DIANA RENN. Author of Tokyo Heist and other stories.

TOKYO HEIST

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.

REVIEWS

Selected for the Summer 2012 Kids’ Indie Next List – “Inspired Recommendations for Kids from Indie Booksellers”

Selected for the Kirkus Reviews New and Notable Books for Teens list (June 2012)

"Renn's fun debut takes a kitchen-sink approach, throwing together romance, mystery, and action in a way that echoes the manga that 16-year-old Violet loves to read . . . . Fans of mysteries and thrillers will enjoy this just as much as fans of Japanese culture."
-- Publisher's Weekly (full review)

"A proficient caper spiced up by Violet's eye for art."
Kirkus Reviews (full review)

"Renn's debut will be a surefire hit with Japanophiles, who will thoroughly appreciate Violet's enthusiasm for the culture."
-- Booklist (full review)

"The plot has lots of twist and turns, leaving readers on edge . . . . Readers will cheer for Violet as she uses her wits and outsmarts the adults."
--School Library Journal

"Renn keeps the tension high and the pace moving in a modern, unique whodunit . . . . Tokyo Heist is a refreshing break from the tsunami of dystopian, paranormal titles in the young adult aisle."
--Susan Carpenter, The Los Angeles Times (full review)

"A fast-paced and engaging mystery with a spunky protagonist." --VOYA

"Tokyo Heist is refreshingly free of most of the standard modern YA-fiction tropes. . . . It's rare for YA heroines to have such specific, developed interests, and Violet filtering her investigation through her passion for manga, art, and Japan makes her seem like a real, relatable teenager." --A.V. Club (full review)

"Tokyo Heist . . . will enthrall readers who love action."
--Examiner.com (full review)

"Tokyo Heist is a gem, hip enough to appeal to teen girls, especially to the more artistic, cosmopolitan ones, but also, so well-crafted, with so many surprises and interesting characters, that their mystery-loving moms will probably go for it, too."
--Common Sense Media. (5 stars; full review)

"Fly to the coolest city on earth. Hunt for a missing masterpiece. Battle tattooed gangsters while rocking a kimono. And don’t forget to try the shibazuke. Adventures don’t get any more thrilling than Tokyo Heist. You’ll want to jump right inside this book and live it."
-- Kirsten Miller, author of Kiki Strike: Inside the Shadow City

"Hidden paintings, yakuza assassins, vivid settings, artful intrigue, and a taste of manga make Tokyo Heist an absorbing tale mystery readers will love."
-- Linda Gerber, author of Death by Latte.

“Tokyo Heist is a fast-paced, exotic reading adventure, a story where The da Vinci Code meets the wildly popular manga genre! Author Diana Renn infuses protagonist Violet with plenty of chikara (power) and Renn's fresh, spot-on author's voice is irresistible. I couldn't put it down!”
-- Alane Ferguson, author of The Christopher Killer and winner of the Edgar Alan Poe Mystery Writer of America award

“A terrific heroine, exciting and unexpected plot twists, and fascinating and beautifully-wrought real-life settings: young adult mysteries do not get better than this.”
-- Peter Abrahams, New York Times bestselling author of Reality Check and Down the Rabbit Hole; winner of the Edgar Alan Poe Mystery Writer of America award

ALSO COMING FROM VIKING/PENGUIN:

LATITUDE ZERO (2014)
A children's TV show host and avid bicyclist travels to Ecuador to unravel the mysterious death of a fellow young cyclist.

BLUE VOYAGE (2015)
A teen girl spending the summer in Turkey gets entangled with an international gang of antiquities smugglers.