I enjoyed the premise of this. I do wish that it was executed better. It was definitely a very unbelievable and predictable tale, and it left me with unanswered questions. I noticed that there was a second book; however, most of my questions come from the lack of backstory. It is worth mentioning that the cliffhanger does make you want to read the second book.

We are told multiple times that Ava and Zelda had a rough life growing up which led to them making questionable career choices (cons artists) in this book. But the details of that backstory is a little vague. Something terrible happened to Ava in her past, but it felt like it glanced over and causally mentioned.

One thing that I did enjoy was the bond between Ava and Zelda. This was one aspect of the book that was developed the most. Again, a little more backstory with them would have been nice, but what is given you do get a good sense of their relationship.

The thing about this book is that if you want a quick read without dissecting it, this is a good book. There is some potential there. It has some nice action, two romances for the price of one, and a good sisterly bond.

Characters

This book is told in two alternating POVs- Zelda and Rowan. Zelda’s POV was fine because she knows what exactly is going on. Rowan’s POV felt a little unnecessary and distracting because he was in the dark. I get that the author was attempting to show the buildup of Rowan and Ava’s relationship; but it would have been better in Ava’s POV.

As a whole, Zelda’s character was probably the most developed, and I believe that her POV could be contributed to that. The others felt more distant.

The idea of two romances was amazing. The issue is that it felt very instalove and lacked real development. The idea of having a committed relationship was new to all of these characters, and when there is a serious lack of character and romantic development it does tend to fall a little flat and make you question things.

Also, another issue with the romance is that because it’s in Zelda and Rowan’s POV, we only see one side of the romances developing. Which cuts the chances to see what the other side is feeling.

Out of the two, I enjoyed Cal and Zelda’s the most. Cal was funny, and I felt a real connection growing between him and her. Hopefully, the second will spend more time developing these relationships.