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The Toy Thief
"The author has incredible talent for creating a tense, atmospheric world for his characters, and I was on the edge of my seat for every page of this book." - Magnolia Reads
Jack didn’t know what to call the nameless, skeletal creature that slunk into her house in the dead of night, stealing the very things she loved the most. So she named him The Toy Thief…
There’s something in Jack’s past that she doesn’t want to face, an evil presence that forever changed the trajectory of her family. It all began when The Toy Thief appeared, a being drawn by goodness and innocence, eager to feed on everything Jack holds dear. What began as a mystery spirals out of control when her brother, Andy, is taken away in the night, and Jack must venture into the dark place where the toys go to get him back. But even if she finds him, will he ever be the same?
FLAME TREE PRESS is the new fiction imprint of Flame Tree Publishing. Launching in 2018 the list brings together brilliant new authors and the more established; the award winners, and exciting, original voices.
Jack didn’t know what to call the nameless, skeletal creature that slunk into her house in the dead of night, stealing the very things she loved the most. So she named him The Toy Thief…
There’s something in Jack’s past that she doesn’t want to face, an evil presence that forever changed the trajectory of her family. It all began when The Toy Thief appeared, a being drawn by goodness and innocence, eager to feed on everything Jack holds dear. What began as a mystery spirals out of control when her brother, Andy, is taken away in the night, and Jack must venture into the dark place where the toys go to get him back. But even if she finds him, will he ever be the same?
FLAME TREE PRESS is the new fiction imprint of Flame Tree Publishing. Launching in 2018 the list brings together brilliant new authors and the more established; the award winners, and exciting, original voices.
240 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2018
19 people are currently reading
237 people want to read
About the author
D.W. Gillespie
13 books64 followersA long time fan of all things dark and spooky, D.W. Gillespie began writing monstrous stories while still in grade school. At one point, his mother asked the doctor if there was anything she should be concerned about, and he assured her that some kids just like stories about decapitations.
He's been writing on and off for over a decade, quietly building a body of work that includes horror and dark sci-fi. His novels include Still Dark, The Toy Thief, and a short story collection titled Handmade Monsters.
He lives in Tennessee with his wife and two kids, all three of which give him an endless supply of things to write about.
He's been writing on and off for over a decade, quietly building a body of work that includes horror and dark sci-fi. His novels include Still Dark, The Toy Thief, and a short story collection titled Handmade Monsters.
He lives in Tennessee with his wife and two kids, all three of which give him an endless supply of things to write about.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 95 reviews
September 4, 2018
Most horror fans know or know of Don D’Auria formerly of Leisure Books for twenty-five years. Then he became involved with the Samhain Publishing’s horror program for six years. He is now an executive editor at ‘Flame Tree Press’. Their mandate is to bring award-winning authors and original voices to the forefront of today’s pop culture landscape. Their new line of books, titled ‘Fiction Without Frontiers’, in September 2018, brings the launch of the line to the world.
One of the early releases (October 2018) under the banner of ‘Fiction Without Frontiers’ is an author I am not familiar with D.W. Gillespie, so he must fit into the category of original voices. His book is titled “The Toy Thief”. The book tells the story of Jacqueline, Jack to all who know her, and her brother Andy, along with their dad and their middle class life. The book is the coming of age story of Jack told from her perspective. We learn of how “The Toy Thief”, a skeletal rat like creature who arrives at night, came to influence her life and thoughts. We also learn where those toys that go missing end up.
I would not consider the book overly scary or especially frightening in the genre of horror writing. It would not fall into the category of hard horror or gore After all, the book is about a young girls’ growing up. The author is quite adept at telling us the ins and outs of just how difficult growing up can be. Mr. Gillespie is certainly empathetic with his character, though at times he stretches the believability factor which tends to distract a bit from the story.
Judging from ‘Flame Tree Press’s’ list of imminent releases which include books by authors such as Ramsey Campbell, John Everson, Tim Waggoner, Jonathan Janz and Hunter Shea and others should make this an imprint to watch.
This Is an advanced reading copy, uncorrected proof, of the book in the 'Fiction Without Frontiers' series.
One of the early releases (October 2018) under the banner of ‘Fiction Without Frontiers’ is an author I am not familiar with D.W. Gillespie, so he must fit into the category of original voices. His book is titled “The Toy Thief”. The book tells the story of Jacqueline, Jack to all who know her, and her brother Andy, along with their dad and their middle class life. The book is the coming of age story of Jack told from her perspective. We learn of how “The Toy Thief”, a skeletal rat like creature who arrives at night, came to influence her life and thoughts. We also learn where those toys that go missing end up.
I would not consider the book overly scary or especially frightening in the genre of horror writing. It would not fall into the category of hard horror or gore After all, the book is about a young girls’ growing up. The author is quite adept at telling us the ins and outs of just how difficult growing up can be. Mr. Gillespie is certainly empathetic with his character, though at times he stretches the believability factor which tends to distract a bit from the story.
Judging from ‘Flame Tree Press’s’ list of imminent releases which include books by authors such as Ramsey Campbell, John Everson, Tim Waggoner, Jonathan Janz and Hunter Shea and others should make this an imprint to watch.
This Is an advanced reading copy, uncorrected proof, of the book in the 'Fiction Without Frontiers' series.
November 24, 2018
Interesting story...
In this book our main character, a female named Jack, is telling the story of her life and how a horrible force became a part of it one night as it crept into her home. Will she ever be able to overcome this? or will it haunt her forever even as an adult?
Okay I am torn with this book. I really want to love it because the story is so original. However I just can't get into the writing style. The narrative is written in first-person from Jack's point of view and it is basically her telling the story of her life. In a sense it is a coming-of-age novel with a horror setting. It jumps around from scene to scene and makes it so you're so scattered at times you don't even know where you are during the storyline.
I also found Jack the main character is very unrelatable and unlikable even as she comes off as very annoying and whiny in her narrative.
I give the author props for coming up with an original story. As a horror fan I am always glad to tip my hat to those who can come up with new and original ideas in my genre. I just thoroughly feel that I would have enjoyed this book a lot more had it been written in a third-person perspective instead of first-person like she's telling a story to someone sitting in front of her. a play-by-play sort of narrative would have been a better way to approach this story in my honest opinion.
I can't say that I would really recommend this book, perhaps for the originality of the story but not much more.
In this book our main character, a female named Jack, is telling the story of her life and how a horrible force became a part of it one night as it crept into her home. Will she ever be able to overcome this? or will it haunt her forever even as an adult?
Okay I am torn with this book. I really want to love it because the story is so original. However I just can't get into the writing style. The narrative is written in first-person from Jack's point of view and it is basically her telling the story of her life. In a sense it is a coming-of-age novel with a horror setting. It jumps around from scene to scene and makes it so you're so scattered at times you don't even know where you are during the storyline.
I also found Jack the main character is very unrelatable and unlikable even as she comes off as very annoying and whiny in her narrative.
I give the author props for coming up with an original story. As a horror fan I am always glad to tip my hat to those who can come up with new and original ideas in my genre. I just thoroughly feel that I would have enjoyed this book a lot more had it been written in a third-person perspective instead of first-person like she's telling a story to someone sitting in front of her. a play-by-play sort of narrative would have been a better way to approach this story in my honest opinion.
I can't say that I would really recommend this book, perhaps for the originality of the story but not much more.
October 10, 2018
3.5 stars.
THE TOY THIEF is the first book that I have read by author D.W. Gillespie. I found the premise of this book to be quite original, and there were some genuinely "chilling" moments that really captured the imagination.
The central idea of this . . . thing . . . that stealthily steals toys was something quite inventive in my opinion. The sections dealing with this matter were very well executed and honestly made me feel as if I were reading something fresh and new.
Unfortunately, told from the first point-of-view of a younger sibling, Jack (Jaqueline), this story bounced back and forth both in time, and topic.
". . . you have to understand us. Stitched up. Not quite broken, but held together by duct tape . . . "
Part of this was coming-of-age, part past (even before our main character's birth), part future/present interludes, and part . . . toy thief. After half of the book like this, I did become very annoyed that the story couldn't stay focused on the one part I enjoyed the most.
". . . That was the part I remembered: the stark, cold realization that the people you love might not be who you think they are . . ."
While some foreshadowing came in words from the future/present sections, in regards to things we hadn't learned yet, these felt like they gave away too much. When they were finally "unveiled", it was rather anticlimactic, as I had already guessed as much, in most instances.
". . . weirdos like me, people pushed out of the inner circles, hiding in plain sight at the edge of the crowds . . . we were never alone, but we never really mattered either . . . "
Overall, I will say that there were certain parts where the writing definitely impressed me. Some of the thoughts and feelings evolved from someone I didn't initially care for, to a character more knowledgable and sympathetic. The parts involving the actual toy thief were atmospheric and filled with a heart-pounding tension, though not quite "horror", in my own opinion. Aside from this, I have to add that I just didn't enjoy the way in which the story unfolded. There were large gaps when we could have used information pertinent to the main theme. I feel that the author was making the result of the "past" on the family the most important idea here, but I simply wanted more backstory and scenes involving the toy thief.
As this was my personal preference, I urge other readers to come to their own conclusions, as everyone has different tastes when it comes to writing styles. Your opinion may differ.
