Love me a good heist novel! If done well (which this one was) a heist novel can be highly entertaining. I found this one to be fast paced, and very cinematic.

I am a member of the American Library Association Reading List Award Committee. This title was suggested for the 2021 list. It was not nominated for the award. The complete list of winners and shortlisted titles is at <a href="https://rusaupdate.org/2021/02/2021-reading-list-years-best-in-genre-fiction-for-adult-readers/">

The unbearable weight of family is not an uncommon theme in crime entertainment — see a solid, oh, 70% of every gangster film ever made — but in Stan Parish’s luminous (yeah, I said it! It’s luminous) heist novel, Love and Theft, that theme is polished to a gleaming, glittering sheen and presented to the reader in a crisp 272 pages. It’s been months since I’ve stayed up late to finish a novel, but that’s what I did last night with Love and Theft, and perhaps it was a bad idea; my heart was pounding up until the very last page, making it somewhat difficult to calm down enough to go to sleep once I was done.

The novel kicks off in a dizzying fashion. Something ominous and strange seems to be happening at a Las Vegas hotel and casino. Through a series of cinematic vignettes — from the point of view of a fifth-grade boy, a security guard, a valet attendant, a cop, a manicurist, and more — we are quickly made to understand that this something is an elaborate heist of a very, very expensive diamond necklace from a small shop deep within the protected environs of the sprawling casino complex.

After this initial jolt of an introduction, things slow down for about 100 pages. We get to know Alex Cassidy, the mastermind of the jewel theft, and Diane Alison, a caterer and single mom with a keen sense of observation. They quickly fall in love, but on a trip to Tulum with their adult children, they discover their pasts are dangerously tangled, and their future together depends on pulling off one last heist. Unlike previous heists, which the obsessive, meticulous Alex takes months or years to plan, for this one, they have four days.
The setup of their relationship, their shared history, and how Alex got into this sordid business in the first place is leisurely, but never drags. Every detail feeds into something greater, making the concluding 150 pages breathless and satisfying.

Parish excels at plotting that’s messy in a natural way. Things don’t line up artificially here; there’s nothing tidy about the world he’s created, glamorous and dingy by turns. But I’d argue Parish’s plotting, while brilliant, isn’t what carries this novel. It is, rather, the relationships between these characters — Alex, Diane, Alex’s captivating daughter Paola and Diane’s son Tom — and, most crucially, their dialogue, that forms the book’s gorgeous foundation. It’s rare to read dialogue this well-formed and entertaining (the last book I read with conversations as enthralling as this was Kiley Reid’s Such A Fun Age), and here, it’s noir-like, snappy and sharp. I’d love to see it adapted, though the risk of seeing it butchered with the wrong energy does make me nervous.

Like the lively dialogue, Parish’s descriptions are compact and clever. In one scene, we meet a group of young, unemployed bullfighters: they’re jostling beside the pool, violence in the air, before they quickly and startlingly transition to salsa dancing. The scene shocks and delights the onlookers; by the end of the book, it will become clear that one of these rowdy young men conceals an astute genius that goes above and beyond that Alex needs for his heist. In another, we’re allowed insight into Diane’s dissatisfaction and sadness about her life in a mere two sentences:

“For years, she had been prone to spells of depression that lasted weeks and sometimes months before they burned off like a fog. Every bout left her lower than it found her and she sometimes wondered if life amounted to the gradual relinquishment of happiness, a war lost inch by inch.”

I delayed reading Love and Theft. I received it months ago, but thrillers aren’t my favorite genre; I’m often left unsatisfied, as if I’ve been swept over the story without ever getting allowed down and in. This novel took what was already a delightful streak of great reading the past few weeks and turned it up to eleven. If you want a book that grabs you by the hand and doesn’t let go even after you’ve turned the last page, pick up Love and Theft.

