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Double Exposure
A F/NBI enemies to lovers romantic suspense
Love always shows your true face.
Jillian Rhodes lies to everyone she meets. As one of the world's best art thieves, a life of infiltration and con artistry has left her flying solo, which is exactly the way she likes it. When Jillian is hired to steal a collection of photos belonging to the late—and deeply controversial—Russell Key from the Art Institute of Chicago, everything should be business as usual.
Except she has two first, fellow master thief Sloane Caffrey also has their eye on the photos. Second, Sloane is her smoking hot ex.
Three years have passed since a messy breakup, but Jillian and Sloane have been getting vengeance on each other ever since. When the Key theft becomes their latest competition, love and loathing ride a fine, shaking line.
Trying to destroy each other should be simple. But confronting past mistakes is hard, especially when the entire job is starting to look like a setup to put Jillian and Sloane behind bars...
Love always shows your true face.
Jillian Rhodes lies to everyone she meets. As one of the world's best art thieves, a life of infiltration and con artistry has left her flying solo, which is exactly the way she likes it. When Jillian is hired to steal a collection of photos belonging to the late—and deeply controversial—Russell Key from the Art Institute of Chicago, everything should be business as usual.
Except she has two first, fellow master thief Sloane Caffrey also has their eye on the photos. Second, Sloane is her smoking hot ex.
Three years have passed since a messy breakup, but Jillian and Sloane have been getting vengeance on each other ever since. When the Key theft becomes their latest competition, love and loathing ride a fine, shaking line.
Trying to destroy each other should be simple. But confronting past mistakes is hard, especially when the entire job is starting to look like a setup to put Jillian and Sloane behind bars...
174 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 4, 2023
44 people are currently reading
555 people want to read
About the author
Rien Gray
25 books152 followersRien is a queer, nonbinary author of LGBTQ+ romance, erotica, and horror. They love writing charged sex scenes, consent-informed kink, and hot criminal love interests who revel in the above.
When not writing, Rien spends their time at the gym, making tea, or angling for yet another platinum trophy in a video game.
Newsletter: Free Novella Here!
Website: riengray.com
BSky: @RienGray
When not writing, Rien spends their time at the gym, making tea, or angling for yet another platinum trophy in a video game.
Newsletter: Free Novella Here!
Website: riengray.com
BSky: @RienGray
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews
December 10, 2023
Two successful art thieves chose the same photo art exhibit to steal. Neither will back down. They have a long history with one night of physical and emotional connection followed by three years of mixed signals and retaliation. Oh, and an art heist.
This is an action packed adventure with a surprising ending. There are a few questions left unanswered but this does not take too much away from the overall experience.
The romance hinges on, wait for it……..a miscommunication but done in a way to make it not annoying.
I had fun reading it.
This is an action packed adventure with a surprising ending. There are a few questions left unanswered but this does not take too much away from the overall experience.
The romance hinges on, wait for it……..a miscommunication but done in a way to make it not annoying.
I had fun reading it.
December 11, 2023
A quick read delving into the world of exhibits and art galleries and the unending need to protect against theft. Main characters Sloane and Jillian know each other well as lovers in the past and as adversaries in their particular line of work - thieves of the highest calibre and con artists supreme. They have been Individually hired to steal a block of explicit photos from a museum before the exhibition opens. Sparks fly when they set eyes on one another while scouting the same venue.
I liked the fast pace, dangerous moves made, one thief trying to best the other. Who knows what and who is who? Will they join forces, trust is paramount but the heat between them is undeniable! The perfect pair of well dressed shysters. Read and enjoy Gray's latest where nothing is as it seems, intrigue abounds and a love beckons off camera.
I liked the fast pace, dangerous moves made, one thief trying to best the other. Who knows what and who is who? Will they join forces, trust is paramount but the heat between them is undeniable! The perfect pair of well dressed shysters. Read and enjoy Gray's latest where nothing is as it seems, intrigue abounds and a love beckons off camera.
August 28, 2023
I absolutely loved this book. Think Ocean’s 11 with a dash of Mr. and Mrs. Smith but make it queer and you have a little of the vibe of “Double Exposure.”
Set against the glitz and glam of a high-flying international backdrop, elite thieves Sloane Caffrey and Jillian Rhodes have been circling each other for years. The former one-time lovers snare each other in an increasingly dangerous series of misunderstandings by two characters you sometimes want to slap silly for being so blind to the other’s true motives. This game of cat and mouse culminates with a heist at the Art Institute of Chicago, where lewd photos of a famous photographer are being displayed at an exclusive gala event.
Both Jillian and Sloane are hired to steal the photos from the museum. Years of friction and sexual tension finally catch up to them in one near-disaster of an evening.
I also really liked the author’s writing style. The action scenes were a bit rushed but the prose flowed well and I could visualize this as a movie.
I loved the characters in this. Sloane is nonbinary and the representation was very well done. I appreciated that this book wasn’t marketed as sapphic because not all nonbinary folx present as femme. Gender was handled very well here, from the way Sloane’s fake date, the museum director’s daughter, told them they only dated women, to the scene when they rented out a pool for privacy instead of ego, to their fabulous, gender-bending outfits.
Sloane was a formidable character with an intriguing backstory, as the heir to a family that made their fortunes in opioids. I liked the Robin Hood touch that they started their thieving career destroying their family’s tarnished legacy from the inside.
I also liked Jillian as a character, though we didn’t get as much of her motivations or backstory; I wanted to know more about her trust issues and why her boundaries were shut tighter than Fort Knox. I love that Sloane is the key to unlocking her.
These two had heat and chemistry to the nines. I usually dislike the misunderstanding trope but I liked how Jillian was so clueless and Sloane had put her on a pedestal of this infallible idol, so it made up for me groaning at some of their choices on either side.
I also didn’t totally buy that they’d trust each other so easily when they had to work with each other after years of communication issues, but I liked how they did acknowledge they needed to work on rebuilding trust toward the end.
Overall, a scorching ride of a story in which it turns out that the most precious thing one can steal is the heart of the only person in the world who understands you best.