". . . We were, in our own ways, all broken, as chipped around the edges as an old plate . . . "
THE TOY THIEF is the first book that I have read by author D.W. Gillespie. I found the premise of this book to be quite original, and there were some genuinely "chilling" moments that really captured the imagination.
The central idea of this . . . thing . . . that stealthily steals toys was something quite inventive in my opinion. The sections dealing with this matter were very well executed and honestly made me feel as if I were reading something fresh and new.
Unfortunately, told from the first point-of-view of a younger sibling, Jack (Jaqueline), this story bounced back and forth both in time, and topic.
". . . you have to understand us. Stitched up. Not quite broken, but held together by duct tape . . . "
Part of this was coming-of-age, part past (even before our main character's birth), part future/present interludes, and part . . . toy thief. After half of the book like this, I did become very annoyed that the story couldn't stay focused on the one part I enjoyed the most.
". . . That was the part I remembered: the stark, cold realization that the people you love might not be who you think they are . . ."
While some foreshadowing came in words from the future/present sections, in regards to things we hadn't learned yet, these felt like they gave away too much. When they were finally "unveiled", it was rather anticlimactic, as I had already guessed as much, in most instances.
". . . weirdos like me, people pushed out of the inner circles, hiding in plain sight at the edge of the crowds . . . we were never alone, but we never really mattered either . . . "
Overall, I will say that there were certain parts where the writing definitely impressed me. Some of the thoughts and feelings evolved from someone I didn't initially care for, to a character more knowledgable and sympathetic. The parts involving the actual toy thief were atmospheric and filled with a heart-pounding tension, though not quite "horror", in my own opinion. Aside from this, I have to add that I just didn't enjoy the way in which the story unfolded. There were large gaps when we could have used information pertinent to the main theme. I feel that the author was making the result of the "past" on the family the most important idea here, but I simply wanted more backstory and scenes involving the toy thief.
As this was my personal preference, I urge other readers to come to their own conclusions, as everyone has different tastes when it comes to writing styles. Your opinion may differ.
". . . We were, in our own ways, all broken, as chipped around the edges as an old plate . . . "
August 22, 2018
Scary stories used to be a majority of my literary diet. Anyone raised on proper European undisneyfied fairy tales would understand that. Tastes change and mine eventually started veering toward a variety of genres, although always favoring the dark undertones, but every now and again I revisit the old favorite to see if the passion can be rekindled. This book didn’t just rekindle it, it started a freaking fire. The author took the well known premise of young kids and their childhood monsters (actually, technically an adult looking back on their early years when something terrible occurred, usually featuring a monster of some sorts and they had to fight it themselves while adults remains completely ignorant of the goings on) and did such an exemplar job with it. So here the kids are 9 year old girl named Jack and her teenage brother. The adult is their loving but busy single father. And the monster is the Toy Thief, a singularly haunting creation, someone who actually does physically steal toys, but metaphorically it’s what the toys represent, innocence, love, joy…all the good things life starts out with. The story is narrated by an adult Jack, who’s become tough as nails (almost offputtingly so at times combined with a notably high self esteem), but as a kid she was smart, brave and very able. With her brother’s assistance she was the sort of kid who’d fight her monsters and stand a good chance of winning. And so fight they did. Sounds like a familiar story, give or take a monster, doesn’t it. But what makes this one stand out is the quality of writing…Gillespie goes into all the dark corners and drags out all the things that hide there, preventing you from sleeping soundly at night. And emotionally it hits all the right notes too, making for a perfectly engaging read. The creature is rendered vividly, terrifyingly so, and the writing is genre appropriately atmospheric, dark and eerie. This works on just about every single level. Notable exception being (avoid this sentence prior to reading the book) the fingers thing being laid on the brother….really? two kids smart and crafty enough to dispose of a body and kill a demon can’t come up with a semi plausible story of two dismembered fingers? Particularly with father’s garage and all the tools there on premises? That one was tough to buy. Ok, you can continue reading now. Other than that one questionable plot turn, this was great. A very enjoyable read. You can zoom out and grand picture this as a meditation on the nature/nurture concept or zoom in and get absorbed by all the frights. Good books give you options like that, make you think while entertaining you all the way. And this is from a new publisher, Flame Tree Press (very appropriately titled for my kindle/fire analogy), arriving this September and going by the quality of this initial introduction, a very welcome addition to the scene. The book was well edited, included a brief interview with the author and an almost entirely uncheesy cover. With a toy robot even. Actually also this was a terrific introduction to a new (to me) author. The kind of introduction that sends you looking for all his other books. Great read, a dark fairy tale for adults who appreciate that sort of thing. Recommended for all genre fans. Thanks Netgalley.
October 11, 2018
9-year old Jack lives with her father and older brother, Andy. At night, something dark sneaks into their house, creeping and crawling through the shadows. Jack isn't sure what the creature is....but she knows it is something she was never meant to see. And it steals things. Particular things that give joy or hold happy memories.....toys. She calls it The Toy Thief. The dark being with the strange eyes doesn't just want to terrorize them....it wants much more than that. Sometimes knowledge comes with a price.
The suspense and darkness of this story build slowly, until the truth of the monstrous situation is revealed. I got sucked right into this story and it held my attention until the very end. How terrifying would it be to have a dark, evil thing sneaking around every night, stealing the very things that are most precious to you? As a child, I was scared of the dark.....and I can only imagine how much more terrifying it would have been to see what Jack saw. And then to realize that you couldn't unsee it....that sometimes knowing about something evil has a cost.
Awesome dark and disturbing tale! Definitely a great Halloween season read!
This is the first book by D.W. Gillespie that I have read. He has written several other horror novels including The Tree Man and All Safe In Here. I'm definitely going to be reading more by Gillespie! This book was delightfully frightening!
**I voluntarily read an advanced readers copy of this book from Flame Tree Press via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**
The suspense and darkness of this story build slowly, until the truth of the monstrous situation is revealed. I got sucked right into this story and it held my attention until the very end. How terrifying would it be to have a dark, evil thing sneaking around every night, stealing the very things that are most precious to you? As a child, I was scared of the dark.....and I can only imagine how much more terrifying it would have been to see what Jack saw. And then to realize that you couldn't unsee it....that sometimes knowing about something evil has a cost.
Awesome dark and disturbing tale! Definitely a great Halloween season read!
This is the first book by D.W. Gillespie that I have read. He has written several other horror novels including The Tree Man and All Safe In Here. I'm definitely going to be reading more by Gillespie! This book was delightfully frightening!
**I voluntarily read an advanced readers copy of this book from Flame Tree Press via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**
October 31, 2021
Was looking for more spooky reads to add to my "read" list before Halloween ends and this one did not disappoint. It was both spooky and creepy and perfect read for a night of reading, for extra spook effects.
October 6, 2018
Sometimes you find a book that sounds like it’s going to check all of your boxes—especially as a horror fan, when you come across a plot that happens to specifically push some of your “fear buttons”—and it can be nerve-wracking to pick up those stories. If you’re anything like me, you hype yourself up (with or without anyone else’s help). Sometimes, things turn out perfectly, and your self-imposed hype pays off! Other times, well…
Other times, the book falls flat on its face and leaves you wishing you had never even taken the time to read it, because not only have you spent hours of your time on a story you didn’t enjoy, but you’ve got post-hype-letdown disappoint looming over you. That feeling is exactly what I’m going through while writing this review. I’ve sat here for an hour staring at an empty Word document, trying to force myself to review this book, because I found it disappointing in so many ways that I don’t even want to get into them all.
Let’s start with the biggest issue: the narrative style. The entire story is very close to full stream-of-consciousness, and if you’re not familiar with that, it essentially means that the plot jumps around haphazardly as things pop into the storyteller’s mind. We constantly switch between Jack’s current-day thoughts and her memories, and that is a difficult narrative style to pull off.
As for the narrator herself: Jack is a tremendously pretentious, arrogant, rude, and unlikable woman, and reading this story through the lens of her memories as well as her adult biases on those incidents is downright eyeroll-inducing at times. Just a few gems for you:
1. After shaming the appearance of her blind date, she goes on an internal rant about how “out of his league” she is and how he must be stunned to even sit across the table from her (though she’s earlier admitted that she hasn’t had much luck with catching men’s eyes in the past).
2. She states on more than one occasion that she is smarter than most people (we are never given any evidence of this being true).
She’s self-absorbed enough to convince herself that everything and anything going wrong in the world around her is to blame on her mother passing away during childbirth—which is a piece of her backstory that we are reminded of in nearly every chapter. The guilt she describes not only feels insincere and put-upon, but it reaches repetitive levels very early in the book.
Beyond Jack, there’s her brother Andy, who is something else from the beginning. One of our first introductions to him involves mutilation of an animal that Jack thinks was already dead (we’re never quite certain), and it gets worse from there—but there’s nothing scary about Andy, because Jack isn’t afraid of him. This is one of those instances that I think could’ve benefited tremendously from a third person POV, because it’s hard to care about what a belligerent asshole Andy is when Jack is constantly making excuses for him or blaming herself (and the “murder” of their mother) for his behavior.
