The Thief on the Winged Horse

by Kate Mascarenhas

Sophia Myles (Narrator) and Olivia Vinall (Narrator)

A dazzling mixture of crime, romance, magic and myth from the acclaimed author of The Psychology of Time Travel.

The Kendrick family have been making world-famous dolls since the early 1800s. But their dolls aren't coveted for the craftmanship alone. Each one has a specific emotion laid on it by its creator. A magic that can make you feel bucolic bliss or consuming paranoia at a single touch. Though founded by sisters, now only men may know the secrets of the workshop.

Persephone Kendrick longs to break tradition and learn the family craft, and when a handsome stranger arrives claiming doll-making talent and a blood tie to the Kendricks, she sees a chance to grasp all she desires.

But then, one night, the family's most valuable doll is stolen. Only someone with knowledge of magic could have taken her. Only a Kendrick could have committed this crime...

Reviews for Kate Mascarenhas:
'Witty, inventive and unflashily wise about human hearts; Mascarenhas's future promises to be an exciting one' GUARDIAN.

'Breathtakingly tender and wryly understated' NEW YORK TIMES.

'Captivating, delightful and thoroughly original' JENNIE MELAMED.

2020 Head of Zeus

• ISBN10: 1800245084
• ISBN13: 9781800245082
• Publish Date: 12 November 2020
• Publish Status: Inactive
• Out of Print: 9 July 2024
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Head of Zeus
• Edition: Unabridged edition
• Format: Audiobook (CD)
• Duration: 9 hours and 23 minutes
• Language: English

Reviews

[niamh]

Thank you to Netgalley and Head of Zeus for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review

The Thief on the Winged Horse had me hooked and I could not put it down, I literally flew through the book!

Kate Mascarenhas does an superb job at world-building, character development and the relationships between characters. I felt like I was part of the Kendricks community by the end of the book.

The mix of the romance, the mystery, the patriachal society is so engrossing that it sometimes reads like a fantasy set in the 1800's but Mascarenhas will subtly remind the reader that the book is set on an eyot near Oxford in 2020.

While I feel like the ending could have been considered a "closed" ending, I would still absolutely love to see more of the lore and characters from The Thief on the Winged Horse, especially Persephone and Larkin, I kinda love those two the most