Can't Catch Me

Can't Catch Me

• Jul 3, 2013

Heist Society by Ally Carter

Release Date: February 9, 2010
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Pages: 287 pages
Source & Format: Library; Kindle ebook
Series: Heist Society #1
Amazon | Goodreads

Summary (from Amazon)

For as long as she can remember, Katarina has been a part of the family business - thieving. When Kat tries to leave "the life" for a normal life, her old friend Hale conspires to bring her back into the fold. Why? A mobster's art collection has been stolen, and Kat's father is the only suspect. Caught between Interpol and a far more deadly enemy, Kat's dad needs her help.

The only solution is to find the paintings and steal them back. Kat's got two weeks, a teenage crew, and hopefully enough talent to pull off the biggest heist in her family's history - and, with any luck, steal her life back along the way.

Thoughts on Heist Society

While I've seen this series in stores and around the blogosphere, I wasn't really interested in reading them. Why? Something about the covers just didn't appeal to me. I figured they'd be juvenile or cheesy, and those are two things I like to avoid. It wasn't until Magan from Rather Be Reading reviewed this one that I finally decided I ought to put it on my TBR.

One week after starting Heist Society... I've devoured all three of the books in this series! Admittedly, the Summer Series Challenge gave me the extra boost to just keep on reading but still. I was so pleasantly surprised by this one! I've seen a lot of comparisons to the movie Ocean's Eleven, but I just kept thinking of the TV show Alias while I was reading. Katerina isn't a spy - but she still reminded of Sydney Bristow in all her kick-ass glory.

Katerina Bishop comes from a family of thieves, but she wants a different life for herself. She tries to get out of the business, but it follows her wherever she goes. She finds out that her father's the primary suspect in a recent robbery, and it's not just any old art collection. The five paintings belong to a mob boss that you don't want to cross.

Talk about a book that will get you hooked! In no time, Kat's assembling a crew and plotting how she's going to pull off a heist in a place that's supposed to be impossible to rob. I loved reading about Kat putting together her crew and trying to decide on a plan. The fun names for the different kinds of cons had me laughing and trying to imagine what exactly would be involved in that scenario.

Heist Society is a fun, action-packed novel that reads like a movie. Jet-setting across the world - it's fun to picture all the places she's visiting! I didn't have high expectations, but I ended up falling in love with Kat's world and her crew. I particularly enjoyed her best friend, Hale. He's funny, smart, rich and HEY NOW there's some slow burn going on in here. This is one friendship that I can't wait to see become something more!

One thing I loved was the unexpected history lesson - information about valuable artwork stolen by the Nazis during WWII. As a girl who loves learning about history, I was ALL about this aspect of the storyline. I think that really took this story to the next level for me and made it more than just a crime caper.

Don't overlook this book! If you're looking for something fun and light, this is the perfect read for you. Heist Society flew by and had me racing to find out what was going to happen. And then I was racing to the library for book two because I couldn't wait to see what Katerina would get up to next!

So Quotable

"There were times when Kat thought she knew everything there was to know about W. W. Hale the Fifth - with the single exception of his first name - and then there were times like this, when she felt that he was like one of the first edition novels in the library of his upstate house: she hadn't even finished the first chapter."