Finally, there’s the creature itself—the Toy Thief the story takes its name from—which is easily the best part of the story. The descriptions of this creature are creepy enough (I’m especially fond of the way it crawls around on walls and ceilings), but the development of its motives and history often felt clouded. It seemed as though there were a lot of random, small ideas thrown together into a conglomerate that the author hoped would stick. Then again, maybe that’s my fault; by the time we began to learn much about what makes the Toy Thief the way it is, I had stopped caring much about anything that happened in this story.
Final thoughts—do I recommend this story? If you enjoy stream-of-consciousness writing, aren’t picky about your narrators, don’t mind incredibly rude main characters, and aren’t going to look too long at the plot holes, sure, give it a try. Otherwise, there are definitely better creature horror reads out there, and other authors have done this whole storytelling-via-childhood-memories writing style much better.
Content warnings for death of a parent, mutilation, suicide
All quotes come from an advance copy and may not match the final release. Thank you so much to Flame Tree Press for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
You can find this review and more on my blog, or you can follow me on twitter, bookstagram, or facebook!
To have a sibling, especially a close one, is to have a greatest enemy and a truest friend, but it’s always been like that, hasn’t it?
Other times, the book falls flat on its face and leaves you wishing you had never even taken the time to read it, because not only have you spent hours of your time on a story you didn’t enjoy, but you’ve got post-hype-letdown disappoint looming over you. That feeling is exactly what I’m going through while writing this review. I’ve sat here for an hour staring at an empty Word document, trying to force myself to review this book, because I found it disappointing in so many ways that I don’t even want to get into them all.
Let’s start with the biggest issue: the narrative style. The entire story is very close to full stream-of-consciousness, and if you’re not familiar with that, it essentially means that the plot jumps around haphazardly as things pop into the storyteller’s mind. We constantly switch between Jack’s current-day thoughts and her memories, and that is a difficult narrative style to pull off.
As for the narrator herself: Jack is a tremendously pretentious, arrogant, rude, and unlikable woman, and reading this story through the lens of her memories as well as her adult biases on those incidents is downright eyeroll-inducing at times. Just a few gems for you:
1. After shaming the appearance of her blind date, she goes on an internal rant about how “out of his league” she is and how he must be stunned to even sit across the table from her (though she’s earlier admitted that she hasn’t had much luck with catching men’s eyes in the past).
2. She states on more than one occasion that she is smarter than most people (we are never given any evidence of this being true).
Babies do that sometimes. You don’t know me very well, but believe me when I say I didn’t kill her on purpose.
She’s self-absorbed enough to convince herself that everything and anything going wrong in the world around her is to blame on her mother passing away during childbirth—which is a piece of her backstory that we are reminded of in nearly every chapter. The guilt she describes not only feels insincere and put-upon, but it reaches repetitive levels very early in the book.
Beyond Jack, there’s her brother Andy, who is something else from the beginning. One of our first introductions to him involves mutilation of an animal that Jack thinks was already dead (we’re never quite certain), and it gets worse from there—but there’s nothing scary about Andy, because Jack isn’t afraid of him. This is one of those instances that I think could’ve benefited tremendously from a third person POV, because it’s hard to care about what a belligerent asshole Andy is when Jack is constantly making excuses for him or blaming herself (and the “murder” of their mother) for his behavior.
Finally, there’s the creature itself—the Toy Thief the story takes its name from—which is easily the best part of the story. The descriptions of this creature are creepy enough (I’m especially fond of the way it crawls around on walls and ceilings), but the development of its motives and history often felt clouded. It seemed as though there were a lot of random, small ideas thrown together into a conglomerate that the author hoped would stick. Then again, maybe that’s my fault; by the time we began to learn much about what makes the Toy Thief the way it is, I had stopped caring much about anything that happened in this story.
Final thoughts—do I recommend this story? If you enjoy stream-of-consciousness writing, aren’t picky about your narrators, don’t mind incredibly rude main characters, and aren’t going to look too long at the plot holes, sure, give it a try. Otherwise, there are definitely better creature horror reads out there, and other authors have done this whole storytelling-via-childhood-memories writing style much better.
Content warnings for death of a parent, mutilation, suicide
All quotes come from an advance copy and may not match the final release. Thank you so much to Flame Tree Press for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
You can find this review and more on my blog, or you can follow me on twitter, bookstagram, or facebook!
September 23, 2018
"Brothers and sisters are like that, the best and worst of relationships, the entire world rolled into one."Have you ever read a book that was both everything you wanted and everything you hated at the same time? Unfortunately, that was my experience reading The Toy Thief: I really enjoyed the main storyline but I didn't enjoy the main character or the narrative style.
The book is written in first person and is narrated in such a way that feels like you are listening to someone try to tell a story - it is completely stream of consciousness and she jumps around her life, weaving a story that largely paints her as a horrible and unlikable character, which is in stark contrast with her as a child. The way Adult Jack talks about herself gave me vapid TifAni from Luckiest Girl Alive flashbacks, which is one of my least favorite reads. I found myself absolutely hating the book whenever we were in any time other than that summer when she was nine years old.
As far as horror goes, the central story and backstory of the Toy Thief was creepy and interesting. If the book had been told in the present tense and skipped the weird time jumps and fat shaming of a blind date, I would have thoroughly enjoyed this book. The Toy Thief is really about Jack growing up, and I read the Toy Thief as a metaphor for lost innocence. I would have liked to see the Sallie/doll side story resolved a bit; while not integral to the story overall, it felt as if something bigger was alluded to but was largely left unexplored.
Overall, I thought The Toy Thief was a fast paced horror read with many layers: it isn't just about the horrors of the rat-like monster that has come into their home but also about the horrors of losing oneself, of growing up, and of loss. My enjoyment of the book was somewhat hampered by the adult persona of Jack and I did personally struggle with the stream of consciousness "confessional" narrative style. I was really excited for this book but it missed the mark for me personally. If this book sounds like something you would be interested in, I definitely recommend that you pick it up!
cw: animal death, bullying, death, body horror, loss of a loved one, suicide
Many thanks to the publisher for providing me an electronic advanced reader copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Quotations taken from an uncorrected proof and may change upon final publication. The Toy Thief will be released on October 6, 2018.
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September 19, 2018
I had high hopes for The Toy Thief, and I think it that the book has a really promising concept. I was interested in the monster, but entirely too much of this book is focused on a very annoying narrator and her personal issues. This story constantly jumps around & you pretty much need an Adderall to be able to follow along with the narrator's train of thought. It didn't flow at all.
The Toy Thief would have been much better as a novella or short story. The chilling moments are few and far between, and much time is spent on the narrator talking about herself - how pretty she is, how smart she is, how fat other people are, etc. I can deal with being in the head of a character like this if the rest of the book balances it out, but this one does not. I think it could probably use some more editing, and a lot of unnecessary information could have been removed.
This potentially awesome story was overshadowed by an attempt to write a "cool girl" character. It was a struggle to connect with The Toy Thief, and this was one I had really been looking forward to.
The Toy Thief would have been much better as a novella or short story. The chilling moments are few and far between, and much time is spent on the narrator talking about herself - how pretty she is, how smart she is, how fat other people are, etc. I can deal with being in the head of a character like this if the rest of the book balances it out, but this one does not. I think it could probably use some more editing, and a lot of unnecessary information could have been removed.
This potentially awesome story was overshadowed by an attempt to write a "cool girl" character. It was a struggle to connect with The Toy Thief, and this was one I had really been looking forward to.
December 12, 2019
4.5/5 rounded up for Goodreads.
Jack wasn’t supposed to see the Toy Thief when he steals her friend’s doll. She was never supposed to see him at all, ever. By chance she happens to catch the crime on video and creates a plan, to catch him in the act again to prove to herself that what she saw on that video was in fact real and not a product of her imagination.
Jack loses her mother at such a young age that she was never given the chance to create any memories of her. The only thing Jack has tying her to her mother is a plush bear that was gifted to her. Living with her father, who does the best he can but, is rather absent, and her older brother Andy, who is dealing with several issues of his own, Jack encounters the Toy Thief again and again as he comes to strip her of the only item tying her to her mother and then ultimately, her brother.
The story changes back and forth from Jack’s point of view as a young girl and a bitter, distrustful adult. We get to see how the events involving the Toy Thief change Jack from a young girl, whose only burden in life thus far is figuring out how to interact with children that enjoy playing with dolls when she would rather spend her afternoon trotting through the woods, into a young girl who ultimately has to look out for the two men in her life.
This story was chalk full of nostalgia and surprised the hell out of me. Can you remember exactly how it felt to be in bed at 9 years old and swear that you just heard an unnatural noise in the middle of the night? Yeah, I couldn’t either until I read this book. While I was reading Jack’s story, memories of long forgotten bedtime rituals for protecting myself against strange shadows and household creaks and moans came flooding back to me. How nothing bad could happen if you pulled your covers right up under your chin, shut your eyes tightly and didn’t move. Yes, I was that child that was convinced, “if I don’t move, whatever it is can’t see me”, just like the T. Rex in Jurassic Park.
