This is a story where you root for the bad guy. Where the bad guy is a group of college students that get together to steal back five priceless Chinese sculptures that were stolen from Beijing centuries ago. Led by art history major Will, this was an excellent thriller reminiscent of Ocean’s Eleven but with a much younger group and I enjoyed it very much. There were some twists in here that I loved, and a lot of depth to this story that sometimes you don’t get with thrillers. I think because of that this went a little long but the heists helped to move the story along and overall this was very well done, entertaining, and a bit heart pounding. Oh and fun fact, it is based on a true story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tiny Reparations Books for the digital copy to review.

Definitely more of a 4.5 and I’m rounding up.

Even though I was immediately taken in by the premise of this story when it was first announced, it took me a long while to actually get to it. Meanwhile, I read both glowing and not so glowing reviews about it, adjusted my expectations, and hoped that I would get to it someday. Finally the time came when my friends chose it as a pick for one of my readathon prompts and I had no reason to put it off anymore. And this turned out to be an experience I can’t accurately describe.

The first thing I realized while reading this was that promoting this majorly as a heist novel was a mistake. Yes we have a crew of friends and yes they plan and execute multiple heists, but frankly those are a minuscule part of this book. This story is so much more - it’s about friendship and family, it’s about grief and loss, uncertainty and fear, home and belonging, country and culture, past and future - and how each person is shaped by each of these things. This story is less about the actual heists and more about the motivation behind it, why the characters agree to it, what drives them, what they hope to achieve and if they actual end up getting what they want. It’s about feeling the pressure of the eldest child bearing the weight of the family’s expectations and never being enough; it’s about comparing yourself to your elder brother and trying to one up him in every aspect but not feeling satisfied by it; it’s about not being able to communicate the love you have for your family; it’s about being born and living all your life in a country but being made to feel like you don’t belong; it’s about doing everything right and as expected but still feeling unfulfilled; it’s about wanting to escape from the small life you have but not knowing where to go next; and also ultimately about feeling the trauma of the legacy of colonialism even when you are generations away from it, and wanting to reclaim those losses in whatever small or big ways you can.

I’m not an American but I live here; I’m an Indian but I don’t live there. Being an immigrant is always straddling two worlds and at times feeling closer and farther from both. On the other hand, despite not having any background in art nor having a creative bone in my body, I absolutely love being in the midst of an art museum and just imbibing it all. While visiting the Met was an amazing experience, I didn’t know how to feel when I saw the many Indian artifacts, some chipped and broken, because while some may have a clean provenance, I’m not sure of everything. And I know that it’s been more than 75 years of independence, and I don’t even have any personal stories shared to me by my family about life during colonial occupation, but it’s still a legacy that’s left an indelible mark on our society and upbringing and culture, and maybe I can’t change anything about it, but I can still let myself feel the pain and loss of that history while reading stories like this, and hope that there are people like these characters irl who will do something to get back some of India’s looted art back home - because while we can never erase the mark of colonialism, this small reclamation can still be powerful.

I feel like I’ve gone on a tangent and I didn’t even write about the characters. But I don’t think I can. There were parts of each of them that felt like me, and parts of them I hoped were me some or the other time in my life. I loved them and felt for them and wanted to be with them. And everything else is too personal for me to share in a review here.

I haven’t felt this difficult to write a review in a long while, for a book which had so many elements I loved, living breathing characters who felt so close to me, a full cast audio narration which was amazing, and ultimately full of heart and feelings which were too relatable. I don’t know who to recommend this book to but if you are belong to the diaspora, I’m sure you’ll find something in it for you. Can’t wait to see what the author writes next.

I LOVED this read! If you loved Oceans Eleven or The Thomas Crowne Affair... or any story of an art heist then you'll love this too. Plus I really enjoyed the cast of characters of Chinese American 20-year-olds who attempt to steal a bunch of Chinese art in what felt like a search for meaning in their lives. I completely believed that urge when you're young to do something meaningful and make a mark... and this wild ride left a mark on me.
I always love a heist!!

Everyone had their own set of skills to bring to the table, but the way it all came together didn’t require a suspension of disbelief like so many of these "big heist" books. The characters were not perfect, not geniuses (although super smart... of course) and I appreciated certain elements that made it feel so real. It's a fast-paced novel with shifting perspectives and a variety of sexual perspectives that made it more interesting.

