Review: Thief of Cahraman by Lucy Tempest

ARC Copy/Kindle (322 pages)

Published by Folkshore Press on July 21, 2018

Read with Kindle Unlimited for free, or $2.99 Kindle version/$11.99 Paperback

Part of Fairytales of Folkshore Series

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars 

UPDATE: I emailed the author because I wanted her to read my review. SHE EMAILED ME BACK! I may have had a small freak out moment when that happened. She did end up sending me a gift card to purchase the novel from the amazon store so that the review would be a verified purchase. This did not change my review in any way other than to become verified by amazon.

Plot

The Selection meets Aladdin

ONE MONTH. FIFTY CONTESTANTS. ONE PRINCE. AN IMPOSSIBLE HEIST.

You have been summoned to Sunstone Palace to compete in our search for the future Queen of Cahraman.

After years on the run, Adelaide thinks her lonely and dangerous life as a thief is finally over. But her world is upended when a witch steals her away to a faraway kingdom, to perform an impossible heist. If Adelaide fails, her newfound family would be sacrificed to a beast.

To complete her mission, she’s forced to assume the role of a noblewoman and enter a royal competition. The prize is the hand of the elusive Crown Prince. Elimination means certain death.

As the witch’s literal deadline approaches, Adelaide has one last gamble to save the day, and to escape to a new life with Cyrus, the handsome and mysterious fellow thief who stole her heart.

But everything falls apart when the prince finally reveals himself…

This is a full-length novel at 80,000 words. Book 1 of 3 in the Cahraman Trilogy

Fairytales of Folkshore is a series of interconnected fairytale retellings. Ada’s story continues in PRINCE OF CAHRAMAN.

(TAGGING THIS REVIEW AS 

HAVING A POTENTIAL FOR 

MINOR SPOILERS!! YOU HAVE 

BEEN WARNED)

The Good

This is such an amazing start to a series. Adelaide is a young woman who just wants a place to call home, and she finally thinks that she found one. All of this changes the night of the town festival when Adelaide and her “adopted family” are kidnapped by a witch needing her special talents as a thief. For those of you who play video games (and for many who don’t) the Easter eggs hidden in this novel easily show you what they mean by it being a series of interconnected fairytale retellings. Adelaide’s best friend is named Bonnie, a girl who always has her nose in a book and lives alone with her father. Adelaide has a run in with a girl who lives with her stepmother and stepsisters and is forced to do their chores. During the “princess test” as I am going to call it she hears gossip that there are two families who have a beast in their family. That is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to fairytale references found in this book.

Adelaide as a character is highly relatable, even for those who have never imagined themselves as a thief in a fantasy world. She is an orphan who has lived her life running from place to place, sometimes homeless, always having to lie to be able to survive. She just wants somewhere she can call home, somewhere where she can live her life without worry or stress (something many of us dream of). She would do anything to save the lives of those that she cares about (which is proven many times during this amazing novel). She is guarded, but also wears her heart on her sleeve. She is goal oriented but is willing to make time for those who need her. Overall, she is a strong female lead who also has a soft side.

The story is supposed to be reminiscent of Aladdin, which it is, but it also tells its own story in a fantastical new way. I have always been a fan of those books that are fairytale retellings, they give you new stories related to those that you loved before. Lucy Tempest easily has done this with this novel.

The Bad 

There aren’t many things that I can say are bad about this novel. I know that I say this a lot in my reviews, but I feel like I am just getting so lucky with the ARC’s that I am receiving. At times it seemed like the plot was forgotten in lieu of descriptions of the scenery or the people. This could be a nod to the fact that Adelaide is a commoner who is having to deal with seeing all of these wasted riches, so I don’t know that I would fully consider this a bad thing. It did cause me to want to skip over the descriptions at times to get back to the action though. My biggest complaint about this book was THAT IT ENDED ON A CLIFFHANGER! I know that it says in the description that her story continues, but I need more now! I read this book in less than a day, and I wish I would have taken more time. The next book (which I am planning on preordering if I don’t get lucky again to get an ARC copy) isn’t due to be published until the end of October. My heart is devastated right now, I need to know what is going to happen. This is a bad thing, but also shows just how amazing Lucy Tempest is as a writer.

Final Thoughts

Please please please pick up this book. It is an amazing read, and this author is an amazing writer. If you are a fan of fantasy, strong female leads, story retellings, thieves, princes, princesses, or tests. If you aren’t a fan of any of these but need a new book to read. If you like to judge a book by the cover and saw how beautiful the cover of this one is. No matter why you pick this book up, pick it up! Read it! Preorder the next book! Support this amazing writer. It is available on the Kindle Store for $2.99, which is a steal for a book as great as this one. The sequel (Prince of Cahraman) is available for preorder for $3.99.

Author Website here