This is a gritty, feminist reimagining of the Wild West, centering on Belle King, a nineteen-year-old who confesses to murdering her abusive husband, only to find him alive and ready to reclaim her. Set in 1886 Dodge City, the novel follows Belle as she navigates a society that refuses to believe her, even when she admits to her crimes.
Herrman crafts a dark, twisty tale of survival and revenge, portraying Belle as a complex anti-heroine who challenges the constraints of her time. With fantastic writing and great world building, Lady or the Tiger offers a compelling exploration of female rage and resilience in a patriarchal world. Thank you Books Forward PR and Heather M. Herrman for sharing this book with me!

The main character was fascinating and nearly as mesmerizing as her stage identity was said to be. I found her hard to understand.

The constant jumping around in time also made the story harder to understand than it needed to be. It was less interesting than confusing. Most of the other characters were rather 2-dimensional.

Thank you to Penguin Teen for the advance copy in exchange for honest review!

This is not the kind of book I usually read, however I was immediately drawn to it. There's so many interesting, unique elements in play, and overall it was a quick read and an engaging story. Generally I do enjoy poetic, whimsical writing but this was a bit fluffy even for me. This coupled with the fast-pace, jumping timelines did make the story a bit hard to follow at points. But again, it is meant to be a mystery, and at least a little open-ended. I have come to learn that I actually don't think I care for having little to no answers upon finishing a book, so for me personally this was a bit of a letdown in that regard, but again, this is the nature of the story and not inherently a negative trait.

I feel like this is almost a loss to market this book as a YA, content-wise and with minor editing and perhaps a slightly different cover it could easily work in the adult genre.

Overall I found this book quite interesting and it had a unique cast of characters that all stood out, with hauntingly beautiful writing at points. I would definitely recommend for a change of pace if anything, and something outside your normal genre or reading rotation.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy

Lady or the Tiger by Heather M. Herrman is a first person-POV YA historical in the vein of a Western. Alice, known as Belle King, is on trial for murder in Dodge City and has left a trail of bodies behind her. When her husband shows up, she does whatever she can to make sure he never has power over her again.

The author’s note mentions a fascination with the Western genre but also the problems within it plus the issues within YA and how this book is a response to it. As someone who grew up on YA when YA was coming up and has consumed a decent amount of Westerns and enjoyed almost none of them, I could see the inspiration and the things the book is critiquing. This is probably the first Western, besides the handful of romances I have read, that I actually liked. There’s a plethora of female characters and mentions of the Indigenous communities that this time period impacted but the genre tends to ignore. It has the grit and the setting of a Western but it also pushes against romance as the end-all-be-all that is so common in YA. If you have ever said ‘I hate Westerns,’ try this one. I think Lady or the Tiger is really highlighting that the genre became stale and there is, maybe, something there to still explore.

Alice has a couple of short-lived romances as well as her marriage and a longer term romance. Her life has so many romantic entanglements but she’s not defined by them. I didn’t know what to expect when I saw that the marketing involved a young woman who is already married because we hear all the time that YA can’t have married women because teens can’t relate to it, but she is very relatable. She married someone because she felt like she didn’t have a choice. She was trapped in an abusive marriage and I think a lot of young people can see themselves or someone they love in that. They could also see themselves in how she chooses not to define her life by love and even when she finds someone she does really love and who loves her back, she still isn’t going to give up herself for him.

About half of the book is told in flashback so we can see how Belle King, Alice’s alter ego, came to be. I don’t know if I would classify this as a thriller, but I would call this a book where everything in the opening chapters is recontextualized in the flashbacks and during the trial, reflecting how Alice wants people to perceive her in a specific way even if it isn’t the truth. You have to be willing to sit with a morally gray female lead who has had a lot of harm done to her and witnessed a lot of harm but she’s still not completely justified in her actions if this was the real world.

Content warning for mentions of transphobia and racism and depictions of sexism and sexual assault

I would recommend this to readers who like the idea of Westerns but want a critique of it and fans of YA who are craving a book not centered on romance

Tackling tough topics of animal abuse, violence against women, and abortion, the main character is inspiring and makes for an engaging focal point.

