Enter the world of Muqadas, where the climb to the top of this vertically stacked city—away from disease-ridden waters of the lower levels—is paved with betrayal, secrets, and rebellion.

The trio, Basem, Mustafa and Aarfah have made a living in their corner of Muqadas. Helping those around them to create prosthetics. Their goal is to climb their way out of the cities lowest level and make a well living. Their inventions catch the eye of a scout who is on the look out for new talent and help them rise to a higher tier. Their dreams seem to be coming true but is it too good to be true?

I really enjoyed the art style and I loved the representation in this graphic novel. The plot was very interesting and I really enjoyed how it developed. I do wish we had more expansion on the relationship between Basem & Mustafa. I did find the text in the speech bubbles a little difficult to read down to the font style but I believe that's a personal preference.

I feel the class issues was portrayed quite well and I liked how it had a Middle Eastern influence. The portrayal of disabilities I feel was well done too. I do feel the ending was a little rushed and I would have liked to see the aftermath of the ending.

Three gifted friends survive by building and repairing things with scrap they find. Disease, hunger and poverty are common, and these friends are trying to get in the sights of the right people, who will pull them 'to the next height.' A dystopian tale of rich versus poor and being true to who you are, a great addition to any YA collection.

This book had a great plot with intriguing characters. I’ll definitely be looking out for more from this author.

I went into this book having forgotten what it was about, but still wanting to read it knowing nothing. However, it didn’t mean that I struggled to understand the themes and story being explored in this graphic novel. The book follows three inventors/engineers from the lowest tier of their society, one of whom has lost both her legs due to a disease spread through the bacteria-riddled waters. Another we later find out has also contracted that same disease on his hand and is struggling with accepting what will happen to him, regardless of when he decides to do or say anything about it. The three friends all share a dream to help their community through their creations, but one in particular wants to rise through to the higher tiers of their society to reach the top. Whilst his ambition comes from a good place, it causes him to become blind to what is really happening around him and how much he’s losing himself in the process of ascending. This graphic novel discusses themes of class, wealth, greed - in terms of wealth, resources etc - and revolution which you see slowly building up in the background. I wasn’t able to give this 5 stars as I do think the revolution plot could have been built up over a few more chapters to give the story a better and much more satisfying ending. Perhaps even have a certain protagonist learn about it and then give him more time to think about what he truly wants for himself and his community/people back down below before acting so that the pay-off at the end is once again more satisfying to read. I do think a longer book would have helped strengthen the way in which the story was told. There was also a weird mix-up with the pages at one point in which a page appeared twice, once earlier than it was meant to and subsequently breaking up a scene and confusing the reader, then in its rightful place. I really enjoyed the art style, it was so vibrant and the use of colours really helped distinguish the different levels our protagonists inhabit as they ascend bit by bit.

I absolutely love this graphic novel. Fantastic world building with such an important social commentary. The diversity though is what really makes this book special and the disability representation is something I’m always looking for more of when choosing books.

As a school librarian I will be adding this one to our list of books to buy as I feel it’s an important read for our young people.

first of all, i'm happy to see Muslim characters loudly being Muslims. second of all, this was such an interesting dystopian story that reminded me of Fledgling, where cities are stacked and life quality on each level were different

it's about 3 talented young engineers making living as best they could on the lowest level, an area that never touched by sun or seen sky. they're hoping upper city scout would recognize their talents someday and brought them above where they could make a better life and could make something more significant to help lower level. but is it as simple as that?

it was a nice read but the ending felt rushed and i wanted it to be longer, to see more of the aftermath. love the highlight on physical disability

Dystopian science fiction. Good solid story for a graphic novel. The three youths are sympathetic and likable characters with a real feeling friendship. I’d definitely read another book by this person if they did another science fiction or fantasy book

The ending of this one wrapped up a little too quickly and felt rushed, but I'll definitely still be recommending this one! It's a fascinating, fresh dystopian world with interesting characters that get a decent amount of depth, especially for such a short graphic novel.

Basem's dream has been to be a successful engineer with his boyfriend Mustafah, and friend Aarfah, He wants to leave the lowest caste and work his way up the ranks to live on the upper caste of a vertical city. He can have endless supplies for his projects, better lifestyle, and all the things that comes with it being high up in the ranks. But these high ranking lifestyle and the people are not what they seem...

I didn't get to read the book description of this graphic novel. I just went in head on. And what awaited me was a good story. I like how we get transported into a world of poverty but full of hope and promise. I thought they built a good job in reimagining a world that's already so familiar to us. And that familiarity makes this graphic novel nothing really new. It focuses on injustices and broken promises that is realistic. It was just a matter of making it something their own.