It was fun to read about the adventures of a child far braver than myself, take on an ancient and supernatural force that robs children of their security blankets. I am usually skeptical about children’s narratives but, Gillespie has written Jack wonderfully. He captures the imagination and rationalizations of a younger child perfectly without it feeling too juvenile for adult readers. This was the first novel I have read by D. W. Gillespie and I will absolutely be on the lookout for more!
Jack wasn’t supposed to see the Toy Thief when he steals her friend’s doll. She was never supposed to see him at all, ever. By chance she happens to catch the crime on video and creates a plan, to catch him in the act again to prove to herself that what she saw on that video was in fact real and not a product of her imagination.
Jack loses her mother at such a young age that she was never given the chance to create any memories of her. The only thing Jack has tying her to her mother is a plush bear that was gifted to her. Living with her father, who does the best he can but, is rather absent, and her older brother Andy, who is dealing with several issues of his own, Jack encounters the Toy Thief again and again as he comes to strip her of the only item tying her to her mother and then ultimately, her brother.
The story changes back and forth from Jack’s point of view as a young girl and a bitter, distrustful adult. We get to see how the events involving the Toy Thief change Jack from a young girl, whose only burden in life thus far is figuring out how to interact with children that enjoy playing with dolls when she would rather spend her afternoon trotting through the woods, into a young girl who ultimately has to look out for the two men in her life.
This story was chalk full of nostalgia and surprised the hell out of me. Can you remember exactly how it felt to be in bed at 9 years old and swear that you just heard an unnatural noise in the middle of the night? Yeah, I couldn’t either until I read this book. While I was reading Jack’s story, memories of long forgotten bedtime rituals for protecting myself against strange shadows and household creaks and moans came flooding back to me. How nothing bad could happen if you pulled your covers right up under your chin, shut your eyes tightly and didn’t move. Yes, I was that child that was convinced, “if I don’t move, whatever it is can’t see me”, just like the T. Rex in Jurassic Park.
It was fun to read about the adventures of a child far braver than myself, take on an ancient and supernatural force that robs children of their security blankets. I am usually skeptical about children’s narratives but, Gillespie has written Jack wonderfully. He captures the imagination and rationalizations of a younger child perfectly without it feeling too juvenile for adult readers. This was the first novel I have read by D. W. Gillespie and I will absolutely be on the lookout for more!
August 6, 2020
** Edited as review is now live on Kendall Reviews! **
If you’ve followed my reading journey of this book on Goodreads – please ignore it!
I had wanted to read this for some time, and I ended up ordering it in paperback last summer when Flametree Press had their July 4th sale! I ended up reading Wolf Land by Jonathan Janz first, then was going to dive into The Toy Thief. The problem is, I just NEVER have time to read physical releases. I tried and I tried and from October until December, I had only managed to get about 40 pages in.
So, I finally got fed up and purchased the ebook. I started it and due to review books with ASAP coming through, I kept pushing this back and back. Well, finally I prioritized it and once I did, this story flew along.
KR: And then I sat on the review for months so apologies from me too.
This one’s really hard to describe. At its core, it is a coming-of-age horror, but I really kept finding that it read like a truly dark fantasy story and for me that elevated this.
The story is really straight forward. A ten-year-old girl and a thirteen-year-old boy, brother and sister, live with their father. Their mother passed away during childbirth and because of that the boy harbours a lot of anger towards his sister.
One night, when the sister falls asleep in the living room, she wakes when she hears a noise. She watches as their sliding glass door opens and a creature from her nightmares steals a toy.
From there Gillespie takes us on a fantastic ride. A tale that has family dynamics and drama and some of the creepiest scenes I’ve ever read.
I thoroughly enjoyed how each character was first introduced and then slowly morphed. I loved how we find out some information about the creature/character dubbed The Toy Thief, and while I would have loved to learn so much more, by Gillespie keeping some of it close to his chest, it helped to amplify the creature and lets it be capable of anything.
After having read ‘One by One’ and now ‘The Toy Thief,’ Gillespie has cemented himself as a must-read author for me. He’s delivered some of the creepiest, darkest, bleakest scenes I’ve read over the last few years and with how different each story has been delivered, I’m super intrigued to see what’s coming next.
I feel like this might have been an overlooked release from Flametree when it arrived. So if you’ve got this sitting on your TBR, or are intrigued, I highly recommend you snag this one.
If you’ve followed my reading journey of this book on Goodreads – please ignore it!
I had wanted to read this for some time, and I ended up ordering it in paperback last summer when Flametree Press had their July 4th sale! I ended up reading Wolf Land by Jonathan Janz first, then was going to dive into The Toy Thief. The problem is, I just NEVER have time to read physical releases. I tried and I tried and from October until December, I had only managed to get about 40 pages in.
So, I finally got fed up and purchased the ebook. I started it and due to review books with ASAP coming through, I kept pushing this back and back. Well, finally I prioritized it and once I did, this story flew along.
KR: And then I sat on the review for months so apologies from me too.
This one’s really hard to describe. At its core, it is a coming-of-age horror, but I really kept finding that it read like a truly dark fantasy story and for me that elevated this.
The story is really straight forward. A ten-year-old girl and a thirteen-year-old boy, brother and sister, live with their father. Their mother passed away during childbirth and because of that the boy harbours a lot of anger towards his sister.
One night, when the sister falls asleep in the living room, she wakes when she hears a noise. She watches as their sliding glass door opens and a creature from her nightmares steals a toy.
From there Gillespie takes us on a fantastic ride. A tale that has family dynamics and drama and some of the creepiest scenes I’ve ever read.
I thoroughly enjoyed how each character was first introduced and then slowly morphed. I loved how we find out some information about the creature/character dubbed The Toy Thief, and while I would have loved to learn so much more, by Gillespie keeping some of it close to his chest, it helped to amplify the creature and lets it be capable of anything.
After having read ‘One by One’ and now ‘The Toy Thief,’ Gillespie has cemented himself as a must-read author for me. He’s delivered some of the creepiest, darkest, bleakest scenes I’ve read over the last few years and with how different each story has been delivered, I’m super intrigued to see what’s coming next.
I feel like this might have been an overlooked release from Flametree when it arrived. So if you’ve got this sitting on your TBR, or are intrigued, I highly recommend you snag this one.
November 28, 2018
This is a tricky review to write. When I first picked up The Toy Thief, I guess I was expecting a different type of read from what I got. The cover screams horror and the description sounded terrifyingly creepy. However, the story seemed to be more about coming-of-age, grief and family. The author spends a lot of time focusing on past vignettes about Jack (Jaqueline) and her brother Andy - and although this can be a useful narrative tool to develop characters and bring the reader into the story, I actually found it had the opposite effect on me.
The plot starts off strong as we are introduced to 8 year old Jack who lost her mother at childbirth and lives a lonely life with her dad and 13 year old brother Andy. Jack is a tomboy at heart and really only has one friend. While having a sleepover with her friend one night, the two girls fall asleep after filming themselves and she accidentally captures video of the toy thief stealing her friend’s doll. This sets in motion a series of eerie and unearthly events.
The author uses imaginative and eloquent description to portray the toy thief that creates an atmospheric quality within the story. He also uses a first person narrative through the eyes of Jack. This lends itself well to developing a closer relationship to the characters and introducing a somewhat unreliable narrative that heightens suspense.
Where things fell a bit flat for me was the jumping around between past, present and future, which detracted from the plot development and ultimately made the horror parts less impactful. Just when things would be getting going with the toy thief, the story would jump into the past about Jack or Andy growing up or into the future with foreshadow of events to come. This left me confused at times and feeling ultimately disconnected. There were some wonderful moments of spine tingling fear but I wanted more.
I’m not sure I would classify this book as full on horror. Maybe more of a suspense fiction with magical realism. A very creative and intriguing story, nonetheless, that is an apt read for October!
Thank you to Flame Tree Press and D.W. Gillespie for an ARC.
The plot starts off strong as we are introduced to 8 year old Jack who lost her mother at childbirth and lives a lonely life with her dad and 13 year old brother Andy. Jack is a tomboy at heart and really only has one friend. While having a sleepover with her friend one night, the two girls fall asleep after filming themselves and she accidentally captures video of the toy thief stealing her friend’s doll. This sets in motion a series of eerie and unearthly events.
The author uses imaginative and eloquent description to portray the toy thief that creates an atmospheric quality within the story. He also uses a first person narrative through the eyes of Jack. This lends itself well to developing a closer relationship to the characters and introducing a somewhat unreliable narrative that heightens suspense.
Where things fell a bit flat for me was the jumping around between past, present and future, which detracted from the plot development and ultimately made the horror parts less impactful. Just when things would be getting going with the toy thief, the story would jump into the past about Jack or Andy growing up or into the future with foreshadow of events to come. This left me confused at times and feeling ultimately disconnected. There were some wonderful moments of spine tingling fear but I wanted more.
I’m not sure I would classify this book as full on horror. Maybe more of a suspense fiction with magical realism. A very creative and intriguing story, nonetheless, that is an apt read for October!
Thank you to Flame Tree Press and D.W. Gillespie for an ARC.
October 1, 2018
D.W. Gillespie is the author of a number of short stories, but if I recall right The Toy Thief is his novel-length trad pub debut (he has a few indie titles out, too). It's a solid introduction to his work, and Flame Tree Press has signed him for a second release in 2019, which I'm most certainly game to read.
