Download or read book The Feather Thief written by Kirk Wallace Johnson and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2018-04-24 with total page 338 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As heard on NPR's This American Life “Absorbing . . . Though it's non-fiction, The Feather Thief contains many of the elements of a classic thriller.” —Maureen Corrigan, NPR’s Fresh Air “One of the most peculiar and memorable true-crime books ever.” —Christian Science Monitor A rollicking true-crime adventure and a captivating journey into an underground world of fanatical fly-tiers and plume peddlers, for readers of The Stranger in the Woods, The Lost City of Z, and The Orchid Thief. On a cool June evening in 2009, after performing a concert at London's Royal Academy of Music, twenty-year-old American flautist Edwin Rist boarded a train for a suburban outpost of the British Museum of Natural History. Home to one of the largest ornithological collections in the world, the Tring museum was full of rare bird specimens whose gorgeous feathers were worth staggering amounts of money to the men who shared Edwin's obsession: the Victorian art of salmon fly-tying. Once inside the museum, the champion fly-tier grabbed hundreds of bird skins—some collected 150 years earlier by a contemporary of Darwin's, Alfred Russel Wallace, who'd risked everything to gather them—and escaped into the darkness. Two years later, Kirk Wallace Johnson was waist high in a river in northern New Mexico when his fly-fishing guide told him about the heist. He was soon consumed by the strange case of the feather thief. What would possess a person to steal dead birds? Had Edwin paid the price for his crime? What became of the missing skins? In his search for answers, Johnson was catapulted into a years-long, worldwide investigation. The gripping story of a bizarre and shocking crime, and one man's relentless pursuit of justice, The Feather Thief is also a fascinating exploration of obsession, and man's destructive instinct to harvest the beauty of nature.
Download or read book The Museum Heist A Tale of Art and Obsession written by Kameel Nasr and published by Curiosity Books. This book was released on 2015-08-21 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the early morning hours after St. Patrick's Day, 1990, two men disguised as policemen gain access to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, a stately four-story Italian mansion in the Fenway district of Boston. They handcuff the guards, wrap their mouths with duct tape, and proceed to commit the largest robbery in history. The stolen masterpieces, including Vermeer's The Concert, a Degas, a Manet, and three irreplaceable Rembrandts, are valued at half a billion dollars. Despite a $10 million reward, and the combined efforts of the FBI, Scotland Yard, INTERPOL, and the Canadian Mounted Police, the treasured art is never recovered. Jump to twenty-five years later. Paris, an ex-con classics professor and superbly gifted art forger, is passing the time at a self-storage facility he bought in out-of-the-way New Mexico to earn a living while figuring out what to do next with his life. When a suspicious out-of-towner arrives to check on his belongings, Paris' curiosity gets the best of him. He breaks into the man's storage unit only to find the stolen art now missing for a quarter of a century. With the $10 million in reward money under his belt, Paris sets off for Boston to fulfill his dream of building a classical museum of his own. In order to help the eccentric Lieutenant Lowell nab the illusive thief, Paris dives back into the world of obsession and deception which may send him back to prison. The Museum Heist, based on the real-life robbery of the famed Gardner Museum, is a fast-paced, wily whodunit filled with intrigue, romance and stimulating scholarship. Author Kameel Nasr, an international adventurer and art connoisseur, shines a penetrating light on the motives, habits, and sometimes less-than-noble intentions in the demi-monde of world-class art collecting. Along the way, he's created a wonderfully satisfying mystery novel for anyone interested in historical fiction. The Museum Heist takes you on a roller-coaster ride of suspense, a meticulous portrait of the underbelly of the art world at its highest echelons.
Download or read book Heist Society written by Ally Carter and published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. This book was released on 2010-02-09 with total page 269 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Kat Bishop can steal anything-including your heart. Intrigue, adventure, romance, and charm abound in this New York Times bestselling series. For as long as she can remember, Katarina has been a part of the family business-thieving. When Kat tries to leave "the life" for a normal life, her old friend Hale conspires to bring her back into the fold. Why? A mobster's art collection has been stolen and Kat's father is the only suspect. Caught between Interpol and a far more deadly enemy, Kat's dad needs her help. The only solution is to find the paintings and steal them back. Kat's got two weeks, a teenage crew, and hopefully enough talent to pull off the biggest heist in her family's history-and, with any luck, steal her life back along the way. With its glamorous international settings, intriguing suspense, complicated cons and even more complicated romance, Heist Society is stealing the hearts of Ally Carter fans everywhere.
