2 Stars
The blues sounded really good to me, But when I stared to read it, it just wasn't for me. I thought it was going to be more "White Collar". Loved that show. The book was as much as a hit for me.

This was an amazing story and not at all what I expected. It was sweet and funny and had twists I definitely didn't see coming. Jack was adorably awkward and his and Clementine's chemistry was off the charts. I wasn't ready for it to end but I'm glad they got their happy ever after.

Clementine has been raised since the age of 14 to be a high-end thief. Jack is a wealthy businessman - and Elvis tribute artist - who doesn't know he's sitting on an unsigned Van Gogh. Naturally Clementine falls for her attractive mark and hijinks ensue.

I REALLY appreciated the feminist point of view of this romance - she is good at fixing cars and saves him when he's broken down on the side of the road, for example. Also the trauma that both Clementine and Jack have gone through, particularly in their childhoods, is dealt with in a beautiful way (although his in no way compares to hers!). I thought the sex scenes were the perfect balance between steamy and thoughtful/reflective. I also really appreciated that the end wasn't "ok they fell in love, happily ever after" - that happened earlier, and then the second half of the book was like a crime thriller. This departure from the typical romance formula was unexpected and appreciated.

My only points of contention were the foundation of the plot/characters (a little incredulous!) and how quickly they fell in love.  Overall a cute, feminist romance though, that I will recommend to romance lovers!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3 stars

I remember reading a con inspired romance many years ago and loving both the tension of two con artists trying to outdo each other while falling in love. It was a fun read and when I read the summary of this, i crossed my fingers and hoped for something similar. 

This started well and the philanthropic thief was an interesting premise for the female lead. Add in an awkward but attractive male lead and you’re off and running. I liked the two person point of view for this novel as it showed that there was more going on in their personal lives that influenced their actions. I liked the way the first half of the book developed but the momentum stuttered a bit towards the conclusion. 

Overall, I thought this was a fun little departure from the standard tropes and worth the read.

Things that whet my literary soul’s appetite: bad ass independent female leads with a fully developed character.
Things that dry out my literary soul: weak-willed males who are boring as a month of Sundays, and the women that fall for them. 
I thought this story would have read like Suzanna Enoch’s fast-paced cat-burglar series starring the o.g. femme fatale: Samatha Jellicoe. Instead it read more like a backwoods rendition of a bland 1980s small-town cliche. For some, the slow romance may be intriguing, but I felt bored, especially as the conflict in the book was addressed early— which is open-minded for a romance and could have been seen as progressive! but the way it was written was so stifling and too drawn out for my speed.       
I was looking for adventure and intrigue, with dashing hints of romance, but this story was overlong and spent too much of it’s energy wasted in a bullied past and not enough time to draw a reader in on what they have become in their present.    

I received an ARC from the author and publisher in exchange for an honest review.

don't go stealing my heart is a cute romantic comedy of love and lust and beauty and i adored the hell out of this. it was so cute and precious and i need more right now. thanks.

This book was "fine" - I felt like the story brought in all these fun elements, and then left them out of the main story! Between Elvis reenactments, reptiles, and con-woman-ing it was just too all over the place in terms of fun plot additions. The ending, however, was great and brought in some quirky fun.

Kelly is always fun and rom com and those are two things I love! Don’t Go Stealing My Heart was just that! I really enjoyed this book! The storyline was fun and made it for a quick read!

This book had such a fun sounding synopsis that I actually bumped it up my list as I've been in the mood for happy reads. Unfortunately I didn't really connect with the main character Clementine. I don't know if it was because of her job (a thief!) or just because she wasn't all that interesting but I spent much of the first half of the book debating whether to DNF or just keep going. The book did get better toward the end when Jack featured more but that's probably the only positive I got.

Failed to connect with the heroine. Was expecting a lovable anti-heroine but found her too 'sterile', for lack of a better word, in her mindset and POV and it just didn't make for an engaging read for me nor did it endear her to me so I would want to know what happened to her

Initial thoughts:
I’ve been in a “light hearted rom-com” mood lately, and was intrigued by Clementine’s Robin Hood-like-cat-burglar back story. This was my first Kelly Siskind book, and I was not disappointed.

What I loved:
Clementine’s outlook on what she does, and how she lives her life, had me rooting for her, criminal or not. Her interactions with the townspeople while scoping out her latest mark were witty and surprisingly genuine, considering why she was there. Jack is about as upstanding and charming as a leading man can get, and I was smitten from the start. Both of our leads have interesting quirks that drew me in, along with personal issues that gave them depth and relatability. They seem to just “fit”, despite the fact that they’re each hiding something big from the other. They’re both trying to juggle what’s “right” with what they feel they “have to do”.

