I love young adult mystery thrillers. This one had a lot of twists and turns I didn’t see coming, and I loved the mysterious aspect.

What happens when you're caught in the middle of a con? You get sent to an academy that specializes in it. Brynn's life changes in ways she can't imagine when she goes to Vale Hall. There is nothing like a conspiracy thriller with pawns and manipulators alike!

In my humble opinion, not enough people are appreciating miss Simmons. Her writing is impeccable. This book? Wonderful. Fans of Jennifer Lynn Barnes will really enjoy it. I admired Brynne pretty much from the start—level-headed and determined, she was an easy character to root for.
The whole con artist school for young adults screams bad idea to me because how are you supposed to trust anyone? Imagine being around that all the time! But nevertheless, questionable choices aside, it was an interesting setting and I was instantly hooked onto it. With the way Simmons writes and every character warranting a heavy side eye, I couldn't get enough of this book.

I tried to get into this book numerous times but it just doesn't seem to be the right time whenever I try. I actually own the entire trilogy now so I will be trying again in the future. The covers are gorgeous and the plot sounds good so I hope I am in the mood soon.

I received a copy from the publisher via Netgalley for an honest review.

This story was WILD! This has a very Ocean's Eleven vibe with the various bits of cons, big and small, occurring throughout this novel. And then there are even bigger things going on that just floored me when the truth came out! This was a novel I was so excited to blow through and enjoyed immensely. This is the beginning of a trilogy and I cannot wait to continue on with the trilogy!

This is a pretty good YA thriller . The beginning was fairly slow but did pick up at the end . Would recommend to young readers .
****This eArc was provided by Netgalley for an honest review*****

This book was a pure delight in the plot’s twist and turns. Brynn is trying to escape devon park and move on to college. Her mom is with a drug dealer, and he steals all the money that Brynn has saved from working and pulling off small cons. When she is recruited to the elusive Vall Hall, her whole world can change at the drop of a hat. When you leave your past behind, it is not all rainbows and sunshine. It is how you move forward from that past: the rainbow and sun. There is swoony romance, murder mystery, and some very intriguing characters. The author takes the tale of Odin, who would send his soldiers out to steal souls and instead sets in an elusive school where this Odin sends the students out to steal secrets that may just change the world.

It’s about a fancy boarding school for grifter teens, you guys. If that is up your alley, you will dig this book. If not, steer clear. I found it fun and funny — not a great book but a totally enjoyable read. (Apparently the author intended it as a riff on Norse mythology, but I did not get that at all.)

❝ Get in and get out. The stakes may be higher, but this is just another con. ❞

I’m so excited to share my thoughts on this book because it was one of my favorite reads of 2019! This book hit everything on my checklist: strong characters, romance, great plot, and a fast pace! Brynn’s life is hell and she’ll do anything to escape. She cons her days away in the hopes of saving enough money to climb her way out of her situation. When she gets a chance to get the future she dreams of it seems too good to be true.

Vale Hall is everything she wants and more than it seems. It’s not long before she figures out that Vale Hall is pretty much a school for con artists, and if she does well and graduates she will get into any school she wants. I love the concept! Especially when you added in that the students had assignments that helped them take down bad people. I had so much fun reading about their missions, assignments, and classroom lessons!

❝ “There’s a gray area between right and wrong. You’re here because you see that. Not everyone does.” ❞

Besides the plot, we had a very strong female lead. Brynn was stuck in a bad situation at home. Her mother’s boyfriend is abusive and a total jerk, but Brynn never stopped believing she could choose her own future. She worked hard for it; she didn’t follow her dreams, she chased them.

And for fans of romance, there’s something for you too! The romance in this one developed really nicely. I love that it was organic and not insta-romance! It was pretty sweet and Caleb could be a total softy. Even though he looked out for Brynn and was protective of her, he didn’t treat her like she was useless. He was supportive and understanding, and I totally loved his character!

Another great plus for this book was the plot development. This series could definitely carry on for a while with Brynn and her classmates carrying on different missions, but I enjoy the fact that we also had ties to the headmaster and other classmates that would help carry this into the next book.

I can’t wait for the next book in the series. The Deceivers is a book I think any fan of contemporary romance and mystery YA would love.

This is going to be a short review. I just realised as I was thinking about The Deceivers that I didn’t actually have all that much to say.

For a book that was marketed as Pretty Little Liars meets Ocean’s 11 I found The Deceivers to be rather boring. The story just didn’t manage to capture my attention, which was a surprise to me as the premise for it sounded amazing. And I usually tend to enjoy stories about con-artists. There wasn’t enough cons or heists in this book, which I found disappointing. I found the end to be confusing as well, so that didn’t help my overall enjoyment of the story.

I didn’t particularly care about any of the characters. None of them managed to capture my interest. Also, I felt that there were too many characters involved in the overall story that I found it hard to keep track of them. That also might be due to the fact that they weren’t that well developed, which lead me to be confused who some of them were. Though, to be fair, that could also be due to the fact that I wasn’t all that interested in what was going on in the story (so my brain might not have taken in all the information). The romance in this book felt unnecessary and I didn’t care for it, which comes as no surprise since I didn’t care about any of the characters.

Overall, The Deceivers just wasn’t a book for me. I didn’t hate it or anything like that, I just found myself very bored while reading it. I don’t plan on continuing with this series.

Much like Pretty Little Liars, this book was unexpected. Everything I thought I knew, was wrong. The twists and the turns crept up on me and left me turning page after page after page devouring more. It was fun while also thrilling and mysterious.
Honestly what drew me to this story initially was the comparison to pretty little liars and the author did not disappoint. I look forward to reading more by her in the future. Thank you for the opportunity to review such a wonderful book. I have followed the author on amazon and goodreads and will be checking out her other works very soon.

