Crooked: Honest Criminality by Bronwen John

Boasting a powerful cast of complex female characters that will stretch a reader’s idea of morality and the lines of the law, Crooked by Bronwen John is a bold and unforgettable thrill. With flashes of YA informality and easy reading, but also offering up nuanced ideas about art, criminality, human development, and ethics, this swirling heist novel is both unpredictable and highly polished. There is the occasional tendency to over-explain the significance of a plot point, or an interaction, but these subtle flaws don’t undercut the impact of the story, nor the unique perspective of this book’s feisty and fearless protagonist.