The Toy Thief is a coming-of-age story involving Jack, her brother Andy, and the strange titular rat-man creature that invades their home to take their most cherished toys. Told in a tight first-person perspective, Jack tells us the story of this significant past event, slowly revealing the details of their encounters with the Thief and the ways in which their history has colored and shaped the present for this family.
Jack is an unreliable and unlikable narrator, an abrasive woman who thinks quite highly of herself and isn't shy about taking others down a peg or two when her ego demands it. She believes she is better than those that surround her, but also aware that if she lived in another location, like Hollywood or New York, she'd only be average at best. She vacillates between shrill and personable. On the surface, she could just be another tough chick as imagined by a male writer, but there's enough hints in the story to convince me there's more to her story and how events have shaped and altered her personality. It's safe to say that the Thief has made Jack the woman she is today, and her encounters with him have permanently changed both her and her brother.
The Toy Thief itself is an interesting creature, and Gillespie injects it with a lot of promise and potential. I liked the history of this particular monster quite a lot, and its cravings and desires that compel it to steal from the children are pretty dang nifty.
On the horror front, though, The Toy Thief isn't particularly scary. Gillespie generates some solid moments of creepiness, but never any actual fright, and he eschews violence and gore for the most part. Perhaps it's more appropriate to view The Toy Thief as a dark family drama rather than a straight-up work of horror. In a brief supplementary interview with Gillespie, the author speaks of his admiration for the film work of Guillermo del Toro, whose influence can be felt here, particularly the del Toro of Pan's Labryinth and Crimson Peak, which rely heavily on atmosphere, family dynamics, and neat-o creature design far more than blood-curdling, spine-tingling terror.
Readers looking for a fast-paced, gore-filled romp might be disappointed, but those looking for something slower and quieter may find themselves engaged by Jack's autobiographical musings. The Toy Thief certainly has me curious to see what else Gillespie has up his sleeve in future books and I find myself looking forward to his sophomore effort, One by One per a recent tweet, to steal away some more of my time.
[Note: I received an advance reading copy of this title from the publisher, Flame Tree Press.]
The Toy Thief is a coming-of-age story involving Jack, her brother Andy, and the strange titular rat-man creature that invades their home to take their most cherished toys. Told in a tight first-person perspective, Jack tells us the story of this significant past event, slowly revealing the details of their encounters with the Thief and the ways in which their history has colored and shaped the present for this family.
Jack is an unreliable and unlikable narrator, an abrasive woman who thinks quite highly of herself and isn't shy about taking others down a peg or two when her ego demands it. She believes she is better than those that surround her, but also aware that if she lived in another location, like Hollywood or New York, she'd only be average at best. She vacillates between shrill and personable. On the surface, she could just be another tough chick as imagined by a male writer, but there's enough hints in the story to convince me there's more to her story and how events have shaped and altered her personality. It's safe to say that the Thief has made Jack the woman she is today, and her encounters with him have permanently changed both her and her brother.
The Toy Thief itself is an interesting creature, and Gillespie injects it with a lot of promise and potential. I liked the history of this particular monster quite a lot, and its cravings and desires that compel it to steal from the children are pretty dang nifty.
On the horror front, though, The Toy Thief isn't particularly scary. Gillespie generates some solid moments of creepiness, but never any actual fright, and he eschews violence and gore for the most part. Perhaps it's more appropriate to view The Toy Thief as a dark family drama rather than a straight-up work of horror. In a brief supplementary interview with Gillespie, the author speaks of his admiration for the film work of Guillermo del Toro, whose influence can be felt here, particularly the del Toro of Pan's Labryinth and Crimson Peak, which rely heavily on atmosphere, family dynamics, and neat-o creature design far more than blood-curdling, spine-tingling terror.
Readers looking for a fast-paced, gore-filled romp might be disappointed, but those looking for something slower and quieter may find themselves engaged by Jack's autobiographical musings. The Toy Thief certainly has me curious to see what else Gillespie has up his sleeve in future books and I find myself looking forward to his sophomore effort, One by One per a recent tweet, to steal away some more of my time.
[Note: I received an advance reading copy of this title from the publisher, Flame Tree Press.]
October 24, 2018
I thought this was supposed to scare me but instead, it gave me so many feelings gosh i just want to cry
March 31, 2019
To date, I've read all but one of the first nine offerings from Flame Tree Press and I've been quite impressed with everything I've read. I've actually raved about the first seven books, so to experience a hiccough here at book eight is no real surprise.
This is my first time reading anything by D.W. Gillespie and I like the book well enough to read his work again, should the occasion arise.
Toy Thief is a creepy tale of two siblings and what they encounter over of the course of one summer in their young lives.
"To have a sibling, especially a close one, is to have a greatest enemy and a truest friend, but it's always been like that, hasn't it?"
It was the Summer of '91 when the toys started to disappear. Jack and her older brother, Andy, set out on a quest to learn who or what was responsible. The events are dark and meant to be terrifying, but the story just didn't work for me.
"Do you ever wonder how things just seem to vanish from your house even though you knew where they were? Maybe a pack of batteries shows up missing, even though you knew exactly where you put them? It might have been the Toy Thief."
I may have mentioned before, I'm mostly an analog kind of reader, same way with film and TV. Too much bouncing around in a story and I start to lose interest. Nothing inherently wrong with the technique, and sometimes it works for me, but this was not one of those times.
In the end, I just can't get excited enough to recommend Toy Thief.
Published by Flame Tree Press, Toy Thief is available in a wide variety of formats.
From the author's bio - D.W. Gillespie hails from parts unknown in the dark woods of Tennessee.
Supported by his wife and two feral children, he spends most days hunkered over a vintage typewriter he found in a smoking crater deep within the forest primeval. Bearded and muttering, he writes tales to terrify by the light of a kerosene lamp. A fan of all things dark and horrific, D.W. Gillespie has been writing horror, sci-fi, and fantasy for longer than he would like to admit. He's been featured in many publications, both online and in print, and he's the author of nine novels and counting.
This is my first time reading anything by D.W. Gillespie and I like the book well enough to read his work again, should the occasion arise.
Toy Thief is a creepy tale of two siblings and what they encounter over of the course of one summer in their young lives.
"To have a sibling, especially a close one, is to have a greatest enemy and a truest friend, but it's always been like that, hasn't it?"
It was the Summer of '91 when the toys started to disappear. Jack and her older brother, Andy, set out on a quest to learn who or what was responsible. The events are dark and meant to be terrifying, but the story just didn't work for me.
"Do you ever wonder how things just seem to vanish from your house even though you knew where they were? Maybe a pack of batteries shows up missing, even though you knew exactly where you put them? It might have been the Toy Thief."
I may have mentioned before, I'm mostly an analog kind of reader, same way with film and TV. Too much bouncing around in a story and I start to lose interest. Nothing inherently wrong with the technique, and sometimes it works for me, but this was not one of those times.
In the end, I just can't get excited enough to recommend Toy Thief.
Published by Flame Tree Press, Toy Thief is available in a wide variety of formats.
From the author's bio - D.W. Gillespie hails from parts unknown in the dark woods of Tennessee.
Supported by his wife and two feral children, he spends most days hunkered over a vintage typewriter he found in a smoking crater deep within the forest primeval. Bearded and muttering, he writes tales to terrify by the light of a kerosene lamp. A fan of all things dark and horrific, D.W. Gillespie has been writing horror, sci-fi, and fantasy for longer than he would like to admit. He's been featured in many publications, both online and in print, and he's the author of nine novels and counting.
September 5, 2018
Well, it's time to review another Flame Tree Press ARC. When I saw the creepy doll on the cover, I knew I wanted to read this book. Yeah, I have a weakness for creepy dolls.😄
Jack doesn't have the best life. How can she when her mother died giving birth to her? But she's got an easy-going father, whose parenting style means they pretty much do what they want. And she has an older brother called Andy, who gets angry easily and may/may not hate her.
The night she discovers a hideous monster sneaking into their house to steal toys, the morbid discovery sends both her and Andy's life into a downward spiral that echoes for decades to come...
This book is SO good!
As soon as I got started, I knew I was going to like it. Jack's voice is strong, commands the reader's attention and draws them into a freaky childhood story guaranteed to please horror enthusiasts.
Told by Jack, but shifting from her being an adult to the events of the childhood summer that destroyed any semblance of normality in her life, the story continually circles back and forth connecting everything.
The writing style intrigued me so much and the breadcrumbs--or jelly beans--kept me turning the page. I wanted to know what was going to happen next, needed to get to the wicked and weird heart of everything.
Even though Jack, Andy and their father appear to be quite dysfunctional, the strong sense of family was one of my favourite things about this story.
The Toy Thief is a nostalgic dark tale about a family struggling to keep it together against all odds, and the unexpected tragic events that ripple into their futures. It's also full of horrifying imagery, and is downright creepy. Not to mention that I got a huge kick out of the toy angle.
This publisher is totally blowing me away with their horror titles.👍
Jack doesn't have the best life. How can she when her mother died giving birth to her? But she's got an easy-going father, whose parenting style means they pretty much do what they want. And she has an older brother called Andy, who gets angry easily and may/may not hate her.
