"It's fine. Don't worry about it."
"Notably, every time you say that, it turns out I should, in fact, worry a lot."

I was CACKLING from the very first page of Painted Devils. Here we find Vanja accidentally starting a cult as a con when she's hungover. Unfortunately, Emeric, whom she jilted with half an explanation because she didn't feel good enough for him, shows up to investigate the cult. Right on his heels, the Scarlet Maiden, the goddess Vanja cooked up from various convenient sources of inspiration, shows herself for real and claims Emeric as her "servant," aka human sacrifice. Don't worry (as I did) that we're headed for angsty romantic drama. Our two lovebirds are quick to sort out their difficulties and stand tall together despite the supernatural threat and the fact that Emeric is supposed to be investigating Vanja for fraud, re: the cult. The only way to avoid Emeric's death is for him to slay a hellhound (which they decide is unlikely, having met it) or to collect the blood of seven brothers on a piece of cloth provided by the Scarlet Maiden. They have until Midsummer.

This book is just as hilarious as the first. One of my favorite bits is Emeric's top secret, angsty heartbreak poetry, which is briefly revealed to just be BACKSTREET BOYS LYRICS IN THEIR ENTIRETY. I MEAN, COME ON. This is my catnip, I tell you. Vanja's nicknames for Emeric continue unabated, her chaotic energy and burgeoning conscience are still at odds, and new side characters only add to the mix. For one, we have Helga, the apprentice to a hedgewitch who follows along behind Vanja and Emeric, muttering about "teenagers" and bemoaning her fate, who is helping them to track down her seven brothers for the quest. It's unusually great adult representation in a young adult novel. She gets her revenge, though, through a hilarious prank where she books a honeymoon suite for Vanja and Emeric at one of their stops. Rose petals magically fall on the entrant every time the door opens, whether there's a fight going on or a disaster to dramatically announce... rose petals. And while there's a whole cast of new characters to love and hate, don't worry if you're missing some familiar faces. They won't stay away for too long.

In terms of romance, leave it to Vanja to have literally the funniest delivery of an "only one bed" scenario that I have ever read. The love story has sweet moments, funny ones, and a sprinkling of angst to keep things balanced. I love LOVE the way both characters' ace identities are handled in this one. We see how they're navigating firsts together and considering what they're comfortable with. What I liked best and brought some very emotion-y emotions to the fore is how relieved they are to share these experiences with someone who gets it. It doesn't need to be a race; they can look out for each other and only enjoy what feels right on their own timeline. Also, trust two aces to enjoy each other and then agree that their pastries the next morning are just as good with no egos popped.

I also find a lot of value in a young adult story approaching romance in a young adult way rather than copy/pasting adult tropes just because they're fun. There's a whole plot around virginity because the Scarlet Maiden's hold over Emeric may be contingent on him maintaining his. It brings up conversations about the hair-splitting in definitions of virginity and the role of heteronormativity in drawing those lines. Our characters don't want to feel pressured to cross those lines, but Vanja can't help but worry knowing that Emeric's life is on the line and she could have the power to offer him an escape, even if she's not exactly comfortable with the terms, or at least with the pressure/necessity of it. Vanja's romantic adventure also includes receiving "the talk," not only about mechanics and pregnancy but also STDs and consent. If you wonder how she's made it this far in life without such a chat, remember that she's an orphan who's never previously had an interest in someone else physically or romantically. There was no one to tell her, but now she's hanging out with a midwife, so there's no one better to struggle through awkward conversations with, especially when that midwife demands safety over avoiding discomfort in talking about it. Emeric later consults a kindly Madame about women's pleasure, so we end up with everyone being as well-informed as can be. Go team!

I found this sequel to have the excellent features of the first, from humor to adventure to fairy tale ambiance, but it also manages to be more emotional. The first book had so much heart, but this was the one that cracked Vanja open and looked more deeply at the ills that have befallen her and why. There's more than one big revelation from both personal and plot standpoints, and at least one left me floored and/or teary. Vanja's story about her scars and the mantras she learned alongside them made me cry. We get to see her turn a corner and find a new appreciation for herself, and that made me cry, too.

And while I am NOT happy with that cliffhanger ending, I'm eager to see where it leads all the same. Thanks to Macmillan for my copy to read and review!

This was so good. It's filled with adventure, romance, and secrets. I enjoyed this from beginning to end and can't wait to dive into Holy Terrors!

Thank you so much Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group, Margaret Owen, and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I fell in love with Little Thieves and was ecstatic to learn I was approved for Painted Devils as well. I’ve missed Vanja and Emeric, so it was enjoyable to read about them again. Vanja is back with her antics and Emeric is along for the ride. I still love the dialogue and banter between the two of them. The story expands its worldbuilding and is more captivating than the last. The pacing in Little Thieves was a little slow at first, but the pacing was never an issue in Painted Devils. I loved everything about this book, 5/5 stars, and highly recommend this book!

