I fully intended to drop this at page 100. The dump of character descriptions, dry narrative, and Ross’s mother, who didn’t really sound like one to me hadn’t caught my interest.

But then that girl got shot, and I kept reading. The rivalry between Ross and Noelia was also good. For the longest, there was more tension between these two than Devroe before he took the lead.

While I liked Devroe's consistency in trying to get Ross to open up, the romance was more in the background.

When the actual heists took place, I found the motivation to continue. I felt for Ross’ heavy guards and want for companionship despite the line of work she was born into. She grew up isolated and forced into thievery. But as a character, she was boring.

I don’t think I’d have regretted dnf’ing, but I’m glad I stuck around to see it get better. The ending chapters were fast-paced and fun. Ultimately, this will appeal to readers who love plot-driven stories as opposed to character-driven.