After much research (watching a Law & Order: SVU marathon), you’ve surmised that not all foster parents turn into Daddy Warbucks.

Some suck.

The same realization dawns on 12-year-old Ren as he’s whisked away from his orphanage by his “brother” Benjamin in Hannah Tinti’s debut novel, The Good Thief.

The one-handed boy quickly doubts his savior’s story as he’s plunged into a world of scam artists, thieves, and grave diggers. As Ren wavers between wanting to be good and to belong, you can’t help but root for him. The Dickensian work plays out in a series of vignettes. Each stop in the journey introduces more outrageous characters, from a roof-dwelling dwarf to a murderous giant.

As Ren’s mysterious past is uncovered, he discovers the complex space between right and wrong.

In the end, it’s a hard-knock life.

Available online at booksandbooks.com.