Not the best written book I've ever read, but it had me hooked for sure! Reminded me of The Inheritance Games. Just all around a great time to read, especially if you love heists and thievery :)

Thieves gambit is a fun YA read for those who enjoy competition storylines with a thieving twist. Ross is the FMC who decided to join the thieving completion aka the gambit to save her mother. Ross comes from a whole family of thieves whose number 1 rule is to not trust anyone. This rule is tested multiple times as Ross works through the competition.

This was a cute and fun read that flowed nicely without any lulls in the writing. However, I did find many parts of this book predictable. The big “twists” that happen are easy to see from a mile away. We’re also left with a few plot holes at the end of the book. I’m not if those will be addressed in book 2 or not. I will not be continuing with this series, however, a younger reader would enjoy the whole series.

The book blurb for Thieves’ Gambit by Kayvion Lewis intrigued me. This book is advertised as The Inheritance Games meets Ocean's Eleven , which sounded like a fun concept to me. I think this heist thriller lives up to the hype.

Ross Quest is only 17 years old, but she’s a master thief, trained by her mom and aunt, who are also thieves. When one of their missions goes wrong and her mom is kidnapped, Ross will stop at nothing to save her mom. She’s invited to join the Thieves’ Gambit, where the prize is a wish for whatever you want. Ross sets out to win and save her mom, only to be thrown off when her childhood friend (now enemy) is also participating. Meanwhile, one of the other thieves falls for Ross, and she does her best to stay away from him, but finds it harder as time passes.

This is a fun young adult thriller book for readers looking for a book with action, clever characters, and a side plot romance. *The only thing I didn’t like about the book was how the romance became a bigger part by the end of the book, but the plot twists overshadowed that.

There are two plot twists at the end of the book. One of them I had predicted already, but the other one completely caught me off guard and
left me immediately wanting to read the second book. I don’t want to post any spoilers, but holy shit!!

*Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for the free eBook ARC. This is my honest review.

Soft DNF @13%.
The main character is too juvenile for me. I was expecting a high stakes competition with a badass FMC, but so far have been underwhelmed.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for my advanced digital copy!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a total rush! I was HOOKED from the beginning! I loved all the heists and Ross was a great FMC. This book was so action-packed and super fun. I loved how quickly paced the book was and I loved all the characters and how they interacted together. I cannot dive into the next book to see where this all goes. This book was such a pleasant surprise and was so good!

It is hard to read this and not compare directly to books in the same genre. There’s a clear comparison to be made to Inheritance Games which outranks Thieves’ Gambit in building the character relationships. The plot was a bit more telling the reader instead of showing to let them unravel a bit more on their own with Ross. The ending did leave it open for the next book in the series but I’m on the fence if I want to invest the time going further.

was an okay book for me
About thieves and a Gambit that they had to win.
Good charcters,suspense,twists and slight romance.
Voluntarily reviewed.

Honestly, I love a good heist, a good con, a good scheme and this book mostly delivered. The storyline/premise was fun and exciting, the cast of characters was unique, the pacing was great, and I was not bored at any point. However, this is a young-adult book and some parts felt a little too young adult for me personally and I didn't love some of the word choices (slang like "yeet" and "hella") but overall, I would definitely recommend this book for anyone who is just looking for a fun, easy read and loves the dramatics of a heist. I really enjoyed it and will be looking forward to reading the next one!

I was hooked! Excellent world building I was so immersed in the story that I flew through the pages. Very clever concept, I highly recommend!

“Know your exits, pick the best one. That was my thing, wasn’t it? Always knowing the best way out.”

“I was stealing my own future back.”


This was a fun read! It was Ocean’s Eleven— the youths version— mixed with… I don’t know, like Big Brother or something. I was going to have a better comparison than that but then I decided to stop thinking about it.

It’s a competition between a bunch of high school thieves that are part of big family thieving conglomerates. Winner gets one wish.

I’m always a fan of heist/competition type of stories. I like the planning, the gadgets, the tricks, the suspense. This had all of those components. You have to suspend some belief, but that comes with the territory. I had to just pretend all seventeen-year-olds are as competent and skilled as they were, which is fine.

I could definitely see this as a movie because it was action from start to finish. And it takes us all over the world from the Bahamas to Cannes, France, to Cairo, Egypt to the British Virgin Islands.

