Who Doesn’t Love a Good Heist: An Exclusive Guest Post from Alex Hay, Author of The Housekeepers

Lock away your valuables and put your security measures in place. When a housekeeper raised by con artists and thieves is unexpectedly dismissed from her position, she recruits a group of women to help her exact revenge, using a costume ball as cover. A daring debut that is perfect for fans of Portrait of a Thief and Ocean’s 8, The Housekeepers is a mischievous tale that will leave you cheering for this rag-tag team of thieves. Keep reading to find out what heist novels Alex Hay suggests you add to your shelves.

This intricate slice of fantasy fiction is beloved by readers the world over. It tells the story of Kaz Brekker, a criminal prodigy offered the chance to embark on a daredevil heist in pursuit of a fortune. Set in the richly drawn Grishaverse, Bardugo’s novels are adored for their fantastical plots and utterly human protagonists and inspired the TV series Shadow and Bone. 

A debut novel with a killer premise, this rom-com tells the story of two con artists faking their relationship as they plot a diamond heist at London’s glitziest wedding. The buzz for this one has been building for months, with reviewers calling it “sharp and entertaining”, “dynamic and hilarious” and “utterly charming.” It’s clever and witty from page one. 

Get your orders in now! This debut is coming in March 2024, and it’s already stealing plaudits from advance readers who love its take on love and friendship, class and gender. Lulu is reluctantly planning a high society wedding to Shanghai’s most eligible bachelor — and her friends are planning to steal the cash gifts on the big day. The stakes are high, the detail is fabulous, and it moves at top speed. 

Surely winning the prize for “best title in town”, this sharp and thoughtful comedy stars the redoubtable Martha Andersson, aged seventy-nine, who is sick to the back teeth with the lousy management in her retirement home. So, she and her four closest friends embark on a series of white-collar crimes, escalating into a mega-heist on the National Museum, to regain their independence and take a stand for seniors everywhere.  

Well, a good heist leader would never miss the opportunity to plug his own work! My debut tells the story of Mrs. King, dismissed from her post serving one of London’s grandest mansions, who gathers an eccentric group of servants and criminal associates to launch a high-stakes robbery to enact her revenge. Think Ocean’s Eleven meets Downton Abbey — a story of big hats and big houses, of friendship and revenge, of bad men and brilliant women, all set in the opulence and corruption of 1905 Mayfair. It was a head-scratcher to plot, a joy to write, and I do hope you’ll give it a read…