(So grateful to have received an advance copy of this book via NetGalley, in exchange for this honest review!)

While I thought the heist plot of this novel was super interesting, I wished for more character development from the main characters, and wished for a bit better of a balance between plot, character development, and romance. I will forever be in search of my next Six of Crows, and unfortunately this wasn't quite it, though I did still enjoy many parts.

Unfortunately DNFd at 20%. While the premise of this book is strong and it feels like it has all the pieces to be a successful book on the level of entertaining heist story and examination of diaspora experience, it doesn't fully deliver. There were many well written sentences but as a whole, the transitions between chapters/change in point of view of character felt too jarring and rough pacing made the story difficult to follow. I think this reads as a clear debut novel and I hope this author has more story ideas in mind, because I do believe they'll have the ability to execute an entertaining story with more time to develop their skills!

This book though centered around heists delves into a topic that I am very interested in. Art and when it's displaced, stolen, hidden, etc. Colonialism has so many sins listed with it but stealing cultures essence and history for monetary gain is one of them. Ugh the greed and immorality of generations.

This was a very interesting book. They weren't professionals by any means but they had their specialities. I enjoyed the writing style and the traveling from Santa Clara to Beijing to Paris and back to Santa Clara. I was born there lol. I love books set in the Bay.

Thank you penguin and netgalley for the e-ARC for my honest and voluntary review.

What a fabulous, character driven heist story! A slow burn indeed but so worth it in the end.

Will Chen is a Chinese-American art history major invited to take part in reclaiming five different sculptures from different museums and giving them back to China. He puts together a team: Irene, his sister who can get out of any situation; his best friend, Daniel, whose dad is part of the art theft devision of the FBI and thus has some background knowledge on what they can/can’t do; Lily, Irene’s roommate with a talent for driving fast; and Alex, a software engineer who can hack them into the museums. Succeeding in this means $10 million each. What do they have to lose?

This was a fun book but it took me too long to get into it. I think it was a wrong place/wrong book situation. I switched to audiobook halfway through and the book really shined in this format. The book switches POV amongst all five of our heist members which added a lot to the story. Getting to see what happens from each perspective really painted a complete image. I really enjoyed the found family aspect of this book.

There were a few things I wasn’t happy with, but I loved the discussion of museums, colonialism, and where artifacts belong. I actually (embarrassingly) hadn’t really considered some of what was discussed and it gave me a lot to think about.

I wanted more of that action packed feeling I expected from a heist story. This is a character driven (though also plot driven, just very character forward) story with a heist as a backdrop. Not exactly what I wanted but I’m still here for it. There were some romance parts that I felt were unnecessary but didn’t take away completely from the story. The writing was beautiful and I look forward to future works by Grace D. Li.

There was a little of everything in this--I got the heist story I wanted and the college age protagonists coming of age as well. The book is told via all five viewpoints. Will and Irene (siblings), Lily (roommate), Daniel (old friend) and Alex (former Bostonian working in Silicon Valley) All of them are chosen by Will for the unique skills they will bring to the table. Will is the artist/art historian, with Daniel perhaps next in knowing the most about Summer Palace art, its' looting by invaders and how these pieces wind up in galleries around the world. Irene summed up what I had been thinking toward the end of the book, just how did they think this was all going to work out? It's not one heist, but five and patterns emerge quickly, including another group of Chinese thieves intent on reclaiming much of the Summer Palace art on their own. Definitely an engrossing read about cultural identity as well as their own identities as Chinese and Chinese Americans.

I was intrigued by the plot for this book so this was an instant-read for me. I think if I came in with different expectations (had the marketing not been so focused on the heists) I would have read this as an introspective novel about the characters. Instead I found the heists, what I was looking for to most, to not be that focused on. And unfortunately, the characters' I felt I did not get to know on a deeper level beside their earlier introduced archetypes.

The plot for this book is great. Five college students hired to steal priceless pieces of art from museums and return them to China? How exciting, sign me up. Sadly, I found the character development to be lacking and could not keep me intrigued. I’d recommend this if you’re looking for a quick read and are not wanting to be overly invested in the characters and their reasons for doing what they’re doing.