The night she discovers a hideous monster sneaking into their house to steal toys, the morbid discovery sends both her and Andy's life into a downward spiral that echoes for decades to come...
This book is SO good!
As soon as I got started, I knew I was going to like it. Jack's voice is strong, commands the reader's attention and draws them into a freaky childhood story guaranteed to please horror enthusiasts.
Told by Jack, but shifting from her being an adult to the events of the childhood summer that destroyed any semblance of normality in her life, the story continually circles back and forth connecting everything.
The writing style intrigued me so much and the breadcrumbs--or jelly beans--kept me turning the page. I wanted to know what was going to happen next, needed to get to the wicked and weird heart of everything.
Even though Jack, Andy and their father appear to be quite dysfunctional, the strong sense of family was one of my favourite things about this story.
The Toy Thief is a nostalgic dark tale about a family struggling to keep it together against all odds, and the unexpected tragic events that ripple into their futures. It's also full of horrifying imagery, and is downright creepy. Not to mention that I got a huge kick out of the toy angle.
This publisher is totally blowing me away with their horror titles.👍
September 9, 2018
I started this book before I even meant to. I merely opened it to see how long it was and then couldn't put it down. The story is told through Jack's point of view. Now a grown woman, she recounts a horrific summer from her youth, and the way it shaped her life and the life of her older brother.
Jack and Andy hated and loved each other with the intensity that only siblings can share. Their father, loving them fiercely, but just not up to the task of being a single parent after the tragic loss of his wife, often leaves them without guidance. Into this working class family dynamic creeps "The Toy Thief" as Jack dubs the menacing entity that invades their home. If only toys were all that it wanted to steal! This was my first time reading anything by D.W. Gillespie. It won't be my last. This is my favorite type of horror. The kind that serves up characters I can actually care about, and fills me with an ever increasing sense of dread as I worry over what may happen to them next.
5 out of 5 stars
I received an advance copy for review.
Jack and Andy hated and loved each other with the intensity that only siblings can share. Their father, loving them fiercely, but just not up to the task of being a single parent after the tragic loss of his wife, often leaves them without guidance. Into this working class family dynamic creeps "The Toy Thief" as Jack dubs the menacing entity that invades their home. If only toys were all that it wanted to steal! This was my first time reading anything by D.W. Gillespie. It won't be my last. This is my favorite type of horror. The kind that serves up characters I can actually care about, and fills me with an ever increasing sense of dread as I worry over what may happen to them next.
5 out of 5 stars
I received an advance copy for review.
September 19, 2018
THE TOY THIEF is a highly entertaining coming-of-age story with supernatural overtones that I enjoyed immensely.
This is the story of a rather dysfunctional but loving family, all of whom are haunted and affected in different ways by a tragedy for which Jack (main character and narrator) blames herself. When Jack accidentally discovers that a strange creature has invaded her home and inexplicably stolen a toy doll, she's compelled to unravel the mystery of this creature's existence and motivation and, above all, its ultimate goals.
THE TOY THIEF is a sweet, sad, and often creepy little tale with strong, if tragic, characters and a unique (legitimately chilling) monster.
In THE TOY THIEF, D. W. Gillespie has put together a great story that deftly explores themes of familial love, sacrifice, and innocence lost, and I very much look forward to more from this talented writer.
***I received this book as a free E-ARC from Flame Tree Press via NetGalley and THIS is my honest review.
This is the story of a rather dysfunctional but loving family, all of whom are haunted and affected in different ways by a tragedy for which Jack (main character and narrator) blames herself. When Jack accidentally discovers that a strange creature has invaded her home and inexplicably stolen a toy doll, she's compelled to unravel the mystery of this creature's existence and motivation and, above all, its ultimate goals.
THE TOY THIEF is a sweet, sad, and often creepy little tale with strong, if tragic, characters and a unique (legitimately chilling) monster.
In THE TOY THIEF, D. W. Gillespie has put together a great story that deftly explores themes of familial love, sacrifice, and innocence lost, and I very much look forward to more from this talented writer.
***I received this book as a free E-ARC from Flame Tree Press via NetGalley and THIS is my honest review.
October 11, 2018
This is a tricky review to write. When I first picked up The Toy Thief, I guess I was expecting a different type of read from what I got. The cover screams horror and the description sounded terrifyingly creepy. However, the story seemed to be more about coming-of-age, grief and family. The author spends a lot of time focusing on past vignettes about Jack (Jaqueline) and her brother Andy - and although this can be a useful narrative tool to develop characters and bring the reader into the story, I actually found it had the opposite effect on me.
The plot starts off strong as we are introduced to 8 year old Jack who lost her mother at childbirth and lives a lonely life with her dad and 13 year old brother Andy. Jack is a tomboy at heart and really only has one friend. While having a sleepover with her friend one night, the two girls fall asleep after filming themselves and she accidentally captures video of the toy thief stealing her friend’s doll. This sets in motion a series of eerie and unearthly events.
The author uses imaginative and eloquent description to portray the toy thief that creates an atmospheric quality within the story. He also uses a first person narrative through the eyes of Jack. This lends itself well to developing a closer relationship to the characters and introducing a somewhat unreliable narrative that heightens suspense.
Where things fell a bit flat for me was the jumping around between past, present and future, which detracted from the plot development and ultimately made the horror parts less impactful. Just when things would get going with the toy thief, the story would jump into the past about Jack or Andy growing up or into the future with foreshadow of events to come. This left me confused at times and feeling ultimately disconnected. There were some wonderful moments of spine tingling fear but I wanted more.
I’m not sure I would classify this book as full on horror. Maybe more of a suspense fiction with magical realism. A very creative and intriguing story, nonetheless, that is an apt read for October!
Thank you to Flame Tree Press and D.W. Gillespie for an ARC.
The plot starts off strong as we are introduced to 8 year old Jack who lost her mother at childbirth and lives a lonely life with her dad and 13 year old brother Andy. Jack is a tomboy at heart and really only has one friend. While having a sleepover with her friend one night, the two girls fall asleep after filming themselves and she accidentally captures video of the toy thief stealing her friend’s doll. This sets in motion a series of eerie and unearthly events.
The author uses imaginative and eloquent description to portray the toy thief that creates an atmospheric quality within the story. He also uses a first person narrative through the eyes of Jack. This lends itself well to developing a closer relationship to the characters and introducing a somewhat unreliable narrative that heightens suspense.
Where things fell a bit flat for me was the jumping around between past, present and future, which detracted from the plot development and ultimately made the horror parts less impactful. Just when things would get going with the toy thief, the story would jump into the past about Jack or Andy growing up or into the future with foreshadow of events to come. This left me confused at times and feeling ultimately disconnected. There were some wonderful moments of spine tingling fear but I wanted more.
I’m not sure I would classify this book as full on horror. Maybe more of a suspense fiction with magical realism. A very creative and intriguing story, nonetheless, that is an apt read for October!
Thank you to Flame Tree Press and D.W. Gillespie for an ARC.
October 22, 2018
In The Toy Thief we follow Jack, our main character who is a woman, now in her twenties, writing down the terrifying events which occurred when she was just nine, and her brother Andy only thirteen.
It takes a lot to scare me with the amount of horror related content I take in on a day to day basis, but The Toy Thief managed to do just that. At certain points during my read, I found myself holding my breath without even realizing it. The author transported me back to childhood, where you never knew what may be lurking in your closet, or under your bed.
I really enjoyed this one a ton. Along with the horror, there were definitely parts that tugged at my heartstrings. Jack's unwavering love for her big Brother for one, and their Father.. who may not have been what a traditional parent should be, but did his absolute best and loved his children with everything he had in him.
I definitely recommend giving this one a read. I certainly won't be able to get the unnerving description of the Toy Thief out of my mind anytime soon, or my dreams for that matter.. and I doubt you'll be able to either. 4.5/5⭐
It takes a lot to scare me with the amount of horror related content I take in on a day to day basis, but The Toy Thief managed to do just that. At certain points during my read, I found myself holding my breath without even realizing it. The author transported me back to childhood, where you never knew what may be lurking in your closet, or under your bed.
I really enjoyed this one a ton. Along with the horror, there were definitely parts that tugged at my heartstrings. Jack's unwavering love for her big Brother for one, and their Father.. who may not have been what a traditional parent should be, but did his absolute best and loved his children with everything he had in him.
I definitely recommend giving this one a read. I certainly won't be able to get the unnerving description of the Toy Thief out of my mind anytime soon, or my dreams for that matter.. and I doubt you'll be able to either. 4.5/5⭐
August 8, 2023
On paper this one had so much potential and I was incredibly excited for it. Sadly it did not live up to the very high hopes I had for it. I’m a huge fan of any book that has to do with monsters and life after death and this one just sounded so good. The idea practically had me salivating and when it first started to unroll I was pretty damn into it and sitting back to enjoy the ride. And then that’s where it started to get messy and a bunch of little things started to really bother me. I won’t nitpick and go into all of them but there’s 2 main things that really brought this from a yay to nay. First, at one point I got pretty tired of the never ending descriptive details, I only need so much to set a scene before I become bored with all the unnecessary details. Second, I didn’t connect with any of the characters which made it hard for me to enjoy as I’m a very character driven reader. The story had so much potential and I really wanted to love it but the execution just lacked for me. The potential is there but this story just didn’t quite work for me.
