I knew it was a lie, even as I said it. I’ve never loved anyone after you. I never will.”

Fisher with a brevity of words has written a story that will knock you to your knees and make you clutch your stomach page after page. So many things uncovered, so many things you thought were black and white were really gray after all. How did you miss that meaning the first time around? Why did you assume the worst of these perfectly imperfect characters? Adding Caleb's POV completes so many holes in the story. I felt such anguish for this man, for he has had one great love in his life and having never been able to keep her, he has wasted so many years with her replacements.

Olivia has matured and grown in this book.
 
“I feel so mortal,” she says. “I’ve collected so much armor over the years; a law degree, money, a hard heart. But, out here I have nothing and I feel naked.”

She no longer thinks solely about herself and she tries, she really tries to hold sacred her wedding vows. Never have I wished for infidelity as much as I did in this book. We see glimpses of Leah, sprinkled here and there, spewing forth hatred and resentment. Oh, so good to know some things never change.

“It’s like he thought he could be married on his terms. Have you at home for when it was convenient for him, but he’s never been there for you.”

“Stop.”

Will Caleb and Olivia get their HEA? Can so much wrong ever be righted?This last book of the series is all you wish it to be and was so worth the wait. And with this epilogue-the cracks in my heart were finally fused together.

 ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.