Reviews

Portrait of a Thief by Grace D. Li

cardanivy's review against another edition

2.0

I think the author was trying to make Irene into some #girlboss character but just ended up making her completely insufferable. the "heist" was abandoned half way and I basically lost interest there on top of that they were using fucking google docs and whatsapp to plan it like wtf?????
anyway ig my expectations were too high, but i LOVED daniel's character and would do anything for him <33

lady_pepperoni's review against another edition

medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No

2.0

melsbookshelves03's review against another edition

3.5

3.5 rounding up to 4 for GoodReads. This was a solid debut novel but not one that is going to make my favorites of the year. This is not a book I would've picked up on my own but one that was in an Illumicrate box when I was subscribed. I got the audiobook from the library and I wish each character was narrated by a different person, but having one female narrator and one male narrated was at least better than just one narrator. Despite it being a genre I only dip my toes into, I enjoyed reading this contemporary story. However, I do think major disbelief needs to be suspended when reading this novel because I don't think any of this could actually happen in real life. This is not necessarily a bad thing but I did struggle sometimes with how easy the plot progressed at points. I am not sure if this is classified as young adult but it did feel very YA to me personally and I think a younger audience would have an easier time suspending disbelief while reading. The theme in this one is the best part in my opinion and it is a somewhat educational book on how art museums have acquired their art. I recommend this one to a younger reading audience especially those that have any interest in art museums.

ad_tortuga's review against another edition

didn’t enjoy his much they talked about ivy league schools. couldn’t get into the characters and the narrator 

daburckin's review against another edition

3.0

i love the concept but i feel like it lacked nuance and so much more could’ve been delved into instead or repeating facts about the characters that we found out in the first chapter

baileygrinter's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

sarahmariaq's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective medium-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

4.0

fayestrange's review against another edition

3.0

3.5

I liked it! It was fun and a lot of lines resonated with me. Some of the characters just didn’t do it for me. Some of the plot felt a little contrived and I didn’t buy it.

Want to read more from Grace D. Li!

lillianrose30's review against another edition

adventurous inspiring 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? No

3.25

jowiththetbrshelves's review against another edition

emotional informative tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

3.25

I loved the idea and themes of this book a bit more than its actual execution. It’s trying to do a lot, and that bogs it down a bit. It uses the heist plot to delve into discussions of colonialism, power, morality, history, and the American dream.

 I enjoyed the complexity of all of the characters and the multiple narrators make sense, as the author is also illustrating the myriad ways that Chinese Americans (and children of diaspora in general) may experience America(ness), but the narrative gets bogged down by its multiple view points and repetitive language.