This was an interesting retelling and started off as the tale of Cinderella we all know. That developed into a much more complex story or war, politics, rebellion and Ash/Lady Aislin trying to seduce a Prince to save a beaten down Kingdom. There is an interesting magic system called Lustre which is used with spells to bend people’s will, a love triangle and some strong woman. Verance and puppy are also a delight bringing some lightness and grumpy sunshine vibes to the story.

I loved Ash’s story and her determination though it wasn’t entirely clear why she had went down this path other than her stepmother had made her.

‘Only a nobody can be anybody they want.’

I would have liked a more fleshed out explanation as to the reasons Ash had decided to go down this path. I would have also liked to more about the people of the rebellion and the magic system.

Overall I found this an easy, enjoyable read that made you feel warm and fuzzy by the end. 3.5/4 stars.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read this in advance in exchange for an honest review.

[ARC provided by NetGalley and Random House UK, Cornerstone, Del Rey. Thank you for the opportunity to read and review Thief Liar Lady.]

Rating: 2/5

Thief Liar Lady is an interesting retelling of the classic fairy-tale, Cinderella, and after reading the blurb, I went into this book very intrigued. For the first 25% of the story, I eagerly followed along with exciting plot developments that included a struggling rebellion and lots of political intrigue, but following on from that I was disappointed when not much came of the initial build-up. I think this book had a lot of potential and the premise certainly had me hooked, but ultimately, I didn’t love the execution.

In Thief Liar Lady we follow Aislinn/Ash who is the Cinderella character of this story. The book begins shortly after the end of the classic tale and we quickly learn that what we know of magical pumpkins and impractical glass slippers was merely exaggerated rumours. In fact, the transformation of a poor, scullery maid into a beautiful, enchanting lady was actually a well crafted plan to bewitch the prince into falling in love. In this story, the wicked stepmother and stepsisters are in on the dangerous plan and with Seraphina, the stepmother, acting as the mastermind behind it all, we get to see a new side to these scheming characters.

I quite liked the idea of Aislinn/Ash and her stepfamily working together, and there was a lot of things going on in the background, such as a looming war, that made the stakes even higher for our main characters. I also liked some elements of the love triangle despite generally not enjoying that trope, so there were definitely some positives in this book for me, but unfortunately not enough to make this an enjoyable read.

My main issues are with the areas of the story that felt underdeveloped. The magic system, for example, didn’t feel fleshed out enough, especially considering it was a main theme within the book. Lustre had so much potential to be an amazing addition to the fairy-tale and I’d have loved to hear more about the inner workings of it, as well as the supply/demand problems, but we only get a glimpse of that. Another element that felt underdeveloped was the politics/rebellion side of the story, which I’d have enjoyed reading more about.

Another issue I had was with the romance in this story. The love triangle features a lot of love magic, which I’m not sure reads well in 2023. I did, however, enjoy the love story between Aislinn/Ash and the hostage prince, who was probably my favourite character in Thief Liar Lady.

As this is a retelling, you go into the story with some preconceived notions, so it can be tricky to reconcile those with the new facts laid before you. And although this book wasn’t for me, this could make Thief Liar Lady a pretty fun read for some people. You have to follow along to find out what was fact and what was fiction when it comes to the original tale, and I enjoyed tracking the differences.

I think there’s a lot of people that will enjoy this book, but ultimately, I couldn’t get into it. I think if the fantasy elements were developed further and the politics explained in more detail, I’d have loved this a lot more.

Firstly Thank you to NetGalley, D.L.Soria and Random House UK, Cornerstone, Del Rey for an e-arc copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

In this book we are following Aislinn/Ash as she navigates the palace and her pending marriage to Everett, the Prince... And then there is Rance, the only character in this book I remotely liked, but more on that later.

As usual the stepmother is... a bitch, pardon my language. The step-sisters grow on you to be honest and weren't evil really.

