This book was surprising to me. Two brothers, Prosper and Bo, were sent away to live with their Aunt and Uncle. They only wanted Bo, not Proseper, because he was older. Prosper was not about to be sent off to boarding school and leave the only brother he had behind him, so they ran away to Venice, Italy. They had heard great things about the city from their mother before she passed away. But upon their arrival of the city, they realized it wasn't as they expected it to be. It was almost winter and the city seemed to be a bit gloomy. The two brothers hadn't really planned on how to survive in this giant city, they were just going to wing it. They wandered into an abandoned movie theatre where they found refuge. It was there that they discovered the person who would save them in their time of need, The Thief Lord.
The Thief Lord was a young man who hadv a great sense of cleverness and mystery. No one knew where he came from, but they knew he stole from the rich to give to the poor. He was sort of like a mini robin hood. But now things were getting heated. Prosper and Bo's Aunt and Uncle had hired a private investigator, Victor Getz, to track down the kids so they could adopt Bo. The Thief Lord nd all of their friends, were helping them escape the investigator.
The Thief Lord is offered a job to obtain a magic carousel the changes the old into young and the young into old. But It is discovered that the Thief Lord is actually the son of a rich noble, and he had been stealing from his own house. Prosper and Bo and the others carry on with the mission, but The Thief Lord refuses to be left out. He finds the carousel first and takes a ride on it, turning him into a man. While this has happened the Victor Getz finds Prosper and Bo and returns them. But their Aunt decides she doesn't want a child as horribly behaved as Bo and she lets them go. The thief lord becomes friends with the detective and is now sort of a snitch in a way. All other thiefs fear him because he can find clues of stolen goods without leaving a trace.
I liked the book all the way up until the ending. I didn't feel it left me satisfie with enough information. Overall the book was well written and it kept me wondering the whole time. I give it 4 stars