Book Review: “Jewel Me Twice” by Cherish Reid

First and foremost, I want to thank NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for providing me with an ARC of “Jewel Me Twice” in exchange for my honest review. This was my first book by Cherish Reid, and I must say, I really enjoyed myself!

One of the highlights for me was the portrayal of found family in this story. I absolutely adore books with this theme, and the found family dynamic in “Jewel Me Twice” is top-tier. The book follows Celeste, a skilled thief who now works mostly alone after her past with being part of a larger thief network under the mentorship of her mentor, Doris. Celeste’s life takes a turn for the worst after a heist with the crew goes bad. The failed job costs her not only her friends but also the love of her life, Magnus.

Years later, Celeste receives unexpected news about her mentor, prompting the old gang to reunite for one last big heist. This reunion forces Celeste to face her past, reconnect with her friends, and, of course, come face-to-face with Magnus. The storyline of rekindling old relationships and the tension of a high-stakes heist kept me hooked.

However, while the book excelled in many areas, I found the intimacy between Magnus and Celeste somewhat lacking. The author successfully convinced me of their deep connection, but the intimate scenes didn’t quite match the emotional intensity of their relationship. In this case, I would have preferred a fade-to-black approach rather than the lackluster scenes we got.

Overall, I really enjoyed “Jewel Me Twice.” The strong found family element, engaging storyline, and thrilling heist made for an enjoyable read. Despite my reservations about the romantic aspect, I would absolutely read more from Cherish Reid. I give this book 3.75 stars.

I enjoyed this title so much. It’s like if Ocean’s Eleven and Mr. And Mrs. Smith had a book baby. This is my second book by this author and they do a wonderful job of writing romance in a way that is spicy but not overwhelming. I must also say I didn’t expect this one to be as spicy as it was. It was just enough to make you fall in love with how much Magnus loves Celeste.There’s an element of inconspicuous thievery, second chance romance, and historical flashbacks.

This is a love story of how two thieves must reconnect after the passing of their mentor to do one final heist. Already worth the read of that alone 😂

Oceans 11 but make it HOT 🔥🔥🔥!! I love a good heist storyline and Charish Reid more than delivered! Jewel Me Twice is suspenseful, mysterious, blush worthy and an all around great read!!

Thank you Harlequin Trade Publishing for sending me an advanced copy!

This one's fun. I don't like second chance romances, personal preference, but I requested it because I enjoy the author. This book has great pacing and the right amount of spice.

Who doesn't love a good heist book? I had high hopes this would be my go-to heist book. That being said the author seem to repeat herself a lot though out the book and after a while eye rolling and page skipping might have happened. The diary entries were neat at first but soon it became enough and slowed down the story that was being told.
It had very cute and fun characters, dialogue the story would slow down to the point of page flipping.
Thank you to Netgalley for a copy of Jewel Me Twice

I was incredibly excited for this book! I love the idea of two spies falling in love whilst pulling off a heist! However, this fell flat for me. I stopped reading at 38% in.

Firstly, there were a couple of things that I did enjoy. I liked that the characters were older, in their forties. It’s always refreshing to see older protagonists in romance. I also enjoyed the spy/heist aspect of the book! However, the romance couldn’t keep me interested. The characters lacked chemistry. I didn’t enjoy seeing them together, and the male love interest was just bland to me. I also felt that the pacing was off and the scenes were too long. It was one of those reading experiences where I felt like I had read wayyy more than I actually had because the story was dragging.

This one just wasn’t for me. While reading, I had put it on pause to focus on other books, and then I just realized that I had no desire to continue. But, I am still interested in checking out other books by Charish Reid and hopefully I’ll enjoy another one better!

Thank you NetGalley and Canary Street Press for this arc. All opinions are my own.

P.S. even though this book wasn’t for me, I absolutely loved that a cuddling scene was included! I feel like I don’t see them enough of them in romances, which is shocking, so romance authors, write in more cuddling scenes please🥰

I received an arc copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I thought I'd really enjoy a book about jewel thieves finding a second chance romance. This wasn't it. The characters really weren't well developed in my opinion. I actually didn't even like any of them and found I couldn't get into the story. I kept putting the book aside and reading other things because it just couldn't hold my attention. There was nobody to root for or care about. I just can't recommend this one.