September 12, 2018
Thank you to D.W Gillespie and Flame Tree Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. For more reviews please feel free to check out https://abmostfiction.wordpress.com
As a child I had a favourite toy, it was a gymnast Barbie and, like most children, this toy went with me everywhere. Her bendy arms and legs meant she could kick and punch just as well as my brother's Action Man, and due to the paint job on her face she literally smiled in the face of danger. We were quite a team.
We scaled mountains together (the stairs), we went deep sea diving (as deep as a paddling pool gets) and we travelled into the wilderness (basically I used to throw her into some trees and then crawl underneath to see where she had landed).
But then one day she was gone.
My parents claimed I must have lost her, that I must have left her outside or over my friend's house, but I was sure that wasn't true.
I never did find out what happened to her... until now.
Jack didn’t know what to call the nameless, skeletal creature that slunk into her house in the dead of night, stealing the very things she loved the most. So she named him The Toy Thief…
There’s something in Jack’s past that she doesn’t want to face, an evil presence that forever changed the trajectory of her family. It all began when The Toy Thief appeared, a being drawn by goodness and innocence, eager to feed on everything Jack holds dear. What began as a mystery spirals out of control when her brother, Andy, is taken away in the night, and Jack must venture into the dark place where the toys go to get him back. But even if she finds him, will he ever be the same?
D.W Gillespie The Toy Thief is reminiscent of a folklore tale that parents tell their kids at night to try and teach them to look after their belongings. Except in this version the more you love something, the more likely it's going to be taken from you.
Told from the perspective of Jack, moving between her as an adult and her nine-year old self, we are slowly introduced to her life and what may have been haunting it all along - The Toy Thief.
I enjoyed the placement of this self-sufficient, hard-edged young girl against a creature that wouldn’t be amiss in a fairy-tale. Jack is no princess or Little Red Riding Hood; she’s mean, feisty and doesn't accidentally stray from the path, but willingly goes to play in the woods.
The description of the Toy Thief is slowly fed to us with a bit more detail with every encounter until the full image is revealed. This meant there was a continued feeling of mystery around the creature and it's mythology, which I think helps to keep the reader on their toes and interested, even when the pacing slowed down.
The story kept me engaged for the most part, overall I did enjoy the alternating timelines between Jack as a child and then her as an adult looking back. The more of adult Jack we were introduced to, the more of a shadow was cast over the past, intentionally putting doubts over the series of events being told. I did feel there were times that adult Jack's narrative was just there to act as exposition and, although an adult looking back will have a greater understanding of events than a child, it did feel forced at times.
As with most strong horror stories, the supernatural aspect is actually a layer over what is at the core of the story; a look at a brother and sister relationship and how they've grown up experiencing different sides to the same tragedy.
Gillespie presents some great moments developing these characters, their interactions with one another and how they each view their situation. There's a bitter-sweetness to the relationship between Jack and her brother that I think was well written, believable and left a taste of sadness behind once the novel was finished.
This isn't for horror readers looking for their next gore-fix, this is for readers who enjoy their horror tales with a touch of magical realism and characters struggling with personal demons.
TL;DR - D.W Gillespie has written a one part fairy-tale and one part bitter-sweet story of a brother and sister growing up who discover The Toy Thief. This is not one for the hardcore horror fans, but if you like your characters headstrong and fiesty and your antagonists mysterious and creepy, check it out.
3.5***(out of 5*****)
As a child I had a favourite toy, it was a gymnast Barbie and, like most children, this toy went with me everywhere. Her bendy arms and legs meant she could kick and punch just as well as my brother's Action Man, and due to the paint job on her face she literally smiled in the face of danger. We were quite a team.
We scaled mountains together (the stairs), we went deep sea diving (as deep as a paddling pool gets) and we travelled into the wilderness (basically I used to throw her into some trees and then crawl underneath to see where she had landed).
But then one day she was gone.
My parents claimed I must have lost her, that I must have left her outside or over my friend's house, but I was sure that wasn't true.
I never did find out what happened to her... until now.
Jack didn’t know what to call the nameless, skeletal creature that slunk into her house in the dead of night, stealing the very things she loved the most. So she named him The Toy Thief…
There’s something in Jack’s past that she doesn’t want to face, an evil presence that forever changed the trajectory of her family. It all began when The Toy Thief appeared, a being drawn by goodness and innocence, eager to feed on everything Jack holds dear. What began as a mystery spirals out of control when her brother, Andy, is taken away in the night, and Jack must venture into the dark place where the toys go to get him back. But even if she finds him, will he ever be the same?
D.W Gillespie The Toy Thief is reminiscent of a folklore tale that parents tell their kids at night to try and teach them to look after their belongings. Except in this version the more you love something, the more likely it's going to be taken from you.
Told from the perspective of Jack, moving between her as an adult and her nine-year old self, we are slowly introduced to her life and what may have been haunting it all along - The Toy Thief.
I enjoyed the placement of this self-sufficient, hard-edged young girl against a creature that wouldn’t be amiss in a fairy-tale. Jack is no princess or Little Red Riding Hood; she’s mean, feisty and doesn't accidentally stray from the path, but willingly goes to play in the woods.
The description of the Toy Thief is slowly fed to us with a bit more detail with every encounter until the full image is revealed. This meant there was a continued feeling of mystery around the creature and it's mythology, which I think helps to keep the reader on their toes and interested, even when the pacing slowed down.
The story kept me engaged for the most part, overall I did enjoy the alternating timelines between Jack as a child and then her as an adult looking back. The more of adult Jack we were introduced to, the more of a shadow was cast over the past, intentionally putting doubts over the series of events being told. I did feel there were times that adult Jack's narrative was just there to act as exposition and, although an adult looking back will have a greater understanding of events than a child, it did feel forced at times.
As with most strong horror stories, the supernatural aspect is actually a layer over what is at the core of the story; a look at a brother and sister relationship and how they've grown up experiencing different sides to the same tragedy.
Gillespie presents some great moments developing these characters, their interactions with one another and how they each view their situation. There's a bitter-sweetness to the relationship between Jack and her brother that I think was well written, believable and left a taste of sadness behind once the novel was finished.
This isn't for horror readers looking for their next gore-fix, this is for readers who enjoy their horror tales with a touch of magical realism and characters struggling with personal demons.
TL;DR - D.W Gillespie has written a one part fairy-tale and one part bitter-sweet story of a brother and sister growing up who discover The Toy Thief. This is not one for the hardcore horror fans, but if you like your characters headstrong and fiesty and your antagonists mysterious and creepy, check it out.
3.5***(out of 5*****)
September 17, 2018
It’s important to note that Jack, the main character in The Toy Thief, is not a very likable girl. She’s a liar – she’d tell you this herself – and…kind of a jerk. But despite the fact that I didn’t like her much, I was still rooting for her in this.
The Toy Thief is a mixture of a tale both scary and terribly sad. When I discovered the nature of our thief, and why they do what they do, I just felt such pity for them. And when I discovered everything our little family has been through, I felt for them.
But it isn’t just sorrow. The book is disturbingly creepy. There are scenes that give you that eerie chill down your spine and more action-oriented scenes that have your reading breathlessly.
Above all, you get a very unique story told by a very different main character – and it’s well worth the read!
*ARC Provided via Net Galley
The Toy Thief is a mixture of a tale both scary and terribly sad. When I discovered the nature of our thief, and why they do what they do, I just felt such pity for them. And when I discovered everything our little family has been through, I felt for them.
But it isn’t just sorrow. The book is disturbingly creepy. There are scenes that give you that eerie chill down your spine and more action-oriented scenes that have your reading breathlessly.
Above all, you get a very unique story told by a very different main character – and it’s well worth the read!
*ARC Provided via Net Galley
January 7, 2020
I had much higher hopes for this one. I don't know if it was the writing style, or the story itself which seemed to move way too slowly for my liking, but I just didn't ever really get in to the story, and felt myself slogging through a lot of it. It was just okay.
August 20, 2018
The toy thief was So much more then I was expecting!
At first glance a gritty horror thriller about a demon who steals toys but looking deeper it was a completely immersive experience that tore out my heart!
It was an intense emotional look at the bonds of family and loyalty and so much more!
I took much longer to read this then I should have not because it wasn't Amazing because it was but because it was entirely and I just didn't want it to end!
Truly Incredible Job D.W Gillespie!!
At first glance a gritty horror thriller about a demon who steals toys but looking deeper it was a completely immersive experience that tore out my heart!
It was an intense emotional look at the bonds of family and loyalty and so much more!
I took much longer to read this then I should have not because it wasn't Amazing because it was but because it was entirely and I just didn't want it to end!
Truly Incredible Job D.W Gillespie!!
October 6, 2018
Actual rating: 3.5 stars. Review to come. but until then, I'll say that I enjoyed this dark coming-of-age tale and the unsettling and evil creature at the heart of one family's domestic drama. Thanks to Flame Tree Press for sending me an ARC of one of their launch titles for Fiction Without Frontiers.
August 25, 2018
This is a strange, dark, twisted book. Menace at every step, enhanced by the sometimes disjointed narrative given by the main character. It was a book I didn't always like to pick up, not because it's a bad book (it's not) but simply because it was so darned creepy.
