The Best Con Artist Queens in Literature

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Wendy Heard discusses her con artist book of the summer, You Can Trust Me. Learn what it takes to write a thriller & get our best books on scammers and cons.

It's our first thriller discussion of the summer. Join me in an enthralling conversation with renowned thriller author Wendy Heard as we dive deep into the world of thriller writing with her new release, You Can Trust Me.

Summer, a skilled pickpocket, takes Leo, a young woman living on the streets, under her wing, embarking on a dangerous con that quickly spirals out of control. Their target? An enigmatic billionaire named Michael.

But as they delve deeper, they uncover a startling revelation—Michael is not who he appears to be, putting both Summer and Leo in grave danger.

When Leo mysteriously disappears, Summer refuses to stand by idly. Determined to rescue her friend, she infiltrates Michael's private island, only to find herself trapped with no escape. As the suspense escalates, Summer realizes she may have met her match in this high-stakes page-turner.

Today we discuss why con artists are having a moment in pop culture on our screens and in our book stacks. In this absorbing interview, Wendy shares the art of crafting a riveting con artist sequence and why the four-act structure works so well in her writing process. We also discuss the challenges of juggling TWO book launches in one month and the differences between writing for a YA audience and adults.

If you want to dive deeper into the best con artist book stack, we have you covered in the second part of our conversation. Wendy brings her favorite con artist queens and shares why you should add these to your book stack too.

Today's BONUS BOOK LIST offers the best books with grifters, scam artists, heists, and cons. This book list includes Wendy's top picks and all my favorite con artist moments in fiction and nonfiction. Don't miss it!

Meet Wendy Heard

Wendy Heard is the author of suspense and thrillers for adults and teens, including We’ll Never Tell, The Kill Club, She's Too Pretty to Burn, and Dead End Girls. Her latest adult novel is You Can Trust Me. Heard has spent most of her life in Los Angeles, loves all things vintage, and has a collection of thrillers and adventure books from the ’80s.

Mentioned in this episode:

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2023 MomAdvice Summer Reading Guide

Breathe and Count Back From Ten by Natalia Sylvester

Fables Books

MomAdvice Book Club

Breathe and Count Back From Ten Book Chat

The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith

Scamanda Podcast

You Can Trust Me by Wendy Heard

Remember Me by Christopher Pike

The Best Plus-Size Romance Characters to Love with Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone

We’ll Never Tell by Wendy Heard

Los Feliz Murder Mansion

The Hotel Cecil

The Lies I Tell by Julie Clark

The Last Flight by Julie Clark

The Arrangement by Robyn Harding

Pretty Things by Janelle Brown

Stone Cold Fox by Rachel Koller Croft

The Many Lives of Mama Love by Lara Love Hardin

20 Books About Con Artists We Recommend Bonus Book List

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