The Pineville Heist by Lee Chambers (Review)

Genre:	Young Adult, Action, Thriller
Publication.Date	July 20th 2011
Pages:	190
Published By:	MISFP Publishing  |
Website	Lee Chambers |
	The Pineville Heist - Goodreads
My review copy:	Finished copy received from the author in exchange for an honest review

Where to get:

Seventeen year old Aaron stumbles into the aftermath of a five million dollar bank heist gone wrong. Hiding under a canoe, Aaron partially catches the murder of one of the robbers. In the chaos he sneaks away with the money and heads straight for the closest place of safety, his high school. Terrified, Aaron tells his shocking tale to Amanda Becker, his drama teacher, but it doesn't take long for one of the psychotic robbers to show up. In the locked down school the pair are relentlessly pursued in a quest to get the money back and wipe out the evidence.(Goodreads)

"Pop quiz. What's the biggest threat to you kids these days?"
"Reality TV," a foreign student said, causing the whole roo to burst into nervous laughter. Tremblay remainded silent, with his lips help tightly shut.
"Twitter", a pretty gitl murmured, leading to more giggles. Aaron smiled over at her, but she didn't it.
"Alright, people," Amanda said, crossing her arms.
"My father."

Aaron whipped through the long grass as fast as his legs would carry him. His eyes were filled with angst and adrenaline. He was still in shock. Not every day you see a dead man. Not every day you see that much money either - he glanced down at the backpack in his arms. Must - keep - running.

     The Pineville Heist is a quick and entertaining read that may raise your blood pressure just a tiny little bit with its head-spinning action and gripping suspense. The award-winning writer/director, Lee Chambers, delivers a very enjoyable story, and one that you'll easily consume in one sitting. It has its funny moments, as well as thrilling ones, and is about as action-packed as they come. 

     The story centres around Aaron, son of the town's richest man, Derek Stevens (the owner of the local mill). On his way to school, Aaron stumbles upon an abandoned white van. Not giving it a second thought, Aaron continues on his way to school. It isn't until he eavesdrops on school workers talking about a bank robbery that took place the same day, that Aaron realizes the suspicious-looking van he saw in the woods was a get-away car. 5 million dollars had been stolen from the local bank and Aaron is pretty sure they were hidden somewhere in the woods. Together with his two friends, Steven and Mike, he decides to skip school and go looking for the stolen cash. Little does he know how much trouble and life-threatening danger he's about to get himself, and his friends, into. 

     I won't lie, I had a lot of fun reading this one, although if you're expecting mind-bending intrigues and profound life messages, you're going to be disappointed. And that's perfectly fine, after all not every book you pick up has to be a life-changing one. Sometime you just want to be well entertained, and The Pineville Heist does just that. It's a great little book, in tradition of old-school heist books/movies. It's fast-paced and straight to the point. On top of that, it's definitely an action-driven story, as you'll quickly realize that the character development is just a tiny bit lacking. I liked the lead protagonist, Aaron, but at the same time wished he was a bit more fleshed out. I thought he was great, and Chambers most certainly captured his youthful spirit well, but I would so love to learn more about him! Thankfully, all the exciting events, and the thrill of witnessing a murder and then becoming the prime target of the killer, successfully make up for it. And let's not forget the clever, often even hilarious dialogues - especially the back and forth between the three teenage friends. Their conversations were priceless - spot-on and laugh-out-loud funny. 

     There's only one more small complaint that I need to voice. It's not a big thing and it can easily be fixed with a couple revisions, but there are many switches between characters that are not separated by any pauses in text, or anything that would hint at the change, really. Like I said, it's not anything major, but it does get a little bit confusing, and a book that should be consumed within 2 hours tops, ends up being a slightly longer and more exhausting read, as you need to constantly get back and re-read certain passages to make sure you got everything right. That could have been easily avoided by simply leaving some space in between those jumps, though, and hopefully the author/publisher will take care of that while preparing future reprints. 

     Overall, The Pineville Heist is a fantastic read that will keep you captivated all the way through. You'll love the old-school feel of it, as well as the intensity and the sheer thrill it provides. Your adrenaline will spike up and your heart will skip a beat at least a few times. If you're looking for a thrill ride that is neither too shallow, nor overly developed (but certainly entertaining), this is the book for you.

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About the Author

Evie is the Blogger behind Bookish. She enjoys reading many different genres, especially YA, Paranormal, Contemporary Fiction and Fantasy.

She loves talking to authors and is always happy to welcome them for interviews, and guest posts. She also likes spreading the love for awesome books and  chatting with fellow book-worms.

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