The cover grabbed me with this one. But sadly it just was not for me at all. I found the character under development and the setting and world just were not up to par with other stories I have read. I kind of really hated what the author did with the folklore she used to create this story. None of it worked for me and I was bored out of my mind. The writing felt more like Juvenile versus young adult and the gods felt like children to me. I think that this one just was a full mess of things tossed together and I just did not enjoy it at all. I think readers who enjoyed this authors other books might like this one but that is just my opinion since I did not care for her other title because it had pretty much the same issues. Things were confusing and boring and I just had to put it down. I did try this one three times just because I loved that cover but sadly it just was not for me.

Little Thieves is a retelling of The Goode Girl! I have adored the fairytale of The Goode Girl since Shannon Hale has penned an excellent retelling! I wanted to read this retelling because of the author of Merciful Crows! I have to say this novel was everything I wanted it to be. This novel is darker and more mature retelling! It is very emotional! The writing is filled with gorgeous prose! The story has a fairytale feel to it! Thus, I adored Little Thieves! This novel is perfect for fans of C. J. Redwine, Elizabeth Lim, and Julie C. Dao!

Little Thieves is a retelling of the Grimm Brothers’ tale “The Goose Girl.” It’s the story of a maid, Vanja, who becomes a princess by wearing a magical pearl necklace. She steps into the princess’ life just as she is about to marry an evil prince. While the folktale focuses on the princess, this book tells the story of the maid. Vanja is the goddaughter of the goddess Death and Fortune and each are pressuring her to choose between them. In her princess disguise, she robs the aristocracy to acquire enough money to purchase her freedom. Yet, the robberies soon become the subject of a criminal investigation overseen by a Junior Prefect (who ultimately becomes Vanja’s love interest). And if that isn’t enough, Vanja must break the curse of another goddess who punishes her for her lies and thievery. Tick tock! Events collide at the time of the wedding, and it takes one clever plan to save the day. As you can see, the story is complex. While Owen creates an intriguing fantasy world and has strong characterization, the story has a slow start. Fortunately, it speeds up in the end. Its message speaks of class struggles and moral ambiguity. Who has the happier life and what is important?

This was a lot of fun, I really enjoyed our main character and her growth in the book. Even the side characters were great! Emric is probably my favorite because who doesn't love a nerdy boy cinnamon roll love interest

This book has such a cool premise and a really exciting opening! I read and listened on audiobook in combination and the narrator was very good. I like how difficult the plot was to predict, though it did drag a little bit at times. Great descriptive writing though and interesting characters! I loved death and fortune most.

As expected from Margaret Owen, LITTLE THIEVES is a fun, engaging romp that I devoured in a single sitting. Owen's worldbuilding is comprehensive and well fleshed-out, in large part due to her incorporation of folk and faerie tale lore. I look forward to reading the next in the series.

Absolutely amazing. Smart and snappy writing, addictive characters, and amazing world building. Can’t wait for the sequel!!!

I purchased this book for my high school library. My students have enjoyed it. and it has circulated well.

Little Thieves is a YA fantasy novel that follows Vanja, who stole the life of a princess. This is a retelling of the Goose Girl and admittedly I am not familiar with the story.

Although I found the writing to be fantastic, I thought the book was too long and the plot moved too slow. There were multiple times when I found myself struggling to keep up with characters and I especially didn't care for the romance. I love romance in books, but this one frustrated me, but fits perfectly for a teenager I suppose.

Overall, this book was well written and an interesting concept, but the book wasn't for me.

Little Thieves is loosely a goose girl retelling about Vanja, the goddaughter of Death and Fortune, who is a thief pretending to be a princess while also stealing from the rich, until she gets cursed to grow gems all over her body until she returns what she stole.

I enjoyed so much about this story. The writing was beautiful, I adored the main cast of characters and how flawlessly Margaret Owen crafted this story. I didn't want to put it down. This was a great adventure story. I'm a little confused about where the second book will go since this wrapped up so well, but I'm interested to read it.