The balance between the lighthearted, sweet, romance-y bits, and the less lighthearted, dark, uncomfortable bits was delicate, but the story managed to fall on the right side of that line each time. There were a few plot devices used that I really don’t care for — but instead of them becoming part of my “What I didn’t love” section of this review, the author addressed each instance quickly, and with the kind of finesse that actually turned them completely around for me. I was pleasantly surprised, and pretty impressed.

In the end, they just make sense together. They are sweet, and they “get” each other. They grow and learn from each other, and they make me smile.

What I didn’t love:
Both of our main characters have struggled and suffered in their pasts, affecting how they behave in this story. Of course those details are important, but I didn’t love how often those circumstances were repeated. It felt like the author was reminding me of something, but didn’t give me enough time to forget it between mentions.

As much as I liked Clementine and Jack together, it’s hard to overlook that the entire book took place in less than two weeks, and they both had to overcome HUGE trust issues to make their connection. The story didn’t feel rushed, but it did require a certain amount of suspension of disbelief. I guess this makes it half “what I loved” and half “what I didn’t love”, lol.

I also didn’t love the surprise “reveal” at the end. I saw it coming just before it happened, and I was SO hoping I was wrong. I wasn’t, and I’m bitter on behalf of the characters.

Final thoughts:
Overall, this was a fantastic introduction to this author, and a nice way to spend an afternoon. You’ll laugh a lot, you’ll swoon just a bit, and if you’re like me, you’ll grumble some at the end. (Well, not the *end* end, because our author graciously supplied us with an epilogue that totally made me smile.) And if you’re like me, I think you’ll find that you “Can’t Help Falling In Love” with Clementine and Jack.

I’m excited to check out some of Kelly Siskind’s other stories, and encourage you to join me.

Ahhh I love love LOVED New Orleans Rush so I was SO excited for this one. I remember wondering how on earth Kelly Siskind could make me love a magician, but she did, so I had no doubt she would make me love a thief and an Elvis tribute artist… this one did take a bit longer for me to click with the characters, but I eventually did. It was super adorable and sweet and lovely. I did guess the twist pretty early on, my heart went out to the heroine. I did really like it and thought it was super cute. Didn’t love it as much as New Orleans Rush, but it was still adorable and I’d recommend it. I can’t wait for more from this author!

This book had the kind of humour I haven't read lately and that was incredibly refreshing. It was also fun to read about a character with a "career choice" a bit different from most contemporary romances. I look forward to checking out other books by this author if they are all as unique as this one!

This book was recommended to me by a friend and I think I'll be eternally grateful to her for it because I loved this book so much! It was the perfect escapist read with tons of heart and also a ton of fascinating facts about art (especially Van Gogh).

Don't Go Stealing My Heart by Kelly Siskind

Heart Warming Puts a smile on your face kind of Romance

This is my first book by Kelly Siskind and I must say I am very impressed! This author has a way of making you fall for her characters and root for them every step of the way. I can't wait to see what else this talanted author has to offer. I am totally 100% team Clementine/Jack. Those two characters are sweethearts. I finished this book with a total crush on Jack :) 

5/5 Stars

Thank you #NetGalley and #CDBooms for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Received an Advanced Reader’s Copy from the publisher, CD Books, via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! 

The very first thing I would like to confess: I was slumping straight into another century while I read this book and despite that I’ve given it a high rating and that ought to count for something. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I went into Don’t Go Stealing My Heart and I was so low in the slumps I just wanted everyone to leave me alone to stew in my sadness. (When was my last post anyway?)

However, the connection between Jack and Clementine is truly truly what I enjoyed the most about DGSMH. Not only do they share a strange connection that comes as a surprise even to them, but it’s as if their pasts too were reflective of who they had to become in the future to be good for one another. They both have difficult and heart-wrenching childhoods and I loved the contrast that Kelly Siskind has depicted that their challenges were both because of, and at the same time irrelevant to, their social standing; these challenges also decided the directions in life they would both take and how they are lead to one another because of this and what happens to their relationship.