The writing was fine. I don't really know why but for some reason I just couldn't connect with this book. As stated earlier Rance was a good character and you wanted him to get a happily ever after after how other people treated him but Aislinn was annoying.

I would say this book is for someone that wants to dip their toes into fantasy with an easy magic system and good world building.

I look forward to trying something different from this author as the writing was good I just don't think this particular story was for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for a free ARC in exchange for a review.

I love a retelling. And I always love a Cinderella retelling. Thief Liar Lady feels to me like a grown-up, more twisty version of Just Ella, which I adored as a kid.

I really enjoyed figuring out Ash and her connection to the rebel network and her grandmother. It was revealed slowly like most of our information about her but never in an annoying "not since the accident" way.

Even though Ash sometimes makes dumb decisions <spoiler> like giving a crazy, unknown element rebel her actual full name while trying to be undercover </spoiler>, I really enjoyed her as the protagonist. Rance makes a fun romantic interest, and I liked the depiction of Everett's complacant yet darkening nature.

There were a lot of twists and turns I completely didn't expect but I massively enjoyed the ride. Nothing felt out of place, and I loved following the plot.

I really want more of Ash and Rance, and I'd love to read a sequel. Five stars!

A delightful, refreshing retelling of Cinderella! It plays around with the Western lore and basic plot of Cinderella and reinterprets some of the major themes/topics associated with the rags to riches story. Namely: kindness and empathy, agency and resilience (inner strength). The novel goes on to distinguish itself by making deeper examinations into honesty, loyalty, and family and expanding on the theme of social class divisions to look at international divisions and political conflicts.

As a book cover design enthusiast, I have to say: the visual arrangement of the title is smart, considering Ash's character description. Speaking of, I like that despite having a compassionate core deep down, Ash doesn't exude goodness and innocence. She's a little bitter, snarky, observant. It makes her interactions with the "wrong" prince quite interesting and tense (cough cough).

From the various Cinderella retellings I've read and heard of (e.g. Cinder by Marissa Meyers, Geekerella by Ashley Poston), this will surely stand out from those retellings as a subtle, sneaky, politically charged interpretation of Cinderella.

Thanks to Netgalley and Del Ray for providing me with the e-ARC/DRC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5*

A huge thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for granting me an arc in exchange for an honest review.

I have to admit I struggled a little with this book. So much was happening and I couldn't keep up. I felt lost quite a few times and felt like I'd missed something along the way.

Out of all the characters Rance was, by far, my favorite. I also really enjoyed Cecilie. The rest of the characters didn't really excite me that much and that includes the main character, Ash.

I enjoyed the read but would I read it again? Probably not.

4.5 stars

When I saw the cover and read the synopsis, I knew there was a high chance I would love Thief Liar Lady. And I was right. It had its mistakes, but it was so much fun! Cinderella is far from my favorite fairytale. I always thought Cinderella was too kind, too forgiving. That's why I was happy that Ash was none of these things. I loved the palace intrigue, the schemings, and the politics. The worldbuilding was simple, but I enjoyed that too.
I wish that Ash hasn't been so indulgent with Everett (He was far from the dashing Prince Charming), and in my opinion, Rance could have been a more cunning character. The ending was a bit rushed, but it was a very enjoyable read!

Also, why is the word thief in the title? Ash wasn't a thief.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK, Cornerstone, Del Rey for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was very excited I got to read an e-arc of Thief, Liar, Lady by D.L. Soria, as she is one of my autobuy authors. Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley, but this hasn’t influenced this review.

This book had all the right ingredients: Cinderella turned upside down, a long con, court intrigue, magic, love and feels sneaking in, and PLOT TWISTS. Many amazing little plottwists that swift your entire view.

We start off with the classic fairytale story, where Cinderella is engaged to the prince of her dreams, when slowly we begin to understand how Cinderella and her scheming stepmother and stepsisters used a little magic and the power of suggestion to make the prince head over heels for Cinderella, feelings that are not exactly replicated by Cinderella herself, she’s in it for the bigger picture: making a better life for her and her family. And maybe some other factors play in. But she soon discovers that it might not be so easy to keep the prince interested, and to keep playing the docile damsel really wears on her feministic nerves.

