This story is rather unique--it's an "alternate history" historical fiction with some magical realism (sort of) and basically an unreliable narrator. It deals with trauma and memory loss, found family and family ties. It's set in the Old West but not really the "real" Old West. It took me awhile to get into it, probably because I was having to read it only in short sessions. Once I had time to sit and just immerse myself in it and get used to the odd way the narrator tells her story (the dialogue with the dagger gets annoying), I was hooked. It is about an orphan raised by outlaws, who is taken in by a Judge and his wife and learns more "civilized" ways of living while she is trying to get back to her outlaw father-figure and help him get rich. On the surface, it's the Wild West. But then you have things like a religion centered around the "Blue Rose" and the Seven Stars, plus a talking dagger and talking dollhouse dolls, which take this in a different, more philosophical, direction. I really liked the writing once I got used to Robber Girl's odd mannerisms, and found myself rooting for her. There is clearly some horrible tragedy in her past that has caused her not to be able to remember her life before the outlaws, and it has affected her whole personality. Not sure what teens I would recommend this to, unless I knew them very well. ( )

This is probably one of the harder reviews I've had to write. I absolutely loved this book. There are so many layers to it that make it hard to write about it. We have a young girl working alongside "Gentleman Jack" a known criminal. She believes he rescued her after her mother abandoned her. While trying to rob a stagecoach Gentleman Jack is caught. This young girl is taken home to the Judge's house. This is a house that has known sorrow. The judge and his wife lost their son and daughter to smallpox. As you read along you realize that things definitely are not what they seem. The judge and his wife try to "tame" this wild girl. She communicates with her dagger who keeps reminding her how much Gentleman Jack has done for her. You know something is afoot whenever she begins to communicate with the dolls in a dollhouse the judge had made for his daughter. The dagger also doesn't like when she thinks she remembers things. It doesn't want her to remember. There are definitely reasons Gentleman Jack has not named her. There are reasons she has been lied to for five years. She is the only one who holds the key to what Gentleman Jack wants. Better than that she holds the key to who and what she is. I tried to explain this to my students and had just as much trouble explaining it to them. I recommend this one to everyone who loves beautiful language, fantasy and unreliable characters. ( )

4 1/2 stars
An orphan girl is taken in by a bandit and made to believe that he saved her and she owes him gratitude. She is made to feel ugly, small and unworthy and will only elevate herself if she follows him to the letter. When he is jailed she is taken in by the judge and his wife who slowly try to bring her back to a calmer life and give her the childhood that has been taken. Part fantasy, part Dicken's OLIVER TWIST - Starling is able to silently converse with objects such as her trusted dagger and the dollhouse people at the Judge's house. She follows the code of Gentleman Jack and his followers and as she tries to remain wild she is just as strongly tugged in the direction of love and family at the judge's house. Beautifully written and filled with longing for family, love and feeling worthy. For older middle grade kids, young adults and adults that want to be immersed in a world of danger and violence as well as fantasy and innocence. Fans of Jennifer A. Nielsen's THE FALSE PRINCE , Dickens or Caleb Carr's THE ALIENIST will enjoy this. My thanks to the publisher for the advance copy. ( )

I looked forward to reading this title as I am a fan of Billingsley. It is a well-written, consistent and coherent fantasy, yet I struggled to plow through it. As much as I enjoyed Billingsley’s ‘Folk Keeper’ & ‘Well Wished,’ I never became engaged or invested in Robber Girl’s storyline or characters. If it weren’t Billingsley and it weren’t an ARC, I probably would have DNF’d it. But finish it, I did.

The Judeo-Christian allegory is not heavy-handed or glaring so people of other or no religious traditions would probably not find it offensive. As an agnostic, I had no problem with the premise. There was the “good” city on high (Indigo Heart) and a “bad” city (Netherby Scar) hidden deep in a ravine … and, of course, the people who chose to live in one or the other. One had to cross the River Jordan to reach Indigo Heart (freedom, the promised land, heaven). I liked the concept of “afflictions” (changes in physical appearance or handicaps that magically appeared) that immediately branded sinners/criminals with the type of crime the moment it was committed. If only, eh?

Robber Girl is introduced as a nameless girl apprenticed to a completely unsavory old West outlaw gang that’s holes up in a (Plato’s shadow?) river cave between crimes. It’s all she knows and all she wants. She’s looking forward to the honor of being awarded a name after doing her part in her first stagecoach hold-up. Which fails due to the cleverness of the good Judge and Sheriff of Indigo Blue. This is when the main story starts… The rest of the book deals with various adventures and misadventures caused by her inner conflicts. She is torn between her admiration and allegiance to Gentleman Jack, her wild gang boss, and the fearful uncertainties of comfort, care, love, a new family, and honor she discovers in Indigo Heart.

The ‘voices’ of Robber Girl & her blade altar ego quickly wore on me. The amnesiac Robber Girl was obviously damaged emotionally, delusional and in denial. Her true identity is a mystery. The author very decently gives you enough information over the course of the book to figure it out. You get why the character is delusional and in denial. But Robber Girl never became more than a book character to me.

Overall, I found the book dark, flat, monotonous and a bit of a depressing slog … however I am not part of the intended YA audience (though I do generally enjoy YA novels). Robber Girl was not my cup of tea though it may be just the book for you. Note - I also found the wildly popular YA Twilight series incredibly silly and boring. So there’s that to consider…

You can’t please all the people all the time. I do look forward to other books from Franny Billingsley. ( )