After a long, strange road, Belle King has wound up in Dodge City, Kansas. She’s a wanted woman, known by some as The Seamstress, with a history of cutting out men’s hearts, replacing them with diamond trinkets they tried to woo her with, and sewing the cavities up tight. So, when she reveals herself to Sheriff Wyland Hicks and surrenders, he’s happy to take her into custody. Of course, once she’s in the cell, nonsense stories circulate about his prowess as a law man, but that’s to be expected from a fellow of such low character.
Belle is not interested in escaping the noose. In fact, she yearns for it. So, when she’s brought before the Honorable Horace Whitstone, it should be easy enough to settle the conviction. Everyone wants to know where she hid the diamond known as the Queen’s Ransom, but Belle plans on taking that secret to the grave. However, her plans of an easy death sentence are interrupted when U.S. Marshal Reginald Salinger shows up.
According to him, this Belle King the Seamstress isn’t who she claims to be. She’s actually a woman named Alice Springer, who falsely claimed to have murdered a law man her mother was found guilty of killing. Alice wound up in an asylum until she found release, upon which she married an upstanding citizen who happens to be Reginald Salinger. Given his druthers, a lack of evidence, and no corpses to speak of, there’s no reason for her to be sentenced to death. She should be able to be remanded into her husband’s custody. And it should be done as quickly as possible since the notorious criminal The Birdman may well be coming this way, chasing after Belle King and her hidden treasure.
A verdict of innocence and release is the last thing Belle/Alice wants. Especially if it means returning to Raymond’s custody because he was an abusive husband and, in point of fact, she killed him some time before. If she is to see her plans realized, then Alice will have to outwit a dead man, outwit a town of people who cannot seem to believe that a woman could possibly be responsible for the dark deeds she claims, and she will have to accept her own past. Heather M. Herrmann pens a twisty western suspense yarn with high ambitions in her young adult novel, Lady or the Tiger.
Right from the opening sentences, readers will find themselves challenged. The first-person narrator promises us we will hate her and perhaps even fear her. The story she has to tell is a personal and important one. It will be bloody, and it will be difficult at times. These statements are not only the author’s warning to sensitive readers but a key to the character herself. This is not someone interested in pulling people close; she’s much more interested in pushing people away. In fact, she has no declared use for sentimentality, for matters of the heart, or nostalgia. And yet, every one of these elements plays a role in the story Belle/Alice recounts. The novel is a tricky one, open for interpretation and employing an enviable dose of emotional ambiguity.
Herrmann weaves her point of view character’s story across a prologue, epilogue, 52 chapters and four interludes, divided into four thematically named sections (The Wanted, The Wicked, The Damned, The Dead). A majority of these chapters are told from the protagonist’s perspective, but the interludes arise that are presented in third person perspective, often involving some of The Seamstress’s victims. Herrmann uses the stuff of psychological fiction to give us an intimate look into the interior life of this protagonist. However, the much more harrowing material is the stuff dealing with the treatment of women back in this period, the acceptable or excused abuses Alice suffers at the hands of asylum personnel and of her husband during their early wedded years. That stuff can be particularly challenging to read because of the historical accuracies. The rest of the book, with its occasional murders, trials, exorcisms, and whatnot are nowhere near as shocking or impactful.
The style is readable and the imagery is often well evoked. This is a page turner that lives up to that particular description, inviting us into the character’s life and times. However, once the final page is turned, the reader may well be faced with the unfortunate fact that the book and its protagonist never quite live up to the promise we were given at the beginning.
Whether or not the protagonist is successful at her stated mission of making readers hate her is up for individual readers to decide. In fact, I did not dislike her at all. Nor did I particularly like her. She simply is, and perhaps that is the ultimate response Belle King would be interested in. However, as a reader, the lack of a deeper or lasting connection with a character is unfortunate. Especially in a book that, as the author’s note declares, is trying to galvanize the young women readership into not accepting the line handed to them about what girls should want or aspire to.
It would seem that I am not the target audience for this one, which is fine. I do not regret the time I spent in its pages, but I do wish I had been better engaged with … or perhaps I wish I had engaged with the material better. Ah well.

After turning herself in for murder, Belle King finds herself fighting the sheriff, her former husband, and the crowds of people outside the jailhouse. As a teenager, Belle killed a man who was after her mother, and then watched as her mother was shot. Sent to an insane asylum, she took the only escape she saw, marriage to her mother’s killer. From there she ran into Cal, and left her husband. Together they formed a type of performing group, where they sang and performed at hangings.

I had trouble relating to this book. The characters did not resonate with me. The only emotion that Belle had was rage, which was just too much. While I’m sure many will enjoy this book, it just wasn’t for me.