Thank you to the author for the advance review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Set against the glitz and glam of a high-flying international backdrop, elite thieves Sloane Caffrey and Jillian Rhodes have been circling each other for years. The former one-time lovers snare each other in an increasingly dangerous series of misunderstandings by two characters you sometimes want to slap silly for being so blind to the other’s true motives. This game of cat and mouse culminates with a heist at the Art Institute of Chicago, where lewd photos of a famous photographer are being displayed at an exclusive gala event.
Both Jillian and Sloane are hired to steal the photos from the museum. Years of friction and sexual tension finally catch up to them in one near-disaster of an evening.
I also really liked the author’s writing style. The action scenes were a bit rushed but the prose flowed well and I could visualize this as a movie.
I loved the characters in this. Sloane is nonbinary and the representation was very well done. I appreciated that this book wasn’t marketed as sapphic because not all nonbinary folx present as femme. Gender was handled very well here, from the way Sloane’s fake date, the museum director’s daughter, told them they only dated women, to the scene when they rented out a pool for privacy instead of ego, to their fabulous, gender-bending outfits.
Sloane was a formidable character with an intriguing backstory, as the heir to a family that made their fortunes in opioids. I liked the Robin Hood touch that they started their thieving career destroying their family’s tarnished legacy from the inside.
I also liked Jillian as a character, though we didn’t get as much of her motivations or backstory; I wanted to know more about her trust issues and why her boundaries were shut tighter than Fort Knox. I love that Sloane is the key to unlocking her.
These two had heat and chemistry to the nines. I usually dislike the misunderstanding trope but I liked how Jillian was so clueless and Sloane had put her on a pedestal of this infallible idol, so it made up for me groaning at some of their choices on either side.
I also didn’t totally buy that they’d trust each other so easily when they had to work with each other after years of communication issues, but I liked how they did acknowledge they needed to work on rebuilding trust toward the end.
Overall, a scorching ride of a story in which it turns out that the most precious thing one can steal is the heart of the only person in the world who understands you best.
Thank you to the author for the advance review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
March 26, 2024
Rival art thieves—who had a hot night together three years ago—face off when they’re both tasked with stealing photographs from an upcoming exhibit at the Art Institute of Chicago. Due to a misunderstanding, Sloane and Jillian have relished sabotaging each other since parting ways. They are the embodiment of “thou doth protest too much.” This was SO GOOD!!!
The characters are sharp blades (ice royalty!!) and good at what they do. They dance around each other as they plan their respective heist and figure out how they can beat the other person at their own game. I cannot tell you how delicious this level of competency was. Should I have been cheering for art thieves this hard? I sure as hell did because they are thieves with a moral code who recognize how many museums and private collectors have ill-gotten gains. Sloane and Jillian have their own way of giving back and restoring justice. It just happens to be funded by theft.
The Art Institute of Chicago is my favorite museum so I could not have been more thrilled to read about a heist set there. I think this would be just as enjoyable even if you’ve never visited but being able to picture the different parts of the museum added to my enjoyment. Although I did laugh at how they kept calling the Bean “Cloud Gate.” LOL no one here calls it that!
I loved how inclusive this world was despite having so few characters. Sloane is nonbinary and while there are some nods to the care they take in public, there’s no misgendering. Add in a couple of twists and some close calls and you have a complete winner of a romantic suspense. Sloane and Jillian finally realizing how much time they’ve wasted? *Chef’s kiss*
Characters: Jillian is a 33 year old white art thief. Sloane is a nonbinary white art thief. This is set in Chicago.
Content notes: gunshot (blocked by vest), MCs sabotage each other (primarily past), family estrangement, Sloane’s parents’ company produced opioids (they destroyed the company), artist’s girlfriend went missing and was never found (past; ), past parental infidelity and substance abuse (secondary character’s deceased father), past childhood poverty, past death of secondary character’s parents, MCs do not want children (Jillian is on birth control), on page sex, alcohol, ableist language
The characters are sharp blades (ice royalty!!) and good at what they do. They dance around each other as they plan their respective heist and figure out how they can beat the other person at their own game. I cannot tell you how delicious this level of competency was. Should I have been cheering for art thieves this hard? I sure as hell did because they are thieves with a moral code who recognize how many museums and private collectors have ill-gotten gains. Sloane and Jillian have their own way of giving back and restoring justice. It just happens to be funded by theft.
The Art Institute of Chicago is my favorite museum so I could not have been more thrilled to read about a heist set there. I think this would be just as enjoyable even if you’ve never visited but being able to picture the different parts of the museum added to my enjoyment. Although I did laugh at how they kept calling the Bean “Cloud Gate.” LOL no one here calls it that!
I loved how inclusive this world was despite having so few characters. Sloane is nonbinary and while there are some nods to the care they take in public, there’s no misgendering. Add in a couple of twists and some close calls and you have a complete winner of a romantic suspense. Sloane and Jillian finally realizing how much time they’ve wasted? *Chef’s kiss*
Characters: Jillian is a 33 year old white art thief. Sloane is a nonbinary white art thief. This is set in Chicago.
Content notes: gunshot (blocked by vest), MCs sabotage each other (primarily past), family estrangement, Sloane’s parents’ company produced opioids (they destroyed the company), artist’s girlfriend went missing and was never found (past; ), past parental infidelity and substance abuse (secondary character’s deceased father), past childhood poverty, past death of secondary character’s parents, MCs do not want children (Jillian is on birth control), on page sex, alcohol, ableist language
November 24, 2023
Two thieves, both brilliant, both hired to retrieve the same series of photos from the Art Institute of Chicago. What used to be a friendly competition turned into an outright war in the last three years, after they had sex once (according to Jillian) or twice (according to Sloane). Jillian sicced the cops on Sloane, or did she? And Sloane humiliated Jillian, or did they?
On the romance side, Double Exposure takes miscommunication to a very high level but as frustrating as it is, it works. What I really enjoyed about this story, however, is the heist arc, the competition between Jillian and Sloane, the cleverness of it all. I’m a huge fan of Ocean’s 8—and the other Ocean movies too—and I love how much fun it is to see the heist itself unfold after all the preparations. I’m a sucker for heist storylines and Rien Gray really delivers.
I received a copy from the author and I am voluntarily leaving a review.