Many thanks to Flame Tree Press for the ARC.
Many thanks to Flame Tree Press for the ARC.
August 28, 2018
ADVANCE REVIEW COPY
I was so excited to see THE TOY THIEF as an option for me to read. It's exactly the type of book that I'm going to snap up and run with. I was prepared to love it.
Coming of age horror stories about girls are few and far between; I looked forward to finally reading the girls POV rather than the boys. Add that to what should have been a terrifying storyline and THIEF should have been a kick-ass novella. It was not. Instead of reading this in one or two sittings, I kept putting it aside. It took me about a week to finish this short book.
Why, you ask? Well, the passages that should have been nightmarish and goosebumpy, were bland and ho-hum. The writing - especially the last half - was jumpy and confusing. There were plot twists that were necessary to the story that I found completely unbelievable. In spite of all that, I liked the idea of the story and that's why I finished it and gave it three stars. It was ok, but I wanted it to be so much more.
I was so excited to see THE TOY THIEF as an option for me to read. It's exactly the type of book that I'm going to snap up and run with. I was prepared to love it.
Coming of age horror stories about girls are few and far between; I looked forward to finally reading the girls POV rather than the boys. Add that to what should have been a terrifying storyline and THIEF should have been a kick-ass novella. It was not. Instead of reading this in one or two sittings, I kept putting it aside. It took me about a week to finish this short book.
Why, you ask? Well, the passages that should have been nightmarish and goosebumpy, were bland and ho-hum. The writing - especially the last half - was jumpy and confusing. There were plot twists that were necessary to the story that I found completely unbelievable. In spite of all that, I liked the idea of the story and that's why I finished it and gave it three stars. It was ok, but I wanted it to be so much more.
October 8, 2018
I really enjoyed this! As I've said before, I really enjoy horror and I'm thrilled Flame Tree Press have a great catalogue of authors writing some seriously creepy books! I must admit, I wasn't sure about a monster than steals toys...it didn't seem very scary! But the descriptions of the monster and it's actions are really horrible! Told from Jack's point of view as a grown up looking back, the book flits between her life now, what happened to her and Andy as children and the effects it had on the rest of their lives. Jack as an adult isn't all that nice but I had sympathy for her as there are reasons for it. The story is well paced...just the right amount of tension to make you want to keep reading yet still saving some shocks for the end. Great fun and it would make a great movie!
Many thanks to Anne at Random Things Tours, Flame Tree Press and D W Gillespie for inviting me to be part of this tour.
Many thanks to Anne at Random Things Tours, Flame Tree Press and D W Gillespie for inviting me to be part of this tour.
September 12, 2018
Thank you to D.W Gillespie and Flame Tree Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. For more reviews please feel free to check out: https://abmostfiction.wordpress.com
As a child I had a favourite toy, it was a gymnast Barbie and, like most children, this toy went with me everywhere. Her bendy arms and legs meant she could kick and punch just as well as my brother's Action Man, and due to the paint job on her face she literally smiled in the face of danger. We were quite a team.
We scaled mountains together (the stairs), we went deep sea diving (as deep as a paddling pool gets) and we travelled into the wilderness (basically I used to throw her into some trees and then crawl underneath to see where she had landed).
But then one day she was gone.
My parents claimed I must have lost her, that I must have left her outside or over my friend's house, but I was sure that wasn't true.
I never did find out what happened to her... until now.
Jack didn’t know what to call the nameless, skeletal creature that slunk into her house in the dead of night, stealing the very things she loved the most. So she named him The Toy Thief…
There’s something in Jack’s past that she doesn’t want to face, an evil presence that forever changed the trajectory of her family. It all began when The Toy Thief appeared, a being drawn by goodness and innocence, eager to feed on everything Jack holds dear. What began as a mystery spirals out of control when her brother, Andy, is taken away in the night, and Jack must venture into the dark place where the toys go to get him back. But even if she finds him, will he ever be the same?
D.W Gillespie The Toy Thief is reminiscent of a folklore tale that parents tell their kids at night to try and teach them to look after their belongings. Except in this version the more you love something, the more likely it's going to be taken from you.
Told from the perspective of Jack, moving between her as an adult and her nine-year old self, we are slowly introduced to her life and what may have been haunting it all along - The Toy Thief.
I enjoyed the placement of this self-sufficient, hard-edged young girl against a creature that wouldn’t be amiss in a fairy-tale. Jack is no princess or Little Red Riding Hood; she’s mean, feisty and doesn't accidentally stray from the path, but willingly goes to play in the woods.
The description of the Toy Thief is slowly fed to us with a bit more detail with every encounter until the full image is revealed. This meant there was a continued feeling of mystery around the creature and it's mythology, which I think helps to keep the reader on their toes and interested, even when the pacing slowed down.
The story kept me engaged for the most part, overall I did enjoy the alternating timelines between Jack as a child and then her as an adult looking back. The more of adult Jack we were introduced to, the more of a shadow was cast over the past, intentionally putting doubts over the series of events being told. I did feel there were times that adult Jack's narrative was just there to act as exposition and, although an adult looking back will have a greater understanding of events than a child, it did feel forced at times.
As with most strong horror stories, the supernatural aspect is actually a layer over what is at the core of the story; a look at a brother and sister relationship and how they've grown up experiencing different sides to the same tragedy.
Gillespie presents some great moments developing these characters, their interactions with one another and how they each view their situation. There's a bitter-sweetness to the relationship between Jack and her brother that I think was well written, believable and left a taste of sadness behind once the novel was finished.
This isn't for horror readers looking for their next gore-fix, this is for readers who enjoy their horror tales with a touch of magical realism and characters struggling with personal demons.
TL;DR - D.W Gillespie has written a one part fairy-tale and one part bitter-sweet story of a brother and sister growing up who discover The Toy Thief. This is not one for the hardcore horror fans, but if you like your characters headstrong and fiesty and your antagonists mysterious and creepy, check it out.
3.5***(out of 5*****)
As a child I had a favourite toy, it was a gymnast Barbie and, like most children, this toy went with me everywhere. Her bendy arms and legs meant she could kick and punch just as well as my brother's Action Man, and due to the paint job on her face she literally smiled in the face of danger. We were quite a team.
We scaled mountains together (the stairs), we went deep sea diving (as deep as a paddling pool gets) and we travelled into the wilderness (basically I used to throw her into some trees and then crawl underneath to see where she had landed).
But then one day she was gone.
My parents claimed I must have lost her, that I must have left her outside or over my friend's house, but I was sure that wasn't true.
I never did find out what happened to her... until now.
Jack didn’t know what to call the nameless, skeletal creature that slunk into her house in the dead of night, stealing the very things she loved the most. So she named him The Toy Thief…
There’s something in Jack’s past that she doesn’t want to face, an evil presence that forever changed the trajectory of her family. It all began when The Toy Thief appeared, a being drawn by goodness and innocence, eager to feed on everything Jack holds dear. What began as a mystery spirals out of control when her brother, Andy, is taken away in the night, and Jack must venture into the dark place where the toys go to get him back. But even if she finds him, will he ever be the same?
D.W Gillespie The Toy Thief is reminiscent of a folklore tale that parents tell their kids at night to try and teach them to look after their belongings. Except in this version the more you love something, the more likely it's going to be taken from you.
Told from the perspective of Jack, moving between her as an adult and her nine-year old self, we are slowly introduced to her life and what may have been haunting it all along - The Toy Thief.
I enjoyed the placement of this self-sufficient, hard-edged young girl against a creature that wouldn’t be amiss in a fairy-tale. Jack is no princess or Little Red Riding Hood; she’s mean, feisty and doesn't accidentally stray from the path, but willingly goes to play in the woods.
The description of the Toy Thief is slowly fed to us with a bit more detail with every encounter until the full image is revealed. This meant there was a continued feeling of mystery around the creature and it's mythology, which I think helps to keep the reader on their toes and interested, even when the pacing slowed down.
The story kept me engaged for the most part, overall I did enjoy the alternating timelines between Jack as a child and then her as an adult looking back. The more of adult Jack we were introduced to, the more of a shadow was cast over the past, intentionally putting doubts over the series of events being told. I did feel there were times that adult Jack's narrative was just there to act as exposition and, although an adult looking back will have a greater understanding of events than a child, it did feel forced at times.
As with most strong horror stories, the supernatural aspect is actually a layer over what is at the core of the story; a look at a brother and sister relationship and how they've grown up experiencing different sides to the same tragedy.
Gillespie presents some great moments developing these characters, their interactions with one another and how they each view their situation. There's a bitter-sweetness to the relationship between Jack and her brother that I think was well written, believable and left a taste of sadness behind once the novel was finished.
This isn't for horror readers looking for their next gore-fix, this is for readers who enjoy their horror tales with a touch of magical realism and characters struggling with personal demons.
TL;DR - D.W Gillespie has written a one part fairy-tale and one part bitter-sweet story of a brother and sister growing up who discover The Toy Thief. This is not one for the hardcore horror fans, but if you like your characters headstrong and fiesty and your antagonists mysterious and creepy, check it out.
3.5***(out of 5*****)
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