One thing I will say, there were some notable differences between the ARC and the final copy, but nothing plot-wise. I will say the one thing I'm iffy on was the language- it was like German but not? It would have been nice if they just picked a language and stuck to it. That being said, the audiobook narrator did SO WELL and had no identifiable accent for me when it came to the "German" words. Highly recommend the audiobook as well.

Overall I really enjoyed this book and I think if you like fantasy, enemies to lovers romance, and a loveable main cast, you will too!

This is the best fairytale retelling I've ever read. I think about it at least once a week. It's creative, compelling, exciting, breathtaking and thrilling. Absolutely must read.

I loved this book so much, and my only sadness is how long I took to read this story. I loved Vanja and her scheming and her growth through this story as she learns to trust and that she’s not completely alone in the world. I loved how surprised I was by Emeric from my first impression of him, and I loved how much of a perfect match he was for Vanja. I love that we got to know the real Gisela and how much I sympathized with her as well. And of course Ragne was hilarious and the absolute best. I laughed so hard while reading this book and felt so much too. The world was detailed and lush, and I am thrilled that there will be more of these characters and their adventures. Highly, highly recommended.

Outstanding! One minor content quibble but nothing that takes away from the amazing storytelling.

So many intricate details and twists and turns... I'm amazed at how it all comes together so perfectly! Think Leverage meets The
Princess Switch meets Once Upon a Time, and there you have it.

Not gonna lie - I am not super familiar with the folktale the book is based on. But I'm ok with that, because this book is excellent even without that background knowledge. In fact, I was up WAAAAYYY past my bedtime to get that story finished, because I wanted to see what would happen - and how it would happen.

I loved the characters, particularly - of course - Vanja. She's a young lady who has done some pretty crappy things, but has done them to try and survive. Unfortunately, every one of those crappy things has come back to haunt her and she has to figure out how to fix it before it literally kills her.

I enjoyed this world quite a bit, and would love to see a few side-stories about some of the other characters. Overall, it's a fantastic addition to my shelves!

A phenomenal fairytale/folklore retelling! I loved the medieval German setting and traditional German fae folk, and this was such a unique tale to adapt. The characters are complex, unique, and have interesting and layered relationships with one another, which is always the most important thing to me in any book. The magic system was also so well developed and intriguing!

I had heard nothing but good things about this book coming into it, and I left feeling very validated in my friend's opinions. Margaret Owen has created such a spectacular twist on a story I wasn't super familiar with and left me wanting even more. Vanja was such a determined and delightful protagonist and the world of this story had the perfect fairy-tale quality to it. The story was fun and exciting and left me desperate for the next book.

I cannot say how much I loved this book. It was so engaging and I loved the unique magic system. Pulling in the way the gods worked in the world and how each god had their own personality and wants/needs was amazing. Margaret is definitely one of my new favorite authors.

This one was definitely one of my favs! A beautifully written fairytale. This was quick and definitely captivating. I loved the elements of the world and the interactions with the characters. My heart! I am looking forward to more!

This was quite a ride. I loved Vanja from the start; she is the perfect mix of smart and snarky and ruthless and determined. The heist at the beginning was so perfectly coordinated and I enjoyed reading it so very much.  Countless dangers were put on her shoulders and she somehow continued with her plans and somehow held it together. Not only was Vanja fantastic, the side characters (who really felt like main characters to me) were surprising and unique and so vivid. They really broke most of the fantasy character molds and made the story even better. The romance was well done, not too over the top or automatic, and nothing cheesy here. The magic system was presented slowly throughout the book, which I really appreciated instead of an info dump; and I loved how each part was introduced using a fairytale-esque story. About 3/4ths into the book it became a tad repetitive for me, but I was still enjoying reading it. And the end was certainly a dramatic and awesome bang that I couldn't put down.I can't wait to see how this series continues!

Margaret Owen never disappoints! I’ve read her Merciful Crow Duology and absolutely loved it and this was no different. Vanja is more on the morally grey scale when it comes to main characters and I absolutely love her. The world building in this book was your typical info dumping but in a very well done and intriguing way that doesn’t make you lose track of everything you’re being told. The characters all had their own charms about them and I fell in love with almost each and every one of them. All in all, if it’s a Margaret Owen book I’ll recommend it to the end of my days. Read this. You won’t regret it.