2 sad stars

I was so excited for this book because I love Knives Out with every fiber of my being and my second favorite thing is a heist movie, a heist novel, anything about heists. However, this entire book just fell flat for me. There wasn't enough "conning" for me and I honestly wasn't sold by the family dynamics. The secondary plotline of the romance also wasn't really working for me. I think I had different expectations for this novel but at the end of the day it was just a women's fiction novel about the main character's self discovery which wasn't really what I thought I had signed up for.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Will absolutely be recommending this read to all of my cozy romance friends. Kind of revenge plot, kind of romance plot, but chock full of oh my god I cannot even. Poor Jillian and these people she’s unfortunately related to. While I’ve seen it described as a “Knives Out” sort of read, I will say that the only way it compares is in how horrid the Moorewood family members are with how horrid the Knives Out family members were. There’s no real mystery here, just good ole fashioned family drama with a drop of hot bodyguard.

Jillian went to prison for 39 months to save her family of con artists. When she gets out, she is ready to follow through with her ultimatum to get her family to go legit. With the help of her great aunt, her bodyguard, and a few undercover allies, Jillian is ready to figure out who she it.

This was fine…it was a little to “out there” for me. I had a hard time getting into it.

Although this book was not at all what I imagined by the way it was advirtised I enjoyed the way that it played out. It was more of a family drama then a fun con artist come-back.

Jillian came out of jail after doing time for her family and tries to make them go striaght. They resist her and try and kick her out but due to her love interest and hire body guard that is not happening!

The relationships in this book were my favorite. I come from a very dynamic and whacky family and to see some of the same struggles and patterns in this book was a comfort.

If you were looking for the Ocean 11's feel you will not get it but if you need some family drama this is a good read!

Fun book about a family of criminals--it had me laughing out loud on many occasions. The banter was the best part. Full of family drama and the right balance to keep it kind of light, it was a great respite from the heavier books I've been reading!

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the concept of a conning family. I'm a huge fan of con movies and the fake out double reveal. Jillian was interesting as a character, you hardly ever read about characters who have been to prison and especially women, made her different from most of the woman I read about. I don't really like closed door books but her and Beck and were a good slow burn and I appreciated the dedication taken to their romance. My only complaint is if you are going to have a book about con people there should be a heist! Even if the main character is trying to better themselves. There's a lot of interesting concepts here, I think it could do well with a spin off or even prequel.

2.5/3 stars
The family banter was supposed to come off as witty but completely fell flat. I could tell the author was going for quick zingers like the dialog in Gossip Girl & Succession but the end goal was not achieved. It made this one really hard to read & focus on the progression of the plot.
Felt like there was too much going on that it deterred from the perceived amount that was. For all of the closed door chats there was not nearly enough resolution. Felt like there was so many side missions that we forgot about the main one.

This one wasn't for me. I had a hard time getting into it, and I just didn't connect to any of the characters or storyline.

I ended up not finishing this around the 70% mark. I love the concept but I wasn't into this book at all.

This book has everything… drama, crime, family turmoil, and romance. The white collar crime aspect of this book is light-hearted and makes reading so much fun. Definitely a book I couldn’t put down. You love to hate the characters. I love that there was multiple POV and the characters have depth.

Thank you netgalley for this E-Book ARC. The opinions are my own.

I loved everything about this super fun romance with excellent elements of a thriller and a family drama.
Jillian Moorewood is back in her family home after spending 39 months in prison. She didn't commit the felony, but her being the head of the family and a dying request from her mother made her always put herself in front of anything that might endanger it. Unluckily for her, that family is mostly made up of con artists that live for the thrill of taking things they shouldn't. She had given her family the ultimatum to stop or lose everything before going to jail, then someone ratted her out to the FBI and now Jillian is back for revenge. But things are not at all what she expected and there's more to the Moorewood family than even Jillian knew.
I loved how the plot kept me guessing and showed different aspects of each family member. There are also little hints leading you to the revelations at the end that might not have felt so important but ended up playing big parts.
Overall, it was a fun story that instantly caught my attention and kept me glued to pages to see what else could possibly happen. I liked it enough that I'd love to get more books following what happens to the rest of the family.

Very happy thanks to NetGalley and Avon for the super fun read!

While I somewhat enjoyed MOOREWOOD FAMILY RULES, it was not what I expected going into it. The book ended up being more family drama and less, well, drama. I was hoping for some more action/adventure elements and less standing around and talking. So while it was fairly well done, it just wasn't what I was thinking it would be.

(Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Any quotes are taken from an advanced copy and may be subject to change upon final publication.)

⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 5 Stars

Thank you to Avon and Harper Voyager and HelenKay Dimon for allowing me to read an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) for an honest review! This book was published on April 25, 2023.

Moorewood Family Rule #1: Family comes first. Always.

The Moorewood Family may be full of trifling con artists but, believe it or not, they were once a cohesive and supportive unit. That was until someone turned Jillian into authorities for their family’s financial malpractice. Now the family certainly knows how to put the “dis” in dysfunctional. They dis each other at every opportunity that presents itself.

Moorewood Family Rule #28: Never let your guard down.

Revenge ought to be engraved on the family crest. Jillian took a huge dig at the family by secretly stealing all of their money from under their noses. Now, everyone is out to get Jillian when she isn’t looking. Hence, the need for Beck…Jillian’s new crush…err I mean bodyguard.

Moorewood Family Rule #36: Sometimes you have no choice but to sneak around.

Will Jillian be able to sneak around and survive the attacks and wrath of her family? Will the family be able to survive the strict new terms that Jillian is trying her best to implement? Will forgiveness surface anytime soon? Or, will the family continue to crumble and eventually separate?

This book certainly throws surprises around freely. It is a book that I needed to put down for a while and come back to but I’m certainly glad I did. I ended up enjoying it much more than I predicted.

This book just wasn’t for me. I felt like the pacing was a little too slow and I never found myself eager to pick the book back up. It wasn’t the writing that I didn’t care for but the development of the story.

I loved this book. It delivered everything promised from the synopsis. The pacing and back and forth was a little hard to get used to, but once I got into it, it was an easy read!

I really enjoy reading books about con artists and I thought this one focusing on the complicated family dynamics had an extra fun twist. It definitely dragged a bit in the middle but overall I think it was a fun and engaging story.

This was so well written. I was engrossed from the first page and it ticked all the boxes of my expectations. The character development was excellent. I would definitely recommend to others, a must read!

4.25/5

I found Moorewood Family Rules by HelenKay Dimon to be thoroughly addicting and such a fun read! I'm not sure why the Goodreads average is so low, but I feel like I got exactly what I was expecting when I went into this. There is a little bit of romance that was actually a surprise to me, but that was fine, and I loved Jillian and bodyguard Beck. Each chapter starts with one of the Moorewood rules which was a nice touch, and I loved that it was a mix between family drama and the wonderful world of grifting. There were many times that I laughed out loud, and you can't help but find some of the antics from this family to be completely ridiculous in the best kind of way.

There isn't a ton of suspense in this book, so I have a bit of a hard time categorizing it as a mystery or thriller, and if anything, it is a very cozy... SOMETHING. 🤷‍♀️🤣 There is a minor air of mysteriousness to the story, but you definitely have to be in it for the dysfunctional family aspect. I still haven't finished Knives Out but I do think I could kinda see that comparison, except with no one dying. Most of Moorewood Family Rules is told from Jillian's POV but we also have Anika and I found myself wishing the audiobook had more than one narrator. Mia Barron was great, and I loved her voice for Jillian, but I wasn't a huge fan of her voice for Beck, and I tended to get confused during the viewpoint switches with Anika. I think I would read this one over listening next time, but either way, it is fun with great banter and that is just what I wanted.

If you’re a fan of Schitt’s Creek, this is the story for you!

We follow Jillian Moorewood after she goes to prison for her family’s cons. After 3 years locked away, she is ready to turn the family business around and do things the right way. With the help of some trustworthy relatives and a handsome bodyguard, she is ready to kick the Moorewood’s to the curb and take back what is legally hers.

This book is filled with insane family members and drama which was fun. Think Moira Rose from Schitt’s Creek times 3. It definitely made the story interesting but unfortunately did not save the story for me.

I was under the impression that this story is a mystery/thriller based off the synopsis and marketing but that is not the case. It is more of a romance with some family drama subplot. I couldn’t tell where the story was headed the entire time and didn’t believe the romance, which was a big part of the story. He was so serious about his job that we didn’t even get a glimpse into his feelings. This was also a closed-door romance, so we did not get to see any relationship progression.

I think this would be a good book for you if you love a good family drama plot, but don’t expect there to be any thrilling or mysterious elements. Unfortunately, this fell flat for me and I wouldn't recommend it otherwise.

Moorewood Family Rules is a light and fluffy read about a dysfunctional con family. While there were some witty conversations, there were also a lot of boring ones that led nowhere. My favorite characters weren’t even in the family!