Thanks to NetGalley and the associated publisher and audio publisher for the advanced audio copy.

This book is a bit of a mix bag. It has some brilliant moments, some meandering in the middle and some lowlights.

The opening prologue had me engaged right away. We meet Telium , a once in a generation assassin. Who is quickly exhiled and escapes into the wilderness .
The opening few chapters, really made me feel like I would connect with the MC.

Unfortunately one of the lowlights of the book ended up being the MC. She just ended up being a bit ridiculous at points. Unintelligent, beyond naieve and just somewhat dry.

The character work in general was a bit of a struggle for me personally. I personally read books to connect emotionally with the characters (Robin Hobb is my favourite author) , however I just never connected to anyone in the story.

That said, the story itself was good. The twists and turns were well delivered and despite seeing people not liking the ending. I disagree. I think the author swung for the fences and it paid off

I particularly enjoyed the narrator. She really went for the sell and will look to see if the narrator does more books within the fantasy genre.

I think this book is worth a shot. Its closer to YA than adult fantasy and if you're more into action, than characters, it should be a good read for you

dnf at 20%. this book was soooooo boring! i was so uninterested in the story that my mind kept stopping to listen to it! the premise was promising but the execution, not so much. for some reason, the narration switched to 3rd person from telium to an omniscient narrator so many times which didn’t make any sense. the overuse of the word “male” which i thought was purely a sarah j maas thing but apparently not and it threw me off, i hate it. the author tried to justify it but it didn’t make sense that our main character was always calling the man, which i assume is the love interest, “male”. the narrator was good but the book was not and even a great narrator can’t make a terrible book great.

The assassin thief begins with Telium, previous Assassin Thief to the Queen of Alkoria, in a dungeon being heckled by guards. She is there because one day without provocation the Queen turned on Telium in a seemingly mad rage. Telium breaks from the dungeon and escapes into the forest to live out her days in silence. During this time Telium unleashes and fights to control her Thief gifts that are clearly more than any normal thief should have. One day, a Fae appears in her forest begging her assistance in the assassination of the Mad Fae King who rules Meannthe, the land of the beautiful and skilled Fae. This being the same Mad King who Telium learns kidnaps humans and experiments on them for his own pleasure and gain. The very same Mad King that was responsible for Teliums Queen's descent into madness and Teliums subsequent imprisonment. Telium accepts the Faes offer to teach her to control her gifts in exchange for her help with the assassination. She then embarks on an incredible, eye-opening journey of self discovery and knowledge. The more Telium learns about her current situation, the more she is able to piece together the missing links of her past. Telium and her Fae companion eventually reach the town of Meannthe to slay the Mad King. The following battle will not only answer her remaining questions, but also reveals a few things about Telium, her companion and his quest to execute the deranged King.

I haven't had the chance to review a Fantasy Fiction novel in a few months and I was very excited to receive this one. In fact I liked it so much, I listened to it twice. The cover art is phenomenal and the snippet I read left me wanting more. It did not disappoint. This one is action packed from the very beginning and does not have very many slow points. The twist at the end is *chefs kiss* and the last few lines left me craving the second book. I assume this was intentional as it is the first installment of a series. (it would be a terrible ending if there weren't more to come, but there is.. So YAY!) The only thing about the story I was a little weary of was how easy Telium went with the Fae without a whole lot of skepticism or questions. Once I realized her young age, inexperience with the general population and how long she’s been secluded in the forest, I realized it might not be outside the scope of her reality. So, it could be argued, but I still think considering her status as the Queen's Assassin Thief, she’d have at least asked more questions. Another thing I enjoyed about the story is how the author included a Fae who goes by They/Them and even lightly touches on Transgender characters. I also appreciate the detail in each character, down to how some of them smell. Overall this was a very enjoyable listen and I would recommend this to all Fantasy Fiction readers, young adult and older (as there is a wee bit of sexual tension, some innuendos and a few brief scenes)

<!> A huge thank you to Netgalley, and Bolinda Audio for allowing me the opportunity to consume this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to New Dawn Publications for taking a chance on a great author. Finally, Thank you to Madeline Te Whiu for an amazing debut novel! I can't wait for more!! <!>

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the audio ARC of this book.

This book didn't draw me in as much as i hoped it would. I liked it as a whole, but there were parts that I didn't like as much or didn't really care about. The world building was a bit confusing.

