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chimichannika's review
0/10. Terrible writing that is clunky, extremely out of character, extremely inconsistent, full of immense plot holes, extremely heteronormative, homophobic, and sexist (made even worse by the actual show’s lack of this as source material!?!??), male-gaze-centered, misrepresentative and consistently derogatory toward fan culture, incredibly simplistic, did I mention the awful sexism and horrible writing too?
I got a little over halfway through the book, checked out the reviews, found out about theParker leia moment and decided I’ve had more than enough of Matt Forbeck’s sexist, trashy bullshit for a lifetime. I saw some reviews saying this reads like a trek novel— in my experience, the only trek novel this reads like is “the laertian gamble” which was another rare 0/10 book for me (check out my full review if you’re curious how awful it is) but even most of the not-great trek novels are light years better than this utter bullshit. Don’t waste your time with this one.
I got a little over halfway through the book, checked out the reviews, found out about the
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism
Moderate: Biphobia and Homophobia
Minor: Death
libreroaming's review against another edition
3.0
The Con Job is a tie-in novel for the (now sadly cancelled) show "Leverage," which is about five criminals who break the law in order to punish the rich and powerful, people who steal from others yet cannot be held accountable by legal means. The show was a fun romp, made more enjoyable by the character dynamics and the banter rather than the twists at the end showing how they pulled off each con, so I wasn't going into it expecting a wildly clever mystery story. And Forbeck seems to get why "Leverage" is well loved, because he capitalizes on the humor and quirkiness of the characters rather than trying too hard to bait-and-switch us with the story. The very premise is snug in the show's wheelhouse about a corrupt art auctioneer who swindles poor comic book freelancers and plans to sell off his profits at Comic Con, eschewing the more straight played corporate villains for the over the top appeal of people dressed up in spandex and a villain who takes his name from Harry Potter spells.
This set up gives a pretty clear indication of whether or not you'll like this story. For me, my favorite group of thieves and the pop culture Mecca of my dreams come together? Where even the title is a clever pun? Sign me up!
And I do say this: as a Leverage fan, it was fun to read. The chapters are short and breezy. You can see there is a familiarity with the characters, and a lot of the snappy comebacks and character interactions are well written here. In fact, this is probably one of the better dynamics I've gotten from Nate and Sophie in regards to their complicated relationship. If you don't think too much about the logistics, you'll find yourself tearing through it, waiting for the next one liner or team moment.
However, enjoyment can be somewhat detracted by the narrative's contradictions, both in the show and its previous set up. One example is as giving us fifty pages of Hardison's passion for all things Comic Con then a line about "whereas Hardison cultivated an air of coolness, Cha0s embraced his geekiness" which is flagrantly the furthest thing from Hardison's Star Trek loving fanboy heart. I can guess the author meant that Hardison had social skills to be likeable aside from his geek interests and Cha0s is just an awful human being, but there are a lot of these narrative comments about personality that are the opposite of previous established motives.
Another running example is Parker being alternatively described as an innocent and supremely guarded (but, to be fair, the show was guilty of not knowing which direction to pick with her), or Eliot's gruff too-cool-for-this-shit exterior belying a soft spot for some of the more mainstream geekiness, which I understand is supposed to show his reluctance to admit anything that might be less than dignified, especially when it is introduced to him by Hardison's enthusiasm for it, but the narration flips in handling it so it seems more schizophrenic at times than Eliot being secretly nerdy.
I think a lot of the novel's problems comes from how unpolished it feels. There are statements of the narrative that get jolted into expository flashbacks and shunt back into the plot with little transition. There are sentences that contradict previously stated character moments, or get a little redundant. Some of them seem vaguely in comprehensible, like a good editor forgot a word to parse it together. It feels rushed for a professional endeavor, basically. Like a promising first draft that sadly never got the beta reading to make it great. Or well invested fanfiction.
For example, many of the plot problems come from minor tics. Such as the use of pseudonyms. Now, it's in character for Hardison to make geeky references on a con, but this novel has him using comic book aliases in a comic book convention and the villain does it too, which is nitpicky but a really bad start at making this seem plausible if nobody is even trying to be subtle about it. At the same time, "Leverage" has had its moments of needing to suspend disbelief over a large canyon, so show runner fans might give those logistical gaps a pass from criticism.