I have to commend the last twenty percent of the book, because truly it had distracted me from realising something that was in the back of my mind and it was a great moment to spring a surprise. The familial relationships, the friendships, are all shown and grown beautifully and at the same time, the grey depictions of the protagonists add to the real-ness of their situations and how they come to terms with their mistakes and one another’s as well. I also absolutely loved how it seemed like the author had picked up the reader’s pulse (from when she was writing in the past) and knew exactly when it was perfectly appropriate to handle the one thing that was starting to get a little exhaustive for me, simply because I really wanted to see it being handled now rather than later like every other book out there with a similar concept.

Due to the morally grey choices of the characters in many of the moments, there are some very interesting questions that the author poses–without actually asking them–to the reader that has us thinking.

Despite the slump and all the seven hundred and fifty million things that decide to take place while I was reading this book, I’m hovering greatly between a 4 and a 4.5 rating and I would definitely recommend the read! Happy reading and be safe! ❤

Jack and Clementine are adorable! I love their relationship and how they deal with all things life throws at them. I loved New Orleans Rush too and will probably read everything this author writes! This was a cute, real life romance with a strong independent heroine!

***I want to thank Xpresso Book Tours and Netgalley for giving me this ARC in exchange for an honest review***

OMG!! This book hits every mark. Clementine is the perfect modern day Robin Hood. She Is a thief and con who does it all for the benefit of others. She knows the struggles of being an orphan and that comes through in her actions. In the books she goes to see the other side of her actions. 

Jack is a very sweet hero which helps to bring out the other side of Clementine. This was definitely a slowburn, but they were funny and cute. I give this book foir stars! 

-C

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

When I had first read the blurb of this book, I got really...really excited because what's better than the heroine conning the hero and stealing from him right before his eyes. 

Clementine Abernathy is the modern day Robin Hood; She steals from the rich&privileged and gives to the poor....in her case orphan children who had been thrust into the American Foster System(where they are abused or treated miserly). She herself holds a bitter view for the foster care system as she had seen the ugliness of the system firsthand. Eventually at the age of 14 she was rescued by Lucien, her mentor and a father figure. But, soon stealing and conning starts to weigh heavy on her and she was usually left with residual guilt over her job. Her next job is to steal an unsigned Van Gogh from David Maxwell of a Elvis loving town-Whichway(I loved this name and all the iconic places are named in this manner-eg, Wherever Park, Whatnot Diner). A chance encounter with a stranger named Jack on the road leaves her baffled at the strong attraction she felt for him, what she didn't discover until later that the stranger was not anyone but her mark-David Maxwell III or how he likes to call himself Jack. The budding yet strong attraction each feels for other has hinders both their plans- hers to steal the Van Gogh and his to win the Annual Elvi Festival's competition, keep his father's sickness a secret and save his company from bankruptcy. 

Truth be told, I was almost about to abandon this book in the first quarter as it was really slow paced without any action and thrill that one gets to be hooked up on a book. But, I made myself read it till the end just so I could give a better review and to be honest I didn't expect this, but almost after the first half I actually wanted to complete it. During it I witnessed the undeniable chemistry between the two and Kelly has done a great deal of work to show it throughout the next half.

This book is a dual POV written in the third person which provides us insights of both the character's life issues, which makes it much more readable, and a perfect plus point, along with Jack being an Elvis Tribute Artist which somehow adds to the appeal(even though I haven't ever heard any songs by Elvis Presley but I think I will do check it him out). Though at some points I had truly wished that there was just about something else other than Elvis....Elvis....Elvis.

Having had psychology as a subject in high school, I could actually relate with Clementine's deep-rooted fears of abandonment, guilt and trust issues and they are beautifully portrayed in the book, but what I couldn't just grasp was how Jack (who himself has had some issues) was too much intuitive and could read Clementine-who had conned a great deal of people- every freaking time she lied or felt uncomfortable. I mean, I myself am a great romantic at heart and is always up for some gushy mushy romance where the lead always understands the troubled and secretive heroine but I don't think it's even slightly valid in this situation and Jack being able to tell all this is stretching this concept a bit too far for a contemporary romance!

Some points in this book led up to an amazing yet somewhat predictable ending though I wouldn't say it was bad, the whole book was slightly alright! Yet, I wouldn't recommend everyone to read it, though Elvis's fans are quite welcome for it because they'd definitely like it better.

This was a cute book but a lot more graphic than I expected or wanted. I only read till the 50% mark.
It is all about romance and focuses on the main couple's reactions to each other. If you are used to or go in with that requirement you will like this more than I did.
Since I did not read it completely I can't rate it on social media but would recommend it to people who like love stories with a lot of descriptions.