Review of "Heist Society" by Ally Carter

"Heist Society"
by Ally Carter


5

Pub. Date: February 9, 2010
Pages: 304

Synopsis: 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.

Ally Carter’s “Heist Society” had me hooked from the first chapter. Even though I knew the basic premise of the book, I loved how Carter took her time developing Kat’s character. Even though we have an idea about her past, she really gets flushed out as the story continues and when new characters are introduced. Kat’s relationship with Hale was another highlight to the story. It is clear that they both have feelings for each other, but it is interesting to see how their flirty friendship unfolds. I also really enjoyed meeting Kat’s family, both her relatives and the one she made for herself in the life of crime.

The plot of the story was very fast past. Arturo Taccone made a great villain for the story and I truly feared for Kat’s father’s safety. Even when the characters came up with plans they thought would work, there would be a twist or something would go wrong and I started worrying all over. Some sacrifices were made and I'm not sure if I would be brave enough to make those decisions. The characters really surprised me how much they were willing to give up in order to help the people they loved.

I was never really interested in reading any of Ally Carter's books before, but now I think I might try her "Gallagher Girls" Series. I just couldn't put "Heist Society" down and I have heard really great things about the rest of her books. I hope that Carter starts on the next book in the series soon, because I can't wait to see what she has in store for her characters.