Another issue, which can also be seen as a strength, is how much you can tell the author is a fan of the genre he's describing. These offhanded references to BleedingCool.com or well known artists like Alex Ross and Jim Lee are nice winks to fellow fans like me, I enjoyed knowing all the tidbits being thrown in, but someone reading it for the story might get sick of all these random asides that really don't further the plot and might only confuse them more, such as the constant comments about Will Wheaton (who plays Cha0s in "Leverage" but was also in Star Trek). The novel would have done a lot better to incorporate the geek culture of comics and the con in a more seamless fashion than constant references and some vague acknowledgements from the rest of the crew about how it affected them. However, I personally loved some of those moments and felt they contributed more than took away when collectively measured.
Overall, it's definitely not a novel I would recommend to readers who didn't already know and love Leverage. There was a lot of stuff to enjoy from The Con Job but it comes from a pre-existing love of the characters and scenario that can gloss over the clunky moments of writing or plot development. Still, that love is very palpable and the tone of the novel is a glowing fond one that doesn't condescend to its audience.
This set up gives a pretty clear indication of whether or not you'll like this story. For me, my favorite group of thieves and the pop culture Mecca of my dreams come together? Where even the title is a clever pun? Sign me up!
And I do say this: as a Leverage fan, it was fun to read. The chapters are short and breezy. You can see there is a familiarity with the characters, and a lot of the snappy comebacks and character interactions are well written here. In fact, this is probably one of the better dynamics I've gotten from Nate and Sophie in regards to their complicated relationship. If you don't think too much about the logistics, you'll find yourself tearing through it, waiting for the next one liner or team moment.
However, enjoyment can be somewhat detracted by the narrative's contradictions, both in the show and its previous set up. One example is as giving us fifty pages of Hardison's passion for all things Comic Con then a line about "whereas Hardison cultivated an air of coolness, Cha0s embraced his geekiness" which is flagrantly the furthest thing from Hardison's Star Trek loving fanboy heart. I can guess the author meant that Hardison had social skills to be likeable aside from his geek interests and Cha0s is just an awful human being, but there are a lot of these narrative comments about personality that are the opposite of previous established motives.
Another running example is Parker being alternatively described as an innocent and supremely guarded (but, to be fair, the show was guilty of not knowing which direction to pick with her), or Eliot's gruff too-cool-for-this-shit exterior belying a soft spot for some of the more mainstream geekiness, which I understand is supposed to show his reluctance to admit anything that might be less than dignified, especially when it is introduced to him by Hardison's enthusiasm for it, but the narration flips in handling it so it seems more schizophrenic at times than Eliot being secretly nerdy.
I think a lot of the novel's problems comes from how unpolished it feels. There are statements of the narrative that get jolted into expository flashbacks and shunt back into the plot with little transition. There are sentences that contradict previously stated character moments, or get a little redundant. Some of them seem vaguely in comprehensible, like a good editor forgot a word to parse it together. It feels rushed for a professional endeavor, basically. Like a promising first draft that sadly never got the beta reading to make it great. Or well invested fanfiction.
For example, many of the plot problems come from minor tics. Such as the use of pseudonyms. Now, it's in character for Hardison to make geeky references on a con, but this novel has him using comic book aliases in a comic book convention and the villain does it too, which is nitpicky but a really bad start at making this seem plausible if nobody is even trying to be subtle about it. At the same time, "Leverage" has had its moments of needing to suspend disbelief over a large canyon, so show runner fans might give those logistical gaps a pass from criticism.
Another issue, which can also be seen as a strength, is how much you can tell the author is a fan of the genre he's describing. These offhanded references to BleedingCool.com or well known artists like Alex Ross and Jim Lee are nice winks to fellow fans like me, I enjoyed knowing all the tidbits being thrown in, but someone reading it for the story might get sick of all these random asides that really don't further the plot and might only confuse them more, such as the constant comments about Will Wheaton (who plays Cha0s in "Leverage" but was also in Star Trek). The novel would have done a lot better to incorporate the geek culture of comics and the con in a more seamless fashion than constant references and some vague acknowledgements from the rest of the crew about how it affected them. However, I personally loved some of those moments and felt they contributed more than took away when collectively measured.