Read all my reviews on my blog (and please buy from the affiliation links!): Jude in the Stars
July 16, 2024
ever wish those old con and heist movies were more queer? then you need to read this f/nb, acab, anti-corporation book! it is oodles of fun.
Read
January 9, 2024Rival art thieves with a messy past affair find themselves trying to heist the same set of long lost, scandalous photos—connected to a potential murder—from the Chicago Art Institute. Lots of sexy hostility, expensive suits, high art, blueprints, climbing harnesses, charity galas, and lies. This is a ton of fun and very stylish. The sexual tension is as delicious as the dramatic irony, and the book feels as well researched as the heist. I love that the problem in the romance is that each world-class thief thinks the other is too good at their craft to ever make a mistake.
August 13, 2023
This was my first Rien Gray book and I absolutely loved it!
It is not a simple Sapphic love story or erotica.
This story is very much in the spirit of "My Beloved Archenemy".
Much is explained about the planning of the robbery.
Events from previous orders and also those of the current robbery, both of which come from different clients and do not treat each other.
Of course also about the meeting of the two from the past and why they are now archenemies.
It's a confusing game that isn't what you initially expect.
It looks like they want to harm each other like they have done in the past, but it turns out very differently than you think.
It remains exciting and only reveals itself towards the end of the story.
So if you like it exciting, this is the place for you. Since both MC’s already know each other, you can't really speak of slow-burn, but it still fits here.
Also a second-chance romance, with a lot of anger, misunderstanding and unspoken feelings.
A real roller coaster, but when the time comes...phew the fire goes through the roof!
Thanks to Author Rien Gray for ARC!
It is not a simple Sapphic love story or erotica.
This story is very much in the spirit of "My Beloved Archenemy".
Much is explained about the planning of the robbery.
Events from previous orders and also those of the current robbery, both of which come from different clients and do not treat each other.
Of course also about the meeting of the two from the past and why they are now archenemies.
It's a confusing game that isn't what you initially expect.
It looks like they want to harm each other like they have done in the past, but it turns out very differently than you think.
It remains exciting and only reveals itself towards the end of the story.
So if you like it exciting, this is the place for you. Since both MC’s already know each other, you can't really speak of slow-burn, but it still fits here.
Also a second-chance romance, with a lot of anger, misunderstanding and unspoken feelings.
A real roller coaster, but when the time comes...phew the fire goes through the roof!
Thanks to Author Rien Gray for ARC!
June 8, 2024
i've never read a true slow burn before and a novella no less. but it speaks to the compelling writing and enthralling storytelling that even when the romance wasn't at the center of the plot, i was still deeply invested. this was written after not only my queer heart but also my academic mind. no detail was overlooked when it came to the heist, and the tension was so well crafted. i would love for this to have been a full-length novel, or at the very least, to get a sequel of their thefts together.
March 24, 2025
Was happily surprised by this one! An art heist and a love story under 200 pages had me nervous but the author has you falling for both Sloane and Jillian. I really appreciated how this story was weaved and how Sloane’s non-binary character was portrayed. So good!!
September 5, 2023
so, rien gray has done it again. what a masterpiece. I am so obsessed with this genre of hot, queer criminals committing feats of genius, sticking it to the Man and looking good while doing it. this book was PERFECT. a lifelong leverage fan, when this was announced as leverage/ocean’s 8 inspired thief/con person f/nb romance, I was hooked immediately and for good reason!! rien gray has this uncanny way of combining meaningful emotional vulnerability with some cruelly dangerous crimes and some sexyass characters. I desperately hope this book was intended to be a series like fatal fidelity because I DESPERATELY need more of Jillian and Sloane
September 11, 2024
4.5
I love me a good heist 🥰
Two sapphic badass MCs 😍
Slow burn
I love me a good heist 🥰
Two sapphic badass MCs 😍
Slow burn
August 8, 2023
Rien Gray does it again. Leverage x Thomas Crown Affair but lesbians ahhhh. Originally a part of an anthology, I'm so happy this is also getting it's own release as well. This is such a snappy little hot heist romance, with such a fun exes to enemies to lovers with all the miscommunication and angst that comes with it. Also, one of the things I love about Rien's writing that it feels like they had a great time researching, especially when it comes to doing crimes (and being gay of course).
Everyone READ IT. ITS GREAT.
Everyone READ IT. ITS GREAT.
May 31, 2024
The second half of this Double Exposure very much carries the story. Which is good because the book centers around two art thieves, Sloane and Jillian, and the second half is where the art heist takes place and the heat of their reunion.
Several years prior, Sloane and Jillian met and hooked up. But they had more than just one-night stand feelings for each other, but insecurities cause them to spurn one another, and then they start foiling each other's heists whenever their paths cross. This is a second chance and enemies-to-lovers romance. A brilliant miscommunication is employed that, yeah, Jillian would be my enemy too, if I were Sloane.
Grey seemed to do their research into art heists, but mostly, I will just believe the technical things they told me. The heist features photos from an edgy Boomer photographer, who has since died. The pictures he took were of himself and a girlfriend, who disappeared, and it was believed he murdered her, despite him saying all his life that he didn't. The photos have never appeared in public, until now. This mystery adds another great layer to the plot.
Sloane and Jillian are strongly drawn to each other. They both care so much about the other person that they just get mad. All their attention goes to the other person, which means they start missing the details.
Sloane is non-binary, and I loved how Grey played with their presentation and how people interpreted their gender. At one point, the museum's art director sets them up with his daughter, who very kindly rejects Sloane because she only dates women, and Sloane is not a woman (and not a man). During the book's one sex scene, Grey doesn't hesitate to be as explicit about Sloane's body and sex as they are with Jillian's. This is the first adult romance I've read where the non-binary character was AMAB.
I continue to enjoy the fantasy of how every character always uses they/them pronouns for Sloane without fail. At one point, a cop uses "Mx" when addressing Sloane by their last name, and 400x more unbelievable than any fantasy book I've read.
Several years prior, Sloane and Jillian met and hooked up. But they had more than just one-night stand feelings for each other, but insecurities cause them to spurn one another, and then they start foiling each other's heists whenever their paths cross. This is a second chance and enemies-to-lovers romance. A brilliant miscommunication is employed that, yeah, Jillian would be my enemy too, if I were Sloane.