Download or read book Caught in the Act A Jewel Heist Romance Anthology written by Ainslie Paton and published by Carina Press. This book was released on 2017-06-19 with total page 235 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Three heist-romance novellas that will steal your heart and make your pulse race… Hoodwinked Hearts by Ainslie Paton Ten years ago, master thief Cleve Jones risked his freedom to fall in love with a dangerously sexy professor’s daughter only to watch her disappear. Now Vegas hustler Aria Harp is back—and she’s snatched the famous diamond Cleve’s been casing. Aria’s too smart to let Cleve break her heart, but he’ll do anything to keep her safe. Even if it means a dirty double cross and losing the only woman he’s ever loved—all over again. Rough Edges by Emma Sinclair The Staffordshire diamond: sixty carats of pure perfection, a priceless keepsake that’s been in Anastasia Staffordshire’s family for generations. But sentimentality means nothing to her corrupt cousin Leonard. He plans to sell the jewel. Anastasia plans to take it back. But first she’ll have to get around delicious bodyguard Jake Hoffman… Strange Tango by Michelle Dayton Diamonds are a thief’s best friend, and Adam Patrick Henry, professional jewel thief, knows diamonds. When he sees an amateur thief with impressive sleight-of-hand skills trying to work a con, he figures he could use a partner. And if that partner is irresistible, all the better. But Jessica Hughes is no thief, not really, and teaming up with Adam to work one big job could be more dangerous than it’s worth. Each title in this anthology is also available for purchase separately. This book is approximately 92,000 words
Download or read book The Art Thief written by Michael Finkel and published by Knopf Canada. This book was released on 2023-06-27 with total page 229 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER • One of the most remarkable true-crime narratives of the twenty-first century: the story of the world’s most prolific art thief, Stéphane Breitwieser. • “The Art Thief, like its title character, has confidence, élan, and a great sense of timing."—The New Yorker "Enthralling." —The Wall Street Journal In this spellbinding portrait of obsession and flawed genius, the best-selling author of The Stranger in the Woods brings us into Breitwieser’s strange world—unlike most thieves, he never stole for money, keeping all his treasures in a single room where he could admire them. For centuries, works of art have been stolen in countless ways from all over the world, but no one has been quite as successful at it as the master thief Stéphane Breitwieser. Carrying out more than two hundred heists over nearly eight years—in museums and cathedrals all over Europe—Breitwieser, along with his girlfriend who worked as his lookout, stole more than three hundred objects, until it all fell apart in spectacular fashion. In The Art Thief, Michael Finkel brings us into Breitwieser’s strange and fascinating world. Unlike most thieves, Breitwieser never stole for money. Instead, he displayed all his treasures in a pair of secret rooms where he could admire them to his heart’s content. Possessed of a remarkable athleticism and an innate ability to circumvent practically any security system, Breitwieser managed to pull off a breathtaking number of audacious thefts. Yet these strange talents bred a growing disregard for risk and an addict’s need to score, leading Breitwieser to ignore his girlfriend’s pleas to stop—until one final act of hubris brought everything crashing down. This is a riveting story of art, crime, love, and an insatiable hunger to possess beauty at any cost.
Download or read book The Art Forger written by B. A. Shapiro and published by Algonquin Books. This book was released on 2013-05-21 with total page 322 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Don't miss B. A. Shapiro's new novel, Metropolis, available now! “[A] highly entertaining literary thriller about fine art and foolish choices.” —Parade “[A] nimble mystery.” —The New York Times Book Review “Gripping.” —O, The Oprah Magazine Almost twenty-five years after the infamous art heist at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum—still the largest unsolved art theft in history—one of the stolen Degas paintings is delivered to the Boston studio of a young artist. Claire Roth has entered into a Faustian bargain with a powerful gallery owner by agreeing to forge the Degas in exchange for a one-woman show in his renowned gallery. But as she begins her work, she starts to suspect that this long-missing masterpiece—the very one that had been hanging at the Gardner for one hundred years—may itself be a forgery. The Art Forger is a thrilling novel about seeing—and not seeing—the secrets that lie beneath the canvas.
