Now I have to say I was very iffy with the cover but after the first chapter I was hooked. This gave me Six of Crows and A Tempest of Tea vibes. I highly recommend this book to everyone.

The Order of Grimm is a standalone magical heist story featuring a reformed assassin. The heroine is given an opportunity to go up against the man that sold her to the assassins guild when she was a child. She just needs to open a safe in his office for a former friend. This is just the situation she needs to see if she can find some records of her past and start looking for her family. As an assassin she worked alone, but for this job she will need a crew.

With the assistance of a few friends and a couple other specialized unknowns, a plan is hatched. When things go wrong, they go really wrong, and now the team has to pivot and try and save a girl being auctioned off as a descendant of one of the last magical queens. Infiltrating an auction is going to be a lot harder and the stakes are a lot higher.

I would say this is a little bit Oceans 11 and sorta Six of Crows. The idea of the world was interesting. Three Queens used to rule Cinderella, Rapunzel and Snow White with fae magic. But almost all of the magic left the world when they did. Magic wielders are few and far between now, hunted for their power. Trying to run a heist under the nose of Thieves Guild and against a Kingpin is more than dangerous. But the prize, is worth risk, especially if she does have magic.

This was an entertaining book. The makeshift crew had interesting characters to fit the needed roles with some decent backstories blended in. They were all pretty likeable characters. I was a little sad they weren't a bit grittier or morally ambiguous like in Six of Crows, they are more wholesome or nice than that crew. I found the story entertaining overall but think the characters could have had a bit more depth to them. Still a fun story that did make me wonder how they were going to get one over on the bad guy.

Narration:

Performance: ★★★
Character Separation: ★★★★
Diction: ★★★★
Pacing/Flow: ★★★
Sound Effects: None

Shiromi Arserio is a new to me author but I have listened to some of her other works. She gives a solid performance and made it easy to differentiate the characters from each other. The story was easy to follow with her performance. I was able to listen at my usual 1.5x speed.

A light fantasy rescue mission with a retired assassin and her newly formed crew finds themselves learning to trust each other while being thwarted by those they once trusted the most. Sam has moved on but her "sister" is still entrenched in the dark world of assassins for hire, can help her without becoming what she's worked so hard to removed herself from?

This was a quick fun read with twists and turns at every corner. I loved the multi-POV and thought the characters each had their own little backstory that helped move the plot along. It helped with the trust issues this new crew was facing and I hope we see them again.

Thank you NetGalley for providing this audio-arc.

4.5 ☆

This was a surprisingly fun read for me. It reminded me of Leverage with a magical twist.

Assassins. Thieves. Fae. Magic. Heist. Betrayal. Revenge.

The FMC is a former assassin turned thief who's seeking revenge on a man from her past. She leads a small crew of people to complete a heist at a magical auction. So many twist, turns, and fun characters.

This book is narrated by the author herself, which provided the perfect narration

The Order of Grimm was such a fun and surprising read. Very Ocean's 11 meets Legends & Lattes. A heist crew turned found family in a fairytale inspired world.

The author (also narrator!) does a wonderful job setting the scene and making adding small details to fill out the world. I really enjoyed each of the epigraphs at the beginning of each chapter. I listened at 1x speed and didn't feel that the pacing was slow at all. While there are some twists that you can see coming, like any good heist there's another just around the corner that surprises you.

It does read as a standalone, but the ending does invite the opportunity for more books set in this world. I would love to spend more time with each of these characters to see how they grow.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read/listen to this audiobook arc!

It’s giving Locke Lamora and Celaena Sardothien.

I’m completely hooked. This audiobook is incredible. As a debut novel it’s absolutely fantastic! And having such an acclaimed narrator read HER OWN BOOK it’s *chefs kiss*. It is read exactly how it should be, all of the emphasis is bang on, and the names are pronounced the same every single time!! I don’t think I can emphasize how great this really is! I have complete faith and utter trust in the narrator.

As for the storyline. Strong female main character - check. Historical fantasy setting - check. Big heist to pull off with a small unlikely team - check. There is betrayal, and trauma, and a whole bunch of badassery. Only downside is waiting for book 2… because there is definitely more story to be had.

The Order of Grimm
By Shiromi Arserio
Narrated by Shiromi Arserio
4 ⭐️

The story: A fantasy heist where the rag tag con group turns to found family with fairytale bits sprinkled in; mostly extinct magic comes out to play in more than one heist.