Grey seemed to do their research into art heists, but mostly, I will just believe the technical things they told me. The heist features photos from an edgy Boomer photographer, who has since died. The pictures he took were of himself and a girlfriend, who disappeared, and it was believed he murdered her, despite him saying all his life that he didn't. The photos have never appeared in public, until now. This mystery adds another great layer to the plot.
Sloane and Jillian are strongly drawn to each other. They both care so much about the other person that they just get mad. All their attention goes to the other person, which means they start missing the details.
Sloane is non-binary, and I loved how Grey played with their presentation and how people interpreted their gender. At one point, the museum's art director sets them up with his daughter, who very kindly rejects Sloane because she only dates women, and Sloane is not a woman (and not a man). During the book's one sex scene, Grey doesn't hesitate to be as explicit about Sloane's body and sex as they are with Jillian's. This is the first adult romance I've read where the non-binary character was AMAB.
I continue to enjoy the fantasy of how every character always uses they/them pronouns for Sloane without fail. At one point, a cop uses "Mx" when addressing Sloane by their last name, and 400x more unbelievable than any fantasy book I've read.
April 19, 2024
I wanted to like this book--exes to lovers, art theft, a heist gone wrong! It seemed tailor made for ME.
But I wasn't sold on the romance, the heist occurred off screen, and the villain was introduced and wrapped up in one chapter, with a hyper contrived motive and no character to speak of... In short, unfortunately disappointing.
The pros:
- wonderful prose
- great sex scene
- quick dialogue
- some interesting character work around the 70% mark
The cons:
- didn't enjoy the romance or the heist in a romance heist book
- the pacing was simultaneously too fast and too slow
- the stakes never felt real
But I wasn't sold on the romance, the heist occurred off screen, and the villain was introduced and wrapped up in one chapter, with a hyper contrived motive and no character to speak of... In short, unfortunately disappointing.
The pros:
- wonderful prose
- great sex scene
- quick dialogue
- some interesting character work around the 70% mark
The cons:
- didn't enjoy the romance or the heist in a romance heist book
- the pacing was simultaneously too fast and too slow
- the stakes never felt real
March 26, 2024
Who doesn’t love a good art heist? This was a fun quick read; full of espionage, humor, and enough sexual tension to cut with a knife!
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
November 1, 2023
I write this with the full disclosure that I am annoyingly pedantic and a lifelong obsessive fan of the heist genre. I was sold on that alone, even before I found out this was a romance LP
So it was wildly disappointing that this failed to deliver on either in the end. There was potential, but at some point this story began to unravel for me, and it was in complete shambles by the reveal.
The romance is maybe more a matter of taste, but the central conflict is all about a misunderstanding, solved immediately by one conversation. Neither Sloane nor Jillian really interfere with each other's plans, there is no charming petty competition. Their repore is mostly a lot of genuinely hurtful personal jabs that lack levity while they lust for each other in their heads. Its not really fun to read, nor is it particularly insightful to their characters. Their relationship is neither punchy and snarky enough to be fun or complicated and deep to be profound and serious.
There's a general lack of tension throughout the story as well. Moments that could have really gotten the readers pulse going fall flat of truly being heart pounding. There are no near misses, even Sloane's gunshot wound is apparently not so serious they cannot get back to their penthouse without any threat of getting caught or grievous injury.
Major spoilers from this point:
The climax of the heist is confusing and underwhelming. There is a villain; I knew she was the villain because she was mentioned twice before she was unmasked as such. Not because of, say, her interactions with the named characters or because of her actual actions. But because the characters noticed her and pointed her out for the audience with no further elaboration. There is four pages dedicated to setting up a random ultimately irrelevant tertiary character with another tertiary character who is bizarrely developed for no reason other than to establish that she is almost comedically Good and Moral, but the villain doesn't even get a line of dialogue until the climax.
And her motivation, god, her motivation. Why does she want these pictures? She was allegedly famous enough to be Miss Rio De Janero, meaning she must have been photographed as such beforehand. She was famously dating this man, it wasn't a secret, as he was investigated for her murder. This was also all decades ago. She has no features so distinctive that any resemblance cannot be brushed off as the result of just the limits of human variation. Sloane and Jillian claim her eyes are so distinct, yet Woodward apparently did not put two and two together. She apparently cannot get the CIA, who is so corrupt they will frame an innocent man for murder, to them seize photos he took of his murder victim while he was supporting seditious causes so successfully they had to frame him for murder to stop. She does not want these images getting out but then... Also asked Woodward to break the longstanding agreement that he was sure was legal and display them. Despite her not wanting them displayed.
Maybe any of this could be justified if she had spoken, at any point before this reveal.
I read this entire book twice to make sure I did not miss any details. I took notes. I have done my due diligence and come out the other side confused and disappointed.
I do want to give due credit where it is due: the sex scenes were good, there's a lot of fun art and art history details. Its a good smooth read on a prose level.
But ultimately, it just doesn't flesh out its own premises. The end result is more like a romance novel wearing a Spencer's Halloween costume version of a heist story. And I wish it wasn't, I wanted it to be the high heat episode of Leverage it was advertised as.
So it was wildly disappointing that this failed to deliver on either in the end. There was potential, but at some point this story began to unravel for me, and it was in complete shambles by the reveal.
The romance is maybe more a matter of taste, but the central conflict is all about a misunderstanding, solved immediately by one conversation. Neither Sloane nor Jillian really interfere with each other's plans, there is no charming petty competition. Their repore is mostly a lot of genuinely hurtful personal jabs that lack levity while they lust for each other in their heads. Its not really fun to read, nor is it particularly insightful to their characters. Their relationship is neither punchy and snarky enough to be fun or complicated and deep to be profound and serious.
There's a general lack of tension throughout the story as well. Moments that could have really gotten the readers pulse going fall flat of truly being heart pounding. There are no near misses, even Sloane's gunshot wound is apparently not so serious they cannot get back to their penthouse without any threat of getting caught or grievous injury.