Becasue it's a graphic novel, you get to see the differences of the caste system in just one glance. But what trully makes it are the characters that were presented to us. More the minor character. The difference in attitude and the sense of entitlement, I also really love the colors that they used in the differences of the caste. It was thoughtful but also they made it obvious. The main characters though are diverse and I liked how they find their places in the story.

Story-wise, as I mentioned is nothing new. I'm not certain if this is a stand-alone graphic novel, but it felt that it left me hanging. The creators definitely focused on the main characters, their lives, and their relationships with one another.

Overall, it was a good read. But it didn't make me want to pursue further if there are more to this story.

This graphic novel had an interesting world and premise, which I wish had been explored a little more. The characters were interesting and likeable and I was invested in their journey. Great art, too.

Thank you, NetGalley for this advanced reader's copy of Thief of the Heights by Son M.!

This was a complex fantasy graphic novel about three teens trying to change their world for the better. I enjoyed the characters and their dynamic with one another. It was sweet to see their connection and their loyalty when the need for sacrifices arose.

The main thing I had a struggle with was the world building & overall conflict. I found it hard to follow sometimes and had to reread a few pages to fully comprehend what was going on. The resolve at the end felt a bit rushed to me. I liked the very ending, and being able to see what became of our characters.

Overall a solid story! Would recommend it if you're looking for an action-packed, fantasy read!

3⭐️ (solid read)

This SFF Graphic Novel had strong characters, beautiful art, and a strong base for a plot, but the novel was too short for the plot to be developed to its full potential.

The character designs were incredible! I’d love to see all of these characters more in the future. And you could tell so much effort went into designing the world, the shots that were “zoomed out” were so beautiful. The found family was so fun <3

The plot wasn’t the best tho. But a disclaimer- some pages in the arc were out of order, so it was difficult to follow at times. I really liked the base of the plot, but I don’t think the book was long enough for it to fully develop.

I think revolution is always relevant, more so even today, but that makes me wish that there would have been some sort of epilogue. The ending just felt very abrupt.

Thank you to NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

What a needed story in this time and a study of class and beliefs. The imagery as well as the story was incredibly constructed. A good read for all.

Thief of the Heights has moments of dark, with the lose of limbs due to a viral infection and the obviously vitriolic class system, but the main characters, three teens from the lowest caste of their society, are sweet, hopeful and ambitious. The family structures in this graphic novel felt real and emotional, and I really appreciated the Muslim and disability rep in this!

Thanks to NetGalley, the Publisher and Author for an ARC of this book in exchange for my review.

This graphic novel has a lot of potential. The story has a lot of interesting world building but suffers from a lack of truly exploring that world. The plot focuses on a group of three friends living in a disease infested lower city while inventors seek a way to the upper. They catch the eye of a scout, that then moves them to the upper levels where they realize their world is not so cut and dry and that society is much much darker than they ever imagined it could be.

The plot is quick and easy to follow and the art is fantastic. Character designs and color schemes pop off the page. This is a nice one off comic, but more better pacing and world exploration would make it even better.

This wasn't my favorite of reads. For some reason I didn't jive with the story but the world building was good and kept me interested to see what would happen.

A lovely book with a touching found family, beautiful art and color, respect and dignity for its characters; but a story that could use more work. I wanted to know more about the world of Muqadas and especially the rebellion and the nazar - what was that truly, and where did it come from? How long has the rebellion been dwelling under the depths? I thought this might be a series starter because of the sheer number of interesting questions I had about the world.

Oh the romance went straight for my heart though. Very sweet.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy of Thief of the Heights by Son M.

I think this dystopian sci-fi graphic will have a wide readership. The art was really great and told part of the story, however I did have some trouble figuring out the world - some things didn't come through because of lack of explanation or storytelling of the art. The class distinction of the upper world down to the bottom of the earth was very intriguing. A few of my pages were out of order I believe, but that is not the fault of the creator. All in all, I think people will enjoy this.

This is a story with a lot of potential, that has a lot of interesting world building but suffers from a lack of exploring that world. The plot focuses on a group of three friends living in the disease infested, lower levels of a city. Inventors looking to seek a way to the upper levels, the trio make prosthetics for those who lose limbs due to the Habar infection that eventually catches the eye of a scout that moves them to the upper levels. There they realize their world is not so straightforward and that society is much darker than they thought it could be. The plot was pretty easy to follow, but not super interesting once things started picking up. The art is fantastic and i love the character designs and the color schemes. This is a nice standalone, but i would've like more from it to make the plot pacing work better.