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Thieftaker Chronicles #.05 - several short stories
Tales of the Thieftaker
A pre-dawn fire that nearly destroys the colonial city of Boston. A young witch in the town of Dedham who harbors a terrible secret. A magick-laden blade for which otherwise sane men might kill. A perilous encounter with Boston's most notorious thieftaker, the lovely and cruel Sephira Pryce. And, at last, the true story of the bloody mutiny aboard the privateering ship Ruby Blade.
This collection of short fiction from award-winning author D.B. Jackson returns readers to 1760s Boston and the exploits of Ethan Kaille, thieftaker and conjurer. Walk back in time to a city whose taverns serve Kent ales and rum flips, and whose streets are beset by revolutionaries, patrolled by British soldiers, and prowled by thieves, conjurers, and murderers.
242 pages, Paperback
First published December 18, 2017
17 people are currently reading
86 people want to read
About the author
D.B. Jackson
26 books300 followers
D.B. Jackson has been writing fantasy and science fiction under a different pen name for over fifteen years. He has published novels, short stories, and media tie-ins in more than a dozen languages. He also has a Ph.D. in American History, and now, for the first time in his career, he is combining his love of fantasy with his passion for history. His first historical fantasy series, The Thieftaker Chronicles, includes Thieftaker, Thieves' Quarry, A Plunder of Souls (to be released in July 2014), and Dead Man's Reach (due out in 2015). The Thieftaker novels, which combine elements of fantasy, mystery, and historical fiction, are published by Tor Books. He is also at work on a new contemporary urban fantasy series, The Weremyste Cycle (written under the name David B. Coe), which will be published by Baen books. The first book, Spell Blind, will be out in January 2015.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
June 17, 2022
“That’s probably more than we deserve.” “What we deserve and what befalls us are seldom one and the same.”
Better than average anthology of shorter stories. Many explore Ethan Kaille’s history, but “The Ruby Blade” is an essential background story for Thieftaker readers. “The Witch of Dedham” is poignant. All are standalone tales therefore necessitating much repetition of backstory.
“We don’t call ourselves witches. We’re conjurers, spellmakers, spellers even. Preachers rail against witchery as a tool of the devil. I don’t believe there’s evil in what I do.”
Eighteenth-century Boston and seafaring details enhance credibility. Anachronistic public displays of affection and “living in sin” which would have been as bad as witchcraft in that day, but mild to modern sensibilities.
“And I couldn’t stand to be relegated to such a place.” “And that’s your problem. You see a place. I see a life. There’s a difference.” “Dear God, I don’t know whether to weep or vomit.”
Better than average anthology of shorter stories. Many explore Ethan Kaille’s history, but “The Ruby Blade” is an essential background story for Thieftaker readers. “The Witch of Dedham” is poignant. All are standalone tales therefore necessitating much repetition of backstory.
“We don’t call ourselves witches. We’re conjurers, spellmakers, spellers even. Preachers rail against witchery as a tool of the devil. I don’t believe there’s evil in what I do.”
Eighteenth-century Boston and seafaring details enhance credibility. Anachronistic public displays of affection and “living in sin” which would have been as bad as witchcraft in that day, but mild to modern sensibilities.
“And I couldn’t stand to be relegated to such a place.” “And that’s your problem. You see a place. I see a life. There’s a difference.” “Dear God, I don’t know whether to weep or vomit.”
March 1, 2021
More Thieftaker stories, I could not have been happier with this book!
September 4, 2018
Really good collection of stories, liked especially the origin story of sephyra and Ruby Blade mutiny that features in the two books I've read about Ethan Kaille. Enjoyable and good urban fantasy.
February 14, 2018
Nice collection of pieces ranging from the super short to a novella. I had read a couple before, but it's nice to have them all in one place.
It was good to hear the full story of the mutiny that made Ethan who he is. I empathize with his feelings of being caught between 2 bad choices (twice!). I was glad that he stayed as true to himself as possible and healed those who needed it, no matter which side they were on.
The Sephira interview was a hoot.