Major spoilers from this point:
The climax of the heist is confusing and underwhelming. There is a villain; I knew she was the villain because she was mentioned twice before she was unmasked as such. Not because of, say, her interactions with the named characters or because of her actual actions. But because the characters noticed her and pointed her out for the audience with no further elaboration. There is four pages dedicated to setting up a random ultimately irrelevant tertiary character with another tertiary character who is bizarrely developed for no reason other than to establish that she is almost comedically Good and Moral, but the villain doesn't even get a line of dialogue until the climax.
And her motivation, god, her motivation. Why does she want these pictures? She was allegedly famous enough to be Miss Rio De Janero, meaning she must have been photographed as such beforehand. She was famously dating this man, it wasn't a secret, as he was investigated for her murder. This was also all decades ago. She has no features so distinctive that any resemblance cannot be brushed off as the result of just the limits of human variation. Sloane and Jillian claim her eyes are so distinct, yet Woodward apparently did not put two and two together. She apparently cannot get the CIA, who is so corrupt they will frame an innocent man for murder, to them seize photos he took of his murder victim while he was supporting seditious causes so successfully they had to frame him for murder to stop. She does not want these images getting out but then... Also asked Woodward to break the longstanding agreement that he was sure was legal and display them. Despite her not wanting them displayed.
Maybe any of this could be justified if she had spoken, at any point before this reveal.
I read this entire book twice to make sure I did not miss any details. I took notes. I have done my due diligence and come out the other side confused and disappointed.
I do want to give due credit where it is due: the sex scenes were good, there's a lot of fun art and art history details. Its a good smooth read on a prose level.
But ultimately, it just doesn't flesh out its own premises. The end result is more like a romance novel wearing a Spencer's Halloween costume version of a heist story. And I wish it wasn't, I wanted it to be the high heat episode of Leverage it was advertised as.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 7, 2023
This was fun but… not perhaps as fun as it could have been.
Let’s start with the characters. I liked Jillian and Sloane. I liked them individually and together. It was just… well, two things. One, I can’t tell you how or why they became art thieves. I know the book covered it for at least one of them, but my only takeaway was “my family sucked so I started stealing,” which isn’t much. It feels like they must have had some baggage before they met, and I didn’t get a feel for it.
And two… they had to carry about the first 60% of the book, and it didn’t totally work for me. For lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers, how about A Game of Hearts and Heists? The two leads carried the first 3/4 of that book on the back of their relationship way better. I think it was that they did more than just wound each other. Their “I’d kill her if only I didn’t want to f*** her” played out in more than just their heads, in more than just hurtful verbal venom, and the story was way better for it. In the early going here, I didn’t really feel like Sloane and Jillian had any real chemistry or attraction, though I 100% bought the anger (even hatred).
Then about 60% of the way in, the plot got rolling, and all the earlier setup started paying off. At that point, I was hooked. It still wasn’t the best heist ever… the meatiest part was hand-waved with “she did X and Y and boom, done” and I’m left wondering… how did she get to the point of doing that? Am I expected to believe the plans for getting into position went perfectly according to plan, after every move during the initial stakeout and dry run was thwarted? How did nothing go wrong with X and Y? Like, where did the tension go?
OK, it went into the showdown, which was great… if you don’t mind that the villain was kind of out of nowhere and the agencies that stood behind them… I don’t know, they weren’t the most unique or inspiring, as bad guys go.
So the more I write the worse this sounds, but here’s the thing… it really was fun. And when Jillian and Sloane started working together, they’re a knockout team. Their skills are distinct and very complimentary, the chemistry was finally there, they just, you know, fit. So for all my griping, I’m happy to have read this, and I’d definitely read a sequel where the past is behind them and they work a heist together.
Let’s start with the characters. I liked Jillian and Sloane. I liked them individually and together. It was just… well, two things. One, I can’t tell you how or why they became art thieves. I know the book covered it for at least one of them, but my only takeaway was “my family sucked so I started stealing,” which isn’t much. It feels like they must have had some baggage before they met, and I didn’t get a feel for it.
And two… they had to carry about the first 60% of the book, and it didn’t totally work for me. For lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers, how about A Game of Hearts and Heists? The two leads carried the first 3/4 of that book on the back of their relationship way better. I think it was that they did more than just wound each other. Their “I’d kill her if only I didn’t want to f*** her” played out in more than just their heads, in more than just hurtful verbal venom, and the story was way better for it. In the early going here, I didn’t really feel like Sloane and Jillian had any real chemistry or attraction, though I 100% bought the anger (even hatred).
Then about 60% of the way in, the plot got rolling, and all the earlier setup started paying off. At that point, I was hooked. It still wasn’t the best heist ever… the meatiest part was hand-waved with “she did X and Y and boom, done” and I’m left wondering… how did she get to the point of doing that? Am I expected to believe the plans for getting into position went perfectly according to plan, after every move during the initial stakeout and dry run was thwarted? How did nothing go wrong with X and Y? Like, where did the tension go?
OK, it went into the showdown, which was great… if you don’t mind that the villain was kind of out of nowhere and the agencies that stood behind them… I don’t know, they weren’t the most unique or inspiring, as bad guys go.
So the more I write the worse this sounds, but here’s the thing… it really was fun. And when Jillian and Sloane started working together, they’re a knockout team. Their skills are distinct and very complimentary, the chemistry was finally there, they just, you know, fit. So for all my griping, I’m happy to have read this, and I’d definitely read a sequel where the past is behind them and they work a heist together.
April 28, 2024
I got this book during one of the Stuff Your Kindle Days and this book sounded interesting, and I loved the non-binary representation.
This book has two points of view. The first is Jillian Rhodes and she lies to everyone she meets. As one of the world’s best art thieves, a life of infiltration and con artistry has left her flying solo, which is exactly the way she likes it. When Jillian is hired to steal a collection of photos belonging to the late – and deeply controversial – Russell Key from the Art Institute of Chicago, everything should be business as usual. Except she has two first, fellow master thief Sloane Caffrey also has their eye on the photos. Second, Sloane is her smoking hot ex. Three years have passed since a messy breakup, but Jillian and Sloane have been getting vengeance on each other ever since. Calling Interpol on each other, busting each other heists. When the Key theft becomes their latest competition, love and loathing ride a fine, shaking line. Trying to destroy each other should be simple. But confronting past mistake is hard, especially when the entire job is starting to look like a setup to put Jillian and Sloane behind bars.
