Book Review: Thief Liar Lady
by D. L. Soria
Aislinn never dreamed of being a princess. She only cared about surviving her harsh step mother and handling her two step sisters. The prince falling in love with her at the ball was just a matter of design, and before she knew it, she was living in the palace. It was almost like a fairytale. The only problem was that she didn’t love the prince back, and she had a larger goal in mind than just marrying a prince and living happily ever after.
D. L. Soria’s Thief Liar Lady is a new twist on a classic Disney princess tale. Cinderella has never been so devious. Aislinn goes to the ball to ensnare Prince Everett. She needs him in order to accomplish a much larger goal, like saving a country. Unfortunately, ensnaring the prince’s heart is only the first of many obstacles that will need to be overcome.
When first starting this book, the concept is a great first hook. Taking a well known, simple story and twisting it into something fresh and new is always exciting and engaging. This book does a good job drawing the reader in and making the reader want to find out how things end up. Soria starts the book by setting up the fairytale foundation but quickly drops hints to her audience that not everything is how it seems.
As far as the actual writing style is concerned, Soria has a very smooth style that is easy to read. There is a lot of inner monologue from the main character, but it is easy to tell when the character is thinking to herself and when action is being taken, by her or other characters. The style also translates well as an audiobook if that is the reader’s preferred method of reading.
Aislinn herself has the most dynamic change and evolution throughout this book. Many of the other characters seem more static and unchanging, but through the journey she takes in the pages of this book, Aislinn slowly grows to find herself and her purpose beyond other’s expectations or opinions. She fully grows into her own person with her own confidence and direction. Though Aislinn’s character isn’t very exciting or revolutionary, it is nice to see a character that grows, changes, and becomes something new by the end of their journey.
On the other hand, it is a shame that none of the characters, including Aislinn herself, were very remarkable. Most of the book is spent in Aislinn’s head as she thinks about what is going on, what she needs to be doing, and what is not going the way she hopes. Because of this, the other characters are not given much substance or growth. Aislinn herself isn’t a strong likable character because she is constantly locked in her own mind and trying her best to scheme unnoticed. Many aspects of the characters, that are set up at the beginning of the story, seem to fall flat throughout the book.
This book is also hindered by its incredibly slow pace. The plot takes a long time to get anywhere because there is so much nothing happening. Many of the events are small and unremarkable and only serve to set up getting to the larger move eventful moments. At times, the main character’s motivations and intentions get lost because she doesn’t act upon them for so long. This also tends to give the story the feeling that it has no clear plot or driving force.
Lastly, I feel that though the concept of this story is initially very intriguing and exciting, it doesn’t fully flourish as the story progresses. This might be connected to the slow moving plot, but the surprises and twists come so slowly and in such a roundabout way that they are underwhelming. The story would have been more interesting if the intrigue and ulterior motives created suspense and action. Instead, Aislinn is so cautious about her movements that she doesn’t really move forward for large chunks of the book.
Overall, I think this book isn’t for me, personally. I appreciate that it is well written and has a lot to offer the reader. However, I didn’t find myself connecting to the plot, the characters, or even the small amount of magic used in the story. It was too slow paced for my liking, and I felt like the main character and the plot fell short of what I expected from the original description. I do think that another reader might like it better, so I suggest giving it a try if you find the concept interesting. Test out a couple chapters and see if this book holds your interest. For me, I’m glad this is not a series because I wouldn’t be overly interested in reading another one.
Pros:
- Â Interesting concept
- Smooth writing style that makes it easy to read
- Main character has interesting growth and evolution
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Cons:
- Slow paced
- Didn’t fully connect to any of the characters
- No clear plot direction
- The fairytale twist was underwhelming
Recommended for Readers Who Like:
- Low fantasy
- Fairy Tales
- First person point of view
- Political motivations
- Slow moving plot
- Female main character
Book Details:
- Published: July 11, 2023
- Series: N/A
- Book Number: 1
- Pages: 400
- Publisher: Del Ray Books
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