Scan barcode
kristinv20's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
this was fun! nice fast-paced ya thriller, has the old-money mystery feeling of Inheritance Games and a heist focus that would probably appeal to someone who liked Six of Crows or Little Thieves. all of these characters are noticeably young, like 16-19 age range, and the prose reads a bit younger as well - as long as you're okay with moderate (pg-13) violence, i honestly think this would be a good crossover for middle grade readers looking to get into ya. if there's a middle schooler in your life who loved the 39 Clues books, i think they'll love this.
overall i enjoyed this, it's not the best heist novel i've ever read but it's far from the worst. the stakes are high, there's a ton of tension, and all of the characters play to their archetypes really well. it feels like a very classic heist story, just with a diverse teenage cast instead of a bunch of men in their forties. i did get frustrated by the amount of miscommunication and what felt like unnecessary conflict between characters, and there's a couple switches in allegiance that felt like they came out of nowhere. this was fun though, it was a good book to kill time with (i read a good chunk of this on buses to and from the doctor and it was a nice distraction).
arc provided by Penguin Teen and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
overall i enjoyed this, it's not the best heist novel i've ever read but it's far from the worst. the stakes are high, there's a ton of tension, and all of the characters play to their archetypes really well. it feels like a very classic heist story, just with a diverse teenage cast instead of a bunch of men in their forties. i did get frustrated by the amount of miscommunication and what felt like unnecessary conflict between characters, and there's a couple switches in allegiance that felt like they came out of nowhere. this was fun though, it was a good book to kill time with (i read a good chunk of this on buses to and from the doctor and it was a nice distraction).
arc provided by Penguin Teen and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Gun violence, and Blood
lastblossom's review
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
tl;dr
Seamless combination of heist and competition with tons of tasty plot twists, and a hint of romance to round everything out.
Thoughts
Um, this book is excellent? Not that I didn't expect to love it, but I didn't expect to love it this much. Two of my favorite genres are heists, and mysterious competitions hosted by shadowy figures. So the combination of such is already right up my alley, but also Kayvion Lewis absolutely nails the execution - a perfect balance of both ideas. The showcased heist is cleverly planned and very satisfying, and I enjoyed all the twists and turns as the characters competed to outdo each other. There's also a romance subplot that took a back seat to the story kind of by necessity, but the chemistry was pretty sparking. I actually appreciated the rivalry plot with a childhood frenemy even more, with all of its serious girlboss vibes. Although it doesn't technically end on a cliffhanger, there is just enough of an open door that we might see more in the future. I'd certainly be happy if we did.
Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group for the advance copy. All thoughts in this review are my own.
Seamless combination of heist and competition with tons of tasty plot twists, and a hint of romance to round everything out.
Thoughts
Um, this book is excellent? Not that I didn't expect to love it, but I didn't expect to love it this much. Two of my favorite genres are heists, and mysterious competitions hosted by shadowy figures. So the combination of such is already right up my alley, but also Kayvion Lewis absolutely nails the execution - a perfect balance of both ideas. The showcased heist is cleverly planned and very satisfying, and I enjoyed all the twists and turns as the characters competed to outdo each other. There's also a romance subplot that took a back seat to the story kind of by necessity, but the chemistry was pretty sparking. I actually appreciated the rivalry plot with a childhood frenemy even more, with all of its serious girlboss vibes. Although it doesn't technically end on a cliffhanger, there is just enough of an open door that we might see more in the future. I'd certainly be happy if we did.
Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group for the advance copy. All thoughts in this review are my own.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Emotional abuse, and Death of parent
Minor: Racism
More...