Painted Devils

by Margaret Owen

I was finally able to attend my first “big book event”, and I got to walk away with my FIRST BOUND MANUSCRIPT! And it’s the sequel to one of my favorite YA books of 2021! I can’t even begin to describe how excited and blessed I felt.

Did I mention that I also got the last one they had? [Queue feeling blessed.]

Anyway, Painted Devils may also be my favorite YA read of 2023. I never wanted to put it down, I thought about it constantly [when I wasn’t plagued by thoughts about Yellowface], and I think it’ll make the reread list – at least, when it publishes, so I can see if the last bit of polishing makes me love it any more than I already do. It’ll be tough to do, though.

I INHALED this book. I had to force myself on multiple occasions to slow down and give my brain time to process it all. But I 100% didn’t want to. I cannot WAIT for this to come out so I can hold a finished copy in my hands!

Like usual, I knew next to nothing about this book before reading it, but you don’t have to! You can find a link to the Goodreads summary of Painted Devils here!

Recommendation: READ IT. If you read Little Thieves and enjoyed it, definitely read this. If you read Little Thieves and thought it was ok, I still say read this. In my opinion, it may be better than Little Thieves. If you haven’t read Little Thieves, and you’re waiting to see how the sequel goes, I’d say this is your sign to finally pick it up. I’d even venture to say that if you didn’t enjoy Little Thieves to try this anyway, but that may be an exaggeration. [Only, though, if you weren’t already considering it.] Basically, if you are on the fence in any way, read it!

IT’S. SO. GOOD. Like, SO good. I likely won’t be quiet about this book for a while yet. If ever. Did I mention it’s SO GOOD?

Vanja is back on her usual behavior, though slightly better, and I’m so here for it. Her struggles are so understandable and relatable. Even the accidental start to the cult was understandable [if maybe not relatable]. Vanja goes through so much in this book! And, through it all, she’s even more loveable than she was in Little Thieves, and I couldn’t get enough.

Do you know who else was even more loveable in this book? Emeric Conrad. We get more of a glimpse into his head and his thoughts in this book, and I really enjoyed it. [Please note: I do NOT mean we get his POV in this book because we DON’T. I don’t feel like we’re missing anything by not having it, to be clear, but I don’t want people to misunderstand.] Like Vanja, he “deepens” as a character in this book. Not to say he was a shallow character in Little Thieves, because he wasn’t, but we learn more about him in Painted Devils. I also felt like he and Vanja made a lot more sense as a couple in this story, too. They were cute in Little Thieves, but they definitely feel more couple-y in Painted Devils.

**BE PREPARED FOR ALL THE FANGIRLING – I LOVE THIS BOOK SO MUCH! A-HEM. ANYWAY – SPOILERS [AND FANGIRLING] AHEAD. IF YOU DON’T WANT SPOILERS, STOP HERE – OR GO READ IT AND COME BACK, IF YOU’D LIKE! I’M NOT GOING ANYWHERE ANY TIME SOON.**

What’s there to NOT love about Painted Devils, honestly?

I’ll admit there were likely parts where logic was a bit thin and, “Is that really possible/consistent?” might have been present, but, honestly, either they were still, in some way, reasonable stretches, or they didn’t actually exist. [I just recognize that I sometimes gloss over those things post-read if I loved the book as a whole enough.] I’m not entirely sure I can remember a stretch [the closest I can come is Ragne’s horse form, but she’s just this being of incredible {if fluctuating} power, and I don’t know her actual limitations, nor the limitations of the horse she races against, but that’s the only thing I can think of?].

Granted, this isn’t a book for everyone, obviously, but I absolutely loved it!  It’s Little Thieves 2.0.  It’s more of Vanja 2.0 and Emeric 2.0, and OMG WHAT A RIDE! [See what I did there? With the Wild Hunt? Anyway . . .]

I have a new theory that I’m not losing my touch with guessing what’s going to happen in books – it’s that some authors write so well [and/or in such a way] that I’m so lost in consuming it as quickly as possible [and enjoying it so, so thoroughly], that I don’t have time to guess what’s happening next. Because I didn’t see the brothers and sister from the beginning as being Vanja’s siblings until practically when it was announced. I started to get a, “Hey, wait a minute . . .” kinda thing, but, honestly, not long before. We’re talking pages, at best. [So, clearly, this is a new category, and this book falls into it, and my other category, which is the Reread List. Does that praise the book high enough, or what?]

But I love that Vanja basically doesn’t get the chance to “perfect” herself before meeting her family, because rarely, if ever, in life, do things go the way they “should”, or, better put, the way we want them to go. And I love how Vanja handles it all – with just as much class [and curse words] as she handles basically everything else. [Yes, I know what I said there. If you haven’t read Little Thieves, you’ll understand that a little better once you do. Because, seriously, you should probably go read it. And then Painted Devils. Because duh!]

Also, can we just take a second to acknowledge that someone with Vanja’s mother’s personality would 100% be that extra and go to that length to try to sabotage her daughter’s happiness [especially if you {unreasonably} blame that daughter for “ruining your life” or whatever]. I mean, she did essentially take Vanja to what she was hoping was Vanja’s death when Vanja was a child. This woman has no limits to her selfishness.

I’m a firm believer that, if a large sacrifice/price is not paid by the MC, the story doesn’t hit as strongly. And, with Vanja, that’s exactly what we get. It starts off being something that seems harmless and easy enough [the blood drops offer, not the Emeric one, of course!], and then becomes a much, much bigger price, and then it becomes an even bigger one when she discovers it’s her brothers. Like. C’mon! And then the final “trial” step and the final battle take so much from her, and then Emeric at the end?? Like??

ANYWAY – speaking of Emeric, I love how Vanja and Emeric play off each other, I love how they work together, I love all the complications they come across, and I love [and hate] how Vanja leaves us at the very end. It’s so, so big of her to do that – but also, technically, it isn’t her call to make, which I’m imagining is going to be a central [ish, at least] part in Book 3. [No title for it yet, but it’s coming!]

Also, I love that she managed to sneak Ragne back into the story because is it really a story in this universe without Ragne?? I think NOT. I love her presence, what she adds to the group dynamic, and I just can’t wait to see more of her in Book 3. [And my inevitable reread of Little Thieves and Painted Devils. Obviously.]

ALSO, WHAT WAS THAT RIBBON ENDING, OMG, I NEED BOOK 3 NOOOOOOOW!!!!!!!

Alright, I think I’ve fangirled enough. I still feel like this review isn’t as strong as it could be, so I may come back and edit/update it, so don’t be surprised if you come back for a second read and things are different!

As always, I hope you enjoyed my [fangirling] review! Be kind, stay safe, and read on!