Lily the Thief by Janne Kukkonen (review)

Kukkonen, Janne Lily the Thief; written and illus. by Janne Kukkonen; tr. from the Finnish by Lola Rogers; color by Kévin Bazot. First Second, 2019 [288p] Trade ed. ISBN 978-1-250-19355-1 $21.99 Paper ed. ISBN 978-1-250-19697-2 $14.99 Reviewed from galleys Ad Gr. 5-8

The powers that be in the guild of thieves have never respected Lily's skillful sticky fingers, so she attempts to steal treasure from Earl Enard's castle to prove her worth. Unfortunately, the mission goes awry, and Lily is snagged by the earl, who holds her mentor captive until she can retrieve two keys for him—including one from the dreaded Brotherhood of Fire—to open up a secret crypt, rumored to hold wealth beyond imagining. If the Brotherhood is involved, however, there's got to be something else going on, and Lily begins to suspect that it's a lot more complicated and evil than just the Earl's simple greed. There's a bit of Stevenson's Nimona to Lily's character in this graphic novel; she is likable but a little scary, and as morally complicated as she is childish. Helter-skelter paneling highlights the frenzy of the various dangers that she faces, but unfortunately her narration is heavy handed and often unnecessary, telling where the art is already showing. Additionally, the tone misfires when Lily's quippy humor is juxtaposed against several intensely violent (and gory) scenes, and the stakes never really earn the bloodshed. Still, the narrative style might work well for youngsters just joining the comics crowd, and for for readers looking for another rambunctious, ambitious (sometimes cutthroat) female heroine in graphic novels, Lily may fill the role.