Jewel Me Twice by Charish Reid is a fun adventure if a romance between thieves reunited after the loss of a mentor for one final caper. It’s an interesting crew that reminded me of a classic heist movie. I thought I would love this one & while I liked it, I couldn’t get lost in it as much as I wanted. I did appreciate the undeniable chemistry between the coworkers.

Jewel Me Twice is great for fans of…
💙 Romantic Suspense
💙 Heists
💙 Coworkers/Lovers Reunited Years Later

Massive thanks to NetGalley & Canary Street Press for the gifted copy, which I voluntarily read & reviewed.

Because of my 3 star rating, I am not sharing this anywhere else.

When I first read the synopsis for Jewel Me Twice immediately thought it sounded so good! A heist book with a second chance romance? Sign me up! I don't want it to sound like this book wasn't enjoyable, because it was, but I do feel like there were some things lacking from it that I think made it miss the mark. The characters, romance, and found family aspects of the book were all great. I think where it lost some points for me is in the story and plot itself. I found the story to move quite slowly in some places. I think this might have to do with the amount of things the author was trying to accomplish maybe? The romance, the character building, setting up the heist, showing the other characters, tying in the diary somehow, I just felt like all of this bogged down the progression of the story until it was almost the very end when the heist actually happened. I just wish the story progressed more smoothly and the heist didn't feel so rushed. I would definitely pick up another book by this author! Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars rounded up.

The premise was just so good. A thieving crew brought back together to solve essentially a treasure hunt left by their mentor upon her death. Last most saw each other was years ago after a failed heist.

I dropped half of a star because I felt like some of the middle bit of the book where they were beginning their journey felt weirdly too low stakes BUT it is only a half star because their final heist at the end was so descriptive and had me at the edge of my seat. And also our FMC is given her deceased mentor's journal and we get some excerpts of it (not too long at all don't worry) and I thought it introduced such an impactful theme of self exploration for the FMC. On if how avoidant and isolated she makes herself is worth it, her background on how she learned to trust, and whether her mentor was as much of a positive influence as she previously thought.

The romance was also great. Our MMC is flawed but also suuuper into the FMC. And their spice is amazing. I really loved seeing two tough thieves who know how to lie learn to trust each other again.

Thank you to HTP Hive for the free book!

I’ve been putting off this ARC for months because I realized after I got it that I wasn’t going to be super interested in this concept. I don’t think this plot was ever going to make for my favorite book, but I actually ended up enjoying this more than I expected! It’s one that kept me interested although I can’t say I’m going to be thinking about it a lot. Not going to leave a huge impression, but still a lot of fun!

A thrilling blend of romance and high stakes adventure. I loved the witty banter and the sizzling chemistry between Celeste and Magnus. The pacing is fast, with many twists.
Many thanks to Harlequin Trade Publishing and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

4 stars!

I loved Charish Reid's last book, "Mickey Chambers Shakes It Up," so I was excited to read "Jewel Me Twice." This is not my typical type of romance book, but with Reid's excellent writing at the helm, I ended up really enjoying this second-chance, 40-somethings jewel-heisty affair! Go in knowing that this book is about the heist first and the romance aspect second. If you can temper your expectations on that front, you might end up liking this as much as I did. But believe me...when the romance starts romancing.... ooooooooooh boy, are you in for a treat! I *lived for* the chemistry and the banter between the main characters, Celeste and Magnus. Their interactions had me begging for more every single time they were in a room together! Celest and Magnus are both smart, attractive thieves at the top of their game when something happens that sets them on different paths for five years. When a tragedy brings them back together for one more heist, the attraction between them is still there, but can they put the actions of their past to the side so they can pull off the job? This story is not just about their hotness and their smokin' hot chemistry. There is a deep love and tenderness and yearning between the two of them that is palpable, in my opinion, from page one. I also appreciate the heck out of these characters being in their 40s! YES!! Just because we're in our 40s doesn't mean we're dead, people! Love to Charish Reid for always including characters around that age in her books. There's a lot more at play here that I don't want to spoil, but just know that there is also a found family aspect to this story that will have you connecting to the side characters just as deeply as you'll connect with the main characters. This book is slick, sexy as h3ll, and wildly entertaining! Don't sleep on it!

