Coin Heist ARC Review

Coin Heist by Elisa Ludwig

What they say: The Breakfast Club meets Ocean’s Eleven in COIN HEIST (6/10/14), a fast-paced thriller for young adults by Elisa Ludwig, the acclaimed writer ofPretty Sly and Pretty Crooked (Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins). A teen of the ‘80s and fan of all that commemorates that decade—Duran Duran, the Rubik Cube, Lois Duncan novels—Ludwig pays homage to that time by creating a John Hughes-like novel, blending the universal angst of adolescence with high-tech theft and contemporary flair.

The last place you’d expect to find a team of criminals is at a prestigious Philadelphia prep school. But on a class trip to the U.S. Mint—which prints a million new coins every 30 minutes—an overlooked security flaw becomes far too tempting for a small group of students to ignore. United by dire circumstances, these unlikely allies—the slacker, the nerd, the athlete, and the “perfect” student—band together to attempt the impossible: rob the U.S. Mint. This diverse crew is forced to confront their true beliefs about each other and themselves as they do the wrong thing for the right reasons.

COIN HEIST is a dynamic young adult caper told from the revolving perspectives of four teens, each with their own motive for committing a crime that could change all of their lives for the better—that is, if they can pull it off.

• ISBN: 9781632950161 - Scheduled release June 10th 2014 by Adaptive/Vook!

Goodreads * Amazon US * Amazon UK * B&N

I received a copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

What I say: I loved the premise behind Coin Heist and found myself entertained by the group and their antics! The plot focuses on four teenage misfits, who, for varying reasons band together to 'make' their own money to save their private school.

Although I've greatly simplified the plot because I don't want to spoil any of it, the story is really clever and I was surprised how believable the idea of these teenage wannabe crooks actually was. I completely understood their motivations and the rationing behind the plan.

Alice, Jason, Dakota and Benny are all very different characters, yet they are not afraid to stand up for the important matters and to band together to help their plan.  All of them go on an emotional journey, and I felt they are well developed throughout the course of the book. I was waiting for Alice to lose her beanie! 

For the most part it was easy to forget how young they are because they never seem overly immature (even with the 4 different POV's). There are a few moments of teenage angst and dating dramas but this didn't detract from the plot and made sense for high school characters.

The ending was perhaps a little quick and I'd have liked to see it developed a little more, but I was happy with how Ludwig finished things and enjoyed the story. Coin Heist is a fun YA story, with several clever twists. I also really love the cover!

4 Stars in my Sky!