What do you think?
Rate this book
Gaspar the Thief #1
Gaspar The Thief
Follow the adventures of Gaspar, a freelance thief who stubbornly refuses to join the Thieves' Guild. Finding himself entangled in a series of mishaps and misfortunes mostly of his own making, and facing looming retribution from every quarter, he finally departs his native city.
Aided by Hubris, a seller of spells who similarly declines to pay his dues to Wizards' Hall, and Marna, a feisty thiefess with a quick tongue and a quicker temper, Gaspar hopes to lie low for a while, but events continue to go awry, leading from one catastrophe to the next in quick succession.
Brigands, sells-swords, goblin warlords, mages and even a tricksy wight all seem to have it in for him as he travels across the world of Lindor, stumbling from one calamity to the next, and yet somehow always surviving to tell the tale.
Told with humour, this is an exciting romp based in a fantasy world where anything can, and does, happen!
Aided by Hubris, a seller of spells who similarly declines to pay his dues to Wizards' Hall, and Marna, a feisty thiefess with a quick tongue and a quicker temper, Gaspar hopes to lie low for a while, but events continue to go awry, leading from one catastrophe to the next in quick succession.
Brigands, sells-swords, goblin warlords, mages and even a tricksy wight all seem to have it in for him as he travels across the world of Lindor, stumbling from one calamity to the next, and yet somehow always surviving to tell the tale.
Told with humour, this is an exciting romp based in a fantasy world where anything can, and does, happen!
- GenresFantasy
328 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 10, 2012
2 people are currently reading
45 people want to read
About the author
David A. Lindsay
37 books4 followersBorn and brought up in Dundee, Scotland, David A. Lindsay now lives with his wife near St Andrews in Fife. Gaspar The Thief, a humorous fantasy adventure, is his first novel.
Gaspar The Thief is a featured 'Noteworthy Release' for the week commencing 3 June 2012 at http://noteworthyreleasesdsbooks.blog....
Visit David's website at http://www.highland.co.uk.
Gaspar The Thief is a featured 'Noteworthy Release' for the week commencing 3 June 2012 at http://noteworthyreleasesdsbooks.blog....
Visit David's website at http://www.highland.co.uk.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
August 23, 2012
Aww, it was such a shame that this book didn't quite reach my expectations.
The main reason I purchased the book in the first place was the Cover and the Title. I'm not going to lie, I usually choose the books I read that way. I always tell myself never to do so but I almost never listen.
Gaspar the Thief and I didn't become best friends for only one reason: it wasn't really a novelish book. It was rather a collection of short stories that were linked by the same characters and similar circumstances. And I hated that. The thing is, short stories/novellas really ARE different from novels. The fact that Gaspar's story was told in very short episodes made it difficult to really connect with him as a character. There was also the problem that the characters never became deeper because there was no time for them to do so.
I loved the characters of Gaspar the Thief and would have liked for them to really have one long story together instead of episodes. The reason why I hated the episodes so much was that they all concentrated on making the individual story interesting, gripping and original. If there had been only on main story arc with several smaller arcs, the focus wouldn't have been so diluted.
And now I'm sounding all negative even though I still really liked Gaspar!
Here's what was great:
-the stories. Even though I didn't like the episodes for the before-mentioned reasons, I still appreciate the fact that they were actually really interesting. And mostly I didn't see the conclusions coming, which is awesome!
-the characters, especially Gaspar. Gaspar was not your normal hero. He was a normal man with maybe more bad sides than good ones. And I loved him for it. His impeccable sense of humor only added to his appeal.
-the writing. Good, neat.
-the twists. The episodes had twists I didn't see coming - and I was delighted to read them.
Final thought: The author certainly has great talent and imagination, but I would have preferred for Gaspar the Thief to be a book with a main arc and smaller story arcs. I think that would have worked better.
4 Stars.
The main reason I purchased the book in the first place was the Cover and the Title. I'm not going to lie, I usually choose the books I read that way. I always tell myself never to do so but I almost never listen.
Gaspar the Thief and I didn't become best friends for only one reason: it wasn't really a novelish book. It was rather a collection of short stories that were linked by the same characters and similar circumstances. And I hated that. The thing is, short stories/novellas really ARE different from novels. The fact that Gaspar's story was told in very short episodes made it difficult to really connect with him as a character. There was also the problem that the characters never became deeper because there was no time for them to do so.
I loved the characters of Gaspar the Thief and would have liked for them to really have one long story together instead of episodes. The reason why I hated the episodes so much was that they all concentrated on making the individual story interesting, gripping and original. If there had been only on main story arc with several smaller arcs, the focus wouldn't have been so diluted.
And now I'm sounding all negative even though I still really liked Gaspar!