Thank you to NetGalley, Charish Reid, Canary Street Press, and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the complimentary ARC of this book. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for this review.

This wasn’t exactly on my radar at first because I told myself I wasn’t a fan of heist novels. They stress me out. BUT when I saw the author, I said eff it and gave it a try. Because I will read anything by Charish. Indie or trad. She can take all my money lol

So about the book. If you’re going into this and you’re looking for the romance to be the center, don’t. The biggest part of this book is the heist. And although the romance is here and it’s definitely hinted to on the cover, I would say this is more of a thriller or adventure novel with some romance added to it. I saw this because there’s another heist as soon as the last one is over. It wasn’t a bad thing for me because I love thrillers because they keep me on my toes, but if this isn’t your thing, this is just something to keep in mind.

The romance itself is ok. I liked it enough. Their chemistry was off the charts tho. There were so many times that I said out-loud, “KISS ALREADY” lol And the way the sleeping meds did Magnus was comical lol I laughed out loud like in real life. I thought the romance was a great “romantic relief” for the tense heists that were happening throughout the book. But I do have a question…. What is the name for a second chance romance when they’ve met before but they have a meet cute kinda thing? Because that had me clutching my pearls. I thought things were about to go very different.

The heists were super cool. It was like a scavenger hunt, but with different heists to complete. It was so crazy the way they were under direction from someone too. Idk why, but this had me glued to the pages. And I thought all the places they went were cool too. I also loved that all the characters had their own job and they put them together to become such a well oiled machine. It was very impressive.

The ending was ok. I loved seeing that we might be getting lucky with another one. Because I need to know what happens with…… Yeah. IYKYK. So go pick this one up so that I can get the next one. Because I need to know what other heists they’re going on!

DNF. Started this book but just couldn’t get into it. I liked the premise of there being a heist and having the characters get together for one more job but this just wasn’t for me. Not bad by any means and I still suggest trying it out even though it didn’t work out for me :)

this book coming out days before my birthday was so amazing because I really love love love, the way this book was written. this book was so amazing and I love the way this book remind me of certain movie and its just so amazingly written... please more black stories!

I initially felt like this was gonna be so entertaining and sexy. Which is surprising for me because I don’t care for cat and mouse nor heist books, movies etc. but the heist and ex lover thing sounded so intriguing. I think about the 20% mark is where this book lost me. I feel like i was just aimlessly reading and not fully enjoying. Unfortunately this was just not for me.

When I first read the blurb of this book, I was immediately drawn to the idea of ex-lovers reuniting for a job, giving them a chance to rekindle old feelings and pursue a second chance at love. I found this concept incredibly exciting! I appreciated that the main characters are in their 30s and 40s; it was refreshing to see adults navigating relationships. While there were aspects of the story that I enjoyed, overall, it didn’t quite hit the mark for me. I'm usually a fan of Charish’s writing and witty dialogue, but I felt the pacing was off. At times, the story dragged, making it difficult for me to fully engage. The diary entries, intended to add depth, ended up feeling tedious. I went in hoping for an "Ocean's 11" vibe, but I didn’t really find that excitement. I think the heists could have been developed further, even though the crew had a solid dynamic. As for the romance, I found it frustrating—the characters were stubborn, and their chemistry just didn’t resonate with me. Their antics started to feel repetitive, and I found myself wishing for a quicker resolution. Overall, I loved the concept of this book, but it didn’t quite meet my expectations. If you're into heists and second chances, though, I would still recommend giving it a try!

DNF at 23%. Both the cover and synopsis drew me in, and while I wanted to love this book…I just couldn’t connect with the characters and found myself losing interest.

This follows a group of thieves who after 5 years have come together for last heist in honor of their mentor who passed away. The book focuses on Magnus and Cece who are former lovers and if they have a shot of rekindling their romance. I struggled with this book as it was a bit a repetitive and I am not a fan of spicy scenes. This is more of a romance book with a bit of heists.