I sincerely admire Grace D. Li for everything that she has been able to accomplish. The writing in this debut is initially lyrical and there were so many passages where I felt *seen* as a messy twenty-something. But I quickly realized by the 45% mark that the prose was really the only thing carrying this story forward. There is no thralling, exciting plot I would expect for a heist book, just a lot of internal musings between the six different characters that quickly blend together and reads together. I don't mind slower, character-centric stories, but I never got a chance to get to know the characters beyond their surface-level archetypes.

The strongest part of this book for me was the characters. It was a fascinating exploration of Asian American identity and the diaspora. I was obsessed with the idea of fighting against oppression through the reclaiming of art. I love how much art reflects culture and this book was a love letter to that.

I also adored the sapphic relationship. My only complaint was that the heist itself was overshadowed by the character exploration and relationships. As the heist element was what I was most excited for, this was disappointing. You also really had to suspend your disbelief at times.

DNF at 20%

I tried so hard to like this book but I could not take this seriously. It was a great premise— that synopsis hooked me— but it was not executed well.

Save yourself the time and read a different book if you’re looking for a good heist read.

"Portrait of a Thief" starts with a great premise and unfolds with some nice cinematic touches. A group of Chinese American college students form a crew with a goal of stealing back some significant Chinese art that's in museums around the world. Think "Oceans Eleven" with international flair and a more highbrow target. Unfortunately, even if you can suspend disbelief when it comes to the crew's techniques for the heists themselves, Grace Li's prose falls short of her vision. I lost count of the number of paragraphs devoted to describing characters' cheekbones and the planes of their faces. Dozens of things, from the night air to someone's voice, are described as "soft." I do think this will make for a fun movie or short TV series.

Interesting and complex characters, multiple perspectives, and LGBTQ+ romance are featured in this art heist story of stolen Chinese artifacts. This brings up some interesting thoughts about art and where it comes from and who really owns it. I liked learning about the perspectives and experiences of the various Asian American characters. I really enjoyed this and the audiobook version and can’t wait to see the Netflix version.

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for allowing me to get an eARC of this. Portrait of a Thief unfortunately did not live up to my expectations or the hype I had seen surrounding the book. I was so excited for the concept of a heist novel with an examination of imperial power and interesting characters, but it fell flat on all counts.

To start off, the writing style did not work for the book, and I honestly hated it. It was repetitive, there were metaphors that didn’t make sense, and I could only take so many purple prose filled descriptions of the sky. Every interaction felt fake – every conversation was so loaded, and I kept thinking no one talks like this. There was just no humor either. The narration read more like literary fiction, and it all came across as dissonant for the expected action-filled heist story.

Alas, the heisting was a very small portion of the book, and I found myself constantly questioning the internal logic of the plot. The way the characters took no precautions with technology while planning, using Google folders and Whatsapp. I found it ridiculous that they got someone to be their lockpicker and thief for his steady hands only for him to use a bat and smash the glass in their way. Overall, I just kept wondering why they specifically were hired for the job when they’re just amateur college students and they clearly had no idea what they were doing, which is repeatedly acknowledged and skimmed over.

The worst part was none of the characters particularly stood out to me. I got tired of hearing about their prestigious universities and what sounded like guaranteed futures and how they were their parents’ American Dream. Everyone’s reasons for being in the heist were inconsistent and unclear aside from Will, but even Will’s presence felt unnecessary beyond bringing them together. The relationships were also boring. I really looked forward to the sapphic relationship in this, but I just disliked Irene so much, and I couldn’t see how her and Alex would work. Will and Lily were also pretty bland, and I had no idea why they liked each other. And as a crew, I wasn’t convinced that they were all friends.

Unfortunately, the way the book navigates the characters’ relationship with their diasporic identities didn’t feel great to me. I often find myself wary of first and second generation diaspora commenting on homeland politics and trying to claim their stake without an understanding of the culture, and that was definitely felt here. The way the book approaches Chinese politics and history, and the themes of imperialism and power felt shallow. The book could have been a really great examination of Asian American identity as its own thing, but it ultimately seems to fall into cliched navel-gazing about being stuck between two worlds.

