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sumayyaha's review against another edition
3.0
Rating - 2.5 (Read with Clean YA Book Club)
____________________________________
What I think you should go into this book with:
1. An open mind, this was kind of cheesy. . . like a 2012 movie :/
2. The heart to take the anticipation
3. A little knowledge of painters, or have a device near to search them up like I did xD
What I thought of the book:
I liked it. But mostly I liked Hale. (What can I say, he was the smoothest character.) Besides this, I really liked the whole heist operations, I just wish the author would've shared a teensy bit more info with the readers. Speaking of the author, the way she narrated the book made everyone seem quite pompous and full of themselves and I'm still not sure If I liked this or not? But if you don't like that kind of writing, I recommend you don't pick up this book because it will only anger you. Let's not purposefully anger ourselves, yes? And there were some scenes where I just couldn't place what the characters were talking about like they were sharing inside jokes that I didn't know about :(
There was one trope, stereotype(?) that I cringed at on every page it was mentioned. And that is the constant degrading of Kat's thoughts towards her cousin. What was up with that? It made me feel a bit iffy towards Kat. Her cousin acted like a 'girl' as in a typical 'girly-girl' and so she disliked/was annoyed because of it. Then Kat would say she didn't feel like a girl because she didn't wear 'girly' things or 'act' like one? HUH? Then the whole scene where she finally wore 'girl' clothes. . .
If you read it, I'm sure you know it was totally unnecessary. I feel like the fact that she 'wasn't like other girls' could've been expressed in another way, regardless of how annoying that statement is. Instead, the author chose to use it as a way to say she was 'different' and that she had no other place than in the family business. And this scene with her wearing feminine clothing made me disappointed in half of the characters, I was starting to like some of them. Yeah, so the fact that this was published in 2010 shows, be aware of that.
Moreover, I totally disliked the way Gabrielle (the cousin) was used in the operations. She literally had everyone from the age of puberty and up staring at her cause she wore a skirt? I feel like that was very tactless of the author. Like she couldn't figure out another way for the operation to proceed without mentioning legs and skirts. I really dislike this.
Will I continue with the series? Hm, remains to be seen.
____________________________________
What I think you should go into this book with:
1. An open mind, this was kind of cheesy. . . like a 2012 movie :/
2. The heart to take the anticipation
3. A little knowledge of painters, or have a device near to search them up like I did xD
What I thought of the book:
I liked it. But mostly I liked Hale. (What can I say, he was the smoothest character.) Besides this, I really liked the whole heist operations, I just wish the author would've shared a teensy bit more info with the readers. Speaking of the author, the way she narrated the book made everyone seem quite pompous and full of themselves and I'm still not sure If I liked this or not? But if you don't like that kind of writing, I recommend you don't pick up this book because it will only anger you. Let's not purposefully anger ourselves, yes? And there were some scenes where I just couldn't place what the characters were talking about like they were sharing inside jokes that I didn't know about :(
There was one trope, stereotype(?) that I cringed at on every page it was mentioned. And that is the constant degrading of Kat's thoughts towards her cousin. What was up with that? It made me feel a bit iffy towards Kat. Her cousin acted like a 'girl' as in a typical 'girly-girl' and so she disliked/was annoyed because of it. Then Kat would say she didn't feel like a girl because she didn't wear 'girly' things or 'act' like one? HUH? Then the whole scene where she finally wore 'girl' clothes. . .
If you read it, I'm sure you know it was totally unnecessary. I feel like the fact that she 'wasn't like other girls' could've been expressed in another way, regardless of how annoying that statement is. Instead, the author chose to use it as a way to say she was 'different' and that she had no other place than in the family business. And this scene with her wearing feminine clothing made me disappointed in half of the characters, I was starting to like some of them. Yeah, so the fact that this was published in 2010 shows, be aware of that.
Moreover, I totally disliked the way Gabrielle (the cousin) was used in the operations. She literally had everyone from the age of puberty and up staring at her cause she wore a skirt? I feel like that was very tactless of the author. Like she couldn't figure out another way for the operation to proceed without mentioning legs and skirts. I really dislike this.
Will I continue with the series? Hm, remains to be seen.
nikolinaza's review against another edition
4.0
Actual rating: 3.5 stars
Ever since I read the Gallagher Girls Series, I've been a fan of Ally Carter. Her works were always marvelous—spy girls, president son's talented girl bestfriend/bodyguard, and now, a con girl—and totally hard to miss.
The premise of this book was captivating. Kat's dad is a con man, and someone powerful accused him of thievery. Apparently, those missing things are five paintings came from the time of World War II, making them extremely priceless. Kat has to give them back to their rightful owner (which is obviously not that someone powerful named Arturo Taccone), but at the same time, she can't let Taccone get his hands on her dad.
To be honest, Katarina Bishop resembled Cammie Morgan a bit. Smart, talented, intelligent, knows a lot of language, but Kat's way more cunning and a bit less reckless. Even though this may looked like Ally Carter had made yet another similar character, I had no problem with that. That was one aspect that made her works quite unique, by making the heroine powerful with a lot of badass sidekick. Seeing Kat planning the heist with her gang is marvelous.
But on the other hand, I feel like this book is a bit rushed. This is probably Ally Carter's signature, but there were a lot of foreshadowing of whatever happened to every character in the past which actually would be okay if it wasn't included, because it has no contribution to the whole story besides giving the characters some background. I wouldn't mind if they were inserted during the characters' introductions. But when they were suddenly exist in the middle of an action, it caused a lot of confusion. More than once I had to re-read a paragraph because I was not sure what I've read because of the sudden change of a subject.
Nevertheless, I still love this book. Will be continuing to book #2 because I want to see what has become of Kat and her gang.
P.S. I do think I need my very own W. W. Hale the Fifth in my life.
Ever since I read the Gallagher Girls Series, I've been a fan of Ally Carter. Her works were always marvelous—spy girls, president son's talented girl bestfriend/bodyguard, and now, a con girl—and totally hard to miss.
The premise of this book was captivating. Kat's dad is a con man, and someone powerful accused him of thievery. Apparently, those missing things are five paintings came from the time of World War II, making them extremely priceless. Kat has to give them back to their rightful owner (which is obviously not that someone powerful named Arturo Taccone), but at the same time, she can't let Taccone get his hands on her dad.
To be honest, Katarina Bishop resembled Cammie Morgan a bit. Smart, talented, intelligent, knows a lot of language, but Kat's way more cunning and a bit less reckless. Even though this may looked like Ally Carter had made yet another similar character, I had no problem with that. That was one aspect that made her works quite unique, by making the heroine powerful with a lot of badass sidekick. Seeing Kat planning the heist with her gang is marvelous.
But on the other hand, I feel like this book is a bit rushed. This is probably Ally Carter's signature, but there were a lot of foreshadowing of whatever happened to every character in the past which actually would be okay if it wasn't included, because it has no contribution to the whole story besides giving the characters some background. I wouldn't mind if they were inserted during the characters' introductions. But when they were suddenly exist in the middle of an action, it caused a lot of confusion. More than once I had to re-read a paragraph because I was not sure what I've read because of the sudden change of a subject.
Nevertheless, I still love this book. Will be continuing to book #2 because I want to see what has become of Kat and her gang.
P.S. I do think I need my very own W. W. Hale the Fifth in my life.
mehsi's review
2.0
I would give the book 2.5. It was so-so.
The start of the book was great, only from there it went off to something that I didn't like. I felt like the whole robbery dragged on too long, was too much.
Kat was an interesting character but I didn't really like her at times. I really disliked Nick, never trusted him from the start. Hale was nice, but I felt like he was just added to the book as a pretty boy, needed to flirt/annoy the main girl.
In overall, not my kind of book.
The start of the book was great, only from there it went off to something that I didn't like. I felt like the whole robbery dragged on too long, was too much.
Kat was an interesting character but I didn't really like her at times. I really disliked Nick, never trusted him from the start. Hale was nice, but I felt like he was just added to the book as a pretty boy, needed to flirt/annoy the main girl.
In overall, not my kind of book.
dunder_mifflin's review against another edition
5.0
TEENAGE CRIMINALS!!!!! HELL YES THIS IS EVERYTHING I COULD WANT
issianne's review against another edition
3.0
Is it the best book? No. Did it stir the love of a good heist in my heart at the tender age of 13? Yes. Will I always appreciate it because of that? Yes.
amandalyn's review
4.0
I really enjoyed Carter's first book in this series. While her Gallagher Girls series is really fun, Heist Society had a little bit more serious attitude to it. But not too serious. Just a little more... grown up.
Kat was a very interesting main character. She was torn between family obligation and wanting a life of her own, something I'm sure everyone has struggled with. But as soon as she knew her father was in danger and need her help, she dropped everything without a second thought. That more than anything made me like her.
Kat's relationship with Hale me nuts! I just wanted them to hook up so badly! It's clear that there's something between them, but for whatever reason them wouldn't act on it. Grr...
I loved reading about a teenage thief, knowing no other life than that. I loved learning about her family history and I can't wait to read Uncommon Criminals.
Kat was a very interesting main character. She was torn between family obligation and wanting a life of her own, something I'm sure everyone has struggled with. But as soon as she knew her father was in danger and need her help, she dropped everything without a second thought. That more than anything made me like her.
Kat's relationship with Hale me nuts! I just wanted them to hook up so badly! It's clear that there's something between them, but for whatever reason them wouldn't act on it. Grr...
I loved reading about a teenage thief, knowing no other life than that. I loved learning about her family history and I can't wait to read Uncommon Criminals.
isathetiefling's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
windfire_sky's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Nostalgia reads
inook_u's review against another edition
4.0
Gonna do a written review on this soon. when my 48 hour book challenge is up. (: