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haliwriteswords 's review for:
Portrait of a Thief
by Grace D. Li
“Museums and shattered glass, Paris and street races in the glittering dark.”
Thank you to Netgalley and Tiny Reparations Books for providing me with an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest opinion.
Portrait of a Thief by Grace D. Li is all of your favorite heist movies combined into one thrilling, scenic novel. This book has everything you could ever want from high-stakes theft, an ensemble cast of unique characters, women kissing women, and reparations for art stolen.
The thing I loved most about Portrait of a Thief was that I never had any idea what was going to happen next. Truly. I spent half the book thinking maybe these college students with unimaginable dreams would get away with their crimes, and half the book thinking there was no way in hell they’d come out unscathed. Somehow, I was wrong the entire time.
When an author writes a book with an ensemble cast of characters, each one having POVs, it isn’t uncommon for the complexity of some of the characters to be lost, or overshadowed by the significance of the others. This, however, wasn’t a problem in Portrait of a Thief. Each character was developed with a careful balance, each one attended to perfectly. I felt like I completely understood the motives of the whole crew of thieves, their dreams and desires, and yet they still managed to surprise me along the way. It takes true talent to write something so delicate.
The aesthetics of the book were so beautiful, so perfect, it created an incredibly vivid image in my mind of the scenery, of the emotions of every chapter, every moment. It felt like I was watching a movie inside my head.
The only complaint I had while reading is that I felt some moments dragged on a bit too long, and I found myself wanting to skip some of the internal monologue that repeated itself occasionally throughout the story. I think, if I could, I would rate this book 4.5 stars.
Grace D. Li spun glittering miracles while writing Portrait of a Thief, and I was entranced by the sheer talent I saw in these pages. I would recommend this book to people that love art, and those that find themselves falling for the criminal against all better judgement.
If you’d like to hear what I think about other books, subscribe to my Youtube Channel, Lipstick & Literature!
Thank you to Netgalley and Tiny Reparations Books for providing me with an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest opinion.
Portrait of a Thief by Grace D. Li is all of your favorite heist movies combined into one thrilling, scenic novel. This book has everything you could ever want from high-stakes theft, an ensemble cast of unique characters, women kissing women, and reparations for art stolen.
The thing I loved most about Portrait of a Thief was that I never had any idea what was going to happen next. Truly. I spent half the book thinking maybe these college students with unimaginable dreams would get away with their crimes, and half the book thinking there was no way in hell they’d come out unscathed. Somehow, I was wrong the entire time.
When an author writes a book with an ensemble cast of characters, each one having POVs, it isn’t uncommon for the complexity of some of the characters to be lost, or overshadowed by the significance of the others. This, however, wasn’t a problem in Portrait of a Thief. Each character was developed with a careful balance, each one attended to perfectly. I felt like I completely understood the motives of the whole crew of thieves, their dreams and desires, and yet they still managed to surprise me along the way. It takes true talent to write something so delicate.
The aesthetics of the book were so beautiful, so perfect, it created an incredibly vivid image in my mind of the scenery, of the emotions of every chapter, every moment. It felt like I was watching a movie inside my head.
The only complaint I had while reading is that I felt some moments dragged on a bit too long, and I found myself wanting to skip some of the internal monologue that repeated itself occasionally throughout the story. I think, if I could, I would rate this book 4.5 stars.
Grace D. Li spun glittering miracles while writing Portrait of a Thief, and I was entranced by the sheer talent I saw in these pages. I would recommend this book to people that love art, and those that find themselves falling for the criminal against all better judgement.
If you’d like to hear what I think about other books, subscribe to my Youtube Channel, Lipstick & Literature!