This book is everything that is advertised and more. From the opening scenes to the very last page I glued to this story and even then, I was still wanting more. As the book opens and you are taken from a call in the Vegas dispatcher you are then taken to another scene, while the robbery is taking place the author takes you eyes of a young boy and his phone where he is videoing the scene even to the point of making sure that the blinking icon appears so the boy knows he is recording.
You are taken through each scene as part of the criminals and also the investigators. To all of the different places around the Globe, this story takes you to and also different characters you meet along the way. Each one has a purpose and is key to this story and some you take you back in time with a young criminal just starting out and how everything comes full circle. When you get to the end you should be ready for some surprises and plenty of twists. This is a fantastic story that you will not want to put down but will be with you for a while and you will think about the next time you walk into a Vegas Casino.

I looooved the fast paced journey that was this book. What a phenomenal thriller. See linked review below.

LOVE AND THEFT
Stan Parish
Doubleday Books
ISBN: 978-0-385-54524-2
Hardcover
Thriller

It has been six years since author Stan Parish favored us with DOWN THE SHORE, a mixed genre novel much beloved by everyone who read it. LOVE AND THEFT, Parish’s sophomore effort, is here at last, and if he has been lingering over it his effort certainly shows. LOVE AND THEFT is one of the best novels of the year thus far, being worth your time, money, and undivided attention.

LOVE AND THEFT, as with DOWN THE SHORE, blurs genres to great effect. It is part caper novel, part police procedural, part love story (as opposed to romance), and, by the way, very much a thriller as well. It begins with a daring --- make that insane --- jewel heist carried out inside of a hotel/casino shopping mall in Las Vegas then makes a two- week jump and a cross-country switcheroo to Princeton, New Jersey. Alex Cassidy, the master thief who organized the heist, is attending a gathering in Princeton where he meets a woman named Diane Alison. Diane has a very successful party planning and catering business. Diane is well known, while Alex, for obvious reasons, stays off of the radar. There is an almost instant attraction between them which is almost but not quite derailed when the pair discovers that their lives have overlapped, however briefly, in the past. That does not prevent them from taking a holiday in Spain with Diane’s son in tow, just to see if they can explore the mutual though somewhat prickly feeling between them. Alex, for his part, is finding that his emotions toward Diane are moving him towards the decision to quit his life of crime and retire on the considerable bank he has accumulated. What he does not know is that one of his crew in the jewelry theft has turned Judas on him to local and Federal authorities in Las Vegas. That problem is going to intersect when a local cartel forces Alex to pull off one last job, that being the kidnapping of a wealthy Chinese industrialist who is coming to Spain, a task which Alex, who meticulously plans everything, has no time to prepare for. Given that Alex’s past sins have come back to haunt him, however, he has no choice. The conclusion comes in a series of chain reactions which affect almost everyone involved, and not in a good way. There are twists, turns, and surprises galore, with the suspense amped up to eleven and possibly an issue or two which is left unresolved at the end, though there may be enough characters surviving at that point to sally forth into a sequel. While a followup to LOVE AND THEFT would be terrific, however, the story is simply terrific on its own.

LOVE AND THEFT will make you want to be a thief when you grow up. It’s that good. Parish’s third person, present tense narrative provides an immediacy to the goings-on that leave the reader unable to guess precisely what will happen next almost right up to the final paragraphs of the book. The bumps and scrapes that Alan and Diane experience in the road of their relationship feel real as well, and provide a nice counterpoint to the action, which will leave the reader happily drained in all of the best ways. Hopefully we won’t have to wait six years for Parish’s next book, though I am sure it will be worth it if we do. For now, we have LOVE AND THEFT to read again. And again. Strongly recommended.

Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub
© Copyright 2020, The Book Report, Inc. All rights reserved.

I haven't read too many heist-type books and I found Love and Theft to be quite entertaining. I liked the differing POV chapters and found myself quickly wanting to know what was going to happen next. The second half of the book was definitely more exciting than the first half. Full of action.

