Portrait of a Thief Review

By Nic Daniels

Welcome to 2023, audacious readers!

We’re in a whole new year with new opportunities on the horizon. But before we move forward, let’s take a quick look back. In November, we learned about self-love and perseverance in How Moon Fuentez Fell in Love with the Universe by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland. For December, we’re gearing up for an art heist in Portrait of a Thief by Grace D. Li.
As an art history major at Harvard, Will Chen is conscious of the complicated history around Eastern art and Western museums. Often the result of conquests and colonization, stolen art from China and beyond are signs of power stuck in museums for consumption. However, when Will witnesses a robbery at the Slacker Museum, he is given the opportunity to change the tides.

He is approached by a Beijing tycoon and is given the task to steal five Chinese zodiac statues for 50 million dollars in six months. Seeing it as an opportunity of a lifetime, Will gathers up a crew of is closest friends: his genius sister and con artist, Irene; premed and lockpick expert, Daniel; MIT dropout and unofficial hacker, Alex; and engineering major and street racer, Lily. With time ticking down, they plot their way through international museums and getaways. Will is well aware that he could lose everything if this goes wrong. However, what is reward if not for risk?

I enjoyed this book for so many reasons. I’ll start with is the fact that it’s from a minority perspective and isn’t a fantasy. I’m not sure if it’s just me but I feel as though I often see book from Asian authors leaning towards fantasy or period pieces. Now, there’s nothing wrong with this—they’re still really good books—but it’s nice to see a book that takes place in the here and now, dealing with current perspective on their history.

Also, I loved how it shows Chinese Americans as more than a monolith! Each character had such different experiences with their heritage. I love you go from Lily being in awe of her parent’s home country as it’s her first time experiencing it to Daniel referring it as his true home with Will, Irene, and Lily falling in between. No one’s experience is discounted; rather, they lean into each other. I also love how there was this sense of loss intertwined with it, something that I, as a Black American, often feel in regard to my own heritage, so it’s nice to see that shown.

Speaking of the diversity of the experiences, the diversity of storylines is also great. Will is the main character, but this story is a great example of how to do an ensemble storyline without losing focus. Alex and Irene’s enemies-to-lovers storyline doesn’t clash with Will’s want to fight against colonialism and his dream of being an artist. Neither of those storylines take away from Daniel’s want to reconnect with his father, which bounces off of Lily’s want to not feel lost in general. They all work and layer together well.

That being said, the emotional aspects don’t take away from the action of the heists. The twists and turns are fun and engaging. Now, while I do have notes on their general plans for the thefts, the final heist with them basically conning the museums giving the art back themselves was brilliant. Definitely a work harder not smarter solution and worth 50 million dollars.

I hope you guys enjoyed Portrait of a Thief. If you want to see me and founder, Jessica Wise’s, full discussion on the book, check out our drunk book review. We’ll be back with the Book Club IG Live at the end of the month.

Until then, don’t forget to read audaciously!