This Cinderella retelling turns the original on its head and replaces my major gripes with the standard fairytale by some of my absolute favorite tropes: bad-ass female lead, political machinations, hidden loyalties, enemies to lovers. I’m obsessed.

Though told in 1st person, it does take a while for all of the facts to be shared, switching back and forth between present and past until all the details have trickled in, giving the feeling of a slow start while simply providing all the pieces from which to build.

Ash is a woman after my own heart, and I wholly sympathized with her character and her struggle to fit her mission into her inner moral compass. Everett is a prince through and through, his grayness fighting through the less complicated black and white of the world in which he’s grown up. Rance is . . . everything a romantasy reader could want him to be; complicated, devoted, and gorgeously heartbreaking. I love him. Ash’s unique relationships between her stepsisters and her stepmother fit into the Cinderella mold while standing on their own, both predictable and not, devastating and beautiful.

Outside of the obvious fairytale-retelling, it’s hard to diagnose the exact subgenres of this one. Romance, definitely, a bit of political fantasy, though there are some lighthearted moments that defy the overall darkness of the material. It’s a mish mosh that defies classification.

This is the tale of Cinderella AFTER she gets swept away by the prince and makes a home in the palace. There’s importance to what comes before, but what is yet to come is even more fascinating.

Content warning: physical abuse, kidnapping, animal abuse, torture, murder/death, unwanted (but consensual) intimacy, mention of suicide.

This is probably more of a 3.5 since my mind wandered a bit, but I liked it more than my 3 star reads so I'm rounding up.

I liked this premise for a Cinderella retelling - a grifting Cinderella with two partner-in-crime stepsisters who report to an actual evil stepmother complete with love triangle. I also liked the magic/luster added component. Just added a little something extra.

The thing I liked most about this story is that the stakes were real. She didn't escape the wedding at the last second, children were not immune from evil, etc. Uncomfortable things happened. It's not that I want to sit in discomfort, but I liked that things weren't wrapped up neatly with a bow.

I do think it was a touch too long and some of the middle could be chopped, but overall, I enjoyed it.

Although a retelling, I never knew where this book was going to go. I was enchanted and pulled into this world. I have a soft spot for con artists, and I never would have thought this Cinderella retelling would become one of my favorite ones. This book has fairy tales, espionage, politics, con artists, forbidden love, court intrigue, magic, and so many things that shouldn't work together, but do and make this wholely unique book that is unlike anything I've every read.

Both Ash and Rance are beautifully written characters and I am obsessed with both of them. The plot filled with layers and layers that make fascinating twists to the story and are my favorite kind (when you learn more and then think back and its like it was right there!).

For all the books that get "Knives Out" comparison this is one of the first books I would recommend - you think you know the players and the plot and you have no idea where this is going to go and there is always another twist/secret/layer that you don't see coming.

I will say there is a TRIGGER WARNING for Sexual Assault/Rape so please please be mindful of what you want to read. It's not violent, more the very very lack of consent, but it is on page and was hard to read - it happens twice and the pages can be skipped over, but be mindful that they are there.

What an amazing twist on Cinderella. Love every minute. I’m a sucker for a strong female lead and Ash is exactly that. The roller coaster of the plot and character arcs just makes this unforgettable and made it hard to put the book down. If you are a fan of Wicked this is the story for you.

The unbelievable story of Lady Ashilyn and the Prince is the thing of fantasy. That is what Ash wants everyone to keep believing as she trying to save not only her self but the people she comes from.

While I have to admit that this one isn't for me, I can't wait to recommend it to fans of fairy tale retellings, particularly fantasy readers who can really appreciate the world building and magic in this story. It's charmingly written.

An intriguing take on Cinderella that casts the well known princess as a political spy. I ultimately found this to be slow-going with the most interesting passages taking place in the last quarter of the book. Recommended for fantasy readers who enjoy retellings.