I love this series! Definitely purchasing for my library and recommending to those who enjoy fairytale types of fantasy.

Some of y’all already know how much I loved Little Thieves, so of course I was beyond excited to get my hands on the sequel! And let me tell you - it did not disappoint! ⁣
⁣
Owen is a master at her craft, and everything is in the details. We follow Vanja as she accidentally creates a cult and awakens a sleeping god, all while trying to find her birth family. Vanja’s spunky attitude and sass is as wonderful as ever, and don’t even get me started on her reunion with Emeric 🥹 Those two made me swoon so much, I adore them endlessly!⁣
⁣
My favorite part about this book in particular is how Owen takes on virginity as a social construct and normalizes ace relationships. Vanja’s asexuality and her internal struggle when it comes to her relationship with Emeric mirrored so much of my own experiences, and I just love how well Owen portrayed these emotions and thoughts. ⁣
⁣
Aside from the ace rep, the trans/non-binary rep is also wonderful and made me smile! Found family and biological family redemption play a huge role in this story, and I loved every second of it.⁣
⁣
Overall, I highly recommend Painted Devils (especially the audiobook!) and I cannot WAIT for book three!!!! 😩

The Painted Devils was an absolutely delightful sequel to Little Thieves. This novel cemented Margaret Owen as one of my personal favorites.

This was good story. Not great, but good. I struggled a bit and I know this is a classic case of, “it’s not you, it’s me,” since everyone I know that read it, loved it.

I love Margaret Owen's world building and this was no exception. Vanja continues to be an interesting and engaging character. It was no Little Thieves, but I eagerly await book three.

Incredible. I love Vanja and somehow, Margaret Owen has crafted the perfect sequel. I expected more of the hilarity and wit that we came to expect from Vanja in the first book but was not expecting the gut punch of Vanja's trauma. A layered, wonderful look at found family and finding the love we deserve.

This is the perfect book two. I loved book one and I devoured this book. It’s such a great duology and it’s worth the read. I somehow love these characters even more.

Painted Devils is, at its core, a story of two young people navigating love and sexuality and the idea of virginity as a social construct in a way that feels right to them, and recognizes that their comfort and their desire and the way they feel about each other is all that matters.

Margaret Owen continues to impress! I will never tire of her mix of humor, humanity, and fantasy. Her characters feel so deeply real, their struggles are so innately human. It's hard to find another YA fantasy author who can make you laugh out loud at a line of dialogue and on the same page blow your mind with the action that just unfolded.

I’m always terrified of reviewing books I love because there’s no way I’ll ever be able to do them justice. There’s just no easy way to verbalize my adoration for these stories, and the deeper they cut, the more true this becomes.

These books are knives, slicing me deeply and just making a home inside my skin. Little Thieves was already beautiful, painful, glittering, and absolutely everything I could ever want from a book. Painted Devils is somehow even sharper, even more cutting, and I felt hollowed out by the end of it. It’s been months since I’ve finished it now, and thinking of this book still feels like poking a bruise. It’s like this story has left a pot simmering in the back of my head, and anytime I’m reminded of it, I go running back to check on it. This story just lives in me now.

But why is this book so astounding, and how is it still affecting me so much, months later? There is just something about the unique combination of setting, magic, characters, and plot in these books that creates a lasting impression that sticks around, whether you want it to or not.

There is a cast of wonderful, maddening, heartbreakingly flawed characters that pull you into their orbits and never let you go. You watch them hurt and bleed throughout the story, watch them forced to grapple with bad choices and mistakes and failures, and you’re left just wanting to pull them out of the book and tuck them into a warm bed and keep them safe. This is exceptionally true for Vanja, the main character, and I’m just so incredibly attached to her. She’s so prickly, and guarded, and I see parts of myself in her (without the, you know, crimes). I feel like watching her struggle and grow and still be Vanja makes me feel like I have the space to struggle and grow too.

The story itself, and its plot, is also one of Painted Devils many strengths. Both Painted Devils and Little Thieves feel like untangling an extremely complicated knot, sometimes taking many steps back before you finally see the next step to take. However, the sheer satisfaction at seeing that knot begin to loosen, let alone entirely disappear, is incredible, and seeing the plot unravel in this series is exactly the same. The shroud of mystery around everything, and this recurring plot of investigating a crime, only further complicates and deepens the plot, and creates a solid structure for the entire story to rest on.

Then there is this cruel world the entire story is set in. There is so much cruelty and unkindness, and in the face of it all, there are our characters trying to fix just a small piece of it. It lets us really see the beauty and power in small acts of kindness. I also love how it sets up a perfect space for examining the role of law-bending and rule-following in fixing corruption and injustice, and how the balance can be so precarious. I also adore the folklore that’s woven into every page of these books, and it only further heightens the themes explored in the book. There’s just so much myth and magic and story here, and I want to drink every last drop of it.

