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3.89 AVERAGE
3.89 AVERAGE
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Summary
Ross Quest wants to get away from the family thieving business and experience life--maybe make some friends. That desire contradicts her mother's number one rule: Don't trust anyone outside the family. According to her mom, family is all you need and all you should want. Rule number one isn't enough to prevent Ross from wanting something different until her mom is kidnapped. Suddenly, priorities become crystal clear. Desperate to get her Mom back before it's too late, Ross accepts an invitation to compete in the Thieves' Gambit. The prize? A wish. But what if there's another prize? What if the other competitors could be more? But these other thieves -- other teenagers with complicated families and desires -- can't be her friends. They're distractions, threats. Right?
My Thoughts
Initially, this book felt unique in premise but somewhat standard in execution. That shifted as the story progressed and the themes deepend. What started out as a standard "complete impossible challenges to save a loved one" turned into a story about friendship, trust, loyalty, generational trauma (though not overtly), and confronting disconnects between what you've been told is the right choice and what you actually believe to be right. It's still an action-adventure challenge story, but I appreciated the deeper elements, and I'm definitely in for book two after the plot twists that ended book one!
Content
Some minor swearing and at least one rude gesture. One very minimially descriptive kiss. Some violence, not descriptive/graphic. No religious content that I can remember.
Ross Quest wants to get away from the family thieving business and experience life--maybe make some friends. That desire contradicts her mother's number one rule: Don't trust anyone outside the family. According to her mom, family is all you need and all you should want. Rule number one isn't enough to prevent Ross from wanting something different until her mom is kidnapped. Suddenly, priorities become crystal clear. Desperate to get her Mom back before it's too late, Ross accepts an invitation to compete in the Thieves' Gambit. The prize? A wish. But what if there's another prize? What if the other competitors could be more? But these other thieves -- other teenagers with complicated families and desires -- can't be her friends. They're distractions, threats. Right?
My Thoughts
Initially, this book felt unique in premise but somewhat standard in execution. That shifted as the story progressed and the themes deepend. What started out as a standard "complete impossible challenges to save a loved one" turned into a story about friendship, trust, loyalty, generational trauma (though not overtly), and confronting disconnects between what you've been told is the right choice and what you actually believe to be right. It's still an action-adventure challenge story, but I appreciated the deeper elements, and I'm definitely in for book two after the plot twists that ended book one!
Content
Some minor swearing and at least one rude gesture. One very minimially descriptive kiss. Some violence, not descriptive/graphic. No religious content that I can remember.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping
Moderate: Car accident, Death of parent, Abandonment
Minor: Cursing, Drug use, Racism, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I wanted to like this more than I did. I was generally entertained, but I just couldn’t connect with Ross. I couldn’t relate to her way of thinking or understand some of her choices. I liked the idea of this competition, but the execution wasn’t my favorite. I also couldn’t get behind the romance between Ross and Devroe. It was so cheesy and boring. The twists at the end weren’t enough to make me what to read the second book.
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
fast-paced
Aaaaaand I managed to squeeze in one last book before the end of 2024 (whew!) This book was definitely fun and captured my attention, so it was easy to chug down.
In the first few pages, I was ready to be annoyed. I figured this book was probably going to be like all the rest of the ones in this genre that I've read—"not like the other girls" main character, her mysterious enemy who also happens to be hot, her best friend that betrayed her—and actually, all of that happened. But the characters themselves were so fresh and lively that it compensated for all that. I loved Ross—she was both strong in keeping to herself, but proved that you can also be strong by opening up to other people and trusting them.(Obviously that kind of all went downhill in the last few chapters, but I still see the message...) I also loved Devroe—I feel like he was kind of a spoof on the classic super-smooth British secret agent and it was really funny to see him swing between chatting someone up and stealing all their information and just being an all-around petty (but sweet) little kid who wants to be a grown-up but isn't.
Also, I LOVED the diversity of the cast. I know it sounds kind of cliché to say it, but I don't just mean diversity in the race sense (although that was great too—we had Black people, Asian people, Hispanic people, people from a bunch of different countries that normally aren't featured... I mean, Switzerland??). I also just loved seeing their different personalities shine through and watch a bunch of people who are so different work together to steal very valuable things. The strongest vibe it gave me with the constant "globetrotting in expensive transportation","infiltrating cocktail hour to drug a bunch of rich people", "putting a sarcophagus back together in the back of a moving truck", etc. (but that's a spoiler haha) was if Carmen Sandiego starred four to eight teenage kids.
I don't know if I'm going to rush right on to the sequel—I'm less of a fan of the whole extended-period-of-enemies-to-lovers-back-to-enemies tension trope because I find it really frustrating. But I do think I will get around to it sometime... next year!
Super fun read overall, would highly recommend for some heist vibes!
In the first few pages, I was ready to be annoyed. I figured this book was probably going to be like all the rest of the ones in this genre that I've read—"not like the other girls" main character, her mysterious enemy who also happens to be hot, her best friend that betrayed her—and actually, all of that happened. But the characters themselves were so fresh and lively that it compensated for all that. I loved Ross—she was both strong in keeping to herself, but proved that you can also be strong by opening up to other people and trusting them.
Also, I LOVED the diversity of the cast. I know it sounds kind of cliché to say it, but I don't just mean diversity in the race sense (although that was great too—we had Black people, Asian people, Hispanic people, people from a bunch of different countries that normally aren't featured... I mean, Switzerland??). I also just loved seeing their different personalities shine through and watch a bunch of people who are so different work together to steal very valuable things. The strongest vibe it gave me with the constant "globetrotting in expensive transportation",
I don't know if I'm going to rush right on to the sequel—I'm less of a fan of the whole extended-period-of-enemies-to-lovers-back-to-enemies tension trope because I find it really frustrating. But I do think I will get around to it sometime... next year!
Super fun read overall, would highly recommend for some heist vibes!
Ocean's Eleven meets the Hunger Games. Fun and clean YA.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
What the fuck.
That's all I really have to say.
Like
The pace of this book went from; too slow to good pace to too slow again and then to too fucking fast.
This didn't really read like a book.
Idk what to think of it...
It's...
Eh...
That's all I really have to say.
Like
The pace of this book went from; too slow to good pace to too slow again and then to too fucking fast.
This didn't really read like a book.
Idk what to think of it...
It's...
Eh...