Ok I have to say I love all the feminism! I’ve never read a book where it is so clearly shown when something’s off, when she’s dismissed basically because of her genitals and damsel status. She always calls it out in her head and that helped me so much to realise what the males are doing is basically wrong. Like dismissing her opinions with “just focus on the wedding and not boring politics”, or grabbing her arm all of a sudden. I know it’s really a little thing, but having read a lot on feminism but I never really get it when it happens in real life, this was so helpful to discover the misogyny in my own life. Ok this was longer than I wanted it to be, back to the story.

I really loved Ash as a character, she’s basically a con artist with a good heart underneath, which makes her so interesting! The plot is amazing and well thought out, and the pacing was perfect, never a dull moment. The characters had a lot of depth, and there were many themes beside feminism woven into the story. The use of magic was original, and while sometimes it wasn’t entirely clear to me what the rules were, it was very interesting and very limited, so there was no easy magic fix anywhere to be found.

The worldbuilding was good, it was a fairytale setting but with depth on the politics, so while we don’t see much outside the palace, it does feel like a rich world. Because of the young characters, romance plot and fairytale setting, it had the feel of a YA book, but that’s not a bad thing in my opinion. I love YA, and would love to see more YA fantasy tropes enveloped in adult fantasy, with the depth and maturity and darkness of adult fantasy added (and trust me, it is quite dark at times), and for me this book delivered exactly that. I did hope for some more diversity, as Destiny Soria is known for that in her books, but that wasn’t the case here.

All in all, I really liked this book, the almost ending wrecked me and I cried actual tears, so that’s a good sign: I really really cared about these characters (especially a certain hostage prince).

This is a reimaging of Cinderella, where Cinderella is a schemer trying to win influence to improve the standing for herself, her step-sisters and increase the influence her step-mother has. But Ash has other motivations as well, namely to help the cause of her real mothers people and spy from within, using lustre (enchantment magic to manipulate emotions to achieve her goal...

I really liked this! It had the feel of a regency novel in its tone and was easy to read, but with all the twists and turns you expect from a fantasy novel. It was nice to read a standalone for once and it was satisfyingly wrapped up at the end. It didn't shy away from difficult topics either - people should be warned that it is quite descriptive about how it feels to have sex with someone you don't want to and there is child death and animal cruelty.

4 stars - a really good read and I sped through it.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in return for an honest review.

— 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰 —

𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: Thief Liar Lady
𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬: N/A
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫(𝐬): D. L. Soria
𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: Fairytale Retelling
𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐝: 13th July 2023
𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝: 13th June 2023
𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: 4/5

“What makes something true anyway?” I pondered aloud. “If it happened one way, but the whole world believes it happened another—then which matters more, in the end?”

Thief Liar Lady is a contemporary take on Cinderella, if Cinderella was a con artist hell bent on putting the world to rights with a thousand wrongs.

Whilst this novel is brimming with political court intrigue and the stakes are consistently high, I actually found the pacing quite slow. My enjoyment of this book came in highs and lows, sometimes I was gripped and other times I was bored. I think that this is in part due to the inability to connect to any of the characters. Whilst I enjoyed Ash, our main character, I wasn’t that deeply emotionally invested in her, or anyone else, because everyone told so many lies and were constantly hiding their vulnerable, truthful parts of themselves.

What really elevated this book for me was the romance and the twists at the end. The romance wasn’t linear or predictable and considering this is a Cinderella retelling, with happily ever afters being a foregone conclusion, I thought that was really refreshing. I never knew which direction the book would be heading in.

My sincerest gratitude to the author, the publisher, and Netgalley for a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

—Kayleigh🤍
@ Welsh Book Fairy🧚‍♀️✨

We all know the story of Cinderella, but what if it didn't happen the way we were told? What happened after Cinders moved to the Palace?