Here's what was great:
-the stories. Even though I didn't like the episodes for the before-mentioned reasons, I still appreciate the fact that they were actually really interesting. And mostly I didn't see the conclusions coming, which is awesome!
-the characters, especially Gaspar. Gaspar was not your normal hero. He was a normal man with maybe more bad sides than good ones. And I loved him for it. His impeccable sense of humor only added to his appeal.
-the writing. Good, neat.
-the twists. The episodes had twists I didn't see coming - and I was delighted to read them.
Final thought: The author certainly has great talent and imagination, but I would have preferred for Gaspar the Thief to be a book with a main arc and smaller story arcs. I think that would have worked better.
4 Stars.
December 23, 2012
This fantasy reminded me very much (in style, not plot) of Terry Pratchett's earliest discworld novels, The Colour of Magic and The Light Fantastic, and if you enjoyed these then you should definitely try Gaspar the Thief. At first I was unsure about the episodic nature of the book's structure, but although each chapter is a self-contained adventure, the relationships between the characters build throughout the book and by the end of chapter 3 I was completely engaged. The writing style helps create the atmosphere of a mediaeval or 'Middle-Earth' environment and if Orcs don't appear - well you feel they could at any moment. The adventures of Gaspar and his travelling companions become more complex as the book unfolds and there are plenty of battles along the way.
I recommend this book to fantasy-lovers.
I recommend this book to fantasy-lovers.
October 12, 2012
Fun adventure fantasy!
February 9, 2023
Excellent! Fantasy at its best.
August 20, 2014
I decided to read Gaspar the Thief after I read the prequel Gaspar and the Fantastical Hats which I really enjoyed, but unfortunately I found it to be fairly disappointing. I guess the biggest problem was that the book really didn't read like a novel at all. It felt more like I was reading a series of short stories that only builds upon the one before it by mentioning some of the history here and there. Each story seemed to have a conclusion, but there didn't really feel like there was much of a conclusion to the book as a whole, probably due to the fact that there wasn't that much of a central plot. Another way to put it is that I felt like I was reading episodes of a TV series in which each chapter was an episode with a short "here's what happened last time" section at the beginning. BTW I was glad that there were chapters in this book, but some of them seemed entirely too long, especially towards the second half of the book. I guess technically they weren't really chapters at all though, just the start of the next short story.
It did dawn on me as I was coming closer to finishing the book that the style of writing used was very similar to Douglas Adams' in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy which is one of my all time favorite books. In The Hitchhiker's Guide, Arthur Dent and Ford Prefect escape the Earth being blown up and then you read about the random adventures they have afterward. In Gaspar the Thief, Gaspar and his friends have to flee the city after Gaspar gets into some trouble and you read about all the random adventures they have. So if I think that the writing in this book is so similar to one of my favorite books then why didn't I like it that much? I think the main answer to that question is that Gaspar the Thief isn't nearly as funny as The Hitchhiker's Guide or even its own prequel which I rated 4 stars vs the 3 stars I rated this book. Though it does stand to reason that the prequel might be an improvement since it was written after the original book. Another factor is that there just didn't seem to be enough transition between the chapters which I think is why it felt more like a series of short stories rather than an actual novel.
I'm not really sure if I'd recommend this book or not. I suppose it might be a decent read if you are looking for a fantasy adventure book and aren't expecting more than occasional funny bits and don't mind that it reads more like a series of short stories rather than an actual novel. I think I might have enjoyed the book better if I'd known what to expect going into it. Then again if I'd known what to expect I might not have purchased the book at all since I was looking for something funny to read. If the author comes out with a sequel, then I might give it a chance considering how much I enjoyed the prequel.
It did dawn on me as I was coming closer to finishing the book that the style of writing used was very similar to Douglas Adams' in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy which is one of my all time favorite books. In The Hitchhiker's Guide, Arthur Dent and Ford Prefect escape the Earth being blown up and then you read about the random adventures they have afterward. In Gaspar the Thief, Gaspar and his friends have to flee the city after Gaspar gets into some trouble and you read about all the random adventures they have. So if I think that the writing in this book is so similar to one of my favorite books then why didn't I like it that much? I think the main answer to that question is that Gaspar the Thief isn't nearly as funny as The Hitchhiker's Guide or even its own prequel which I rated 4 stars vs the 3 stars I rated this book. Though it does stand to reason that the prequel might be an improvement since it was written after the original book. Another factor is that there just didn't seem to be enough transition between the chapters which I think is why it felt more like a series of short stories rather than an actual novel.
