To Catch a Magic Thief

The Magic Collectors, Book 2

By: E.J. Kitchens

Narrated by: Paul Winter

An unlikely hero and a cursed heroine deal with more than pride and prejudice as they race to stop a cunning thief.

Falsely accused of being the notorious Magic Thief, the non-magic Marcel Ellsworth, Baron of Carrington, wants nothing more than to stay away from enchanters and sorcerers. Unfortunately, he soon discovers his mentor, the Duke of Henly, is head of a family of proud enchanters - and that they’re the next target of the Magic Thief, a servant of the sorcerers.

With the threat of another accusation hanging over him, Marcel sets out to prove his innocence, especially to the duke’s beautiful daughter Gabriella, and to stop the thief, once and for all. But Gabriella is hiding a deadly secret that complicates Marcel’s mission and raises its stakes. For, one thing is certain: The Magic Thief has come for more than magical treasures - he has come for Gabriella.

A spunky heroine, an unlikely hero, a cunning thief, and a race against a terrifying curse - everything a reader could want in a fantasy adventure! Marcel and Gabriella are both easy to root for as they overcome obstacles and their own misconceptions, and their growing friendship against the odds is executed to perfection. E.J. Kitchens has once again created a world of elegant manners and complex magic that will both intrigue and enchant her readers through the very last page." (Laurie Lucking, award-winning author of Common)

The Magic Collectors series features stand-alone novels that can be listened to in any order. They are clean fantasy novels with adventure, humor, and romance in E.J. Kitchens’ classic “Jane Austen romance meets fairytale adventure” style.

©2019 E.J. Kitchens (P)2021 E.J. Kitchens

Regency fantasy and magical mystery.

To Catch a Magic Thief is a companion novel to E.J. Kitchen's The Rose and the Wand. I say companion because the two books overlap a bit, though TCaMT is a technically the first chronologically. I really do recommend starting with TCaMT first. It sets up the world building a lot better than TRatW did and I think it will add to your enjoyment of that side of the story.

To Catch a Magic Thief, follows two first person POV characters. Marcel Ellsworth and Gabriella Florrissan. They are a bit of an odd couple. One without and the other of a long line of powerful enchanters. To make it even more awkward, Marcel is suspected of being the notorious magic thief.

This book is a great mystery. It's full of action and danger. Not to mention the constant guessing of who the real magic thief is.

And Gabriella has an amazing backstory/character arc about overcoming an abduction in her youth. This part of the plot was the most compelling part of the book to me. I feel like this story about Gabriella could have easily carried the book on it's own and I would love to see this idea of children abducted for their magic fleshed out more in a future novel.

The narrator, Paul Winter, reads well. He has a nice British voice that is fun to listen to and he handles the side characters excellently giving them each a different voice. But for the two first person POV characters he . . . doesn't.

The two First person voices really should have been given a bigger differentiation.

Winter's Marcel voice is really good. I suspect it may be his natural voice. Because his Gabriella voice is just his Marcel voice in a higher pitch. It makes following the first person narration a little hard at first, as you really have to pay attention to who's POV your in.

It isn't too hard to do, you just have to pay attention to the name said at the beginning of each chapter. POV can also be intuited though context. Just take care to be an active listener an you should have no problems enjoying this magical mystery romance.

Magically Intriguing

Marcel was immediately endearing to me. Gabriella is a Floriason, which means she’s proud and arrogant. At the same time, it’s easy to love her as the “black sheep” sister and when her secret comes to light she’s an even more sympathetic heroine. Although, I’m going to be honest and say I love all of the Floriasons (except maybe Aunt Helene) even in all their snobbery.
The supporting cast is great too leaving lots of opportunities for lovable characters, villains, and suspicious figures who could be good or bad.
This brings me to the magic system where there are enchanters, half-magics (some people believe they’re fictional ), and non-magics. And of course all kinds of magical objects. The story is tightly wound with action, humor, and a bit of romance.
I love EJ Kitchens imaginative writing style. More books in this world, please.
The narration is engaging and I enjoyed "rereading" this book in audio!

small skips

Overall I enjoyed the story and the narrator did a good job, but there were several spots where the audio went silent only to pick up a few seconds later in the middle of a sentence.

Fantastic story!

I love this story! Marcel is one of my favorite characters of all time. I like the narrator's voice, but he did read a little fast. I listened at 90% speed and it was perfect.