I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book had an amazing plot, but I felt the characters were a bit hard to connect to.

Thank you kindly to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for this review copy.

I requested this because honestly it sounded like a Dungeons and Dragons quest. And that is what we get, but it feels a little slapdash.

It’s a fun little romp. Quick paced, if a little uneven, and funny. With traps, fights, spells, and sleight of hand, this really feels like a novelization of a D&D quest.

But while the world-building is present, it is very shallow and piecemeal. And the characters don’t really have arcs. None of them really change or grow. And we didn’t get nearly the time of the group growing together that I wanted.

I get that this is a novella, and so that limits some things, but the ending felt rushed with a deus ex machina, and too abrupt for me to really appreciate it.

I think this could build to something really enjoyable, but the author needs more room to stretch their legs, so to speak.

Such a great book! I enjoyed reading this one so much! I highly recommend this book. Side note: the cover!!!!

Sadly, I did not enjoy reading this book. I thought I would find it more fun to read. It is short, but I still found it really difficult to get through, even though it is easy to read. There just wasn't much about it that interested me, and I just wasn't curious about what would happen next.

I thought the characters were alright.

this was a great start to A Series of Decisions on Kairas series, the characters were great and I enjoyed going through this book.

I have received this eARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This novella was a pretty quick and easy read. It definitely has a lot of potential and based on how it ended, I'm guessing the author has more planned for this world and these characters.

All that being said, I think that if this novella had been a little bit longer, it would have benefitted from it.

The world was pretty interesting and complex and there's a lot of information being thrown at you at once which I didn't really mind but admittedly it was hard to remember some things and to keep track of everything.

I liked the characters individually and especially when Zizy, Laysa and Pace formed a group together to travel.

However, one of my problems with this novella was the pacing. I was promised a heist but what I really got was more so a traveling story. And even the traveling part was mostly glossed over. The actual heist part of the novella takes place toward the very end of the book and it's over just like that?

There is also insta love in this book. Now to be honest, I don't really mind insta love that much but this book had the opportunity to have more moments between Zizy and Laysa WHILE traveling to make their relationship and their feelings for each other more real but it was just skipped over and just told to us later on what happened? When the opportunity was right there?

Overall, I liked this novella. It definitely could've been better but I am still intrigued to see where this story is gonna go and what's going to happen to the characters, especially after the ending of the novella.

This book and author has a lot of potential. The plot is interesting but would have been better in a longer format or with a sequel. The story felt rushed at times but the concept and story itself is good.

I can’t decide if I actually liked this book or not. Over all it was really short. I think if you’re looking at getting into reading or for a book to just pass the time, this is a good book to get into, but I just felt like there wasn’t enough time to really process the story or get to know the characters before the end of it

Thank you to the publishers, author and NetGalley for the free copy of this book.

This was a relatively easy, quick read which was a nice change- although I wish it was longer to help gain a better understanding of the characters and the world they live in! I enjoyed it for the most part, but didn't connect with it the way I would have if it were more developed.

The length of Tools Of A Thief is the root of my biggest complaint; there was not enough time to get to know these characters and this world to the level that the plot deserved. Everything that happened was so interesting, but it happened at such breakneck speeds that nothing felt important.

The backstory contributing to the character's motives felt shallow because the world wasn't developed enough to understand what was going on. The love story felt rushed to the point that it went from zero to a hundred and right back to zero in what felt like a few pages. At times it was hard to tell if there even was a love story going on or if I had just misinterpreted a few pages. There wasn't enough worldbuilding to really understand how the magic here worked, which made it difficult to understand whether what was going on most of the time was impressive or mundane. And it felt like too much happened off stage to keep the story short.

This story had lots of potential but it needed to either be longer or less complex. There were too many characters and sideplots in a brand new and interesting world to be able to emotionally connect to the story in only 170 pages. With too many small subplots and adventures, the main plotline was resolved too quickly and easily to have made the rest of it worthwhile.

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Tools Of a Thief is a very short book to devour. In some ways, that can be a good thing but for me it felt a little bittersweet. I'm not really sure why I kept hoping that we would be getting another book once I was getting closer to the very last page... but I definitely was. So I'm a little sad and disappointed that I don't get another book. Or even a cliffhanger.

I did like the characters though. Zizy was incredible and it has been a while since I've read a book where the main character is a thief. Well.. a good one anyways. I also really enjoyed everything that had to deal with Laysa and Pace. These three together were just all kinds of cute and just made me smile.

Now while this is short, I was worried things would move way too fast for my brain or just wouldn't be explained deeply enough. Luckily, this book didn't have those problems because I really enjoyed the world building, magic, and the heist overall. It was very entertaining from beginning to end which is why I'm so sad that it is over now.

Definitely wish this book was a bit longer but I'm happy that I got the chance to dive into it.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This has a lot of classic issues that fantasy books have. This book was short- I won't call it a novella because it is about 150-170 pages, but it is pretty short compared to a lot of other fantasy books. This had the fantasy issue where it info dumped quite a bit, but overall I did like the worldbuilding. I feel like I say this about so many books so maybe this is just me but this book definitely felt like it wanted me to do a lot of the heavy lifting to figure out the world. I know that this is considered high fantasy but the book felt like a sequel to another book or a novella to a larger series. I'm not sure what else this author wrote so maybe that is true, but regardless this novel did not stand up on its own in a satisfactory way.

It was fairly fast-paced so it is a cute, fast read. If you're a critical fantasy reader or looking for something a bit more series, this probably isn't a good fit.

4/10

So.. this really should’ve been a book.

Not because it’s that good but because it could be good.

This feels wrong honestly. Like how can you try to put a new fantasy world in a novella? It should be way longer so the depth of the story could be achieved. All the information about the world and the characters was just thrown at you at all times but with no explenation. The whole time I felt as if I were reading a sequel/prequel novella to some big series* and I felt lost because I didn't read the series beforehead. Would be okay if you already knew the characters and now youre revisiting them in a short adventure. But this? No.

I also had a problem with the characters. All of them were so annoying but most of all, Zizy, who had such a funny name to me that I couldn't take anything too seriously, was the most unlikable charcter. And it is hard to like a book when the MCs aren't that likable, right?

The supposed climax of the story? Nonexistent.

Well.

Im not that cannibalistic, though. I did like certain things in the story but I liked the idea for the world the most. The concept part is 7/10 while the execution gets 1/10 rating, therefore this a 4/10 piece, to me.

I really do think that this could be further explored and much more effectively.

So, to conclude:

This probably should've been a real book or even a series so it could meet a bit of it's potential (not just a short story that ended up being too chaotic and underwhelming at the same time).

* like you have short stories in many fantasy series eg. Thorne of Glass Series

ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

I think I would have enjoyed this book more if the book indicated that it would have a sequel because it is very incomplete. Like it doesn't even really end on a cliff hanger, they just go, and now I have to do this task, so let's gather our wits and... then end. It also feels pretty choppy with regards to pacing, so it can be a little hard to follow. That said, this book is basically a fantasy caper with a gnome at the head of the party, and a nerdy librarian with whom she falls for, and I had a lot of fun with that.

This is a longer novella, and the attempt to cram in a ton of worldbuilding while having some plot stuff happen within its 168 some odd pages shows. A lot of story stuff kind of gets skipped so you can understand what is actually happening on the page, but the down side is that the timeline can be slightly confusing. I love the magic systems, and that the lead character is an unconventional fantasy lead as well. Zizy is a nice lead and has some fun quirks to her but has a pretty dark backstory. She's a thief, who must steal a thing from a powerful sorcerous in order for her to be freed of her tyrannical aunt. That she forms a party with a pretend warrior guy who is trying to find his actual warrior sister and a nerdy librarian is makes for some hilarious situations as they journey toward their actual target. I wish they actually do some of the capering bits sooner in the book, because the bumbling nature of the crew would have been gold if given more time to do the stealing.

I think this is fine enough, even though it literally stops halfway through the more interesting bits. I wish it was allowed to expand, because there's some good stuff in here that looses some of its luster because of that ridiculous ending.