This was such a good story. A fairytale romance (or was it), a scheming stepmother and the politics of a country. Ash is thrust into the heart of it all and she must navigate life as a future princess, while carrying out her stepmother plan to help her stepsister gain their own places in society. All while completing her own mission to free Eloria.

I was thoroughly enraptured by this book. The way it unraveled as the story went on, with unexpected twists and turns. I will be recommending this one to any who will listen.

I absolutely loved this book! The premise immediately hooked my interest and it was filled with twisty characters and such intense plot!

Thank you Random House UK, Cornerstone and NetGalley for the arc of Thief Liar Lady by DL Soria in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Thief Liar Lady is a subversive retelling of Cinderella, that takes everything you know about the fairytale, throws it in the air and shoots it down vehemently!

There are a lot of positives about this book but, unfortunately they are marred by the not so positives. To sandwich it, the book introduces some great key characters, whose personalities are really well fleshed out including the protagonist Ash (Aislinn) and Prince Verance. Their development throughout the book was intriguing and engaging, their flaws and shades of grey were human, and it made them easy to empathise with.

The relationship between Ash and her step-sisters is a delight, particularly as the book continues through the story. It was so good to see the subversion of the tale delivered in a non-schmaltzy way that felt appropriate to their stories.

The plot itself is actually quite interesting but, the pace felt rather uneven. There seemed to be a lot of space given at the start to background and world that it felt quite slow and then there was a sudden uptake in pace, much like my acceleration, that felt rather jarring and made the end of the story feel rushed with an effort to tie up all the loose ends.

Despite it feeling a tad rushed, the latter part of the book was really great and I was totally engaged, not wanting to put the book down and I was ignoring the points/gaps that weren’t so perfect.

This book is far from perfect, there are a few plot gaps and a few other factors that I’m sure others will call out but, if you like a fairytale retelling this is a fun read. Just take my word, it’s not perfect but, it’s a good start and could be so much better with a little revision.

If Cinders went to the ball, not thanjs to her kindly fairy godmother, but actually thanks to the plans of her magical step mother; and if, once she captured the heart of her Prince Charming, she then worked to help a rebellion against his family; and worse, found herself dangerously attracted to an exiled prince held hostage by her husband to be and his family; now wouldn't that make a great, not quite so happily ever after story?
Thief, Liar, Lady is a really different and altogether much more enjoyable take on the traditional Cinderella story and its heroine is far more resourceful and complex than I can ever imagine little Cinders being!
Thank you Netgalkey and Random House for an e arc of this title... and I am hoping D.L Soria is working on a sequel!

☆☆☆½

They say if something sounds too good to be true it probably isn’t true and unfortunately that’s how this book left me feeling. The synopsis for Thief Liar Lady sounded so good but unfortunately the book execution of it all was poor. I have a lot of points about this book so I shall try and keep them as short as possible.

PROS:
- I enjoyed seeing how flawed some of the characters were, especially when the flaws were cracks in the characters masks.
- As the story went on we saw not just the flaws and cracks in the characters but the cracks and flaws in their relationships too.
- Seraphina (Ash’s stepmother) was an interesting character and the relationship between Ash, her stepsisters and Seraphina was also interesting.
- The build up was interesting, we had all these different plots going on and all these pieces from each plot all building up which was obviously something that kept me reading.
- The second half of the book was much better than the first.
- When tragedy hit the main romance. It was a good twist (and honestly the only time I cared for them).


IN THE MIDDLE:
- Seeing Everett change from the perfect charming prince (from Lustre) to the spells fading and him becoming more controlling was an interesting thing to see, that said I largely disliked the Lustre Everett and how it was dealt with / treated.
- Throughout the book we’d get lines as if the story was being told from the future (which didn’t really make sense because bar these few lines the rest of the book wasn’t like it) which I enjoyed but found out of place and random and definitely could’ve been done better.