It was good to hear the full story of the mutiny that made Ethan who he is. I empathize with his feelings of being caught between 2 bad choices (twice!). I was glad that he stayed as true to himself as possible and healed those who needed it, no matter which side they were on.
The Sephira interview was a hoot.
December 26, 2017
Tales of the Thieftaker is a collection of short fiction about Jackson’s Ethan Kaille, a conjurer and thieftaker in colonial Boston. There are ten short stories and one novella—the never before told story of the Ruby Blade mutiny (full TOC below the review). I am a big fan of the now defunct Thieftaker Chronicles.
These stories (except for The Ruby Blade) were originally published separately, and they aren’t very “bingeable.” Jackson tends to repeat a lot of little details. Whether that is a feature or a bug depends on how familiar you are with the universe and the characters. It kept me from blowing through the stories. (If you are thinking about making this your introduction to the Thieftaker Chronicles, it would work, but I would still recommend starting with the first novel. Publication order rules once again.)
As you might suspect, the stories focus on Ethan Kaille, the titular “thieftaker,” but he does not appear in three stories—The Cully and An Encounter with Sephira Pryce (focused on Sephira) and The Tavern Fire (focused on his sometimes ally and another Boston conjurer, Janna). But the best stories are about Kaille (Jackson likes using Sephira in his stories perhaps a bit too much).
My two favorite stories are A Memory of Freedom and The Witch of Dedham. A Memory of Freedom is the first story to feature Kaille, both published and in this collection. It is Kaille’s “origin story” of how he came to be a thieftaker, and to reaccept his conjuring after swearing it off after the events on the Ruby Blade. It is good to see Kaille both making a moral choice and taking agency in his life (and successfully). In too many of the stories Kaille does too little and too poorly.
That being said, in my other favorite story Kaille does very little. The Witch of Dedham revolves around Kaille traveling to the outskirts of Boston after hearing a woman is to be hanged as a witch. It is a story with little-to-no action, but the reveal of what led a young woman to the noose is powerful.
The other story of note is the Ruby Blade mutiny novella. Jackson interweaves it with a “current day” (i.e., post-Dead Man’s Reach) mystery. It is a fine story but doesn’t quite rise to the level of the novels.
Table of Contents:
The Cully
The Tavern Fire
A Memory of Freedom
The Price of Doing Business
A Spell of Vengeance
The Witch of Dedham
The Spelled Blade
A Passing Storm
A Walking Tour of Boston, Narrated by Ethan Kaille
An Encounter with Sephira Pryce
The Ruby Blade (novella)
Disclosure: Jackson sent me a review copy.
These stories (except for The Ruby Blade) were originally published separately, and they aren’t very “bingeable.” Jackson tends to repeat a lot of little details. Whether that is a feature or a bug depends on how familiar you are with the universe and the characters. It kept me from blowing through the stories. (If you are thinking about making this your introduction to the Thieftaker Chronicles, it would work, but I would still recommend starting with the first novel. Publication order rules once again.)
As you might suspect, the stories focus on Ethan Kaille, the titular “thieftaker,” but he does not appear in three stories—The Cully and An Encounter with Sephira Pryce (focused on Sephira) and The Tavern Fire (focused on his sometimes ally and another Boston conjurer, Janna). But the best stories are about Kaille (Jackson likes using Sephira in his stories perhaps a bit too much).
My two favorite stories are A Memory of Freedom and The Witch of Dedham. A Memory of Freedom is the first story to feature Kaille, both published and in this collection. It is Kaille’s “origin story” of how he came to be a thieftaker, and to reaccept his conjuring after swearing it off after the events on the Ruby Blade. It is good to see Kaille both making a moral choice and taking agency in his life (and successfully). In too many of the stories Kaille does too little and too poorly.
That being said, in my other favorite story Kaille does very little. The Witch of Dedham revolves around Kaille traveling to the outskirts of Boston after hearing a woman is to be hanged as a witch. It is a story with little-to-no action, but the reveal of what led a young woman to the noose is powerful.