This book was a surprise for me, as I haven't seen many reviews, and I really enjoyed it! This is a Cinderella retelling where, of course, there's more than meets the eye. Cinderella on its own is a tale without a ton of agency, so of course Soria makes some strong changes here to give "Ash" her main character, more control over the situation.

The plot combines court intrigue, romance, and family drama. Nothing here is necessarily incredibly new, but the characters and the worldbuilding here feel fresh and fun. Overall I just found it really enjoyable and among the many many retellings in both YA and Adult fantasy spaces now, I think this is a top tier creative and fun Cinderella retelling.

Definitely worth checking out if you are someone who loves a retelling!

Book Summary:

We've all heard the story of Cinderella. But how often do we get to hear the story from Cinderella herself? This Cinderella has a lot to say about her story – and what they got wrong. For example, it wasn't a magical metamorphosis but a carefully planned con.

She and her stepsisters had one specific goal. Capture the prince. Unfortunately, they may have gotten the wrong prince. What now?

My Review:

It's been a hot minute since I read a fairy tale retelling (read: more than a week, gasp!). So, I decided to pick up Thief Liar Lady. It's a Cinderella retelling, which I feel like have become less common as of late.

I love the overall concept of Thief Liar Lady. The idea that our leading lady is working on a complex plot, which may or may not involve prince-napping, is pretty fun and cool, right? It would have been so much fun if the story had stuck closer to that premise.

As it was, this book does get a little bloated. There were political layers that may not have been necessary, and that's coming from me! However, if that's my biggest complaint about this book, we're doing okay.

Highlights:
Cinderella Retelling
Fairy Tale Vibes
Romantic Fantasy

Thanks to Del Rey and #NetGalley for making this book available for review. All opinions expressed are my own.

This was a very fun retelling of Cinderella with an even better fantasy twist. I love good grifter in my books, and this anti-heroine did not disappoint. There were dark misunderstood princes and inventive cons. I can’t wait to see what D.L. Doris brings us next.

The story seemed promising at the beginning, but I had a hard time getting into the plot. The characters were very bland and the magic undertones were unimaginable. I like the concept of Cinderella being a villian, but it just didn't play out for me.

This one is hard to review. Did I think the concept was good? YES. The world was a fun mix of different time periods with a splash of fantasy. Did I like the protagonist? Not really. It became almost like the Cinderella character was basically saying "YOU DON'T KNOW ME" and just being really rude from the get go. It was a unique twist but you really had to push through the first part to get to the meat.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.

A retelling of the Cinderella fairytale. With a great twist. This Cinders aka Ash/lady Aslinn is not the meek, poor maid to her evil stepmother. Ash is torn between revenge for her Grandmother’s people and the greed of her stepmother. She manages to woo the prince at the ball with her magic and become part of the royal family. Some great twists and turns. Will she be caught and tried for treason? Suggested age 17 plus reading due to sexual content.

This book was very interesting. As far as retelling go i found it to be a fresh take. I did have a hard time in some places as the path of the plot kept getting lost. I feel like the density of the world building and the magic system that seemed to make zero sense at time, made it hard for me to get all the way into the book. There were definitely some great high points in the story. I did love quite a few of the characters and i found their relationships enduring at times.

This was a fun Cinderella spin off! I liked the way the author changed the story and really made it her own!

Lady Aislinn is not what she seems. Everyone knows her as the charming scully maid that charmed the prince at the masked ball and stole his heart. Everyone says there was a magic pumpkin involved. There are stories being told about the moving love story of the century and Aislinn lets them be told...because she knows the truth. Ash and her stepsisters have been trained to be the cleverest, quickest, and slickest in the room. They have been taught how to weave lies to gain power and wealth, most importantly, through illegal spells. Leading up the wedding, Ash's magic starts to run out and she realizes not everything is as it seems.