This was a very well done and well rounded novel. I really enjoyed the characters and the development of the plot throughout.

A fun and cinematic heist novel with excellent characters and lots of passion. Coming-of-age as diasporic Chinese young adults explored from many different sides.

For many readers, international art heists and motley crews bring to mind capers such as Leigh Bardugo’s Six of Crows or Ally Carter’s Heist Society. So naturally, there’s an expectation there; promises of action-packed Ocean’s Eleven-style antics lingering beyond the first page.

Those coming-of-age crime sprees typically come on the cusp of high-octane conflict and slicing banter. But, Portrait of a Thief by Grace D. Li is not your typical heist adventure.

It’s aloof and polarizing. It mirrors the westernized culture of “civil” looting across a global playing field of righteousness. The novel’s purpose is not to entertain or toy with its readers but to enlighten us on the real criminals of the art world through thoughtful commentary. But like all the good heists, the thieves are the real masterpiece.

The book juggles multiple POVs, and the chorus of young voices never feels overwhelming. The joint struggle to feel at home when their identities are split between America and China drives this plot forward. The scenery of posh capital cities and European architecture come to life through their reflective accounts, calling on the whiplash of painful longing and whimsical wanderlust with every new chapter.

It’s easy to get lost in the dream-like narration of this exposition-heavy story, rather than irritated by the lack of action. Whether this book sucks you in with its depth or pushes you away with its convoluted storytelling, the heart of these troubled twenty-somethings comes through with a constant desire to be in each other’s gravitational pull. Will Chen’s crew may not have the skills of Ketterdam’s crooked criminals, but they have the camaraderie covered.

It is also refreshing to have a book following college students at such a prolific time in their lives. It’s rare to see our college years reflected so mundanely in adult fiction, but it is just as much a surprise to have a book tackle the high-strung emotions of diving into the workforce.

This coming-of-age tale wields its politically-charged topics of colonization and looting well. Yet, that difficult subject matter appeals to readers on a much more human level through fears of letting go after years of the education system controlling our every decision. Robbing the world’s most secure museums isn’t nearly as terrifying as having to be a person with a voice, to be the generation who challenges the world’s misconceptions. Yet, this caper leans into those fears, finding that haunting sweet spot through its double-edged exploration of freedom in our twenties.

Unfortunately, like the young criminals this story enlists, Portrait of a Thief is disappointingly under-equipped to tell a complete, satisfying tale of art theft.

Heists are hard, and writing about them is an even more complex undertaking. The book never entirely eclipses those weaknesses, often overshadowing the heist itself with inner monologues and avoidance. One could see the choice to focus on the people, not the task, as a clever move to lean into the character study Portrait of a Thief is comfortable being.

However, there comes a point when the lack of detail surrounding the robberies themselves gives the impression the story is slightly out of its depth, grasping at straws when it is forced to face the practical applications of a heist caper. In turn, action is brief and recounted in snippets, giving readers just enough to piece together how these extremely foolish kids managed to rob a high-security museum, or at least think they did.

Portrait of Thief will not outsmart its readers. It will, however, steal a part of your heart with its compelling explorations of art, history, and identity.

2.5

I think if I had gone in with different expectations, this book would have worked better for me.

It is fast-paced in the way I would want and expect a thriller/heist story to be; but, the actual heisting was ridiculously unrealistic. There was essentially no planning other than a Zoom watch party of Ocean's Eleven and yet they somehow pulled off multiple heists in several different countries. I will admit, that I appreciated the ending more than I thought I would.

What I think this book does best is function as an exploration of what it means to be Chinese American. Each of our five POVs have different experiences and a different relationship to their Chineseness and I really liked seeing how they differed. Though, I think I would have liked to see more distinction from Alex as details about her made it seem like her family was from Hong Kong rather than Mainland China. Also for a book that did such a good job exploring characters internally, I had a really hard time buying a lot of the character relationships.

While I do have my gripes, I admittedly flew through this book and enjoyed that it is a different sort of mystery/thriller than we usually see. I also think a lot of my issues come from this being a debut novel, so I look forward to seeing what Grace D. Li writes next.