This fell really flat for me, but I don't think that's the book's fault. I think I'm just not the target audience, or it's just not my cup of tea.

things I liked:
the pace, the writing style, the dialogue

things I disliked:
the ending, the way the plot seemed to drag in the middle, the characters felt a bit flat to me, there didn't seem to be a lot of character development that enabled me to FEEL something for the characters. I want to feel the emotions the MC feels and I just didn't.

3 stars.

If you're thinking this may be a little teen angsty - it totally is.

It's also fun!

You have a diverse group of teens dealing with some very real problems who get a chance to make all those problems go away. The only thing is that the solution to their issues - just might kill them!

At times you're going to have to suspend that sense of disbelief, but if you just let yourself go along for the ride, you get a highly entertaining read.

I really enjoyed this one!

*ARC via Net Galley

The beginning of this book is so dark that I hesitated to keep reading. Kristen Simmons gives her heroine Brynn a soul crushing backstory, so when Brynn gets the chance to escape, you will want to reach into the book and shove her forward, just to make sure she leaves.

Vale Hall, where Brynn is recruited to attend, may not be a bastion of education, but it does provide somewhat safe refuge for Brynn, provided she is good at the con jobs she’s called to do.

The cast of characters is entertaining, if not a bit standard fare. I didn’t always like Brynn, although I dearly hoped she would emerge from this mess being stronger and at peace. I loved Caleb, though. LOVED HIM. He’s one of those swoony YA heroes you wish were real.

The story at the heart of this book is good. Where I’d get kind of frustrated was with the drug use. I get it. The kids do drugs. But at times it felt like Kristen Simmons put too heavy an emphasis on it. I couldn’t tell whether I was supposed to be worried about these kids getting addicted or overdosing (or both), or if I was supposed to worry about why they were at Vale Hall in the first place.

This is the first book in a series, so you’re going to have to decide if you’re invested enough to keep going. I think I am. If nothing else, I like a lot of what Kristen Simmons does here, and I’d like to read more from her.

Loved it! Compelling characters, intriguing storyline, and it kept me turning the pages. Kristen Simmons weaved together a very addicting story. I loved Brynn, she was a very strong main character who was relatable.

I LOVED the idea of Vale Hall. The idea of a school made to create con-artists makes for a really great story and is super unique. This book is compared to Pretty Little Liars and I was defiantly getting that vibe. There were plot twists, lies, and unforgettable twists that made the novel very compelling.

Overall, I think this book was enjoyable and a perfect read for someone looking for a page-turner.

I see a lot of students gravitate towards mysteries that involve con artists, and intrigue. This book was written well and I could connect with the characters. I have already recommended that our school library purchase this book and I know I'll be recommending it to my 7th graders in the fall.

I loved this book! It's been awhile since I've read a book like this one! Twists and turns! Cant wait to tell the others! Thank you netgalley for the free arc in exchange for an honest review!

This was a pretty average read.I was interested in the school and the assignments, but I think I would have enjoyed this more if it had adults instead of teenagers. I'm just over the teen drama. Also I felt like nothing really happens, and when something seems to happen everything gets wrapped up in a clean bow. Maybe because this is only the first book in the series and this was just the set-up, but I needed a little more to find a book like this interesting. That being said it was a quick read. I'm not sure if I would continue in the series. Maybe if the plot sounds intriguing.


I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Super fun! I’ve always been a fan of Simmons and this was a new idea from her that I found delightful.

A school for teen cons was the perfect story to quench my thirst for something different. It was filled with twists and turns. I found myself flipping pages to see what would happen next.

I would love to attend Vale Hall! And I’m beyond ready for book two!

*This review and other bookish stuff can be found at https://smadasbooksmack.blogspot.com/ **

Brynn has had a lot to deal with in her life, and if running a few simple cons is all it takes to save some money and get out of her run down neighborhood as soon as she graduates high school, then she is all for it. But when her abusive stepfather finds her "savings" and accuses Brynn of stealing from his illegal drug operation, Brynn needs another option for her life- and fast. When she follows a mysterious boy to party that offers a spot at an elite school as a prize for winning what seems to be a con, Brynn knows this is her chance to get out of her life.

I am sure this says a lot about me as a person, but I love con-artist stories. There is just something so compelling about a con-artist and their attention to detail and the way they read people so perfectly- it is basically like magic (evil, evil dark magic, bust still!). I was lucky enough to have Kristen chat with my book club about the story and her reasons for writing it and her research into conartists was fascinating, making me like the world she created even more since there was realism and research backing all the behaviors and cons. (The fact their was a con-class was the best part of the book to me!)

Kristen was able to create a book that was entertaining and engaging the entire duration, never once did my attention stray or did I want to put the book down. The added touch of mixing mythology in with modern day life helped to create something of a backstory that I had no idea what direction it would take next. Keep in mind that this is not a paranormal book at all, but a YA contemporary mystery/suspense/drama with framework similar to the mythology of Norse culture. I was also really surprised (and super appreciative) that Kristen was able to keep such a light tone with her story even while dealing with dark, heavy subject matters such as abuse, drugs, blackmail, conspiracy and even death.

I loved watching Brynn battle her personal demons in such a fantastic of ways, using her smarts and charm to manipulate the system. No matter the situation, I rooted her on and connected to her as a person. I can't wait to see what Brynn will do next with all the information she uncovered and some potentially hard choices coming up. The story ended well, no cliff hanger, but with me wanting the next installment asap. In case you were uncertain, I am 100% fangirling over this story and think everyone should get their hands on this book to read!