Stolen Hearts by Michele Castleman

The quick cut: A girl ends up in a game of wits with the thief who stole a painting from her father's house.

A real review:

Thank you to Bold Strokes Books for providing the arc for an honest review.

Some possessions are more prone to being stolen than others, like art. What would you do if someone stole something of yours? For Ella, it's just about anything when a thief comes in and steals a favorite painting of her mom's.

Ella has spent her life in the privileged cage that her father has made for her. With no real friends and her every move being watched, she rarely does anything other than play chess or hang out at home alone. All that is thrown off when someone breaks in and steals the painting named "Her Heart" - her mom's favorite. Will she find the thief and get it back?

The premise to this book is very intriguing and from the description, I thought it would be more cat and mouse games with the thief. While it sort of started that way, it was anything but by the end. It got real messy by the final page in a confusing way.

Ella is presented as a lonely girl, but she's definitely not what she appears to be. She lies about who she is and why her life is the way it is. I found myself actively hating her by the end. You don't like your life? Then take responsibility for it. Having an abusive parent doesn't absolve you from your decisions.

There's a fine line between a twisty story and an overly complicated one. This one definitely went deep into too complicated territory and the main character thinking so highly of herself didn't help.

An overly complex thriller that fails to create a thrill for the reader.

My rating: 3 out of 5