*I received this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I really wish this was either a full length novel or a Dungeons & Dragons campaign, not a short novella.
All the concepts, the world, magic, religion, history, creatures and the characters were very interesting, but the story was poorly executed. Too many infodumps and random lore, the characters and their relationships were so underdeveloped that I couldn't really care about any of them, everything happened too quickly and without any emotion. But I liked the writing and the book was quite fast paced and therefore quick to read.
Reading this book felt exactly like reading a Dungeons & Dragons campaign with Level 1 characters, not an actual book. And in fact this would work much better if is was an actual D&D campaign instead of a book. I could immediately imagine which dice checks would characters need to succeed or fail for certain things to happen, what choices could they make and how the story could unfold and I think it would be very interesting story to play through with friends.

while i enjoyed the banter and most of the dialogue, this novella felt too much like a 500 page novel crammed into a shorter format. the worldbuilding was, at best, incomplete. the relationship between laysa and zizy was more than just underdeveloped, it seemed to happen without me realizing it as a reader. i would read this story if it was in a longer, more complete format, but ultimately the novella disappointed me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Fiercewood Press for the chance to read an early copy of this book.

This is a short read that really drops you into the middle of things. I had a hard time following what was going on or why I should be invested in the characters and their stakes. Some of the bits of world-building were interesting, like the differences in how magic is performed, or the dangerous creatures that turn their victims into crystals, but I didn't connect to anything, including the writing style. Even the bits of f/f romance seemed extremely rushed after there was a fun meet-cute in the opening scene. This feels like it's a story in the middle of a serial, particularly the abrupt ending. Kind of like the series title says, it's just "A Series of Decisions" that doesn't create a satisfying narrative.

Note: There are some kisses and some swear words, but otherwise this book feels very young.

Tools of a Thief is a fantasy novella with Zizy as the main character, who is a gnome tasked with stealing an item from the ruler of the country by her powerful aunt. Along the way, she picks up Laysa and Pace, who work to assist her in her goals - even if they don't actually know the exact goal...

D. Hale Rambo creates an interesting fantasy world with Tools of a Thief - with fantastical creatures, magic, and different kinds of countries and rulers. There is not much world-building that happens, but I believe it intended that way so the reader just feels immersed in the story immediately. However, this reads like you were dropped into a book partway through and I felt like I was missing important information from the beginning.

There is a subtle sapphic romance with Zizy and Laysa, which adds to the diverse nature of the book. I wish there was more background given to the characters, especially Laysa and Pace. The ending also leaves much to be desired, it ends pretty suddenly leaving the reader feeling like you only read the middle of a book, not the beginning or the end.

The cover implies this is the first in a series, and I would give the second book a try if there is a sequel.

**Thank you to Fiercewood Press and Netgalley for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review**

I don't really read novellas unless they are to do with a series I have read. This was a fast-paced story filled with interesting characters. The world is incredible as well as the magic system. The character of Zizy is interesting as she is a thief, a good one but the scenes that she finds herself in contradicts it quiet a lot especially when she falls into obvious traps.

"I wanted to create something new. Be someone who was more than just the job she fell into. "

For a short story this story has stunning writing, incredible world building and a fascinating plot along with interesting characters. Along with an adorable romance developing, as well as friendships which i adore.

The mc Zizy is incredible, a great thief with plenty of charm and some magic that was handled in a unique way. I enjoyed her growth as learned to trust and create new bonds, finally moving forward. Her relationship with Laysa is really sweet and i liked the friendship with Pace too.

"Powerful people always think ignorance is for the best."

I loved how magic system is handled here and the various species, it seemed very historical fantasy in ways with magic involving Sigils and travel. Yet there is mechanical and tech aspects too, which leaned towards steampunk vibes which was intriguing. There was a lovely mix of many themes that i enjoy and flowed together perfectly.

The central plot was intriguing and handled in an amazing way, with details slowly revealed throughout as Zizy feels more comfortable with her companions. Working together as they travel each for different reasons, but creating a bond and finding friendship.

"There's a ot of amazing things out there Zizy, we just have to stay in one piece long enough to enjoy them."

Close to being a 4 star read, but the last chapter and ending is very abrupt. I thought i was missing pages, but it said the end right there so it just seemed strange.

While the main plot is complete, it still left things open in many areas which as intended to be a series im happy with! I'd love to see more adventures with these characters, see the world and relationships explored further.

"There are a lot of pleasures out there, and i want to try as many as i can. I want to make music and uncover secrets and get into bar fights. I want to be curious and lively and not take everything so seriously"

Overall its an entertaining story, especially if looking for something unique and short read with plenty of fantasy aspects. The ending is rather open, yet looks towards a brighter future for the characters as completes Zizys quest 💕