Liar's Kingdom is a grand adventure that takes the story of Cinderella and throws it on its head. Ell is sick and tired of being the abused drudge of her stepmother. When her foot unexpectedly fits the glass slipper, she lies and says she is the missing girl that Prince Bayard fell in love with at the ball. Once at the castle, pragmatic Ell realizes that there are big troubles in the kingdom and she sets out to make things right. There are fairies, evil machinations behind the royal scenes and unexpected romance waiting. This is a happily ever after book appropriate for all ages.

I received an advance reader copy from Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

In Liar’s Kingdom, Christine Calella presents the scenario of Cinderella lying about being the girl at the ball. After all, a noble girl abused by her family and forced into the role of a servant…a prince who’s obviously not able to recognize the girl he danced with…if she fit into his “magical” shoe, why wouldn’t she lie to escape? And perpetuate the lie by building a huge fairy tale to cover her tracks?

This retelling of Cinderella has a great premise, made more real by the prince having prosopagnosia or an inability to recognize faces. It also has great, dynamic characters including a morally gray Cinderella, potentially redeemable stepsisters, an evil not-godmother, and a maybe-treacherous heir to the throne. It’s a really fun story.

This was such a clever and refreshing twist on the Cinderella story! I loved how Ell wasn’t the girl from the ball—it added so much intrigue and raised the stakes in a way I wasn’t expecting. The detail that Prince Bayard can’t recognize faces was a smart touch, making his mistaken identity believable while adding depth to his character.

Ell is such a fascinating lead—morally gray, resourceful, and willing to do whatever it takes to escape her miserable life. She constantly finds herself in sticky situations, but her determination and wit make her so easy to root for.

Maxim, Bayard’s best friend, was another standout for me. From the start, he knows Ell is lying, and their fiery exchanges were some of my favorite parts of the book. The tension between them was palpable, and I loved watching their dynamic evolve from antagonistic to something much more layered as the story unfolded. Maxim has his own secrets, and discovering them added another layer of complexity to the plot.

The supporting cast also shone, with redeemable stepsisters, a not-so-fairy godmother, and the looming threat of war with the fae adding richness to the world. The darker elements of the story kept me on the edge of my seat, and I was so relieved when the author hinted at a happy ending—it gave me hope through some of the tougher moments.

This retelling was a fun, fast-paced read with great character development and unique twists. If you’re a fan of morally gray heroines and fresh takes on classic fairy tales, this is one you don’t want to miss!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Liar's Kingdom by Christine Calella is a unique retelling of the classic Cinderella story. There have been many retellings of the original over the years, and I’ve read several of them. This book took a unique approach to how the peasant girl is found by the prince. Ella doesn’t have a fairy Godmother, and she doesn’t attend the royal ball. Yet, when the prince comes to their house, the glass slipper fits!

Ella makes a difficult choice to save herself.

In an instant, Ella’s life is changed. She decides to pretend that she did indeed attend the ball and that it is her slipper. It’s not easy, as Ella is an honest person by nature; however, she is desperate to escape her abusive stepfamily. What follows is her journey to redeem herself, and earn the love and trust of the prince. It would have been relatively easy if the prince’s best friend and royal confidant to the king wasn’t so determined to prove her a liar.

I appreciated this new spin of the heroine’s character. She is no longer a dainty creature with perfect manners and without flaws. Ella is flawed in this story. Despite her good intentions, she continues to deceive the entire kingdom about her identity. She has secrets, and takes risks. Even if she’s not the demure princess that everyone expected, Ella is positively helping the kingdom in her own ways. YA fans will love this version of (Cinder)Ella’s happily ever after!

(Review will post to thelitbuzz.com on 01/14/25)

I absolutely loved this retelling! This book was such a unique twist on the classic Cinderella tale. I loved this story and the characters within it. This was a book I didn’t want to put down and binge read it in a day. I appreciated the references to different Cinderella adaptions throughout the book as well as having its own original twist on the tale. This book had me smiling throughout the and I can’t recommend this book enough.

Read this if you like:

📖 Cinderella retellings
📖 Fairies & fae
📖 Lies & deception

Thank you to the publisher for the gifted arc, I loved it!

This one was a great surprise because it is a retelling of Cinderella and the author was able to turn this classic story (the hardest to modernize in my opinion) into a great tale of an amazing character. Her strength is a role model worth rereding over and over. Also the cover is done by one of my favorite character artists.

Liars Kingdom

If the shoe fits…

What happens when the glass slipper fits Ell but… she was not the girl at the ball…

A closer Grimm’s Fairytale / Fantasy version of Cinderella retelling? Sign me up!… Literally! Thank you NetGalley for the ARC

Imagine what would happen if Cinderella wasn’t really the girl at the ball & the shoe just fit? Add some fae / fantasy & a bunch of lies and you have Liars Kingdom.

I couldn’t put this one down once I started! I needed to know how Ell’s story would unfold. I really enjoyed the characters and the magic of it all.

Thank you Page Street for letting me read an ARC of Liar’s Kingdom! The book was utterly enchanting! The story premise is very clever and unique Cinderella Retelling in which Ell (Ellain) did not go to the ball but lies to better her situation. The fairies were a nice twist to the story, adding intrigue and danger where in the traditional story, the fairy godmother was basically angelic. There’s strong demisexual rep that aids the plot along with themes of forgiveness, love, and loss. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and highly recommend it!