All of this is then wrapped together in such phenomenal writing. There is so much humor in this book, and you can just feel how much joy Owen had when writing it. But it’s also a writing style that can carry pain and heavier moments well, too. Owen knows exactly when a blow needs to be softened, or the exact way to phrase something to make it absolutely devastating to read. Somehow, her writing has only gotten stronger in this sequel, and honestly, very few writers could manage to pull something like Painted Devils off.

While I’m still recovering from the pain of Painted Devils, I am absolutely ready for Holy Terrors to deliver the killing blow.

Margaret Owen how dare you— this book is a marvel, ruined my life, and was so hilarious and touching.

As someone who has mostly moved away from reading Young Adult books, Margaret Owen's work is some of the few shining examples of books that I will drop everything to read and be swept away by like none other, and Painted Devils is no exception. From a meticulously planned plotline to endearing characters that I absolutely would commit crimes for or with, Painted Devils is both cackle like a feral witch in the woods funny and sob on public transportation touching (all true and real reactions that others observed me doing).

Painted Devils was a sequel that I anticipated like none other, and exceeded my expectations in every single way.

Somehow I loved this installment even better than the first?? There is SO MUCH SASS and a creepy doll and yes maybe I saw the end coming but it was still a TON OF FUN GETTING THERE.

Cults! Mama drama! Trauma and growth! Far too many parallels to real life for my personal comfort but it all works anyway!

Obviously can't wait for the next book, as I'm sure Emetic is still pissed off.

I read this book IMMEDIATELY after finishing Little Thieves, a book I rated five stars. I absolutely adore Vanja as our main protagonist. She is such an entertaining gray character who, in this second installment, is trying to become a better person in the eyes of Emeric...and this results in her starting a cult...unintentionally. 😂 Clearly, she is still a work in progress, but we love her anyway.

One element that I loved in Little Thieves that carried over to Painted Devils is the brilliant dialogue and dynamic between characters. We see a few characters returning from book 1, and many are added to this band of odd, eccentric found family. The characters are humorous, flawed, loyal, and vulnerable with each other. I am especially invested in Vanja and Emeric's relationship, especially because Owen provides great Ace representation with Vanja and Emeric's patience and respect of her boundaries is just so great to see on the page.

It has been quite a few months since I finished this book, but I think I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 (like Little Thieves) is because I found the reveal at the end to be semi convenient but at the same time, I can 100% see it being so important for Vanja as a character to go through a trial like that and gain some kind of closure. I also devoured book 1, and I do think it would be difficult for Owen to top it! No matter what, hands down a favorite series!!!

A huge thank you to Henry Holt and Margaret Owen for sending my both Little Thieves and Painted Devils in exchange for this honest review. I have already preordered book #3 in the series, and I am so so sad I have to wait for its release!

I was shocked to find I have not reviewed this book yet. Painted Devils by Margaret Owen is the highly anticipated, at least for me, follow up to the first novel in the series, Little Thieves. I could honestly gush about both of these books all day. Specifically in Painted Devils, we meet back up with our main character, Vanja, after she has broken a curse, saved a kingdom, and fallen in love. The only thing weighing her down is she wants to find her birth family. Given over to two lesser gods at a young age, Vanja grew up not sure she was every truly loved or how to love in return, so when there is a certain boy waiting for her, she freaks out and runs away. Her emotions are running high and twisted, so she decides that before she deals with those she will do what she does best, pulls one last scam. Because once a thief, always a thief. Unfortunately, this new scam puts her straight in the line of sight of a very ancient god that wants Vanja for herself. Can she wiggle her way out of this one?

I love this series because it is not your typical YA fantasy series. You have magic and a romance on the side, but it is more like contemporary YA in the way we watch out MC grow up, figure out who she is, struggle with the pressure of love/relationships/sex/etc. Finding who she is in this world, who she wants to become, and where she came from, and deciding if all three of those things can coincide to be one person or is she forced to choose?

I will read anything Margaret Owens puts out and am looking forward to working through her backlist as well. 5/5 stars!

Amazing world building, beautifully developed characters, and so much magic continue in this continuation of Little Thieves.

Vanja finds herself accused of starting a cult and non other than her abandoned paramour is tasked with the investigation into her crimes. Members of her former family start to emerge, as Emeric tries to find the truth despite his supervisor's extreme dislike of Vanja. It ended on a cliffhanger, and I cannot wait for the sequel.

I love the covers in this series.

This was such a good follow up to Little Thieves! I loved the first book, and honestly love this one too! The relationship between the two main characters is so well done. I love their communication, open honestly, and even when they have issues they TALK and work things out, honestly that's a breath of fresh air! My only complaint is that I don't have the next book in my hands after that ending!

It was enjoyable enough, but a bit of a let down from little thieves. The plotting of the heists were really fun and entertaining just like the first book. However the romance became a bit daunting and over played. We get it they are not quite doing it, plus after all of that we basically are ending back at square one! Loved getting to see her reunite with her family though.