I'm not really sure if I'd recommend this book or not. I suppose it might be a decent read if you are looking for a fantasy adventure book and aren't expecting more than occasional funny bits and don't mind that it reads more like a series of short stories rather than an actual novel. I think I might have enjoyed the book better if I'd known what to expect going into it. Then again if I'd known what to expect I might not have purchased the book at all since I was looking for something funny to read. If the author comes out with a sequel, then I might give it a chance considering how much I enjoyed the prequel.
June 20, 2013
This is not so much a single novel as it is a series of related adventures centered on the thief, Gaspar; the lovely Marna, a fellow thief and Gaspar’s volatile love interest; and their ‘spellbroker’ associate, Hubris. Their escapades (most often not as successful as they hope) and misadventures provide the basis for the ten chapters of the book.
The characters are engaging, but not exactly likeable. Their highest goal seems to be to abscond with as much loot as safely as possible, with little compassion over the fate of the loot’s current owner. Gaspar and his companions aren’t murderous rouges, but they are clearly rogues.
Written from a limited omniscient point of view, the prose, grammar, and vocabulary in this book are a notch above the norm that I’ve personally found in light fantasy. The characters are uncomplicated but not stupid. The world building is quite good and creates a believable fantasy setting full of dirty cities, filthy gutters, crumbling castles, guilds, inns, taverns, and the occasional bawdy house.
This book is not so much comedy as it is light fantasy. The setting and characters reminded by of the Thraxas books by Martin Scott (AKA Martin Millar) — kind of a late Medieval world with personality-flawed characters, magic, and mythical creatures.
I can’t say this book is innovative in any way, but it is an enjoyable read. I recommend it for readers of light fantasy.
The characters are engaging, but not exactly likeable. Their highest goal seems to be to abscond with as much loot as safely as possible, with little compassion over the fate of the loot’s current owner. Gaspar and his companions aren’t murderous rouges, but they are clearly rogues.
Written from a limited omniscient point of view, the prose, grammar, and vocabulary in this book are a notch above the norm that I’ve personally found in light fantasy. The characters are uncomplicated but not stupid. The world building is quite good and creates a believable fantasy setting full of dirty cities, filthy gutters, crumbling castles, guilds, inns, taverns, and the occasional bawdy house.
This book is not so much comedy as it is light fantasy. The setting and characters reminded by of the Thraxas books by Martin Scott (AKA Martin Millar) — kind of a late Medieval world with personality-flawed characters, magic, and mythical creatures.
I can’t say this book is innovative in any way, but it is an enjoyable read. I recommend it for readers of light fantasy.
August 17, 2012
This book is a series of linked adventures of the thief Gaspar and his friends the spell-broker Hubris (brilliant name!) and Marna - his on-off love interest and fellow thief. It is the stuff of high fantasy, with mages, wights, goblins and wizards and the adventures pile one upon another. It is sprinkled with short skirmishes and more lengthy battles too.
The writing takes on a formal, almost antique style and the vocabulary is wide ranging and extensive. There were very few errors but one section in which a passage was written with no spaces didn't really work with the varied kindle font sizes. I lost some of the words in the size I use and had to adjust it to read it all. There was also a tendency for some of the sentences to be extremely long. Generally this was a decent fantasy novel but I found it curiously cold and dry. I couldn't get to like or even feel for any of the characters. I usually enjoy fantasy fiction and I'm sure some hard core fantasy lovers may feel differently and really find this up their street.
The writing takes on a formal, almost antique style and the vocabulary is wide ranging and extensive. There were very few errors but one section in which a passage was written with no spaces didn't really work with the varied kindle font sizes. I lost some of the words in the size I use and had to adjust it to read it all. There was also a tendency for some of the sentences to be extremely long. Generally this was a decent fantasy novel but I found it curiously cold and dry. I couldn't get to like or even feel for any of the characters. I usually enjoy fantasy fiction and I'm sure some hard core fantasy lovers may feel differently and really find this up their street.
July 15, 2014
Gaspar the Thief is a wonderful series of tales that charts the story of Gaspar, the thief who refuses to join The Thieves Guild in his own town of Rubas Derad (I think) and two of his closest friends, Hubris and Marna. Told with wit and humour, the characters leap from the page and I want to read more. The stories quickly take the thief from the (almost) safety of his home town, to far distant places, and with only a few words, the author makes the new venue or place come alive with a few deft comments and descriptions.
If you're a fan of Terry Pratchett or Robert Rankin you'll enjoy this gentle jaunt through the world of Gaspar the Thief.
If you're a fan of Terry Pratchett or Robert Rankin you'll enjoy this gentle jaunt through the world of Gaspar the Thief.
August 21, 2021
Awesome Indies Book Awards is pleased to include GASPAR THE THIEF by DAVID A. LINDSAY in the library of Awesome Indies'
Badge of Approval
recipients.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews