Bitsy's Books

4 out of 5 StarsSixteen-year-old Katerina Bishop is the latest progeny in a long family line of thieves – and she wants out. How much is it to ask for a normal teenage life? Okay so maybe she did con herself into one of the most prestigious prep schools in the US, but a girl has to start somewhere. However, Kat’s dad has gotten in way over his head with Arturo Taccone, an Italian mob boss, and some painting he may or may not have stolen and Kat’s forced out of her early retirement to save him. With her rag-tag band of teenage thieves, Kat has to pull off her most complicated heist yet.Heist Society isn’t the next great American novel, but it is a fun witty action-packed caper with echoes of Ocean’s Eleven and The Sting. The awesome quirky characters keep you glued to the page with their international adventures. Oh, and did I mention FUN?Kat is a great character. She’s resourceful, witty, and smart, but also makes mistakes and judges people incorrectly. Luckily, Kat is quick on her feet and knows how to keep a cool head dealing with different situations. Some of the best scenes in the book are when she’s interacting with Taccone. Kat’s wit and bravery really shine.And Hale *sigh* Hale is Kat’s best friend/potential boyfriend. He’s fun, flirtatious, confident, and handsome (of course), but he really cares about Kat and will follow her to the ends of the earth. He manages to show this and even be a teeny bit protective without being an annoying asshole (you don’t have to remove the engine from her car to show you care). But most importantly, he trusts Kat, even when trusting her is incredibly hard. He doesn’t interfere, but watches over her from the background. He has confidence that Kat knows what’s best for her and the team. Plus, his interactions with Kat are just too cute.Gabrielle was probably my favorite character. When she first appeared, I groaned, because I was really enjoying the book and I didn’t want an Evil Blonde Cheerleader McSlutface character to ruin it. But luckily, Carter subverts that and Gabriella ends up being one of the more interesting characters. Gabrielle uses her looks and her ‘ditzy blonde’ façade to con people, hiding her intelligence, athleticism, and the fact she’s a damn good thief in her own right. She and Kat don’t get along at first, because Kat does judge Gabrielle on her persona and Gabrielle is justifiably resentful. Throughout the book, Kat realizes she’s misjudged Gabrielle and they bond (granted, rather suddenly). I love when Kat uses Gabriella as her ‘muscle.’The other characters are equally as colorful and the book jet-sets around Europe, visiting London, Paris, Italy, and Vienna among other destinations (I guess it pays to have a thief in the family, eh?). Most of the heists and devices are derivative of other spy/thief shows, but Carter doesn’t act like these are original creations, but plays off of the wealth of her predecessors. The various plans are all tools of the trade and have funny code names such as "Mary Poppins" and "Five O’clock Shadows." Carter also weaves these tropes together in a unique way to create a dramatic and suspenseful story. While the plot does fall apart a bit when you think about it too hard, the book does pull out some pretty good twists of its own. My biggest complaint is the addition of Nick, a rival love-interest, didn’t add anything to the story. Instead I think it took away from the existing character relationships and made Hale look bratty and petulant. I really didn’t like Nick until the end when his *real* identity is revealed. Although I did end up liking Nick, his character felt forced, more of a ‘WE NEED A LOVE TRIANGLE’ rather than a natural progression of the story. The heist didn’t need 7 people, because Hale was pretty useless throughout the heist.Heist Society was fun with great characters, glamorous European cities, and a suspenseful heist. Carter works with older caper stories to create her very own unique story. I’ll definitely be checking out the other books in this series, as well checking out her other series (with teenage spies!).