THOUGHTS

This was such a good read! History buffs beware, because Heather M. Herrman plays fast and loose with historical accuracy. But the vibes were impeccable. The characters were great. Overall, it was just a really solid read.


PROS
A Man's World: This book has a really solid cast of lady characters, all very different (and very strong) historical women. It's a tough time to be a woman, and this book doesn't mess around with that reality. But Heather M. Herrman creates really strong, compelling women looking to stand on their own two feet, even if the world is often against them. I also liked the way this book portrays men who hurt and/or stifle women. There's obvious abuse. There's obvious misogyny. And then there are the good-natured men, the men who want to step in and do their Manly duty (even when that "duty" hingers and hampers the women in their life). Sometimes women don't need protection. Sometimes women just need someone to stand beside them while they make their own decisions. And refusing to do that--refusing to trust the women you know to make their own decisions--is its own kind of abuse, whatever the intentions may be.

Lady Killer: There's just something about a Wild West heroine, a gunslinger lady outlaw, that really speaks to me. I loved the dance Belle King does in this book between woman and animal, between social restraint and life untethered. She's a really fun character, and it's a really fun archetype. It'll probably never get old. It hasn't yet.

Wild, Wild West: This book really does setting well. As invested as I was in the characters, I was more enamored with the setting. The time period, the atmosphere, and the writing itself are all so engaging. I'm not usually the biggest fan of Westerns, but this one just spoke to me. And that's definitely due to Herrman's excellent writing!


CONS
Historical Misconception: Herrman admits in her author's note to fudging some of the dates. She creates a scene more than portrays 100% historical accuracy, and that's perfectly fine. It's just not how I like my historical fiction, all things considered. And some of the little tweaks Herrman makes didn't feel necessary, from a reader standpoint. But to each their own! This book was fun enough that it's easy to overlook some of the historical oddities.

Timeline Tension: This book does a lot of jumping around in time, dragging up ghosts from the past when and as they become relevant. And I did like this digging around, this reconfiguring of character history and arcs. But at the same time, some of the tension in this plot gets lost with all this back and forth. I lost my footing in the mess of timelines, and that did diminish my reading experience.

Plot Cohesion: Just like tension gets lost in the timeline hopping, the actual plot gets hazy, too. I like the twists that this plot took, twists revealed through this clever manipulation of the timeline, but overall, I'm not sure these twists made up for the lack of cohesion in the plot otherwise. The timeline fragments the plot more than it helps it, even if I liked what I think the author was trying to do. The execution didn't work out as I might have hoped.


Rating

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
8/10
Any fan of Kissin' Kate Barlow from Louis Sachar's Holes will adore this Wild West romp. Those who loved Bryce Moore's A Family of Killers will love stepping back into lawless Kansas territory where outlaws reign.

There’s a story I’m sure many of you have been told. A criminal, whose sentence is served in one way. Before him are two doors- one holding a beautiful lady he can marry and be pardoned for, the other a tiger ready to devour him. Doomed to these circumstances by his lover, she gives him a hint to which door to choose, but does he end up with the Lady? Or does he fall to the Tiger?

Outlaw Belle King is tired of running, tired of performing, tired of killing men. She’s the most wanted face, for more than one reason. Leaving bodies behind her where she goes, and stealing the biggest diamonds, she’s gathered all she needs. The final part of her plan? Belle King has to die. This plan is compromised when her husband, a man she remembers killing two years ago, shows up, determined to take her home. But Belle wants her trial. And she wants to hang.

Our protagonist is very unreliable. I wasn’t too sure on my thoughts on her at first, because I thought her attitude was annoying and her desire for the noose was incredibly ridiculous. However, once I got into more of the flashbacks of her background, I began to understand her. She wants Belle King to die, yes, but her real name isn’t Belle. She’s Alice, and Alice wants to live.

This was a fantastic fast paced story! Thank you to Random House and Netgalley for the e-arc in exchange for my thoughts!

Review will be up on socials soon!

A huge thank you to Penguin teen and NetGalley for a chance to read this early!!

Starting off this story of a teenage anti-hero Belle King and oh boy is she dark. If you support women’s rights AND women’s wrongs this is for you!

The setting of the Wild West was such a fun and gritty atmosphere. I don’t read westerns really but this oh this has me wanting so much more.

I loved the past and present timelines. I’ve come to realize it’s one of my favorite was of storytelling. You get to really know why Belle is the way she is. The author does a great job of making you sympathize with Belle to the point you’re on her side of her being an anti-hero.

I have no complaints about this story. It was fantastic 5/5 stars. Comes out in June!!!

I received an arc of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This book is the definition of "I support women's rights and I support women's wrongs"!

I loved the main character and how her storyline was presented in the book. The plot was really interesting and I liked how the story was told with chapters from both the present and the past to tie the whole thing together. The narrators was also so good and I loved how the main character addressed the reader at different points in the story

I usually don't enjoy historical fiction but I actually really enjoyed that aspect in this, because it allowed for the exploration of social issues present in the late 1800s (and tbh that are still present today) throughout the story.

A woman on the run from her dark past. A woman willing to turn herself in for the man she loves. This is a story about a woman who is not a hero, she is not a damsel, she is a tiger and she loves to kill.

I'm eternally grateful for this ARC. I am new to the Western genre and I devoured this book. The themes in this story is so powerful and oh boy did I just love the storytelling.

Belle King is flawed. She is a villain. She was also someone that I could truly understand. This is a story for women. It was so much fun, very creative and even found room for a very good romance.

The tension never stops, right up to the very last minute. Following the Lady as she travels through life and her time and relationship with her friends and the tiger.

If you like unapologetic young women, cowboys, a little bit of danger, and a lot of rage, then this is right up your alley! This was my first Heather Herrman book, but it sure will not be my last! I really enjoyed this YA read that has a lot of raw themes that I think are important for young people to explore.

2.75 rounded up to 3

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for providing a free e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately, this book was middle of the road for me. We have a strong fmc Belle King and her story about how she became the ruthless woman she has become. The story is very much based on female empowerment and how she fights against this in the old western setting the book takes place in. I wish that there could have been more of a Western feel to it instead of just focusing on the hardships of being a woman of the time to bring up the atmosphere a little.

The "romances", if you want to call them that are also a testament to finding power in oneself and fighting against grooming, manipulation, and status, which is a good message for some. How the timelines would jump became a little confusing sometimes, and the beginning of the book really dragged for me. The ending was also not what I was looking for, but it makes sense with Belle's anti-heroic personality.

This was an ok book and worth a read through once but not something I'd return to again or rush to buy once it hits the shelves.

Wow.....Just wow. I opened this book expecting an unforgiving western setting & a girl just trying to survive in it & I left with a sense of contentment, of proudness for this woman with a tiger in her heart. This is a book about the injustices & oppression of women, in the 1880s & now, about justified female rage, of fighting not just for those you love but also fighting to keep yourself. I feel like there’s a Belle King in all of us women (though maybe don’t do everything she did.....unless you absolutely have to). Lady or the Tiger is so much more than I thought it would be. It’s a love story, a love story about loving all the beautiful, wonderfully jagged pieces of yourself. Lady or the Tiger, yes, but a lady can also BE a tiger if that’s what it takes.

It took me awhile to get into this story. I felt the beginning was too slow and didn't hold my interest. After a third of the book, it started to get better. Plot points were revealed in small bites, as the story jumps back and forth in time. The ending was not my favorite, but it was ok. I didn't hate it.

I received an ARC from the publisher and NetGalley. I voluntarily wrote a review.

Lady or the Tiger is not your usual Western; it's an anti-hero origin story with the weight of abuse and the undeniable pulse of female rage driving the events forward. Belle isn't here to charm you. She's here to burn the world down if she has to. She has been mistreated and underestimated for years. When she is arrested in Dodge City and confesses to the murder of her violent, possessive husband just to have him show up alive, that is where the real fight begins.

This story is soaked in blood, grit, and the eerie hush before a storm. The author's prose is lyrical but laced with the dusty realism of the West. Belle's voice is fierce and unapologetic. You see, when she decides not to be a victim of her circumstances anymore. This novel stands out because of its unwavering commitment to its heroine's female rage. She's dangerous, deliberate, and horrifyingly brilliant. Each twist of her story has you rooting for her, even though she walks a morally gray path full of ruthlessness and frontier justice.

Thank you, NetGalley and Penguin Young Readers Group, Nancy Paulson Books, for the opportunity to review the ebook.

Quite the twists and turns, never saw some of them coming. An unexpectedly great read, no expectations going in and wanting a book 2 by the time it was finished,

fun, interesting novel with a very cool FMC and some interesting, well-written feels. the ending was good too. 5 stars. tysm for the arc.