Download or read book The Woman Who Stole Vermeer written by Anthony M. Amore and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2020-11-10 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The extraordinary life and crimes of heiress-turned-revolutionary Rose Dugdale, who in 1974 became the only woman to pull off a major art heist. In the world of crime, there exists an unusual commonality between those who steal art and those who repeatedly kill: they are almost exclusively male. But, as with all things, there is always an outlier—someone who bucks the trend, defying the reliable profiles and leaving investigators and researchers scratching their heads. In the history of major art heists, that outlier is Rose Dugdale. Dugdale’s life is singularly notorious. Born into extreme wealth, she abandoned her life as an Oxford-trained PhD and heiress to join the cause of Irish Republicanism. While on the surface she appears to be the British version of Patricia Hearst, she is anything but. Dugdale ran head-first towards the action, spearheading the first aerial terrorist attack in British history and pulling off the biggest art theft of her time. In 1974, she led a gang into the opulent Russborough House in Ireland and made off with millions in prized paintings, including works by Goya, Gainsborough, and Rubens, as well as Lady Writing a Letter with her Maid by the mysterious master Johannes Vermeer. Dugdale thus became—to this day—the only woman to pull off a major art heist. And as Anthony Amore explores in The Woman Who Stole Vermeer, it’s likely that this was not her only such heist. The Woman Who Stole Vermeer is Rose Dugdale’s story, from her idyllic upbringing in Devonshire and her presentation to Elizabeth II as a debutante to her university years and her eventual radical lifestyle. Her life of crime and activism is at turns unbelievable and awe-inspiring, and sure to engross readers.
Download or read book Sweet on You A Bradford Sisters Romance Book 3 written by Becky Wade and published by Baker Books. This book was released on 2019-04-30 with total page 286 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Britt Bradford and Zander Ford have been the best of friends since they met thirteen years ago. Unbeknown to Britt, Zander has been in love with her for just as long. Independent and adventurous Britt channels her talent into creating chocolates at her hometown shop. Zander is a bestselling author who's spent the past 18 months traveling the world. He's achieved a great deal but still lacks the only thing that ever truly mattered to him--Britt's heart. When Zander's uncle dies of mysterious causes, he returns to Merryweather, Washington, to investigate, and Britt is immediately there to help. Although this throws them into close proximity, both understand that an attempt at romance could jeopardize their once-in-a-lifetime friendship. But while Britt is determined to resist any change in their relationship, Zander finds it increasingly difficult to keep his feelings hidden. As they work together to uncover his uncle's tangled past, will the truth of what lies between them also, finally, come to light?
Download or read book Tokyo Heist written by Diana Renn and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2013-06-13 with total page 383 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The perfect mystery for fans of Ally Carter's Heist Society When sixteen-year-old Violet agrees to spend the summer with her father, an up-and-coming artist in Seattle, she has no idea what she's walking into. Her father's newest clients, the Yamada family, are the victims of a high-profile art robbery: van Gogh sketches have been stolen from their home, and, until they can produce the corresponding painting, everyone's lives are in danger--including Violet's and her father's. Violet's search for the missing van Gogh takes her from the Seattle Art Museum, to the yakuza-infested streets of Tokyo, to a secluded inn in Kyoto. As the mystery thickens, Violet's not sure whom she can trust. But she knows one thing: she has to solve the mystery--before it's too late.
Download or read book The Sinful Ways of Jamie Mackenzie written by Jennifer Ashley and published by Jennifer Ashley. This book was released on 2021-11-16 with total page 343 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When in trouble, seek a Highlander ... Even if you pushed him into a river ten years ago ... When Evie McKnight slams into Jamie Mackenzie on a quay on Southampton, she flashes back to the day she accidentally knocked him into the river Cam. When she fished him out again, he shocked her with a searing, bold kiss before walking away in dripping wet shirt and kilt. Evie has no business reveling in memories of Jamie then and the nearness of him now—she is betrothed to a respectable man from a respectable and wealthy family. But Jamie appears everywhere in London, assisting Evie and her sisters, becoming friends with her fiancé, and agreeing to be drawn into the heist Evie has planned in order to save her best friend’s father from ruin. The son and heir of Ian Mackenzie, Jamie has roamed the world encountering adventure after adventure, and now he’s back home to settle down as he promised his family. But Jamie is restless, searching for something he can’t seem to find, trying to live up to his potential as the son of a genius. When he sees Evie again, he knows what he’s been striving for, and he is not going to let the trivial matter of her betrothal to a dull stick and the fact that she wants to break into the British Museum put him off. Jamie is Ian Mackenzie’s son all right—he’ll use all the Mackenzie determination and adroitness to prove that she is for him, and he for her.
