ALA Booklist (Sun May 01 00:00:00 CDT 2016)

Drea's life is one of contrasts: she is an honor student at a prestigious private school, but her parents are, despite outward appearances, heads of a theft ring that preys on the other wealthy families in their community. Her brother, Damon, a former juvenile offender, is now a rookie police officer. Drea herself is at a crossroads. Should she simply try to live under the radar, or somehow make up for her parents' larceny and her own petty thievery? The answer arrives in an unexpected form: a summer job tutoring juvenile offenders at the courthouse. As Drea learns more about her students, she comes to realize what she must do to redeem herself. Plenty of interesting twists keep this novel fast-paced, and short chapters add to the breakneck speed of the episodic story featuring a diverse cast of characters. An interesting paired text might be Jake, Reinvented (2003), a reimagining of The Great Gatsby from Gordon Korman, which also looks at the secret lives and identities of high-schoolers.

Starred Review for Kirkus Reviews

Crime, intrigue, and deceit abound in this novel about a biracial teen embracing her criminal instincts in order to thwart a treacherous plot. High school junior Andrea Faraday seems to have it all: money, privilege, top grades at an exclusive prep school, and an unwavering can-do attitude. But things are almost never as they seem with Drea. Her facade of perfection is just one of many covers hiding her family's secrets, but when her grifter parents disappear in the aftermath of a scandalous heist, Drea's world unravels, and her true self begins to surface. When she goes so far as to break into the school to change a grade, her rookie-cop brother volunteers Drea to tutor juvie kids to show her that crime doesn't pay. However, Drea finds herself drawn to the teen cons, particularly Xavier, the enigmatic and handsome Asian thief with whom she has more than she cares to admit in common, including a powerful enemy—one the teens will need all their criminal skills to defeat. Reid (Guys, Lies, and Alibis, 2014, etc.) presents an introspective, morally complex protagonist in Drea as well as an effortlessly diverse supporting cast. The characters establish an effective, if hasty, alliance that readers can't help but root for as the author demonstrates her continued command of the mystery plot. Gripping, suspenseful, and refreshingly diverse. (Thriller. 12-17)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

Sixteen-year-old Drea Faraday may be at the top of her class at the exclusive Woodruff School in suburban Atlanta, but that doesn-t stop her secrets from coming out in this socially conscious crime thriller. While Reid (the Langdon Prep series) hooks readers early on with details about Drea-s parents- shady history in the antiques market, as well as the orchestrated theft of dozens of luxury cars, the story soon pivots into an exploration of the criminal justice system. After Drea-s parents disappear, she gets caught up in a break-in at her school, winds up tutoring students at Justice Academy-an alternative high school that aims to put juvenile delinquents on a better path-and gets blackmailed into an uneasy alliance with Xavier and Jason, the students caught in the Woodruff break-in. While the plot is slightly convoluted, Reid grounds her story in reality, with a diverse cast (Drea is biracial, Xavier is Korean-American), moral gray areas (involving juvenile offenders, attorneys, cops, and more), and ample consideration of the real-life consequences of the characters- actions. Ages 12-up. Agent: Kristin Nelson, Nelson Literary Agency. (May)

School Library Journal (Sun May 01 00:00:00 CDT 2016)

Gr 7 Up-Drea's life is nearly perfect, apart from a few well-kept secrets. Her well-respected parents are actually successful con artists, she has a crush on a new juvenile delinquent classmate, and she has only the second-highest GPA at the Woodruff School. Drea's plan to break into school to change her grades is interrupted by Xavier, her crush, who is breaking into Woodruff for his own reasons. When X is arrested, Drea becomes involved with Justice Academy, a place for teens who would otherwise end up in jail, and is pulled into the mysterious circumstances surrounding the cases of several of the students there, including Xavier. The intriguing premise of the book is let down by a slow plot and weak characters. The African American protagonist is little more than a sketch, obsessed with grades and spoiled. The first three-quarters of the novel feels like an introduction to a story that never picks up, and even the drama of the school break-in lacks suspense. The conspiracy that Drea works to unravel isn't brought up early enough but abruptly surfaces at the conclusion, which sets up a sequel.

Kirkus Reviews (Fri Oct 04 00:00:00 CDT 2024)

Crime, intrigue, and deceit abound in this novel about a biracial teen embracing her criminal instincts in order to thwart a treacherous plot. High school junior Andrea Faraday seems to have it all: money, privilege, top grades at an exclusive prep school, and an unwavering can-do attitude. But things are almost never as they seem with Drea. Her facade of perfection is just one of many covers hiding her family's secrets, but when her grifter parents disappear in the aftermath of a scandalous heist, Drea's world unravels, and her true self begins to surface. When she goes so far as to break into the school to change a grade, her rookie-cop brother volunteers Drea to tutor juvie kids to show her that crime doesn't pay. However, Drea finds herself drawn to the teen cons, particularly Xavier, the enigmatic and handsome Asian thief with whom she has more than she cares to admit in common, including a powerful enemy—one the teens will need all their criminal skills to defeat. Reid (Guys, Lies, and Alibis, 2014, etc.) presents an introspective, morally complex protagonist in Drea as well as an effortlessly diverse supporting cast. The characters establish an effective, if hasty, alliance that readers can't help but root for as the author demonstrates her continued command of the mystery plot. Gripping, suspenseful, and refreshingly diverse. (Thriller. 12-17)