I loved this book, I wanted more from it. 174 pages was not enough. It could be 600 pages and I would still want more. I love the storyline; I thought the action was amazing and thrilling. It was very fast-paced, and the tension was thrilling. The plot twist had me gasping audibly at 2am. I loved the two main characters. I wanted to protect Sloane with my whole heart. Their storyline was beautiful and I adore them. Jillian took a while to grow on me and I think that was because of the whole tough good act and that she didn’t give a shit when she did. I love the romance between Jillian and Sloane and how they managed to work things out. This is the only time where the miscommunication trope is accepted because they were both being screwed over.
The only thing that stopped this book from being five stars was the ending, I wanted to know what was going to happen to the side characters. Did they face punishment? Did it go viral? Did they figure out the plot twist? What happened to Russell Jr?
I just wanted this book to be longer, but if you are looking for a quick and thrilling read with lesbian and non-binary rep, I would recommend this book. I will definitely be checking out more of Rien’s work in the future.
This book has two points of view. The first is Jillian Rhodes and she lies to everyone she meets. As one of the world’s best art thieves, a life of infiltration and con artistry has left her flying solo, which is exactly the way she likes it. When Jillian is hired to steal a collection of photos belonging to the late – and deeply controversial – Russell Key from the Art Institute of Chicago, everything should be business as usual. Except she has two first, fellow master thief Sloane Caffrey also has their eye on the photos. Second, Sloane is her smoking hot ex. Three years have passed since a messy breakup, but Jillian and Sloane have been getting vengeance on each other ever since. Calling Interpol on each other, busting each other heists. When the Key theft becomes their latest competition, love and loathing ride a fine, shaking line. Trying to destroy each other should be simple. But confronting past mistake is hard, especially when the entire job is starting to look like a setup to put Jillian and Sloane behind bars.
I loved this book, I wanted more from it. 174 pages was not enough. It could be 600 pages and I would still want more. I love the storyline; I thought the action was amazing and thrilling. It was very fast-paced, and the tension was thrilling. The plot twist had me gasping audibly at 2am. I loved the two main characters. I wanted to protect Sloane with my whole heart. Their storyline was beautiful and I adore them. Jillian took a while to grow on me and I think that was because of the whole tough good act and that she didn’t give a shit when she did. I love the romance between Jillian and Sloane and how they managed to work things out. This is the only time where the miscommunication trope is accepted because they were both being screwed over.
The only thing that stopped this book from being five stars was the ending, I wanted to know what was going to happen to the side characters. Did they face punishment? Did it go viral? Did they figure out the plot twist? What happened to Russell Jr?
I just wanted this book to be longer, but if you are looking for a quick and thrilling read with lesbian and non-binary rep, I would recommend this book. I will definitely be checking out more of Rien’s work in the future.
May 22, 2024
literally so good i sat in my car for 20 minutes after work to finish it
hey this book went so crazy hard. this book went so crazy hard. i’m losing my whole stupid marbles.
really really well-done miscommunication trope; this book took me a few weeks to read because i’m on the tail end of a bad breakup and some of it was a little rough to read for those reasons, but WOW i’m glad i pushed through. it’s a miscommunication that makes sense, a miscommunication that reveals a lot about both characters, and one that they both talk about effectively throughout and after the sort of “snap” where it gets communicated.
and the REVEAL?????????? incredible. spectacular. monumental. those last 50 pages run by in a flash, it’s all set up EXTREMELY well and the payoff really pays the hell off.
i also really loved the fact that it FELT very much like this book was written by a trans person or someone very close to a trans person. we were given absolutely no insight into the nonbinary character’s assigned sex at birth or their current setup until the open door scene at the end, and that was AWESOME. they explicitly neither identify with manhood or womanhood, which also allows for a lot of flex in how other characters feel or don’t-feel attracted to them, and i think that’s really really cool. i never felt like their identity was treated with flippancy or the very common clumsiness that people will often use when discussing nonbinary characters.
basically any book where i sent a screenshot of dialogue exchange to a friend server with only the caption “i am THROWING UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” gets five stars. i was sitting here excited stimming in my car instead of driving home. rien gray you ruined my after-work schedule and i’m buying you dinner for it
hey this book went so crazy hard. this book went so crazy hard. i’m losing my whole stupid marbles.
really really well-done miscommunication trope; this book took me a few weeks to read because i’m on the tail end of a bad breakup and some of it was a little rough to read for those reasons, but WOW i’m glad i pushed through. it’s a miscommunication that makes sense, a miscommunication that reveals a lot about both characters, and one that they both talk about effectively throughout and after the sort of “snap” where it gets communicated.
and the REVEAL?????????? incredible. spectacular. monumental. those last 50 pages run by in a flash, it’s all set up EXTREMELY well and the payoff really pays the hell off.
i also really loved the fact that it FELT very much like this book was written by a trans person or someone very close to a trans person. we were given absolutely no insight into the nonbinary character’s assigned sex at birth or their current setup until the open door scene at the end, and that was AWESOME. they explicitly neither identify with manhood or womanhood, which also allows for a lot of flex in how other characters feel or don’t-feel attracted to them, and i think that’s really really cool. i never felt like their identity was treated with flippancy or the very common clumsiness that people will often use when discussing nonbinary characters.
basically any book where i sent a screenshot of dialogue exchange to a friend server with only the caption “i am THROWING UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” gets five stars. i was sitting here excited stimming in my car instead of driving home. rien gray you ruined my after-work schedule and i’m buying you dinner for it
August 8, 2023
I am a big fan of Rien Gray's work and Double Exposure may be my favourite of their works. It scratched the exact itch I had for this type of dynamics. Jillian and Sloane are exes, they've had a thing a while back but and their relationship has soured (no spoiler).
Except that when you work in the same circles you'll end up running into your ex. And if you're both competitive art thieves your relationship turns to rivalry and enmity. Oh your ex is still attractive and charming and competent but that would be a mistake.
