The Stardust Thief: A Reminder of Why I Love Fantasy | Book Review

Do you ever read a book and love it so much you don’t quite know how to put it into words? That is exactly how I feel about this book. I have been writing this review for weeks, hoping to be able to explain how much I loved this book and why. I only hope I’ve done it justice.

Book: The Stardust Thief
Author: Chelsea Abdullah
Release date: 19/05/2022
Genre: Adult fantasy
Rating: 5 stars

I was very lucky to have been sent an E-Arc of The Stardust Thief by Chelsea Abdullah prior to the release of the book in May. This is one of, if not my most highly anticipated read of 2022, so I was thrilled to be given this opportunity. With me being so excited for the book, I had high expectations – the book more than met them and the wonderful storytelling from Chelsea Abdullah absolutely blew me away. Considering this is her debut novel, she has certainly set the bar high for her future works, considering how much I enjoyed this book.

Below is the synopsis taken from Goodreads:

“Neither here nor there, but long ago…

Loulie al-Nazari is the Midnight Merchant: a criminal who, with the help of her jinn bodyguard, hunts and sells illegal magic. When she saves the life of a cowardly prince, she draws the attention of his powerful father, the sultan, who blackmails her into finding an ancient lamp that has the power to revive the barren land—at the cost of sacrificing all jinn.

With no choice but to obey or be executed, Loulie journeys with the sultan’s oldest son to find the artefact. Aided by her bodyguard, who has secrets of his own, they must survive ghoul attacks, outwit a vengeful jinn queen, and confront a malicious killer from Loulie’s past. And, in a world where story is reality and illusion is truth, Loulie will discover that everything—her enemy, her magic, even her own past—is not what it seems, and she must decide who she will become in this new reality.

Inspired by stories from One Thousand and One Nights, The Stardust Thief weaves the gripping tale of a legendary smuggler, a cowardly prince, and a dangerous quest across the desert to find a legendary, magical lamp.“

Now, One Thousand and One Nights are stories everyone has at least heard of. However, these stories are particularly well known and loved by people whose heritage derived from the Middle East – such as myself. These are stories everyone grows up knowing and loving and that are full of wonder and adventure. So to read The Stardust Thief – a new adult fantasy trilogy – based off these very stories? It was an honour to be able to read the first book prior to its release, and it felt every part as wondrous and magical and entrancing as the original stories to me. Whilst I had a feeling I would somewhat enjoy the book at least, given my heritage, I didn’t know just how much. The result? I love the book oh so very much. The Stardust Thief captivated me from the start and brought me more joy than I could ever have imagined. In short: I adored it, every single page. Here is why.

Worldbuilding in a book can make or break it for me. Chelsea Abdullah has more than made it. This world doesn’t feel fictional, it feels as real as ours. Abdullah’s words fly right off the page and surround me in this world that is so full of life. The descriptions were so vivid and beautifully written, my imagination was running wild picturing the vast deserts, the lively markets, the jinn relics, the costumes, the magic system – everything was so well crafted. Abdullah has also managed to find the perfect line between enough descriptions to feed imaginations, but not so much that it feels pretentious.

The characters in this book are everything. Despite how well a book is written, the characters need to be if not likeable, enjoyable to read about. And this cast of characters definitely are – and I am not being biased because there is a character who shares my name (although that did help and make me overjoyed! That could be me, dad!). What I love about this cast of characters so much is that to me, none of them seem to be either 100% good or 100% bad. They’re all people who are human just like me and you; sure you have your ‘good’ people and ‘bad’ people, but the way they’re written is so real that they’re not this clear cut. The ‘good’ characters make mistakes, do things to hurt others – be that knowingly or not – but you love them anyway. The ‘bad’ characters do awful things, but the way they explain the reasonings behind their actions, doesn’t make what they’re doing okay, but you can understand what they are saying and their point of view. I wanted to meet the famous Midnight Merchant, Prince Mazen, Aisha Bint Louas and of course Qadir. I want to spend hours chatting to Ahmed and I want to fight the bad guys alongside our fierce gang! The characters all have depth to them, and they all have their own fair share of heartbreak. They’re all tough and strong and courageous in their own ways, but it is also their vulnerabilities and heartbreak that makes them all that more real. In fact, these vulnerabilities actually make these characters stronger – having them does not make someone weak, it makes you human. It is because of all of this that I loved every single character so fiercely – I didn’t actually want the book to end because then I’d have to say goodbye to them, after becoming so invested!

