Uncommon Criminals

I love this series.  It's so fun and the second insallment, Uncommon Criminals, is no exception.  The Heist Society novels follow Kat, a girl born and raised a thief, who wants to create her own path in life.  The first novel left her with a worthy cause for her skills and now she spends her time stealing priceless artwork stolen by the Nazis and returning it to the rightful owners.  

In Uncommon Criminals, Visily Romani--a sacred pseudonym in the thief world--sends Kat to steal the cursed Cleopatra Emerald.  If it weren't the most guarded stone in the history of the world (and did I mention it's cursed?), there is the more personal matter that Kat's Uncle Eddie--the head of her family and the best thief Kat has ever known--has forbidden anyone from stealing the emerald after his own failed attempt many years before that caused a fallout with his twin brother.  But everything may not be as it appears--Kat is cocky, drunk off all of her successful heists, and really needs to learn that she is not in this life--both personal and professional--alone.

I really, really loved this book.  Yes, it moved fast.  Yes, I always felt one step behind and found myself constantly scrambling to understand what was happening.  Yes, I'm still not totally sure I understand exactly how they pulled it off.  But, that might be my fault for reading so fast.  I couldn't put this book down, except to giggle in glee between chapters and savor the deliciousness that was reading this book.

The twists were perfect.  There is nothing I like better than getting to a point in a book where I have no idea how the writer is going to bring their characters out of a situation that can't possibly get worse.  And then it does.  And then the solution is a stroke of genius that I never thought possible.  There are several of these moments in Carter's book and I loved every single one of them.

The characters were fun, but they were deep.  They had flaws and histories that we are just staring to unravel.  Watching them struggle on an interpersonal level was just as much fun as watching them plan an impossible heist.  Seeing the similarities between Kat's life and struggles and the mistakes made by her uncles was one of my favorite parts.  Kat--already an old soul--grew up a lot in this book.  She learned a lot about how to live as a person and not just a thief.

I'm really looking forward to rereading both Uncommon Criminals and Heist Society and can't wait to see what else is in store for Kat and her crew.