The other story of note is the Ruby Blade mutiny novella. Jackson interweaves it with a “current day” (i.e., post-Dead Man’s Reach) mystery. It is a fine story but doesn’t quite rise to the level of the novels.
Table of Contents:
The Cully
The Tavern Fire
A Memory of Freedom
The Price of Doing Business
A Spell of Vengeance
The Witch of Dedham
The Spelled Blade
A Passing Storm
A Walking Tour of Boston, Narrated by Ethan Kaille
An Encounter with Sephira Pryce
The Ruby Blade (novella)
Disclosure: Jackson sent me a review copy.
February 21, 2023
Essential reading for any fans of The Thieftaker Chronicles, which is an excellent historical fantasy series set in colonial Boston about Ethan Kaille, a conjurer in secret who works as a thieftaker recovering stolen items often while using his magic, trying to stay a step ahead of the law that would hang him for his "witchcraft" and dealing with a dangerous rival thieftaker named Sephira Pryce. I haven't read anything in this world since the last novel came out some years ago, but this was on my shelf waiting for me. I've missed the characters and the setting, and will continue to do so.
I've read most of these stories before, years ago, but those that were repeats held up wonderfully. Since they're all individual stories, there's brief rehashing of the basics of the setup which can get slightly wearying as you start each tale. But getting to see how Ethan meets Sephira, how he falls in love with Kannice, and many more engrossing short stories more than makes up for it.
The collection ends with its true showstopper, the novella "The Ruby Blade," which is the first time the full, infamous tale of Ethan's involvement in a mutiny aboard the privateer ship The Ruby Blade is told. That mysterious event led to his sentencing of 15 years of hard labor during which he nearly lost a leg before arriving back in Boston and taking up his profession as a thieftaker. This novella's story is beautifully framed as Ethan telling the tale to his rival, Sephira, and his love, Kannice. And the story of his time aboard the ship and the eventual mutiny is masterful, suspenseful work.
I've read most of these stories before, years ago, but those that were repeats held up wonderfully. Since they're all individual stories, there's brief rehashing of the basics of the setup which can get slightly wearying as you start each tale. But getting to see how Ethan meets Sephira, how he falls in love with Kannice, and many more engrossing short stories more than makes up for it.
The collection ends with its true showstopper, the novella "The Ruby Blade," which is the first time the full, infamous tale of Ethan's involvement in a mutiny aboard the privateer ship The Ruby Blade is told. That mysterious event led to his sentencing of 15 years of hard labor during which he nearly lost a leg before arriving back in Boston and taking up his profession as a thieftaker. This novella's story is beautifully framed as Ethan telling the tale to his rival, Sephira, and his love, Kannice. And the story of his time aboard the ship and the eventual mutiny is masterful, suspenseful work.
December 24, 2017
A Fascinating History of Ethan Kaille
While I enjoyed the short stories and found them entertaining, I especially liked "The Ruby Blade" novella and the background it revealed. Ethan's self-criticism in the face of his obviously being a man of integrity and honor is much more easily understood. Read it, you'll enjoy it too.
While I enjoyed the short stories and found them entertaining, I especially liked "The Ruby Blade" novella and the background it revealed. Ethan's self-criticism in the face of his obviously being a man of integrity and honor is much more easily understood. Read it, you'll enjoy it too.
April 15, 2025
4.5 stars. This is a nice addition to the series, but I wish that I had known about this volume and read it before I read some of the novels. Many of these stories take place before the Thieftaker series.
I especially liked the short intros before each of the 11 stories where the author described when and why he wrote it.
I especially liked the short intros before each of the 11 stories where the author described when and why he wrote it.
July 24, 2018
I've always loved sword and sorcery / fantasy short stories. These didn't disappoint. 5/5 would read again.
TALES is like a master class in immersive short fiction, which some people claim is impossible.
TALES is like a master class in immersive short fiction, which some people claim is impossible.
April 8, 2020
The Thieftaker Chronicles is one of my favorite series, so these tales were great to read. D. B. Jackson beautifully entwines magic with history in this series.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews