Overall a quite enjoyable tale. There’s sadness, and grimness, but also humour and bawdiness. Humanity at its worst…and best.
The stream of consciousness narration, in what t I assume was meant to be the common speech of Tudor England, was at times a bit difficult to follow, but I got used to it fairly quickly and it was often quite poetic. Quite a lot of swearing too, which may bother some.
Tibbs and her mother are poor in a way it’s almost impossible to imagine, and the mother does some dire things just to keep them alive. Left alone after her mother’s death and deeply traumatised, Tibbs is befriended by a young man on a beach.
The story then focuses on the next 5 or so years of Tibb’s life. Which takes some very strange turns!
The main ‘Act’ of the story starts about 60% through the book, though hinted at in earlier chapters. I found myself skimming quite a bit through this section, as Tibb’s rambling narrative felt quite repetitive and I felt it dragged on a bit too long.
I liked the feeling of what Tudor England might have been like, and liked the main characters, though some of the lesser characters-particularly the ‘baddies’ - felt a bit stereotyped.

4.5 ⭐️

When you read over 200 books a year across multiple genres, it’s very rare to come across something refreshingly unique. Kudos, then, with a cherry on top, to debut author Rosanna Pike for conjuring up this delightful romp of mischief and chicanery that has landed itself amongst my favorite reads of the year.

Set in 16th century, Tudor England, A Little Trickerie tells of the adventures of teenage orphan Tibb Ingleby, who following the death of her mother is left alone to survive in a hierarchical society where vagabonds are vilified and forever shackled to their lowly status.

That is, until one day an opportunity presents itself to Tibb and her new-found friends to change their destiny through an audacious hoax, one that proves successful beyond their wildest imaginings, but which is very nearly their undoing.

I loved everything about this story, from the vivid evocation of Tudor England to the bawdy humor to the magnificently drawn characters, in particular Tibb, whose quirkiness, distinctive voice and unique blend of innocence and guile made for the most likeable, memorable of heroines.

There’s nothing quite like having an underdog to cheer for, and I was there with pom-poms and high kicks aplenty to egg on Tibb as she sought to take on the rotten hand life had dealt her and turn it into winner.

Make no mistake, though, this tale is much more than a romp with a predictable ending. Pike’s writing is richly layered, exploring along the way themes of belief and superstition, friendship and found family, and the downtrodden versus the establishment.

It’s a story that sucked me in from the opening pages and held me alternately chuckling and teary eyed in its thrall, until its suspenseful but ultimately heartwarming conclusion, which proved that adversity CAN be overcome, with courage, imagination … and perhaps just a ‘little trickerie’.

As with all great debuts, this is going to be a hard act to follow, but I for one shall be waiting eagerly to see if Rosanna Pike is up to the challenge.

From the shocking opener of Tibbs’ mother dying in childbirth, it is clear this isn’t the standard sanitized historical fiction. I enjoyed that side once I grew accustomed to the vignette style rather than an ongoing narrative, and rooted for Tibbs to survive against the odds.

A Little Trickery by Rosanna Pike is quite the tale. It centres on Tibb Ingleby, orphaned and left to take care of her sister in Tudor England. She must ensure their survival and does so by traversing England living by her wits.

Without wanting to give too much away, it’s a bold story, incorporating all the beliefs, superstitions and expectations of women of that time. At times it’s harrowing. That said, there are some entreating and heart warming moments.

I look forward to reading more books by Rosanna Pike.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and Penguin for making this e-ARC available to me in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Tibb has an interesting narrative voice, and I have to confess that it took me two attempts to get into this book, but it was worth the perseverance! Our narrator has a difficult life with an unseemly start to it, when she is swiftly orphaned and left with a new born sister to care for. The book takes a turn for the worst and some readers may find Tibb's initial experiences harrowing. Underneath it, there is a trusting, naive, innocence which is compelling and swept me along. The relationship with Ivo is heartwarming and compelling, though it is hard to fully appreciate what they really mean to each other for a very long time.

Woven through Tibb's story are extracts of an imprisonment and torture, which do not seem to fit with her story for a long time, though the two timelines do cross and become deeply entrenched in each other as the narrative moves on.

A little trickerie is an understatement as the story develops and it becomes hard to see how Tibb will extract herself from a very dangerous deception. This book is set in the 1500s and draws attention to they hypocrisy of the church and its moral view of humanity.

Tibb has a huge heart and a filthy mouth. It would be hard not to love her and get swept along with her travelling adventures.

This feels like something completely new! What an incredible voice, character, everything! I was completely engrossed from the first page.

I have never read anything from the tudor era before but how the book was greatly described i felt like i was living in it. Amazing book!

I listened to the audiobook.
I loved this book and wish I’d got to it sooner! Tibs is a wonderful character, totally original and a breath of fresh air. Absolutely no filter and as near as one can imagine to an honest portrayal of a vagrant in the time of Henry VIII. This is a brilliantly written story with characters you absolutely care about. I had my heart in my mouth at times when Tibs and her gang get into serious danger and almost cheered as they lived to fight another day. A really wonderful novel, can’t wait for her next one.

What a brilliant tale of Tibb's life in Tudor England. Tibb is a vagrant coping with the death of her mother and having to look after her newborn sister. She meet with gentle lovely Ivo who is battling his own demon but looks after Tibb. They spend an idylic time on the beaches of East England but circumstances split them up. Tibb meets a travelling toupe of musicians and performers, including the very strong Maria and disfigured Ambrose. There are some very bleak moments in this tale which are distressing but Tibb's indefatiguable spirit and clevery trickery brings everyone together. I loved this story so much. The voice of Tibb was funny and authentic. I highly recommend this book. A rare 5 stars from me.

Oh, this was such a fantastic read. I'm not usually a fan of Tudor-era historical fiction, but this totally converted me. Rosanna Pike's evocation of the era, and of such blazing, heart-rending characters, is masterful. Also, this is quite niche, but I loved the onslaught of swearing in the story - there's no other way to write about Britain faithfully, regardless of the time period. A brilliant touch to an already brilliant style.

This is a great read - magical, mysterious and original!
Tibb wanders the country looking for a settled life, which is hard to find in Tudor England. Tibb is independent, feisty and yet vulnerable, and her character is beautifully written. As she embarks on her utmost trickerie with her fellows, bringing an angel to life, Tibb finds herself trapped in a tricky situation – I couldn’t put the book down during this bit, it was nail-bitingly good!

I very much enjoyed this quirky, funny work of historical fiction. Set in medieval Britain, Tibb is a vagabond girl who is suddenly thrown into grief and hard times. She soon meets Ivo and their adventures begin from there. Beautifully written (albeit with LOTS of swearing!) and very moving in places, I loved this book and found it hard to believe it was a debut novel. Really good.

It's a little odd when you come across the same idea used radically differently in two books coming out within a month of each other. A Little Trickerie is a purely historical novel, admittedly with a lead character with the eventual spunk and gumption that might come with a more modern lead, whilst its idea doppelganger The 23rd Hero was a time travel science-fiction, climate disaster adventure. But they both come to a similar conceit, a similar con. The difference is the heroine in The 23rd Hero could pull her clerical hoax and then escape back to the future in time, whilst the last third of A Little Trickerie is all about how on Earth the lead is going to get away with it. And is a much better book for it.

Tibb has been born a vagabond, and she and her mother live on her wits, and then only Tibb is left as - plot foreshadowing perhaps - a trick went too far. This is early Tudor England where living outside the law is illegal, and you could be put to death for being an Egyptian/gypsy/vagabond. But young Tibb finds a way of living rough and a slightly older protector, and as she grows into a woman she wends her way across England joining a theatrical troupe using her previous ability to hide as contortionism, escaping sex slavery, and always with low-level thievery. And eventually falls into a band of unconventional but supportive comrades. And I thought, hold on, this is a little bit too settled for halfway through the book. Nevertheless they are always at the edge of danger (Tibb is wanted for murder, and some of her friends are gay...) so a plan is hatched to escape England completely, which needs money, and requires someone with theatrical training who can get into small spaces to impersonate an angel. This works well to start off with, but a little too well, and once the local bishops and even the King's Mother (hello Lady Margaret Beaufort) come to inspect this miracle things have gone way too far.

