A.C. Gaughen has a way of completely ripping your heart out... and then making you beg for more. Her Scarlet series has the capability of making you feel every type of emotion, and for that I have both a love and hate relationship with it. But that would never stop me from wanting more. 
 Lady Thief starts shortly after where its predecessor left off and everything has changed for Scarlet, Robin and the rest of their band. As always in this series, things are bleak as hell. Scarlet is stuck in a marriage with the deplorable Gisbourne and if she wants any chance of being freed she'll have to play along within the walls of the castle. 
 "The shadows aren't the same without you, love," he murmured soft. 
 Once again, Scarlet shines as the lead. She is one of the strongest characters out there for all she has to endure and just once how I wish she could achieve a moment of happiness without having to sacrifice so much. Her relationship with Robin is one I support with all my heart but, oh man, does it take a toll on a person. Those small highs are high but the lows are so, so low. This pairing makes you work for it but those moments they are together make it so worth it. 
 Gaughen throws some pretty big twists into the story and I didn't really pick up on them until they became pretty obvious but they change everything. The book's conclusion has me like a drug addict: desperate for my next fix of something that hurts so good.