A review by capesandcovers
Love and Other Scams, by Philip Ellis
4.0
I requested Love & Other Scams on a whim, because I've always loved a good heist, and one with romance is exactly up my alley. I'm so glad I did too, because I devoured it within a day's span. While I do think it has some flaws, it's a solid debut novel, and I'm excited to see what Ellis writes next.
There were so many things I liked about this, other than just the premise. Cat was prickly and bitter and I loved her so much. She's the definition of a flawed main character that you can easily love and root for. Her relationship with Jake was so much fun too. Not only was he an excellent con man, but he was romantic as hell. I loved his family as well, meeting Vivi and Sid was so much fun, and there's nothing I love more than the found family trope. Even Louisa and the other bridesmaids were interesting and had depth to them, even if they weren't meant to be liked most of the time since everything was from Cat's perspective. Also, this book was so funny. I laughed out loud at numerous parts and most of my highlights were things that made me laugh.
My only qualms about this book are that the pacing felt off, especially since things went slower towards the start and then almost abruptly ended. While I do think the ending was suitable, giving it another page or two to wrap up some loose ends or make it less abrupt would have been nice. I had also mistakenly assumed that there would've been a little more focus on the heist aspect of the novel instead of Cat's life and relationships, but I do think it came together very nicely.
Overall, Love & Other Scams is a delightfully funny and romantic heist novel. Once I started I couldn't put it down (literally, I fell asleep reading it and then read while I ate breakfast), and I loved getting to step inside Cat's life with all of her friends, anxieties and crimes. Jake was so swoony, and I really loved the dynamic Cat had with all of her relationships, both romantic, platonic and familial. This certainly felt like a standalone, but there was a bit of an opening for a sequel, which I would love to see!
There were so many things I liked about this, other than just the premise. Cat was prickly and bitter and I loved her so much. She's the definition of a flawed main character that you can easily love and root for. Her relationship with Jake was so much fun too. Not only was he an excellent con man, but he was romantic as hell. I loved his family as well, meeting Vivi and Sid was so much fun, and there's nothing I love more than the found family trope. Even Louisa and the other bridesmaids were interesting and had depth to them, even if they weren't meant to be liked most of the time since everything was from Cat's perspective. Also, this book was so funny. I laughed out loud at numerous parts and most of my highlights were things that made me laugh.
My only qualms about this book are that the pacing felt off, especially since things went slower towards the start and then almost abruptly ended. While I do think the ending was suitable, giving it another page or two to wrap up some loose ends or make it less abrupt would have been nice. I had also mistakenly assumed that there would've been a little more focus on the heist aspect of the novel instead of Cat's life and relationships, but I do think it came together very nicely.
Overall, Love & Other Scams is a delightfully funny and romantic heist novel. Once I started I couldn't put it down (literally, I fell asleep reading it and then read while I ate breakfast), and I loved getting to step inside Cat's life with all of her friends, anxieties and crimes. Jake was so swoony, and I really loved the dynamic Cat had with all of her relationships, both romantic, platonic and familial. This certainly felt like a standalone, but there was a bit of an opening for a sequel, which I would love to see!