Cover art usually isn't mentioned in a review, but The Treason of Robyn Hood holds a particularly notable cover that attracts attention and interest—a young hooded woman holding a bow, with the walls of a city and a motorcycle behind her.

Robyn Loxley finally has a meeting with Warden James Weldon of the Midshire War Relocation Center, after months of writing to him. It's a meeting that goes awry as Robyn finds herself turned down with no explanation.

This story isn't set in England's distant past, but in the quasi sci-fi modern times of 1942, where Robyn is a ward of a family that lives a comfortable life. Her greatest challenge lies in not being able to see her best friend, who is in a Japanese-American concentration camp, and her frustration dovetails with her discovery of Jon Little and a band of Sherwood residents who live in one of the few untouched shanty towns left. They reveal to her the truth about her foster family and her privileged life.

Her decision to err on the side of justice sends her on an unexpected journey that moves from a singular obsession with Will's fate to broader social and political concerns in a sharply divided society.

Urban fantasy readers usually don't receive stories that include the trappings of an alternate history and updated steampunk themes, but The Treason of Robyn Hood's ability to incorporate both into its story of social justice and confrontation creates an atmosphere both familiar and alien at the same time. Thus, the original Robin Hood becomes an exploration of a feisty female's determination and abilities, whether it be in battle or political cat-and-mouse games.

Robyn may be charged with being impulsive and not always thinking things through, but these qualities serve her well as she foregoes her large, comfortable room in the Lacklands' mansion for more modest accommodations accompanied by the serious addition of a newfound purpose to life.

With her new friends Tuck and Jon at her side, Robyn undertakes the impossible, carrying readers into a story replete with social inspection, battles, the possibility of a romance with Guy Gisbourne (despite their different alliances), and a more deadly relationship with the Lacklands.

After a satisfying romp through this world, The Treason of Robyn Hood leaves the door open for more adventures. Unlike other sci-fi books, it doesn't portend to be 'Book 1 of a series', and this adds to its delight as a story complete unto itself without the artificial-feeling anticipation that more books are coming without the first having proved itself viable.

The Treason of Robyn Hood follows a determined young woman's probe of the world underlying the privilege she'd once taken for granted, and makes for a compelling urban fantasy adventure that readers will find thoroughly engrossing.

The Treason of Robyn Hood by D. Lieber is an urban fantasy novel set in early 1940s America during World War II. Orphaned at the tender age of four, Robyn Loxley grows up to be a tenacious young woman. Robyn, along with her elder sister Marian, was brought up and raised by the Lacklands, a powerful family who controlled most businesses in Midshire. Robyn finds out via Detective Alaric Nottingham that the Lacklands have their hands deep into criminal activities, and their corrupt practices are directly responsible for the dire living conditions of the inhabitants of the shantytown of Sherwood. Robyn must now choose between her foster family and her ideals as she makes a daring rescue plan for the Japanese Americans detained in a concentration camp owned by the Lacklands.

The Treason of Robyn Hood is a well-written rendition of the famous legendary tale of Robin Hood. Author D. Lieber deftly captures the moral elements from the story of the mischievous robber and crafts them in a refreshing fashion in a unique setting. The Treason of Robyn Hood has suspense, drama, humor, romance, and action, all jam-packed in a tightly paced novel full of intrigue. Lieber masterfully showcases the parallels between the detainment of Japanese Americans during World War II with the plight of immigrants detained in concentration camps in contemporary America. Despite the exploration of some serious issues, The Treason of Robyn Hood is primarily a fun-filled adventure novel. I enjoyed it immensely and will highly recommend it to fans of fantasy and adventure.

"Justice and the law aren’t necessarily the same."

Robyn Loxley and her elder sister Marian live privileged lives while growing up with the Lacklands—their wealthy foster family who controls commerce in Midshire, a crumbling city oppressed by post-Depression and wartime demands on resources. The Loxley sisters are just waking up to the fact that the Lacklands operate a crime syndicate and that their corrupt lifestyle creates near-slavery conditions in their factories. The unbearable conditions prompt some residents of Midshire to flee for freedom to Sherwood, a poverty-stricken, Hooverian shantytown.

The story opens when Robyn, a master mechanic in a Lackland steel mill, considers how to break out her best friend Will from a Japanese detainment camp. Curious, she wanders into Sherwood and meets some of the inhabitants, including the affable giant Jon Little and the psychic sensitive Tuck, a rebellious female much like herself. Robyn soon realizes she must give all the internment camp detainees a chance to flee their prison. As she and the Sherwood residents learn to trust and respect one another, they develop a plan to liberate the camp and house the new residents. Meanwhile, Robyn is not only at a crossroads with her lifestyle and her ideals. Her heart is yanked hither and yon by two paramours—Guy Gisbourne, the dark enforcer of the Lackland empire, who is obsessed with her, and earnest crimefighter Alaric Nottingham, with whom she experiences an easy, indescribable bliss.

Author Lieber playfully turns English folklore on its head in World War II America in this dieselpunk, noir spinoff of the classic Robin Hood tale. Connoisseurs of urban fantasy and offbeat romance will find this novel both a fun and fulfilling read. The clever characterizations and skillful melding of fantasy, adventure, and romance put a spotlight on sisterly devotion, oddball alliances, social conscience, and the human ability to rise above broken hearts and broken lives.RECOMMENDED by the US Review