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A review by azrah786
Little Thieves by Margaret Owen
4.75
[This review can also be found on my BLOG]
**I was provided with an ARC through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**
CW: abandonment/neglect, child abuse, violence, blood, whipping, mention of attempted sexual assault, death, vomit, drug abuse/addiction, body horror
Over the last year or so I have been left stunned by the ingenuity behind the reimagining and twisting of classic stories and this book is unquestionably amongst the cream of the crop.
Little Thieves is a retelling of the Brothers Grimm story The Goose Girl told from the perspective of the maid, but it isn’t just your usual “story from the eyes of the villain”.
The adopted daughter of Death and Fortune, Vanja Schmidt eluded servitude to her Godmothers by taking up a role as the maid to the princess of a noble house. When opportunity struck Vanja stole the princess’ identity and life, and has spent her time with her new status stealing from the aristocracy as a means to buy her way out of her fate. However, her carefully laid plans start to unravel when she steals something she shouldn’t have and lands herself a curse from Eiswald, another Low God.
To break the curse Vanja must make amends for her thievery or else turn into a pile of treasure herself. But with Eiswald’s shapeshifting daughter as guardian, the Princess’ shady fiancé pushing for marriage and a junior detective following the trail of robberies, the road to freedom isn’t going to be an easy one.
More than your standard retelling, Little Thieves has made my list of favourite reads of the year. I’m not going to give much away about the overall plot but you can expect heist vibes, lots of action, witty banter, intriguing magic and folklore all meticulously woven around a significant mystery with brilliant twists that will keep you hooked through and through.
There was SO MUCH that I enjoyed about this book but first and foremost I have to talk about Vanja. Our fiery, unapologetic protagonist kicks off the story by swindling the rich and I instantly fell in love with her. From her snarky narration, her quick-whited attitude and sassy quips with other characters, her journey throughout this book was nothing short of entertaining. She’s a character who keeps everything close to her chest but with each turn of the page more and more of her heart is uncovered and you can’t help but root for her.
Each and every single one of the side characters also made this book shine and their interactions and developing relationships with Vanja were especially gold – some of the dialogue had me outright cackling. There’s a slow burn enemies to lovers romance that’ll keep you on your toes and some wholesome friendships and found family content too!
I wasn’t too familiar with what The Goose Girl was about so I skimmed through a summary of it before picking up this book and thus really appreciated the nods to the original tale. I particularly loved that at the beginning of each section of the story there were snippets recounting the primary backstory, providing a link back to the fable as well as helping to add perspective to present circumstances.
Furthermore, Owen’s writing immerses you right into the rich, medieval German setting and the integration of German folklore into the worldbuilding really enhanced the story. I’ll admit the lore and vocabulary did throw me a little at first (the review copy was missing a glossary) but I found myself entranced by the atmosphere and all the magic.
This is a standalone fantasy with an endearing cast of characters that ticks all the boxes and you can bet if Owen ever decides to write other stories with any of these characters or set in this world I will come running.
Final Rating – 4.75/5 Stars
**I was provided with an ARC through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**
CW: abandonment/neglect, child abuse, violence, blood, whipping, mention of attempted sexual assault, death, vomit, drug abuse/addiction, body horror
Over the last year or so I have been left stunned by the ingenuity behind the reimagining and twisting of classic stories and this book is unquestionably amongst the cream of the crop.
Little Thieves is a retelling of the Brothers Grimm story The Goose Girl told from the perspective of the maid, but it isn’t just your usual “story from the eyes of the villain”.
The adopted daughter of Death and Fortune, Vanja Schmidt eluded servitude to her Godmothers by taking up a role as the maid to the princess of a noble house. When opportunity struck Vanja stole the princess’ identity and life, and has spent her time with her new status stealing from the aristocracy as a means to buy her way out of her fate. However, her carefully laid plans start to unravel when she steals something she shouldn’t have and lands herself a curse from Eiswald, another Low God.
To break the curse Vanja must make amends for her thievery or else turn into a pile of treasure herself. But with Eiswald’s shapeshifting daughter as guardian, the Princess’ shady fiancé pushing for marriage and a junior detective following the trail of robberies, the road to freedom isn’t going to be an easy one.
More than your standard retelling, Little Thieves has made my list of favourite reads of the year. I’m not going to give much away about the overall plot but you can expect heist vibes, lots of action, witty banter, intriguing magic and folklore all meticulously woven around a significant mystery with brilliant twists that will keep you hooked through and through.
There was SO MUCH that I enjoyed about this book but first and foremost I have to talk about Vanja. Our fiery, unapologetic protagonist kicks off the story by swindling the rich and I instantly fell in love with her. From her snarky narration, her quick-whited attitude and sassy quips with other characters, her journey throughout this book was nothing short of entertaining. She’s a character who keeps everything close to her chest but with each turn of the page more and more of her heart is uncovered and you can’t help but root for her.
Each and every single one of the side characters also made this book shine and their interactions and developing relationships with Vanja were especially gold – some of the dialogue had me outright cackling. There’s a slow burn enemies to lovers romance that’ll keep you on your toes and some wholesome friendships and found family content too!
I wasn’t too familiar with what The Goose Girl was about so I skimmed through a summary of it before picking up this book and thus really appreciated the nods to the original tale. I particularly loved that at the beginning of each section of the story there were snippets recounting the primary backstory, providing a link back to the fable as well as helping to add perspective to present circumstances.
Furthermore, Owen’s writing immerses you right into the rich, medieval German setting and the integration of German folklore into the worldbuilding really enhanced the story. I’ll admit the lore and vocabulary did throw me a little at first (the review copy was missing a glossary) but I found myself entranced by the atmosphere and all the magic.
This is a standalone fantasy with an endearing cast of characters that ticks all the boxes and you can bet if Owen ever decides to write other stories with any of these characters or set in this world I will come running.
Final Rating – 4.75/5 Stars
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Violence, Body horror, Blood, Physical abuse, Child abuse, and Death
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Drug abuse, Addiction, and Vomit