In the end I really liked the book, and it did have really interesting parts. And that betrayal! I did see something along those lines coming, but it was still hard, and even though I suspected some other things too, it did actually make me more excited for book 2.

The narrator did a good job getting this book to life. This wasn't my favorite, which could have contributed to my thoughts of the book and the fact that i couldn't quite get sucked in. But that's just a personal opinion, and many others will probably like it. The audiobook itself was good, and the pacing and execution were also good.

‘The Assassin Thief’ by Madeline Te Whiu has a promising prologue that hooks you with a strong image and a grounded sense of the felt physicality of a moment.

I also, personally, have a real soft spot for Aussie fiction, and – as a librarian – I’d always lean towards supporting emerging publishing houses.

But the promising prologue is about where my enjoyment of this novel ended.

Overall, I'd describe Whiu's writing as effortful. The authorial voice strains itself in a way that no proofreading or editing is ever going to be able to iron out. And there is a lot to iron out. ‘The Assassin Thief’ is overlong, overearnest, and overwritten.

In Madeline Te Whiu’s style, every noun has an adjective or an epithet. This style of adjectival writing become wearisome so quickly for the reader.

Compounding this, the author makes some very bizarre word choices, such as the total avoidance of the word ‘man’ (Whiu using the word ‘male’ every time?!). And if I have to hear about Mallux’s 'amber and citrus' fragrance one more time...

Slang and anachronisms are jarring; at one point, our protagonist ‘falls hard on her arse’. The writing is full of cliché and absolutely dripping with adjectives and adverbs. In places, it made me cringe so much that I’d consider giving up on listening to the rest. Take this, for instance:

‘He had been shy, yet he made up for it with plenty of passion, pleasantly shocked by her forwardness. She let him have his way with her for a while, before she flipped him on his back and rode him until she found her completion.’

The novel brandishes an inundation of fight scenes. In the audiobook, Tanya Schneider, the narrator, does well to try and inject emotion and pitch into each formulaic, indistinguishable fight scene. But there comes a point where the repetitiveness of the writing just blurs one scene into all the others.

And more than that, Schneider uses her voice with a kind of expressiveness that you don’t always get with audiobook performances: she is slow-paced in places, quickening as she approaches action; she voices sections loudly when the narrative's intense, quietly when the story turns to descriptiveness. Her velvety Aussie tones are, for the most part, a delight.

The only time Schneider disappointed me was when she endeavoured to affect a peasant's country accent, and ended up chewing on a half-baked kind of cockney.

But all I can say, in conclusion, is that ‘The Assassin Thief’ is an immature debut and I found myself wondering often how the narrator persevered with it.

Thanks to Bolinda audio for a review copy.

An excellent fantasy debut - Madeline Ye Whiu has built a very interesting world with some great characters. I love the play that comes with a morally grey protagonist too.

The audiobook is brilliant. The narrator Tanya Schneider really brings every character to life and has a gentle cadence that is easy to follow.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bolinda Audio for the advance audiobook.

For a debut book, I very much enjoyed this. There was good world building and also explanation of the power structures.

The main character is a morally grey assassin who has a lot of past trauma and things to work through.

There’s a generous amount of romance and action. I wasn’t super keen on the main romance, but definitely feel that the uneasiness felt is explained in the end.

I look forward to following Telium on her journey.

The narrator, Tanya Schneider, was amazing.. I enjoyed how their voice draws you into the story and adds to the narrative.

I recommend this for story fantasy lovers.

When I requested this audio arc, I really loved the concept of this story. Unfortunately I didn’t love the execution.

Let’s talk about what I liked first.
* I loved the magic system in this book. It was unique & easy to understand.
* The FMC Telium was the truly morally grey character & she was soo interesting.
* I loved that in this story the world came to the FMC for help & she was never a damsel who needed saving

What I didn’t like.
* I felt nothing for the MMC Mallux & didn’t think he had any chemistry with Telium
* There was a love triangle but it felt predictable & passionless.
* There was queer rep in the story however in my opinion it felt a bit tokenism
* I felt 0 connection to the characters & even though the book ended on a cliffhanger I had no desire to know what happens next.

Audio review

I really liked Tanya’s voice. It was smooth, clear & easy to listen to. And was probably the best thing about this story. I was distracted by over description written sometimes but Tanya did manage to make it easier to listen too.

Thank you #netgalley & @bolindaaudio for the early access in exchange for an honest review.