I wouldn’t say I was ever truly shocked. At 12% I had some suspicions that mostly turned out to come to fruition but I wasn’t mad about it. I think it needed to play out that way or I would have been disappointed.


Brief Synopsis

Our main character is Rosalyn Quest. She lives in the Bahamas with her mom and aunt. The Quest family has a monopoly on thieving in North America. From the time she was young Ross has been training to be part of the family business.

But the nature of their work requires isolation and anonymity and Ross is wanting a little more freedom and perhaps a friend or two. As she attempts to escape to a summer sports camp in the middle of one of their jobs, her mom is discovered and captured. The ransom? One billion dollars.

The only way to get that sum in such a short time is to accept her invitation into the Thieves’ Gambit and win her wish. Looks like she’s not quite done with the family business just yet.

The competition is in three parts, all of which require some sort of heist to steal something. The competition pool begins with 12 youths— including her archnemesis Noelia— and each phase narrows the pool further and further.

Ross’s biggest challenge is figuring out how to win if her number one rule in life is ‘Trust no one.’ Especially other thieves. She is forced to work with Devroe, and, of course, because this is a YA novel, sparks start flying. But is he for real? They all have a reason to win this gambit— what’s his?

“People will play you like a violin to get whatever they need from you. People you think are your friends, people you think you can trust, they’ll snap your heart in half and leave you to die.”



I thought the author did a good job of making all the characters different. They all came from different countries and had their own ‘thing’ and their own ‘look’. It helped keep them straight and be able to picture them.

This book had a little bit of Hunger Games in it in that Rosalyn had Katniss’s courage to not play the game the Game master— or in this case the Count— wants them to play. I’m not convinced true thieves would care the way she does, but then we wouldn’t like her, so it still works.

There is some violence but it’s not a dystopian book so it’s not dark and violent. Just, ya know, friendly shooting and punching and stuff.

Some have compared this to The Inheritance Games series. I have not read that yet so I can’t say either way. Part of me wonders if it would end up being too similar or if there is enough divergence to enjoy both. Feel free to let me know. From reading the Goodreads summary it seems like they both deal in the world of wealthy and privileged, but that series (well at least the first book) might have more puzzles and riddles and that type of stuff whereas this one was more about elaborate heists for valuable objects.



Recommendation

I would recommend this book. It’s fun, light, suspenseful in the sense of action and competition, and the characters are likeable. It is a YA novel and you can tell, but I still thought it was a compelling plot and we didn’t get too much in the weeds of teenage love which I was glad for since it’s not marketed as a romance and that’s not what I was looking for.

The second book in this series released this last November. I have it on my to-read list so we’ll see if it continues to be a series I recommend. It looks like it takes up 6 months after this book and will be a similar globe-trotting thieving competition.

For what I expect when I read YA novels, this was a great read!



[Content Advisory: 21 d-words and a use of BS; no sexual content]


**Received an ARC via NetGalley**

It took me a while to get hooked into the story, but my eyes were glued to my Kindle once I got to the part where the FMC, Ross Quest, entered a cutthroat competition to claim the prize – saving her mother.

There are three phases in the competition, my personal favorite is the second phase, which includes longer schemes and forces the competitors to work together to succeed.
Despite needing to suspend my disbelief here with teenagers planning such a complicated heist, I found it fun and thrilling to see how they strategize to stay ahead of the game, execute their plans, and improvise when things go awry.

Ross has trust issues, which lead her to make questionable decisions throughout the story that at times felt slightly frustrating. But, deep down, she always craved a life like a normal teenage girl.
I’m glad to see her slowly step out of her comfort zone with making new friends and rekindling her friendship with Noelia.
I can’t say the same for the romance though as I didn’t feel the spark between Devroe and Ross, despite Devroe being a mysterious charming character.

The last few chapters were quite intense as the stakes gets higher for the remaining competitors. Mind-blowing twists lead to a huge cliffhanger at the end!
I'm excited to see what will happen next in the final book of this duology.