CONS:
- The main characters felt flat and we hardly spent time with them.
- I was 40% in and it felt more like I should’ve been 60%-70% in due to how it was paced and how there was a time skip? Yet despite feeling like I’d read 300 pages rather than under 200 it felt like nothing had actually happened.
- The Relationship between Aislinn and Verance had potential and was interesting but at the beginning due to random time skips and not seeing them interact I didn’t really feel attached to them so when things started to get serious between the two I felt like I’d missed important stages between them. Their relationship should’ve been more fleshed out and given more time.
- Despite being a main character in the story it felt we hardly saw Verance in the beginning, especially considering he’s meant to bring unbalance to Ash’s schemes.
- The Rebellion is meant to be a big part of the story in both Ash’s life and the political part of the story yet we actually hardly saw the Rebellion, their actions and their players.
- Simultaneously the book felt too long and not long enough.
- Despite the plot being important throughout the book it felt that the characters were prioritised which unfortunately wasn’t a worth it pay off in my opinion. A lot of the plotlines ended up feeling unfinished and rushed which is where the book could’ve improved.
- A lot of Ash’s actions didn’t have consequences or she’d get close to consequences and then she wouldn’t have to deal with them for whatever lucky reason.
- The ending. It felt rushed, like everything happened and then you’re being shoved out the door and the book is over without showing us more of like the affects of the events that happened and letting us say bye to the characters and story.
I also disliked the ending Ash, Verance and Everett ended up with.
- The world building was all over the place.
- The magic (Lustre) didn’t really make sense and there was even this new unexplored thing that happened with it and it was never talked about again.
- Despite being main characters in the story it felt Seraphina, Adelaide and Cecilie were sidelined until they were needed which was annoying, especially because it felt the same way with literally every other (main) character in the story (including Ash’s Grandma).
- This is more of a plot hole but it’s said that you can learn to guard against the affects of Lustre yet the royal family don’t know how to do it or practice it? Surely considering the ambitious people they’re around would ward themselves against control.
- I felt I couldn’t envision the characters, the descriptions of them felt lacking, I’m pretty sure it wasn’t mentioned until half way through that the MC had red hair. The only thing commonly described was Verance and his hair which looked “unruly” because he was always running his hands through it.
- Despite spending her whole life training for this situation Ash was pretty useless at it and seemed like an amateur at times. At one point we see her stepsisters in the story and they do more in 4 pages then she had done in 40.
- The king seemingly plays a big role and then just doesn’t.
- The book was unbalanced and would only focus on one thing at a time (like Ash’s spy-work or Verance or Ash’s scheme with her stepfamily) which made it much less enjoyable.
- The book at some point seems like it’ll have a sad ending and then it just doesn’t which again was disappointing because a sad ending could’ve been much more interesting than what we got.
- A lot of stuff didn’t have an ending, like you don’t find out what happens with the Rebellion or Ash’s stepsisters or anything it just ends without a lot of closure.
(These aren’t even all the cons of the book, just the ones I can remember).

Overall I kind of felt like I wasted my time a little with Thief Liar Lady and felt it could’ve been executed a lot better than it was.

Thank you to Netgalley for the E-ARC.

A Cinderella retelling in which there is no damsel in distress needing to be rescued by her prince charming immediately piqued my interest. With deception and intrigue, romance, politics, spies, and plenty of twists and turns there wasn't much to not enjoy about the book. It takes a little while for the plot to unfold and ensnare you in its trap but once you reach that stage it's difficult to put the book down.
The only real qualm I had about the book was the character development. If all of the characters had been given the same depth and intrigue as Lord Verance the book would have been even more captivating.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinions

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thief Liar Lady is a Cinderella retelling, retold in a dramatic, magic, and enchanting way. It was quite dialogue heavy; however I enjoyed the storyline. The ending felt a little bit rushed and perhaps a bit disappointing.