Review: Heist Society by Ally Carter

From Inside Jacket: When Katarina Bishop was three, her parents took her to the Louvre ... to case it. For her seventh birthday, Katarina and her Uncle Eddie traveled to Austria ... to steal the crown jewels. When Kat turned fifteen, she planned a con of her own - scamming her way into the best boarding school in the country, determined to leave the family business behind. Unfortunately, leaving "the life" for a normal life proves harder than she'd expected. Soon, Kat's friend and former co-conspirator, Hale, appears out of nowhere to bring her back into the world she tried so hard to escape. But he has good reason: a powerful mobster's priceless art collection has been stolen and he wants it returned. Only a master thief could have pulled off this job, and Kat's father isn't just on the suspect list, he is the list. Caught between Interpol and a far more deadly enemy, Kat's dad needs her help. For Kat there is only one solution: track down the paintings and steal them back. So what if it's a spectacularly impossible job? She's got two weeks, a teenage crew, and, hopefully, just enough talent to pull off the biggest heist in her family's (very crooked) history - and with any luck, steal her life back along the way.

My Rating: 4.5 hearts

 

Thoughts on the Novel: I’ve never read the Gallagher Girls series and so Heist Society happens to be my first Ally Carter novel. A combination of mystery and action that had Kat traveling all over Europe, Heist Society was just so much fun to read, which is why I’m now eagerly waiting for Carter to finish writing Heist Society 2.  

Each of the characters in Heist Society had their own distinct personality, and I loved the loyalty they displaced to each other – how many people would be willing to help a friend steal paintings from a museum? I think it would be awesome if Carter decided to write some short stories about any one of the secondary characters. In fact, reading about how Hale and Kat met would be pretty interesting, and I’m sure Angus and Hamish’s story would be hilarious.

It was also pretty interesting to read about the schemes the characters came up with since they had to steal not one, but five, paintings from one of the world’s most secure – albeit fictional – museums. Stealing may be completely wrong, but Carter made it sound like such a blast and just made me wish I could join Kat’s crew! No worries though, I’m still a good girl at heart.

Heist Society was released by Hyperion Book CH in February 2010.  

Comments About the Cover: This is one of those of covers that simply snags your attention and refuses to let go. I love how the smile on the girl’s face totally conveys that she’s got a secret and is probably up to no good, and the way the cover subtly tells you what the novel is about because one side of the sunglasses has a painting being reflected back whereas in the other side, the painting is gone.