A Little Trickerie is basically a heist novel, albeit an unconventional religious heist. Recalling the line about advanced technology being indistinguishable from magic, in the fifteenth century that technology didn't need to be very advanced at all. Pike writes Tibb with a lively take on the vernacular of the day, and we discover her world as it grows with her (we are well acquainted with how cruel it can be though). Tibb herself works through her orphaned status and the sexual abuse when received from one of her mother's marks, along with the attempted rape and her own tiptoes into love, both with her best friend who turns out to be gay, and her own desires. Whilst it starts a little slow, and took me a moment to get my ear into the language, by the time we get to the trick, I was glued to the unfolding disaster, though Pike writes with an exuberance that even when the straights got dire I did not doubt that they would wriggle out of it. Lots of fun, and a solid antidote to reading a little too much historical fiction from the viewpoint of those in power.

Medieval coming of age tale, dealing with prejudice and inequality, and featuring an unusual voice (as well as a lot of swearing).

Tibb Ingleby is little more than a child when she finds herself orphaned, homeless and with a newborn baby.

Her mother has taught her to live by her wits, and Tibb sets about travelling Tudor England in search of her roof, with her eyes open to the ways people behave, and with a few tricks of her own up her sleeve.

Orphaned Tib Ingelby is no angel, even though she look like one with her white hair and pale skin, but she is naïve and trusting – remarkably so when she was brought up by her mother as a vagabond, surviving in a man’s world with tricks and cons. So when she meets Ivo in a moment of total despair and he rescues her, she feels as if she’s met her perfect mate – even if she’s not quite sure what that might mean.
The story follows her coming of age and many hard lessons she learns until a bit of trickerie she devises takes on a life of its own and threatens everything she’s worked for and everyone she cares for.
While I liked the characters and the plot, I found Tib’s language awkward and inconsistent. And while the novel is described as revealing a side of Tudor England that we don’t know of, I really didn’t feel drawn in or convinced by it.
On the other hand, Tib’s wry humour and charm were likeable. So overall, it was a good read and held my attention to the end.

What an unexpected delight this book turned out to be. I downloaded it for an insight in to everyday life in the past, only to stumble on not only a heart wrenching study of misogyny and homophobic prejudices, but also a clever entertaining tale with a well thought out ending.

Set in Tudor England, it’s more a tale than strict historical fiction, meaning, it could take place in any era. A young girl who looks at the world in her own way and tries to make the best of it. The writing style is different, creative and somewhat quirky.

Tibb, born a vagabond and soon orphaned, has no home. She makes her way traveling throughout medieval England, meeting people who will care for her but also people who will harm her. As Tibb and her friends perform the perhaps greatest trickerie yet.

A Little Trickerie is certainly original and a fresh take on Tudor travels and at its core looks at beliefs and superstitions, kinship and courage.

This was bold, this was different and this was moving. I really enjoyed this story and it had me hooked from the first pages.

Rosanna Pike’s writing really delivered you back in time and Tibb was a joy to read.

A curious book, but very enjoyable. Tibb has a very interesting perspective on life, possibly being far too modern (certainly in language - shit for brains being a rather ecent addition to our phraseology), but certainly entertaining, along with the rest of the cast of crazy characters.

Apparently based on a true event, the fraudulent miracle of the Holy Maid of Leominster, this is a thoroughly entertaining and well written tale set during the reign of Henry VII, when the murders of the Princes in the Tower was still in folk memory.

Tibb Ingleby is a young vagabond, the daughter of a vagabond. She and her mother have suffered desperately, and when her mother dies early in the novel, shortly after giving birth to a baby girl, Tibb finds herself left to her own devices. But Tibb finds friends and allies; she is resourceful and intelligent, irreverent and forthright. Her bunch of associates contain Tibb herself, tiny in stature with long white hair, Ivo fleeing from prejudice, and Ambrose stained with a purple birthmark, looked upon as touched by the Devil. In the church in Leominster where Ivo is the priest, the group come up with a plan to enhance their fortunes, making use of Tibb's otherworldly appearance to impersonate an angel. That's when things start to get very complicated.

Rosanna Pike's first novel carries the reader along with its gripping, funny and moving tale. Perhaps at times it verges on the preposterous, but the characters are attractive and sympathetic and permit to a large degree the suspension of disbelief.