by Ally Carter
ages: 12+
First sentence: “No on knew for certain when the trouble started at Colgan school.”
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Why is it that we, as normal people, love stories about thieves? About good people who live just outside the law? Or, even better yet, about good-looking, rich people traveling the world doing things, buying things, that normal people can’t even dream about doing.

You make those people teenagers, and you’ve basically got the idea of what this book is about. Though don’t get me wrong: this book is a LOT of fun. Impossible, improbable, sure. But unputdownable fun.

Kat has walked away from the family “business” of stealing things. Robbing museums, banks, mansions, you name it; she was the grease man, the inside man, the go-to girl. Then, in her biggest con, she got into an exclusive boarding school. She wanted, needed a normal life. However, it turns out that she can’t get away from family. Three months into her self-imposed exile, she gets kicked out because of a prank she didn’t pull (she was framed!). Turns out that her father is in trouble; he was framed for a job he didn’t do, and now a powerful mobster is out to get him. And it’s Kat who has the know-how, and her friend and former co-conspirator, Hale, who has the resources, to get him out of trouble. Even if it means traveling the world, trying to find the trail of the real thief. Even if it means robbing a famous high-security museum in England.

It takes an incredible suspension of disbelief to make this book work — really? 16-year-olds popping all over the world? Right… — but, suspend it, and you will have fun. There’s action, adventure, suspense, thrills, laughs, hot guys (both British and American, take your pick), and romance. It’s about family; sure they’re mostly dysfunctional, but hey: they care.

The ending was a bit abrupt for my taste; there’s one string left hanging that I wish would have been wrapped up. I suppose it was for the best though, to leave a little mystery. While I don’t think there’s a need for a sequel, I sure wouldn’t mind hanging out with Kat and her gang some more.