Download or read book Portrait of a Thief written by Grace D. Li and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2023-04-04 with total page 417 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER An Edgar Award Nominee for Best First Novel Longlisted for the Center for Fiction's First Novel Prize Named a New York Times Best Crime Novel of 2022 Named A Most Anticipated Book of 2022 by *Marie Claire* *Washington Post* *Vulture* *NBC News* *Buzzfeed* *Veranda* *PopSugar* *Paste* *The Millions* *Bustle* *Crimereads* Goodreads* *Bookbub* *Boston.com* and more! "The thefts are engaging and surprising, and the narrative brims with international intrigue. Li, however, has delivered more than a straight thriller here, especially in the parts that depict the despair Will and his pals feel at being displaced, overlooked, underestimated, and discriminated against. This is as much a novel as a reckoning." —New York Times Book Review Ocean's Eleven meets The Farewell in Portrait of a Thief, a lush, lyrical heist novel inspired by the true story of Chinese art vanishing from Western museums; about diaspora, the colonization of art, and the complexity of the Chinese American identity History is told by the conquerors. Across the Western world, museums display the spoils of war, of conquest, of colonialism: priceless pieces of art looted from other countries, kept even now. Will Chen plans to steal them back. A senior at Harvard, Will fits comfortably in his carefully curated roles: a perfect student, an art history major and sometimes artist, the eldest son who has always been his parents' American Dream. But when a mysterious Chinese benefactor reaches out with an impossible—and illegal—job offer, Will finds himself something else as well: the leader of a heist to steal back five priceless Chinese sculptures, looted from Beijing centuries ago. His crew is every heist archetype one can imagine—or at least, the closest he can get. A con artist: Irene Chen, a public policy major at Duke who can talk her way out of anything. A thief: Daniel Liang, a premed student with steady hands just as capable of lockpicking as suturing. A getaway driver: Lily Wu, an engineering major who races cars in her free time. A hacker: Alex Huang, an MIT dropout turned Silicon Valley software engineer. Each member of his crew has their own complicated relationship with China and the identity they've cultivated as Chinese Americans, but when Will asks, none of them can turn him down. Because if they succeed? They earn fifty million dollars—and a chance to make history. But if they fail, it will mean not just the loss of everything they've dreamed for themselves but yet another thwarted attempt to take back what colonialism has stolen. Equal parts beautiful, thoughtful, and thrilling, Portrait of a Thief is a cultural heist and an examination of Chinese American identity, as well as a necessary critique of the lingering effects of colonialism.
Download or read book The Art of the Heist written by Myles J. Connor and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2009-04-10 with total page 374 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “One of the most beguiling criminal memoirs ever written….A rare gem of a book.” — T. J. English, New York Times bestselling author of Havana Nocturne How did the son of a decorated policeman grow up to be one of Boston’s most notorious criminals? How did he survive a decades-long feud with the FBI? How did he escape one jail sentence with a fake gun carved out of soap? How did he trade the return of a famous Rembrandt for early release from another sentence? The Art of the Heist is a roller-coaster ride of a life, the memoir of America’s most infamous art thief Myles Connor. Once a promising young rock musician, the son of a respected policeman, Myles Connor became one of Boston’s most infamous criminals—a legendary art thief with irresistible charm and a genius IQ whose approach to his chosen profession mixed brilliant tactical planning with stunning bravado, brazen disguises, audaciously elaborate con jobs, and even the broad-daylight grab-and-dash. New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian Institution, Boston’s Museum of Fine Art . . . no museum was off-limits. The fact that he was in jail at the time of the largest art theft in American history—the still-unsolved robbery of the Isabella Stewart Gardener Museum—has not stopped the FBI from considering him a prime suspect. The Art of the Heist is Connor’s story—part confession, part thrill ride, and impossible to put down.