This was a beautiful retelling of Cinderella with a fantastical twist. Cinderella isn't the damsel in distress in this one and her stepfamily is basically her allies. She uses a magical powder to get her way and charm her way out of or in anything. The plot was chaotic in this one. I definitely loved the twist in the plot. It was intriguing to be in Ash's brain as she plotted, made shocking discoveries, and fought her real inner self because "that's not Lasy Aislinn". The romance was slow-burn, just the way I like. And while I was caught off guard with the development of Everett's character, it did not shock me. All of the character arcs were entertaining to read. Nobody was what they seemed in this book and the first person POV really sold that to the reader. There were times that I physically gasped.

I would have liked to see more world-building, particularly revolving around Lustre. A better explanation of what it is and how it works. While the ending was pretty rushed, I really enjoyed the book and stayed up late just to finish it.

Gigantic thank you to Ballantine for the opportunity to read this book. It has quickly become one of my favorite Cinderella retellings.

Synopsis: imagine everything you think you know about Cinderella is false. She didn't enchant a pumpkin to make a carriage, she didn't have a fairy godmother, and she didn't enlist the help of cute woodland creatures to find her one true love. No, Cinderella is a con-woman, raised by a con-woman, who is magically charming the Prince into falling for and marrying her. Things are going swimmingly... until she begins to fall in love with the wrong prince, and that threatens to throw all her plans and agendas out the window.

Review: THIS ONE IS A YES. I loved every single character, even the antagonists. Ash is a perfectly-retold Cinderella on a mission of her own. I loved the backdrop, the political intrigue and unrest, the undertones of looming war, the "us vs. them" mentality... this is the Cinderella retelling that present-day needs. The fact that there is a dog in this book named Puppy is just a bonus.

Much more than I expected! Summary made it sound like a normal usual twist on a Cinderella where she swoons over the wrong person, but so many more twists and turns and twists on a twist. Intriguing and suspenseful to the very end!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this advanced copy. I thought this was a creative and fun spin on the traditional retellings. Often the same story is told again and again, but this one was different. I personally, didn't realize it was a retelling and they're not something I pick up often anymore. So, I had a hard time connecting, but it wasnt a bad story by any means.

This is a creative reimagining of the classic Cinderella story, except that our Cinderella character is actually in cahoots with her stepmother and stepsisters to use magic to seduce the prince and take over the country's magical resources. I struggled to like the main character, Ash, because I felt like I never really got to know her since she was always trying to be somebody else. In fact, the only character I really found interesting at all was mysterious and brooding Lord Verance. The story got better once we got to see more of him. In all honestly, this book should have been about 10% shorter. It has a very slow start, and it takes too long to get interesting. Once the plot started moving, I was hooked, but that didn't happen until about halfway.

<i>I received a copy of this story from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.</i>

Oh this was thoroughly enjoyable! I haven't read many twists on fairy tales like Cinderella so I didn't have many expectations going into it.

I loved the characters. I know there are reviews out there that said there needed to be more character development but I actually think Ash is portrayed pretty well. She's spent most of her life just trying to survive. I think it tracks that she wouldn't really know herself well or would fall back on her survival tactics in moments of uncertainty. She consistently displays admirable traits but rails against them because of the trauma inflicted by her stepmother. And running a long con like she is would wear on anyone; I'm not surprised she got a little lost in herself and her lies. Watching her come into her own and forge her own path was lovely.

The stepsisters are great, too. They're deliciously snotty and untrustworthy but are just doing exactly what Ash is going: trying to survive. I would've liked to see a little more from them.

Obviously Rance was my favorite ;-)

I didn't rate this higher because I thought the story could've used more work. The whole magic system screamed 'deus ex machina' to me and I think that's because the tension between Solis and Eloria isn't explored enough. Sure, it's almost always in the background but it read more like a convenient plot device than anything real / true to these characters.

The pacing is off, too. The ending is packed with action and coming from the rest of the book -- the beginning dragged! -- it felt rushed. Don't get me wrong, I was invested in the ending. But I don't know that it was quite earned.

On the whole, I think it's an interesting take on Cinderella's story. I've already recommended this to people!