What a fantastic, high-octane surprise. I loved this novel. I hope this becomes a massive bestseller. It’s been a while since I’ve read a heist novel, and I read it with coffee in one sitting. I hope these characters come back for round two. I’ll tell everyone. Mr. Parish is a fantastic talent and the book is a total rollercoaster

From the beginning you know this is going to be a thriller, when four motorcyclists attempt a brazen jewel theft in a high-end boutique in Las Vegas. The juxtaposition of the characters doing the narrating is interesting. They are so diverse, from the leader of the heist to a fifth grader. The writing is top notch, Its clear the author has worked at places like Vanity Fair and GQ.

You know that book you didn’t even know you needed until you started it, and found it was exactly what you wanted? That was this book. Stan_parish has solved your dilemma of where do I go now that I can’t travel anywhere? He takes you to gorgeous Tulum Mexico, but I’m getting ahead of myself.
I’m a bit fan of Robert Crais and his Elvis Cole novels, and there was something that brought those to mind as this heist caper starts off with a high octane theft in Vegas that ricochets like a ball set loose in a pinball machine unfurling like the opening of a Bond film. From here we meet Alex Cassidy, a charming single Dad who one evening at a cocktail party meets Diane Allison, also a single parent. They immediately hit it off, trading witty repartee like two characters in a Coward play weighed down with sexual tension. Before long their relationship grows and he invites she and her son (whom I might add, is coincidentally connected to a man from Alex’s past) down to his home in the aforementioned Tulum for a little vacation. As Alex falls harder for her, he sees the promise of new chapter, and one that can close the book on a life as a career criminal. But the decision to take a final job might be the difference that causes a carefully built house of cards to topple with deadly results. I loved Alex and Diane as well as their kids, not to mention Alex’s business associates. Parish has crafted a snappy cast of characters that play against the stunning backdrop of Mexico. This is the literary equivalent of the sophisticated summer blockbuster, and a damn fun ride.

Love and Theft is such a fun and unique plot! Love Stan Parish's voice... this is a great book that you won't regret reading!

Please, please tell me someone has bought the movie rights for this.

I saw a bookstagrammer describe Love and Theft as “like if Don Winslow wrote To Catch a Thief.” Which sounded like the best thing ever. As long as that assessment was correct.

And it absolutely was.

This is a hugely fun, action-packed, and relatively light heist book, terrifically escapist but clever enough to keep the reader captivated. Think of it as a beach read with a brain.

While the story often moves at breakneck pace, affection for the characters is more of a slow burn that grows as the book progresses.

The comparisons to Don Winslow feel at least somewhat prescient. I would recommend this to someone who likes Winslow’s style and subject matter but can’t take all the torture and tragedy. Sort of Don Winslow lite, the PG-13 version or something.

The story hooks you from the jump, opening with a wild jewel heist and subsequent motorcycle chase in Las Vegas. Though the action comes in rolls and never again reaches the fever pitch of the opening chapter, there’s plenty of propulsive content, and Alex’s rumination on and strategy for his work are beyond fascinating.

I could have done without the largely pointless 3 day long, drug-fueled parties and some of the hokey gender stereotyping, but these are minor gripes for a book I enjoyed very much.

Love and Theft is the summer blockbuster of novels. Buckle up.

This book was so much fun and I enjoyed the con and the romance . I also liked the kids and trying to do all that he could to save the kids from the bad guys. I enjoyed this book and how they meet. Overall I will read more by this author.

Love and Theft by Stan Parish, I felt completely lost through most of this book and had a hard time finishing it. Thank you for giving me a chance with this book.

This book starts out with a fabulous heist in Las Vegas. The author sets the scene and the follow through. He creates a great anti-hero in Alex, but then the book sinks under the weight of the second half.

Alex meets a woman who is a catalyst for a career change, but they both get involved in a final job. Here is where they lost me. Parish filled it with toooo many characters, most with Spanish names and I was totally confused. Some were bad guys, some were allies of the protagonist. After a while, I just gave up.

He then throws in a ridiculous kidnapping with an absurd setup. So, the bright promise of this novel, simply fell apart.

Thank you Netgalley for this opportunity, but I cannot really recommend this book.