The story itself is fantastic. A retelling of One Thousand and One Nights, and in a way that feels new. It’s dark and it’s gripping (especially with the theme of jinn being hunted throughout the book). It has the magic, the wonder, the fantasy I love to read in books, yet still feels believable. Chelsea Abdullah’s writing style not only brings the world and characters to life, but also the magic, the adventure and the jinn. From the first page, I was thrown headfirst into the story and I found myself racing through the pages, eager to see where this story was going. I found I’d have sped through so much of the book in such little time. I like fantasy. But a lot of the time it can feel like I am reading the same kind of stories. The Stardust Thief is a totally unique type of fantasy book that reminded me why I love this genre so much in the first place. It stands out against other fantasy books I’ve read before for all the right reasons. The Stardust Thief is a dark, action-packed adventure with surprises and plot twists that had me wide-eyed and unable to stop reading.

The themes interwoven in the stories brought me a lot of happiness reading this story. One running theme in this book is stories – or to be more specific, storytelling. The power of stories, storytelling and of course, the storyteller. Stories within stories is something I always love to read. Stories are magical – they’re the reason I love books and theatre so much! So to read a book where this is such a prominent theme made me so happy! And the way the theme is carried out is beautiful. The Stardust Thief feels like a reminder of the power stories and storytelling can have, and how we should never forget that, nor the impact. There were passages where stories were being told, and I felt such a sense of calm come over me as I read characters weave tales right before my eyes, and as I felt the stories they were telling within their world come to life and impact everyone around them listening in.

The next theme I want to bring attention to within this book is identity. It is not only a physical journey these characters go on, but an emotional one that at some points causes them to really evaluate themselves. Throughout the events of the book, questions are raised regarding identity -what makes us who we are, how important is our identity, and how do we stay true to ourselves? I found this underlying theme really thought-provoking and had me thinking about what I thought of and how I viewed myself too, and what I would do if I found myself in their position.

The final theme I want to give a nod to is that of family. By now, I am sure everyone knows family is one of my all-time favourite themes in books, and this was no exception. There were of course strong family bonds – most of our characters’ motivations and what drives them is love for their family – be that good or bad things, you’ll have to read the book to see and decide for yourself! I also loved how The Stardust Thief gives a beautiful example of how family does not always mean blood. It can be – and is – those who care, love and support you.

The Stardust Thief is a gem of a book and I feel so lucky and grateful I was able to read an e-arc prior to its release. I can’t wait for the book to come out in less than a month so I can re-read it all again and return to this magical world, story and characters I’ve come to love so much already. The Stardust Thief is a thrilling story that had me hooked from the very beginning and it was an emotional rollercoaster and a pleasure to read. And with this being the first book in a trilogy, I am very excited to see where this story is headed!

What makes The Stardust Thief all that more special for me is knowing this is a story based on Middle Eastern folk tales, set in the Middle East and written by an author of Middle Eastern heritage. Not only is it authentic, but reading this book felt like home to me. I felt so comforted and oh so very at home. That is nothing short of incredible, all thanks to Chelsea Abdullah’s wonderful work.

One thing is for sure – The Stardust Thief is a story that has definitely impacted me, in only good ways.

The Stardust Thief is out in the US on May 17th and the UK on May 19th. To find out where you can pre-order it, head to Chelsea Abdullah’s website here.