Review: Little Thieves

Little Thieves by Margaret Owen
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I received an ARC of this book.
I really enjoyed this book--I have not read a YA Fantasy that I liked this much in a REALLY long time. This twist on the fairy tale "The Goose Girl" was intriguing, compelling, fun to read, and hard to put down.
Vanja, a maid servant to a gorgeous and pampered aristocratic girl, has found a way (by means of enchanted pearls) to impersonate her former mistress. Vanja is now living in a castle, engaged to a powerful man, AND...stealing jewels to fund her escape from her godmothers: Death and Fortune. If that's not enough, after stealing from the wrong person, not only does Vanja find herself under a fatal curse, but she discovers she is being pursued by a determined detective who somehow suspects Vanja is not what she seems.
I liked so many things about this book, but Vanja was my favorite. Too many times in YA Fantasy books, the main character turns out to be just plain annoying--they snark and pout and make DUMB self-centered decisions to the point that I can't stand them. But not Vanja. She has JUST THE RIGHT mix of pluckiness, sarcasm, self-preservation, capability, and vulnerability to make her relatable, realistic, endearing, and a character you want to root for, despite her mistakes.
I also really liked the tone of the book. The "fairy tale" interludes were beautiful, evocative, and poetic. Starting the book off with one of these little chapters before jumping right in to Vanja on a jewel heist completely drew me in and made me want to know more about Vanja and where her story would go.
The secondary characters were also great. Everyone from the shape-shifting "guardian" to our dogged detective totally added to the story. This, added to the wonderful world-building and completely immersive descriptions allowed me to become totally lost in the story. I could totally see everything playing out in my head, like a movie.
I just really loved this book. It wasn't at all what I was expecting and I was so pleasantly surprised by it. I would absolutely recommend it to any one who enjoys Fantasy, fairy tale retellings, YA, or YA Fantasy.

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