Overall, Thieve’s Gambit is such a page turner!
Highly recommend picking up this YA Thriller if you love:
✨️ Heist Competition
✨️ Rivals-to-Lovers
✨️ Scheming
✨️ Betrayals and Alliances
✨️ Shocking Plot Twists
✨️ Diverse Characters

⚠️ 𝐓𝐖: Kidnapping, violence, emotional abuse, gun violence, brief mention of death of a parent, racism and car accident

Ohhhhh this book was so good! Literally did not want to put it down. Perfect pace, great well developed characters and a stellar storyline makes this a home run for me. I loved that Ross wanted to go do her own thing but somehow got sucked into the games in order to save their person she loves the most. That every other contestant was also around her age (late teens) made it so much better. And having her arch nemesis there? Absolute perfection!
Ross Quest is from a family of thieves, and they are legendary at what they do. When a job goes wrong, she decides to join the Thieves’ Gambit to try to earn a “wish” that will allow her to set things right and save someone she loves. As the games begin, one contestant gets seriously injured and Ross sets herself apart from the others in more ways than one. I loved seeing her outsmart the opponents she is up against and was rooting for her from the beginning. The ending was a bit of a bombshell and the perfect set up for a second book, I cannot recommend this book highly enough, especially for fans of books like The Inheritance Games. 10/10 recommend this one!

Ross and her mom are master thieves, but when her mom is kidnapped she must enter a secret thief competition. The grand prize is a wish for anything in the world.
I read the second book right after this I like that one better.

This ended up being such a fun addictive story that I could not put down! If I didn’t get tired the first night I read it I would have finished it in one sitting! This felt like The Inheritance Games & The Italian Job morphed into a really cool YA “tournament!” From the very first page I was addicted. It wasn’t the best story or the best writing I’ve ever read, but I’m basing my rating & review on how much I really enjoyed reading this story! I think it’s safe to say I think I enjoyed this more than I did The Inheritance Games🤭🤔

If you’re wanting a super fun story about smart “thief” teenagers trying to win “The Gambit” to win any wish of their choice being granted, that is an addictive, super easy read then this is the book for you! I’m excited to jump into book 2 now!!

3.5 stars

I haven't read many YA heist stories so I enjoyed this. The characters were interesting and I liked the constantly shifting relationships. I particularly liked how everyone had a hang-up: Ross and her trust issues, Noelia and her perfectionism, Mylo and his adrenaline cravings, Kyung-soon and her indecisiveness, etc. It made it fun to see how all those things interacted and clashed.

The romance lacked luster. I get why that storyline is there and I could guess where it'll go but it felt thin. I would've much preferred an exploration of friendship and what that means to all these people.

The plot was compelling, provided you approach it with a suspension of disbelief. The limitless funds, crazy stunts, and general high-octane insanity are a bit of a stretch for teenagers. Setting that aside, you have a plot packed with twists and turns. I'm naturally suspicious so I saw a lot of the twists coming but that ending?! *chef's kiss*

I'm looking forward to the next installment!

<i>Many thanks to NetGalley, Nancy Paulsen Books, and the author for providing a copy in exchange for an honest review.</i>

If you loved reading The Inheritance Games and watching Ocean's 11 you are going to LOVE this YA novel!

This is the story of teenage Rosalyn "Ross", who has to join an underground thieving competition to save her kidnapped mother. The challenges are a bit wild, but the friendships and rivalries that are made will keep you hooked. I especially loved the diversity of characters. The best part is that the sequel was just released, and I already have it on my TBR!

This book was a lot of fun! A group of teenagers from the world's best thieving families are in a competition with high stakes. Alliances form and break - who can be trusted? I didn't want to put this one down! I can't wait to read the next book.

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Young Readers Group for this advance copy for review.

This was such a fun story! I truly enjoyed reading it along with the twists and turns that popped up along the way.

I read this in prep for the second book in the series. I really enjoyed it- which says a lot for a YA book. It's Inheritance Game meets Oceans 11!

Perfect older teen boy read!!! LOVED It

Thieves' Gambit by Kayvion Lewis is a high-octane young adult novel that delves into the world of heists, shifting alliances, and the complexities of trust.

When Ross Quest enters a high-stakes heist competition, she’s forced to put her skills to the test against some of the world’s best thieves. The competition is ruthless, and Ross must navigate a world filled with deception, shifting alliances, and deadly rivalries. As the stakes grow higher, Ross is torn between her loyalty to her family’s motto, “never trust anyone but a Quest,” and the chance to form new connections that could help her forge her own path.

The cliffhanger ending was brutal! I didn’t realize this was the first book in a series, so when I reached the ending, I found myself scrambling to check when the next book would be released. It left me with so many questions and eagerly anticipating the next installment.