Overall, it's definitely not a novel I would recommend to readers who didn't already know and love Leverage. There was a lot of stuff to enjoy from The Con Job but it comes from a pre-existing love of the characters and scenario that can gloss over the clunky moments of writing or plot development. Still, that love is very palpable and the tone of the novel is a glowing fond one that doesn't condescend to its audience.
dragongoddess13's review against another edition
5.0
It's just like watching the show. Everyone is in character, the plot makes sense, you can follow the con. Loved it
surfmonkey01's review against another edition
4.0
Not only was this one of the best tie-in novels I've read, it was a darn good read as well. A decent caper story with plenty of geek references, you don't have to be a fan of the show to enjoy it -- but if you are, it's even better.
wondertwinc's review
4.0
Nostalgia
Definitely enjoyable. It brought me a sense of nostalgia from the show and I loved all the Nate and Sophie bits.
Definitely enjoyable. It brought me a sense of nostalgia from the show and I loved all the Nate and Sophie bits.
thedavidg13's review against another edition
5.0
Finished in one day! I actually recorded a podcast episode with the author, Matt Forbeck, back in December before his Star Wars: Rogue One Junior novelization came out and we chatted about this book for awhile.
The Con Job is a wonderful look into an off season job they pull and it's right up Hardison's alley. They get to go to San Diego Comic Con. You get to spend time with each of the characters, but clearly Hardison is the one having the most fun. Everyone gets their moment and there are some incredibly great pop culture call outs in the book too.
If you loved Leverage and you love to read, pick up this book. If you love BOTH plus love pop culture/geek culture, even better.
The Con Job is a wonderful look into an off season job they pull and it's right up Hardison's alley. They get to go to San Diego Comic Con. You get to spend time with each of the characters, but clearly Hardison is the one having the most fun. Everyone gets their moment and there are some incredibly great pop culture call outs in the book too.
If you loved Leverage and you love to read, pick up this book. If you love BOTH plus love pop culture/geek culture, even better.
berlinbibliophile's review against another edition
4.0
This was a fun romp and quite good for a licensed book based on a TV show. The Comic-Con setting seemed tailor-made for me and the story stayed true to the series and characters. Only one thing annoyed me: was it really necessary, out of all possible nerdy costumes, to put Parker into a Slave Leia bikini and have Eliot and Hardison and random bad guys immediately sexualise her?
On a technical note: the book could have benefited from some editing, quite often I found repeat words or false starts in sentences.
On a technical note: the book could have benefited from some editing, quite often I found repeat words or false starts in sentences.
mayetra's review
5.0
If you love the TV show, this book is for you. I've missed the show since its gone off the air and it was so much fun to reunite with the characters again.
hollyrebeccasmith's review against another edition
3.5
Promising premise fails to fully deliver for Leverage fans.
idkimoutofideas's review against another edition
4.0
3.5/5
The Con Job was a pretty good book. For the most part it stayed in character, and I liked how the author described the characters. There was one point at the beginning that was a little weird, when Sophie was described as having a 'sly smile spreading over her sensual lips'. That was weird, but other than that the book was mostly in character. The premise was interesting, and I liked how excited Hardison was about ComicCon, and how he didn't want to take hotel reservations from other people who paid to be there.
Having Chaos there while also constantly mentioning Wil Wheaton was hilarious, especially considering how much Hardison was fanboying over Wheaton while absolutely hating Chaos.
I liked how near the end both Eliot and Parker bought cosplays from people, Eliot as a stormtrooper was a lot of fun. But having Parker dress as Slave Leia? Really? That was just... c'mon.
I was a little confused as to where in the timeline the book was set, I think it was set soon after The Gold Job but before The Radio Job, because Nate mentions how when Hardison ran a con it completely fell apart and he had to step in. But that was mentioned pretty late in the story, and it would've been nice to be told when in the timeline it was earlier in the book.
The Con Job was a pretty good book. For the most part it stayed in character, and I liked how the author described the characters. There was one point at the beginning that was a little weird, when Sophie was described as having a 'sly smile spreading over her sensual lips'. That was weird, but other than that the book was mostly in character. The premise was interesting, and I liked how excited Hardison was about ComicCon, and how he didn't want to take hotel reservations from other people who paid to be there.
Having Chaos there while also constantly mentioning Wil Wheaton was hilarious, especially considering how much Hardison was fanboying over Wheaton while absolutely hating Chaos.
I liked how near the end both Eliot and Parker bought cosplays from people, Eliot as a stormtrooper was a lot of fun. But having Parker dress as Slave Leia? Really? That was just... c'mon.
I was a little confused as to where in the timeline the book was set, I think it was set soon after The Gold Job but before The Radio Job, because Nate mentions how when Hardison ran a con it completely fell apart and he had to step in. But that was mentioned pretty late in the story, and it would've been nice to be told when in the timeline it was earlier in the book.