To Have and to Heist

3.5Book club pickAs soon as I saw this book I knew I would be reading it, and was excited to choose this one as my book club pick. This one had my interest right away; I am a sucker for side characters and right away you could just see how much Simi truly loved and treasured her relationship with her best friend, her daughter and her elderly friend Rose. I also loved the rest of the "crew". Honestly for me the side characters made this one great for me. I wish I could say that I loved the relationship between Simi and Jack, but I just did not. I personally was not a fan of Jack. I wanted to love him, and I would start to see that maybe he wasn't so bad then bam, he got worse. I will say that this is one book where I was rooting for the MMC to be someone else. I thought the storyline was fun, and loved the antics of the amateur heist crew, and I am really looking forward to the next book in the series.

This book has a lot of FUN moments with a quirky, loveable rag-tag cast of characters. There is mystery, laughter, a little romance, meddling families, and so much more. There were a few second hand awkwardness moments that made me a little sad, but overall I loved the arc of the FMC and seeing her growth and come into her own strength. It was pretty fast paced once it got going and there are a lot of moving parts. Cannot wait for the next one!

The sheer chaos, the insanity, the hamster wheel it was to read this book. I AM EXHAUSTED! I imagine this is what the author intended, being in the point of view of a person who probably has ADHD, but it was very hard to keep up with and I had to take breaks.This excels better as a heist story, than it does as a romance. I actually didn’t really care at all about the main love interest. The hijinks and characters were more interesting even though they were never fully developed or delved into enough for my liking. Rose, the sex-crazed octogenarian, was probably my favorite character and her little bits of dialogue and contributions were the best part of the book in my opinion.

If Ocean's Eleven and The Wedding Planner met in the middle, you’d have To Have and To Heist.I wasn’t sure what to expect with this one. It’s a smart, funny rom com with such rootable characters that there’s already a second book. I love the blend of action and romance and that it doesn’t take itself too seriously.Sumi, our heroine, is a little bit overconfident in her abilities and she’s surrounded by a harem of beautiful men willing to do almost anything she asks.The heist crossed with a wedding provided many reasons to laugh but my favorite part of the book is the rag tag team Sumi assembles to pull off the heist. They’re quirky and diverse and they just may be overqualified for their parts.I liked the sexual tension Sumi has with both Jack, her accomplice, and Detective Garcia, who thinks she’s the prime suspect.This leans more towards comedy than romance but I found myself torn over which man was best for Sumi. It’s almost reminiscent of the early Stephanie Plum where she bumbles her way through her job while fighting off the men in her life.I’m really looking forward to picking up book two and see what Sumi has stumbled into next.Soneela Nankani narrates the audiobook and really nailed the playfulness of the book. I usually favor dual narration in romances but it never really crossed my mind as I listened to this one. I spent my time wanting more as it unfolded.

Delightful read (with Indian food recommendations!) A st gen American adventure...with "ride or die" friendship... And smoking hot men ! I love it! ❤️

After having read The Dating Plan by Sara Desai, I fell in love with her stories. So when I saw that she had a great RomCom with a heavy emphasis on the Com, I decided to check it out. However, as I made my way through the book I quickly realized that it wasn't really my style.Though this book is heavily marketed as a Romance, I felt as though Romance took a seat not in the back seat, but in the trunk. There was louds of humor, mystery and personal growth, but romance seemed to be almost the very last thing talked about.And though not having romance does not make me dislike a book, it does ruin my chances of enjoying a book when it is heavily marketed as a romance and then end up not really being one. Plus I didn't really like Simi and Jack's dynamic. Something about them and their relationship really just didn't feel right.As I read more and more into their story I felt as though they lacked the compatibility to be a couple, that being said it's not to say they may not be great as friends. I simply did not think they were good with each other.Overall, I gave this book a 3/5 stars, it was not a bad book. I just simply did not enjoy it in the sense that I though I would, but regardless it was a great and fun story to escape into for a couple of hours!

Desai has written a fun, caper with a crew of misfits you can’t help but cheer for. The romance portion is rather rocky (I loved Jack, but not sure he was really hero material), but watching Simi find her voice was delightful. I would love a Chole/Gage story as their relationship was #RelationshipGoals.

This book feels like if Ocean’s 11 and Arsenic & Old Lace had a baby. The characters were amazing and had me laughing out loud on several occasions! I love the way Sara Desai writes characters that are both absurd and utterly relatable. I can’t wait to see these characters again in their next adventure!