The Thief's Tale — S.J.A. Turney

  Two brothers -- a warrior and a thief -- are drawn into a deadly plot at the dawn of the Ottoman empire: “Fast-paced and filled with action and adventure.” -- Historical Novel Society
 
Istanbul, 1481: The once great city of Constantine, a strange mix of Christians, Turks, and Jews, now forms the heart of the Ottoman empire. The conquest, still a recent memory, means emotions run high; danger is never far away.

Skiouros and Lykaion, sons of a Greek farmer, are conscripted into the infamous Janissary guards and taken to Istanbul. As Skiouros escapes into the Greek quarter and supports himself through petty thievery, Lykaion remains with the slave chain, becomes an Islamic convert, and guards the Imperial palace.

But one fateful day Skiouros picks the wrong pocket and begins to unravel a plot reaching to the highest peaks of Imperial power. He and his brother are left with the most difficult decision faced by a conquered Greek: Is the rule of the Ottoman Sultan worth saving?