The Thief of Always is a novel by Clive Barker that was published in 1992. The book is a fable written for all ages. Its cover was created by Barker, and the book contains several black and white illustrations by him. Plot Harvey Swick is an 11-year-old boy bored with school, teachers, homework, and his day-to-day life. A man named Rictus visits Harvey and tells him about a kids’ paradise called the Holiday House. At the Holiday House, there are all the sweets a person could ask for; four seasons in a day; Halloween every evening; Christmas, with whatever gifts you could wish for every night; and everything else you could dream of. Harvey hesitantly visits the house and becomes friends with two other children staying alongside him, Wendell and Lulu. There is also an elderly woman, Mrs. Griffin, who cooks all the meals and cares for the children; though she seems kind, she appears to be keeping a secret about the house and its creator, Mr. Hood. Mrs Griffin also keeps three cats: Stew Cat, Blue Cat and Clue Cat. Clue Cat is accidentally killed by being burned alive from the lunch Mrs Griffin had been cooking, which distresses her. Harvey thinks his parents will be worried about him, so is allowed to speak to them on the phone. Harvey’s parents tell him they thought it would be a good idea for him to take a break from school to cheer him up. Though Harvey thinks the voices of his parents are a bit strange, he brushes it off and starts to relax. Harvey eventually meets Jive, the brother of Rictus. Jive and Harvey get along well and he takes Harvey to meet a woman called Marr, who uses her hands to make his face into a scary mask for Halloween, and turns his whole body into a monster. Harvey has fun, scaring Wendell, and returns to his human form when Halloween is over. Harvey eventually discovers that Mr. Hood has been stealing the youth of the children staying in the Holiday House by sucking their souls away and turning them into Fish, then being imprisoned in a lake. The lake is full of large fish (who are really the young victims of Mr Hood) all from different times. Lulu is turned into a fish and must live in the lake, but Harvey and Wendell flee the house by