Download or read book The Heist Film written by Daryl Lee and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2014-03-14 with total page 146 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A concise introduction to the genre about that one last big score, The Heist Film: Stealing With Style traces this crime thriller’s development as both a dramatic and comic vehicle growing out of film noir (Criss Cross, The Killers, The Asphalt Jungle), mutating into sleek capers in the 1960s (Ocean’s Eleven, Gambit, How to Steal a Million) and splashing across screens in the 2000s in remake after remake (The Thomas Crown Affair, The Italian Job, The Good Thief). Built around a series of case studies (Rififi, Bob le Flambeur, The Killing, The Lavender Hill Mob, The Getaway, the Ocean’s trilogy), this volume explores why directors of such varied backgrounds, from studio regulars (Siodmak, Crichton, Siegel, Walsh and Wise) to independents (Anderson, Fuller, Kubrick, Ritchie and Soderbergh), are so drawn to this popular genre.
Download or read book Repairing the World written by Linda Epstein and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2023-07-04 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A young girl grapples with her grief over a tragic loss with the help of a new perspective from Hebrew school and supportive new friends in this heartfelt and “accessible” (Kirkus Reviews) middle grade novel about learning to look forward. Twelve-year-old Daisy and Ruby are totally inseparable. They’ve grown up together, and Daisy has always counted on having Ruby there to pave the way, encourage her to try new things, and to see the magic in the world. Then Ruby is killed in a tragic accident while on vacation, and Daisy’s life is shattered. Now Daisy finds herself having to face the big things in her life—like starting middle school and becoming a big sister—without her best friend. It’s hard when you feel sad all the time. But thanks to new friends, new insights, and supportive family members, Daisy is able to see what life after Ruby can look like. And as she reaches beyond that to help repair the world around her, she is reminded that friendship is eternal, and that magic can be found in the presence of anyone who chooses to embrace it.
Download or read book The Crown Heist written by Deron R. Hicks and published by HMH Books For Young Readers. This book was released on 2021-11-16 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In another "suspenseful mystery romp with art appreciation" (Kirkus Reviews, starred review), Art and Camille head to London to find her estranged father, and soon find themselves embroiled in a heist involving a long-dead monarch. Packed with fascinating facts about real places and pieces of art, this fast-paced thriller is perfect for fans of the Spy School and Mr. Limoncello's Library series and Dan Brown. No matter how dangerous his adventures have been, Art has always been able to count on his best friend, Camille. Now that Camille is meeting her estranged father, Art wants to be there for her--which means going to London. But Camille's history professor father, renowned for expertise in British legend, is missing. When they visit his apartment, Art and Camille find a long-missing object that suggests the professor could be in trouble and solving a mystery related to London's history. Follow Art and Camille as they visit the Tower of London, National Portrait Gallery, and ride the "tube" in hopes of uncovering the truth before it's too late.
Download or read book To Catch an Earl written by Kate Bateman and published by St. Martin's Paperbacks. This book was released on 2020-06-30 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Kate Bateman's To Catch an Earl continues her historical Regency Romance Bow Street Bachelors series. Working undercover for London’s first official police force, the Bow Street Bachelors have an obligation to serve the city’s best interests—even while they’re falling for the city’s most alluring women... SHE KNOWS HOW TO STEAL A KISS. Alex Harland, Earl of Melton and dedicated rake, never pictured himself as an agent of inquiry. But the thrill of investigation is a challenge he now embraces. When he’s asked to pursue the Nightjar, a notorious thief who is reclaiming France’s crown jewels, the case throws him into the path of the beautiful and equally elusive Emmy Danvers, reminding him of the only puzzle he’s never solved: the identity of the mysterious woman who once stole a kiss from him—and left him wanting so much more... WILL HE SURRENDER HIS HEART? The daughter of a thief, Emmy learned long ago how to keep her secrets safeguarded—and, as the notorious Nightjar, her love for Alex Harland is one of them. With the determined earl hot on her trail—and making her hot under the collar—Emmy has no choice but to keep her distance. But when a moment’s danger threatens Emmy’s life as well as her name, will Alex finally discover that he’s followed every clue...to true love? “Full of intense emotions and dramatic twists....Future installments will be eagerly anticipated by Regency readers.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review) on This Earl of Mine
Download or read book Romancing The Heist written by Belle Knight and published by Belle Knight. This book was released on 2020-12-14 with total page 122 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