The F/Nbi romance is just chef's kiss.woth a satisfying build up and climax (ah). They're both very distinct with their own style but work well together when needed and despite the short length of the book, the romance never felt rushed as the character already shared a past.
Sloane's gender is so nicely described and I know some people may comment on it but I like that they've set boundaries on their gender (as in their gender is outside the lesbian side character's attraction). [I'm adding this paragraph just in case people comment on this. Gray's work has always been inclusive of nonbinary lesbianism so I'm hoping people won't misinterpret this line]
I really hope this one can be a good entry point for newcomers to Rien Gray's work. It's short, well-written, romantic and suspenseful and you don't have to commit to a series just yet. If you liked the romantic suspence elements of this one combined with a F/Nbi romance pick up their Love Kills Twice/Fatal Fidelity series. If you want something different more fantasy they also have sapphic knights, nonbinary gods or butch werewolves
Except that when you work in the same circles you'll end up running into your ex. And if you're both competitive art thieves your relationship turns to rivalry and enmity. Oh your ex is still attractive and charming and competent but that would be a mistake.
The F/Nbi romance is just chef's kiss.woth a satisfying build up and climax (ah). They're both very distinct with their own style but work well together when needed and despite the short length of the book, the romance never felt rushed as the character already shared a past.
Sloane's gender is so nicely described and I know some people may comment on it but I like that they've set boundaries on their gender (as in their gender is outside the lesbian side character's attraction). [I'm adding this paragraph just in case people comment on this. Gray's work has always been inclusive of nonbinary lesbianism so I'm hoping people won't misinterpret this line]
I really hope this one can be a good entry point for newcomers to Rien Gray's work. It's short, well-written, romantic and suspenseful and you don't have to commit to a series just yet. If you liked the romantic suspence elements of this one combined with a F/Nbi romance pick up their Love Kills Twice/Fatal Fidelity series. If you want something different more fantasy they also have sapphic knights, nonbinary gods or butch werewolves
November 23, 2024
4.5 Stars - Would've made it five but for the final scene
I was delighted to find how much I enjoyed this book. There were some spelling errors and at least one missing word, mostly early on, but they weren't too disruptive. That said, I kept my expectations low. I have had a bad reading year with far too many disappointments.
But I was thoroughly drawn in. There was attention to detail - to the art world, to thievery, to pulling off a good con - that I didn't bank on. Now, of course, I am neither an art lover/critic/collector nor an art thief. So let's allow that the wool was completely pulled over my eyes as to the authenticity of any of this. Even still, I can't tell. It was so well done, it felt real. I enjoyed every bit of it. I was never bored, I was never lost as to what was happening, and switching POV's did not confuse me. Admittedly, I don't love alternating POV.
The chemistry between Sloane and Jillian was believable. Their history was angsty and real. Their anger was born from essentially a miscommunication, but it wasn't contrived. It was kind of simple, but it was real, and it fit them and their lives and how they came together. And it made the ending work in a way I did not see coming.
I was delighted to find how much I enjoyed this book. There were some spelling errors and at least one missing word, mostly early on, but they weren't too disruptive. That said, I kept my expectations low. I have had a bad reading year with far too many disappointments.
But I was thoroughly drawn in. There was attention to detail - to the art world, to thievery, to pulling off a good con - that I didn't bank on. Now, of course, I am neither an art lover/critic/collector nor an art thief. So let's allow that the wool was completely pulled over my eyes as to the authenticity of any of this. Even still, I can't tell. It was so well done, it felt real. I enjoyed every bit of it. I was never bored, I was never lost as to what was happening, and switching POV's did not confuse me. Admittedly, I don't love alternating POV.
The chemistry between Sloane and Jillian was believable. Their history was angsty and real. Their anger was born from essentially a miscommunication, but it wasn't contrived. It was kind of simple, but it was real, and it fit them and their lives and how they came together. And it made the ending work in a way I did not see coming.
September 3, 2023
I received an ARC from the author and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
While I’m not the biggest fan of romantic suspense, I read a few Rien Gray books earlier this year and liked them, so I decided to sign up to read their next release, Double Exposure. I’ve become a sucker for heist stories, and this had just the vibe I love from those, with a queer twist and a bit of second-chance angst.
Jillian and Sloane have a great dynamic, as they’re exes who ended on not-so-great terms, but both happen to be art thieves and con artists, so it’s not out of the question that their paths would cross…and they do in this particular instance. It was fun to see them circling each other as they tried to pull off stealing the photos, and getting under each other’s skin (and more) in the process. The romantic tension is perfectly balanced with the intrigue and danger presented by the heist itself.
This is a fun little morsel of a story, and I’d recommend it to readers of sapphic romance who like romantic suspense with a heist plotline.
While I’m not the biggest fan of romantic suspense, I read a few Rien Gray books earlier this year and liked them, so I decided to sign up to read their next release, Double Exposure. I’ve become a sucker for heist stories, and this had just the vibe I love from those, with a queer twist and a bit of second-chance angst.
Jillian and Sloane have a great dynamic, as they’re exes who ended on not-so-great terms, but both happen to be art thieves and con artists, so it’s not out of the question that their paths would cross…and they do in this particular instance. It was fun to see them circling each other as they tried to pull off stealing the photos, and getting under each other’s skin (and more) in the process. The romantic tension is perfectly balanced with the intrigue and danger presented by the heist itself.
This is a fun little morsel of a story, and I’d recommend it to readers of sapphic romance who like romantic suspense with a heist plotline.
