Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg, The Heist

Kate O'Hare is an FBI agent who's married to her job, and Nick Fox is her nemesis turned partner in this fun series by two very practiced authors.

I'm more familiar with Lee Goldberg's books than his co-author's, and this story seems to me very much in his style: a fun mix of light comedy and crime and likeable protagonists. It's the literary equivalent of watching a feel-good TV crime show. Remington Steele, maybe.

In this outing, the alliance between Nick and a not quite willing Kate is formed, and the two put together an unlikely team to bring down a con man who's absconded with half a billion dollars.

My only complaint about the book—and I don't really know how to phrase what I'm thinking—is that the action somehow seems too removed, too distant. The reader isn't allowed to see the nitty gritty of the preparation that goes on behind the action: getaway transports are simply available; elaborate plans are laid and put into action across the globe without anyone breaking a sweat.

I definitely wouldn't want the story to be bogged down by too much detail, but I would like some. Otherwise it's as if you're reading the story through gauze. (I told you I didn't know how to express my thoughts here.)

Apart from that, I really enjoyed this first book in the series and will certainly read more.