Prince Charming's face blindness for the win, haha.

Ell's story plays out like every other Cinderella tale. Her prince arrives, she tries on the slipper, on to happily ever after....expect, she didn't actually go to the ball. Taking what she thinks is merely an escape from her abusers that she will be able to flee from, she finds herself trapped in court intrigue, under the thumb of a cruel king, and trapped in a war between worlds.

This was a ton of fun to read, and I really liked El as a character. This is such a unique take on the story, the idea that Cindy's shoe might fit another girl. It was also really sweet watching her actually fall in love, and while I was at first, disappointed by who she fell for, it was worked out in the end in a way I thought was quite lovely.

Prince Charming in this world, Bayard, is an absolute sweetheart, the poor face-blind man. I thought he was quite kind, and it was nice watching him reach the point he could stand up to his cruel father. Maxim, the prince's friend, I was less of a fan of, but he grew on me by the end.

The rest of the supporting cast featured a slew of fun characters, a sweet lady in waiting, a take-no-shit servant, and of all the surprised, stepsisters redeeming themselves. And of course, a fairy causing all sorts of havoc throughout the tale, just to add an extra level of risk.

Culminating in a happily ever after I didn't see coming, and for a few moments wasn't sure we would get, this book was quite the adventure and a great addition to any retelling fan.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/5

Liar’s Kingdom is a creative, exciting YA fantasy reimagining of Cinderella with fascinating characters and a propulsive plot.

I had a wonderful time with this one. I adored Ell’s strength and personality. The characters and character development were so much fun and well-written. Christine’s reimagining presented the tale of Cinderella in a new and thrilling light, incorporating classic elements from the story with a unique twist. I loved the magical settings and court intrigue. The bargains and magic were brilliantly crafted, and the romance was addictive. Christine’s prose was beautiful and witty, and the story's pacing was great. I thoroughly enjoyed Liar’s Kingdom and cannot wait to read what Christine writes next!

Helen Laser was a fantastic narrator. She captured the magic and mysteriousness of the story with her emotions and depth. Her voice fit Ell beautifully, and the accents she used were excellent. She made the story even more immersive and powerful. I highly recommend the audiobook!

Thank you to the publisher for the free ALC!

Such a cute little Cinderella retelling. I thoroughly enjoyed the banter, the action and the fairies. I found the audiobook to be brilliantly performed. Nothing bad to say about this book, honestly.

A Cinderella retelling with a wonderful twist!

Ell has always wanted to be free from the torturous life under the thumb of her stepmother, so when a chance presents itself, she takes the bait. A little lie won’t necessarily hurt anyone, but someone at the palace knows her secret and threatens to crumble her life of happiness that has only just begun. Not to forget, the nefarious fairies surrounding them weave their own plans of revenge, and Ell might find herself at the center of all the complications that come with this crown.

The narrative was great, and the story glided like butter. I never got bored; the witty banter between two opposite sides (without spoiling it any further) was entertaining. It’s surely one of those retellings that I will remember long after I have read several other versions too. The deals with fairies and the importance of every word uttered were my favorite (so much trickery to watch out for). It was also good that the author always hinted at the possibility of a love angle but never committed to the same expected outcome.

If you are looking to be amused by the fairy kingdom and their complications with human civilization, do give this one a try.

Thankyou @netgalley @brilliancepublishing @christinecalella for the ARC

This was one fun read, it felt like a mix of cinderella and pride and prejudice but with fae fantasy in it. Also the characters were really likeable and kept you hooked on the story. I would have liked it to have more romance put in but I enjoyed it a lot nonetheless. Will recommend it to my friends. Also the audiobook was very nice and I usually struggle with them.

Thank you Netgalley and Brilliance Publishing for the ALC.

🌟🌟🌟 3/5 stars

A fun spin on the story of Cinderella featuring excellent narration by Helen Laser.

Ell has spent years being mistreated by her stepfamily. When the prince (who has face blindness) shows up at their house searching for a girl who charmed him the previous night, but then disappeared, Ell sees an opportunity. She happens to fit into the shoe left behind by the mystery girl, so ELL is willing to say whatever to escape her current situation. However, royalty comes with its own problems and a huge one is Maxim, the prince’s best friend. He knows Ell is lying. Ell must find a way to save herself.

This was very entertaining and I loved the narration. A solid retelling.

ALC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Good book, I love a fairytale retelling. I thought the premise that “Cinderella fit the shoe but never went to the ball was really good”. I wasn’t so much a fan of the way they dealt with the prince not recognising her by just having him have face blindness for everyone. It felt like a bit of an easy way out and I kept expecting it to turn out to be some fairy curse or something to at least be a bit more plot relevant but no.

I struggled a little with the audiobook to remember who a couple of the characters were, namely the maidservants, and I probably couldn’t spell their names even if I did remember what they were.

It was also a little odd that Elaine (apologies for spelling if incorrect) kept going on and on about “love” as if she hadn’t just met the prince. It made it feel a little shallow and hard to empathise with her. I also wasn’t too much of a fan of the cheating thing with Maxim. If she’s so in love why do that? It just seems lucky that Bayard (definitely spelling this wrong) happened to have had a crush on someone else forever.

All in all though I thought it was a really fun retelling, Elaine was very quick to think on her feet and I loved the portrayal of the fair folk.

Thank you to NetGalley for this review.

This was a Cinderella retelling like never before.

What if Cinderella wasn’t the girl at the ball , but still fit the glass slipper! Of course you would lie to get away from an evil stepmother and a chance of marrying a kind and handsome Prince.

This story was brilliant and had me hooked from the get go. There was a much larger plot at play in the Kingdom.

I wasn’t expecting this ending and thought it would end on a cliffhanger but really enjoyed how it wrapped up.

This was the first time reading a book by this author and will be reading more of her work in the future.

Liar's Kingdom is an intriguing fairytale retelling of Cinderella and it follows Ell who has nothing but a slave to her stepmother and her two stepsisters. Everyday she toils and puts in hard work into the chores of the household yet she is never appreciated. Then one day Prince Bayard arrives with a glass slipper and is in search of the princess who he danced with at the ball. When the slipper fits Ell perfectly, she is swept off her feet into the kingdom of comfort and luxury.

But here's the thing, Ell never went to the ball. She isn't the one that the prince is looking for. And when she tries to convey that, Bayard reveals something about him. And it turns out things were much bigger and perilous than Ell getting her happily ever after.

I listened to the audiobook and well I must say the narrator was superbly talented, bringing out emotions and expressions of the characters. In the book, I thought it was going to be a hilarious read but then as it delved deeper there were political pursuits, betrayals, cunning plots and more that saturated the storyline. The pacing was good although I felt it dragged a bit in the middle but then final chapters were filled with twists that made up for the same.

I think readers who have a knack for reading retellings with unique spins and multi-dimensional characters will absolutely enjoy this book. Definitely worth the reading time.