To Steal a Throne by Gabi Burton

The quick cut: A girl who uses her lie-based powers to keep her half-brother in power finds her life at risk when a new challenger comes to try and take their leadership for themselves. 

A real review: 

Having the power to keep our lives under control is something that we all want. Being able to make our own choices is an important element of happiness. What would you do if your ability to stay in power was threatened? For Mira, this is a reality when a newcomer named Kaiden Vale shows up and threatens her half-brother's power. 

 Mira has the ability to know when someone lies and she's used it thoroughly over the years. Stealing people's most important secrets, she's used them to manipulate others using a secret identity and keep her half-brother Luc. When a newcomer named Kaiden shows up with proof of his ability to challenge for leadership and immediately challenges Luc, that's frightening enough. The part that makes it worse though is that his ability is to detect other people's abilities with just a touch. Will Kaiden get close enough to Mira to discover her true abilities? Or will she discover some truths that make her want to change her choices? 

 I liked the idea behind this book. It's an interesting one and it's why I was excited to read it in the first place. However, the execution of the plot is what left me feeling frustrated in the end, along with confusion. The characters are unlikeable, they have seemingly no consequences for their actions, and the way the plot moves left me confused at best. 

 Mira has been the secret behind Luc's power for years and she's tired of hiding in the shadows. Considering that Kaiden calls her a servant the first time he sees her, it's not surprising that she wants to take all that power for herself instead of giving it to a man. She's set up to seem like she's been taken advantage of and be made likable in that way. Unfortunately, her actions throughout the story make you wonder why you ever would. 

 Kaiden is the clear romantic interest for Mira and they do have a certain chemistry. The romance is hard to believe though considering they're on opposing sides and willing to slit each other's throats to get what they want. By the time I got to the end, I found myself actively rooting against them. 

 A fantasy story that fails to live up to its premise's promises. 

My rating: 2.75 out of 5