Thank you @mysteriouspress #partner for gifted copy of this book!

Jewel heist. Fast and dangerous motorcycle chase. Missing boyfriend. Rich and connected people. It was like watching a movie! This was such a fast paced adventure as we watch Rune, a jewel thief, lift some rubies from the wrong man. Normally it would not be a big deal as she would escape…this time it’s not so easy! She is being tracked before she knows it and she finds it is not an easy task to stay hidden when such powerful people that have access to endless resources are tracking you! Too bad she’s lost the rubies and she must get them back before her life completely unravels. This was such a wild ride around the world! From NYC to Bangkok you’ll see it all. Doquang does a great job painting the picture of a wicked, dark and seedy life! It is intense from the very first chapter and didn’t let me go until the end. If you’re a fan of heist books this one was exceptional and fierce tale!

jewel-thief, jewelry-heist, Y/A only-means-no-gratuitous-erotica, NYC, Thailand, siblings, sisters, international-crime-and-mystery, action, revenge, human-trafficking, abduction, smuggling, debut-novel, partners, thriller, suspense, teens****

Fast paced with shifting locations and occasionally I got sidetracked, but looks to be a great series once the kinks get ironed out.
Voice actor Cindy Kay has an excellent range for emotions and characters, but that whispery delivery made me sleepy.
I requested and received a temporary audio from HighBridge Audio via NetGalley. Thank you!

I had high hopes for this book, and don't get me wrong it wasn't bad, it just wasn't what I expected. It read more like a YA thriller, and wasn't advertised that way. Again YA thrillers are fine, it just wasn't what I expected when I started this book.

Thank you to NetGalley, Highbridge Audio & Mailan Doquang for an audio arc of Blood Rubies in exchange for an honest review.

I fell asleep while listening to this one if that says anything. I reluctantly went back this weekend & found my spot of what I last remembered & finished the audiobook, but it was just not good to me.

Even though it had a great premise & was touted to be suspenseful, it was not in the least bit suspenseful. Obviously, I was bored to sleep.

I liked the idea of a jewelry heist gone-wrong. I guess I was hoping this story would be a bit more similar to Kayvion Lewis's Thieves' Gambit.

Kit was ridiculously boring. I honestly didn't care about Madee. And Rune was just as drab. All of the characters were just so BLAH. They seemed very monotone & completely uninteresting. Aside from that, the story was all over the place and not really cohesive.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced audiobook.

The narrator for this book did a lot of the work of getting me to keep going, since she was so great. The story was fine, but not as cohesive as I'd hoped.

Rune Sarasin has a checkered past. Now she is finding out that life as a jewel there can be hard as well. Her boyfriend, Kit, is being held hostage while his little sister Madee is missing. Oh yeah, and Rune stole and then lost a criminal mastermind’s treasured rubies. Can she possibly get everything straightened out and save Kit, Maddee, and her own life too?

I got this novel as an arc audiobook from NetGalley, and I loved the audiobook format. The narrator, Cindy Kay, was great with a fantastic sense of timing, perfect pace, and of course, unique voices conveying personalities for all of the speaking characters. Not an easy feat! I will definitely be looking for more of her work in the future.

The plot was super engaging. Audiobooks usually take me at least 3 days, sometimes many more depending on the length and amount of time I can devote to listening. I listened to this one in about 24 hours. I could not turn it off! It was just the right amount of danger and violence. The main character had such a backstory that it could support its own book! The pace was quick, the characters drew me in, the story was engaging - what more could I ask for? A sequel? Or could this be the start of a great new series? 🤞🤞

This was a good book! It was full of action and kept me engaged. I wanted to keep reading! Great book for a debut novel!