This book is fun. Our MC = Sam or Samara is all business. Her motives are usually a bit selfish, she’s earned it, but not greedy. Gold doesn’t entice her. Revenge does. When an opportunity too good to pass up is presented, she gathers together a handful of strangers with specialized skills. The group’s evolution steals the show for me. They bond together with loyalty and trust while Arserio keeps tabs on how little they know of each other. It’s a fun dynamic to explore. This book doesn’t end in a cliffhanger but does leave a big ol’ invitation for book 2 to come waltzing in. I really hope it does! 🤞

Arserio is a voice actor and award winning audiobook narrator by trade. I didn’t know this when I picked this audiobook up. I was sucked in by the cool name, pretty cover, and the promise of a heist. I love when those random choices pay off in a big way. This was a great listen.

Thank you NetGalley, Shiromi Arserio, and Gobbolina Press for this audiobook ARC! 🫖

I would like to thank the publisher for sending me an audio-arc in exchange for an honest review through NetGalley.

What an absolute fun time this was. Former assassin Samara Dawa wants vengeance -- to destroy the man who sold her as a child. And when that opportunity arises, she jumps on it. It's only after this moment that she finds herself needing to infiltrate a magical auction run by the mysterious Order of the Grimm. The main item for sale? The last descendant of Queen White. And the best way to do this? A Heist.

This was legit Oceans Eleven/Six of Crows but with fairytale characters and magic. And if there's one thing I like, it's a well planned heist. The cast of characters were interesting, I loved seeing the crew come together. And the way things ended worked for me. However, I did feel like the first half of the book was weirdly paced? Considering I thought that was the main plot? But it isn't until then that we get the full picture of what is actually going on and the second half is the heist. Which, for me, took a little too long to get going. But I had such a great time with putting the crew together and then the actual heist that I was just going along for the ride.

Very cool world. I wish I had a list of the characters names (again, audiobook, it's hard to keep track of who was who when you have a crew). But I will definitely be keeping an eye out for more books by this author.

Actual Rating: 4.5 stars

Former assassin Samara now works for the thieves guild and they do not like their people working independently. When Samara gets the opportunity for revenge on the man who sold her as a child, she takes it but is betrayed. This will lead to her attempting to rescue a child, the last descendant of Queen White who is about to be sold, just as she was.

Very well written and beautifully narrated by the author of this novel (I listened to the audiobook). Great characters in this well paced, action packed novel. There will be plots, plans, fights, magic, explosives, friendship and honour. Can they save the girl and themselves?

Recommended for fan of "Six of Crows", Arserio's debut is a charming and thrilling heist novel that kept me hooked from start to finish. Every character in the crew assembled by the protagonist Samara, has a unique and interesting role, making the ensemble a delight to venture with. I felt the length and pacing of the book was perfect - no lulls or dips in momentum and the twists always kept the plot moving. If I had to niggle over one thing, it would be the lack of world building and backstory for the Order that the book is named after. However this is something I would love to explore in future novels, as the book very much feels like the start of a series.

Narration was fantastic as one would expect from Arserio and she truly brings the story to life.

4.5 starts (rounded up)

Posted on goodreads 1/5/2025

Heists always go right and nothing unexpected happens. No twist, no turns, just everything to the plan. Always. So when I saw Shiromi Arserio had her own book coming out, narrated by her, I definitely wanted to check it out. "The Order of Grimm" out 14 January 2025.

Magic is a rare thing in this day and age. Unless you happen to be born with it, or be filthy rich. The city of Märchen lays next to the Queendoms and enjoys a bustling "diverse business" market, totally normal to have an assassin's house in the city. Staffed by people who totally were not stolen to be trained and indoctrinated as children. But we are following Samara Dswa, an ex-assassin, who doesn't kill anymore and is trying to take down the man who sold her as a child. When her old sister/friend/current leader of the assassin's has an offer, she desperately wants to not be a trap, Samara must get competent help to pull off a heist. I'm sure it won't go sidewise and have new wrinkles like, thieves guild, city watch, magic, and the like.

Narrated by Shiromi Arserio, thank you for the copy and it was a delight hearing things exactly as the author intended.

Reasons to read:
-Magic heist, I'm going to go in on that
-Cast of characters is fantastic and with their own motivations and quirks
-Some concepts and history based on the Grimm fairy tales but with it being connected to a broader plot
-World has stuff going on in the background that made me intrigued

Cons:
-That person really deserved a stabbing