Read
April 14, 2025This is a very fun art heist second-chance romance novella between rival thieves, one of the protags is nonbinary and it feels great, a good balance of just being nonbinary without it being a big deal or them having to explain their gender journey but also a sufficient acknowledgement of the quality of life considerations that come with how sometimes is kinda sucks to be nonbinary in a transphobic cisgender society (how they often default to masc presentation bc they get respected more, how they can't use most locker rooms - but how they're also rich enough to grant a fantasy scenario of getting private access to a pool to swim in undisturbed). They're also described as SO attractive, I may need to draw them at some point
I'm two Rien Gray books in and I'm developing a tradition of immediately handing my copy to a friend as soon as I finish it. listen! We just need more sexy and intense f/f and f/nb romance and erotica in our lives! and I'm happy to be the provider of the good stuff to my friends
I'm two Rien Gray books in and I'm developing a tradition of immediately handing my copy to a friend as soon as I finish it. listen! We just need more sexy and intense f/f and f/nb romance and erotica in our lives! and I'm happy to be the provider of the good stuff to my friends
August 31, 2023
*** ARC received in exchange for an honest review ***
4.5
CW graphic sexual content, gun violence, references to racism and transphobia
🌟 Enemies to lovers
🌟 Second chance romance
🌟 Morally grey MCs
🌈 Queer FMC
🌈 NB MC
This was fun. Two criminals turned lovers to enemies out to steal the same thing. Between the planning for the heist, back and forth between the MCs, and each characters internal struggles, there was always something happening in the book. Even with the ins and outs of lockpicking and robbery, the story continued to entertain and the tempo of the book was consistent throughout.
I wish we could've had more of an insight into Sloane and Jillian's backstory as I feel like there wasn't much room to truly grasp their connection beyond their inner monologue, but maybe I'm being overly fussy.
4.5
CW graphic sexual content, gun violence, references to racism and transphobia
🌟 Enemies to lovers
🌟 Second chance romance
🌟 Morally grey MCs
🌈 Queer FMC
🌈 NB MC
This was fun. Two criminals turned lovers to enemies out to steal the same thing. Between the planning for the heist, back and forth between the MCs, and each characters internal struggles, there was always something happening in the book. Even with the ins and outs of lockpicking and robbery, the story continued to entertain and the tempo of the book was consistent throughout.
I wish we could've had more of an insight into Sloane and Jillian's backstory as I feel like there wasn't much room to truly grasp their connection beyond their inner monologue, but maybe I'm being overly fussy.
January 2, 2024
If I close my eyes and picture them, my fingers can call up the echo of every inch of skin, the way Sloane gave in when they wanted me.
My first (of many) forays into the world of Rien Gray, DOUBLE EXPOSURE tells the tale of Jillian Rhodes and Sloane Caffrey, two highly skilled art thieves going after the same prize. Queer, competent and thoroughly compelling, Gray has created two characters that are as alive and dynamic as their setting is grand and expensive. Both protagonists of the novel have strong moral convictions that keep the reader engaged as they both go about different ways of not only entering the museum, but planning on how to walk away with the mark-- an exclusive, but highly controversial, set of photographs taken by an elusive, flighty photographer.
One of the most impactful things about this novel is the amount of detail and scale that is felt throughout the descriptions of the museum, the equipment, and even the rich, elite environment of the wealthy that Sloane is privy to. Although their emotions bleed through the page, one cannot overlook the vast amount of detail that each characters provides through their distinctive point of view. Through their methods you get to know who Jillian and Sloane are as individuals, and it's through this that you start to unravel the mystery to not only what happened between them so long ago, but also the mystery of why they were both hired for the same job.
The narration style reminiscent of such classics as the Oceans films works wonders in immersing the reader in the highly glitz and glam world of The Art Market (which let me just add that, as an Art History major, greatly appreciate). The eccentric and unique shifting point of views was always a delight to come back to and read, really making it feel a well rounded and complete world and story. I fell in love with Jillian and Sloane as people, then the rest of the world followed suit.
With turn-page pacing and masterful use of tension and stakes, DOUBLE EXPOSURE is an electrifying thrill ride filled with exciting turns, compelling characters and a fantastic set up as two professionals go up against each other-- only the best of can defeat the best, after all.
December 29, 2023
The whole experience was...ok? Jillian is amazing, Sloane is amazing; they're both so amaaazing. They're both so skilled and observant and amazing that it took over 100 pages (and three years of their fictional lives) for them to notice that they were accusing each other of & taking credit for things they hadn't actually done to each other.
A few bits of interesting social commentary; a whole lot of detail to demonstrate someone has Done Their Research; some clever wordplay.
I'm sorry I didn't come away from this book feeling more jazzed.
Maybe I'll blame it on hitting a mistake in subject-verb agreement in the first chapter, and my heart never recovering after that.
A few bits of interesting social commentary; a whole lot of detail to demonstrate someone has Done Their Research; some clever wordplay.
I'm sorry I didn't come away from this book feeling more jazzed.
Maybe I'll blame it on hitting a mistake in subject-verb agreement in the first chapter, and my heart never recovering after that.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 10, 2024
I enjoyed this book! The story really intrigued me, it was something new for me. And it mostly did not disappoint. I really liked the main characters, especially Jillian, and liked how we got both POV's. The book wasn't that long, just 172 pages and they really executed the story well. Like it had a bit of a set/build up and than a lot of action, it even had a big plot twist towards the end! I did not see that coming. Loved the ending, where they got their happy ending and where sloane decided to steal from their previous "boss". Such a power move, love it. Although it says it's a mystery thriller, there wasn't really any thriller in my opinion. But it was still a nice book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 7, 2023
I don't think I've ever loved art thieves more
This book is so good that I actually had to make sure I slowed down while I was reading it so that I could savor the vibes. The construction of the plot was brilliant and had my mind working to connect the dots. As always, my favorite part of any book is the characters themselves, and this book is no different. Jillian and Sloane both gave such strong personalities and voices and I love that you get to hear from both of them through all the tension.
This book is so good that I actually had to make sure I slowed down while I was reading it so that I could savor the vibes. The construction of the plot was brilliant and had my mind working to connect the dots. As always, my favorite part of any book is the characters themselves, and this book is no different. Jillian and Sloane both gave such strong personalities and voices and I love that you get to hear from both of them through all the tension.
February 2, 2024
This is a fairly traditional rivals-to-lovers heist story, which could easily be picked up off the shelf of any bookstore romance section, except you'd never be hard-pressed to find a F/NBi pairing on those shelves, and if you did, it probably wouldn't be like this one. I must admit that it took me a minute to buy into the romance--the sparks didn't quite hit for me until late in the game, but the closing scene, which extends over two chapters, had the author's trademark gorgeous prose and ineffable emotional depth, which made up for whatever I was missing earlier on.
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