Home » Community, Downtown San Francisco, In Person, Lectures & Workshops, Literature, Rainy Day Fun

Free Book Talk: Victorian Heists + All-Female Gangs (SF)

Thursday, June 18, 2026 - 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm | Cost: FREE*
*Free to attend, but RSVPs encouraged! Doors open at 6pm. Books available to purchase at the event.

Best Bookstore in Union Square | 226 Powell St. San Francisco, CA 94102

Event Details

Victorian London comes vividly to life in this riveting heist novel about an all-female thieving gang and one young woman’s heroic plan to escape a life of crime, from Karen Odden, the USA Today bestselling author of Down a Dark River.

Best Bookstore in Union Square is thrilled to celebrate our newest staff favorite from Karen Odden. She’ll be live at the store to discuss her latest mystery novel An Artful Dodge with fellow bestselling author Cara Black (author of the sensational Aimee Leduc mysteries).

The event is free to attend, but RSVPs are encouraged so we can accommodate everyone.

Click here to reserve your copy of An Artful Dodge today!

(Books will also be available for purchase at the event)

About the Book:

She’s stolen gems, purses, and hearts—but can she steal her life back from the ring of thieves that’s claimed it?

London, 1879: Twenty-year-old Kit Jimeson has fingers so nimble she can nick a necklace off a lady in a crowded theater without raising alarm. Kit and her dodge partner, Mary, are the highest earners in the notorious all-women thieving ring in South London’s Elephant and Castle district.

Kit, whose mother had been a thief before her, dreams of a different life, one where she’s not constantly on the lookout for constables and plainclothes detectives, and where a mistake or pure bad luck won’t land her in the hangman’s noose. She has been saving her earnings so her younger sister, a maid for a wealthy Mayfair family, might have a shot at respectability.

Kit is very close to leaving the life entirely when the legendary former thief Maggie O’Connell brings her plans to a halt. Beautiful, charismatic Maggie has returned to reclaim leadership of the ring after twenty years in a brutal Australian penal colony. But Maggie desires more than mere wealth or power: She longs for revenge against those who sent her away. Kit, with her quick mind and dangerously clever hands, is Maggie’s best weapon. If Kit wants to walk away with her life, she must carry out a heist that will demand every skill she possesses.

About the Speakers:

Karen Odden received her PhD in English from New York University and taught Victorian literature at UW-Milwaukee. She is the author of five crime novels set in 1870s London, including her award-winning USA Today bestselling debut, A Lady in the Smoke. Her work has been nominated for the Lefty, Anthony, Agatha, and Derringer Awards, and appeared in Best Mystery Stories of the Year. A transplant from New York, Karen lives in Arizona with her family. Find her online at www.karenodden.com.

Cara Black is the author of twenty-one books in the New York Times bestselling Aimée Leduc series as well as the WWII thrillers Three Hours in Paris and Night Flight to Paris. She has won the Médaille de la Ville de Paris and the Médaille d’Or du Rayonnement Culturel and received multiple nominations for the Anthony and Macavity Awards; her books have been translated into German, Norwegian, Japanese, French, Spanish, Italian, and Hebrew.

Disclaimer: Please double check event information with the event organizer as events can be canceled, details can change after they are added to our calendar, and errors do occur.


Cost: FREE*
*Free to attend, but RSVPs encouraged! Doors open at 6pm. Books available to purchase at the event.
Categories: Community, Downtown San Francisco, In Person, Lectures & Workshops, Literature, Rainy Day Fun
Venue: Best Bookstore in Union Square
Address: 226 Powell St. San Francisco, CA 94102

Thursday, June 18, 2026

12:00 pm   SF’s Free Concerts & Food Trucks: “Civic Center Soundtrack” (Every Tue/Thu)  FREE
12:00 pm   The Spirit of ’76: Reflecting on America’s 250th (Los Altos)  FREE
5:00 pm   Downtown SF’s Free Outdoor EDM Party w/ French DJ Habstrakt  FREE
5:00 pm   Free Outdoor Dance Party w/ DJs (SF)  FREE*
*Free
5:00 pm   Downtown SF Free DJ Party w/ Justin Martin (Mint Plaza)  FREE*
*Free with RSVP at themidwaysf.com/justinmartin
5:00 pm   Third Thursdays Night Market: Juneteenth x Pride (SF)  FREE*
*Free admission
5:00 pm   “Uncorked” 30+ Wine Tastings, Food Bites + Live Music (Walnut Creek)  $65*
*Curated wine and spirit tastings at 40+ locations • Small bites and food pairings • Interactive in-store experiences
5:00 pm   San Jose’s Gordon Biersch Night Market  FREE
5:00 pm   Summer Sip & Stroll: “Uncorked” Returns w/ Soccer + Live Music (Walnut Creek)  $35*
*$55 Early-bird tickets end May 31, $65 regular ticket, and $35 designated driver ticket (ticketholder must be 18+ and must be purchased with an early bird or regular Uncorked ticket)
5:00 pm   Artist Reception at Caldwell Snyder Gallery (SF)  FREE
5:30 pm   A.C.T. Juneteenth Celebration 2026 (Strand Theatre)  FREE
6:00 pm   Free Neurotech Workshop: Train Focus w/ EEG, VR + Audio (SF)  FREE*
*Free with RSVP. Space is limited.
6:00 pm   Movies on the Square 2026: Free Double Features Every Thursday (Redwood City)  FREE*
*FREE! ALL AGES!
6:00 pm   SF’s World Cup 2026 Watch Party at Underdogs Cantina (Mexico vs South Korea)  FREE*
*FREE | RSVP
6:00 pm   Free Pride Month Queer History Talk + Cocktails: “Unspeakable Vice” (The Clift)  FREE*
*Complimentary with RSVP
6:00 pm   Immersive Story Club at The Dogpatch Hub (SF)  $10*
*$0-$10 each session.
6:30 pm   Paint & Sip Under the Stars: Lunar Art Night + Drinks (Oakland)  $45*
*$45 for 21+, Members get $10 off
6:30 pm   Paint & Sip: Waxing Crescent Moon (Oakland)  $45*
*$45 for 21+, Chabot members get $10 off per ticket
6:30 pm   Soulful Poetry + Song Night: HeartFire Supports Queer Artists (SF)  $20*
*Intimate venue, limited tickets available!
7:00 pm   Cult Movie Night: Peaches Christ + Improv Tribute to “Dream Warriors” (SF)  $15*
*$13.50 for Senior Citizens; $16 for Adults
7:00 pm   Oakland’s Free POC Comedy Night (Temescal)  FREE*
*Free with RSVP
7:00 pm   Free Flipside Record Club: Spin or Listen + BYOB (SF)  FREE*
*Free and open to the public
7:00 pm   Social Media Prom: North Beach Nights at 117-Year-Old Bar (Savoy Tivoli)  $30*
*Early bird is $30, General admission is $45 includes a gift bag worth over $150 and a drink ticket.
7:00 pm   Summer Concert Series 2026 (Downtown Pleasant Hill)  FREE
7:00 pm   Redwood Room After Dark: Free Jazz Nights w/ Sacha Boutros (SF)  FREE
7:30 pm   Nightmare on Elm Street 3 w/ Peaches Christ + Live Improv (SF)  $15
7:30 pm   FREE “Hecklers Welcome” SF’s First Stand-Up Comedy Show That Invites Heckling  FREE*
*Free with RSVP
8:00 pm   Shordie Shordie  $42.34
9:00 pm   16th & Mission Open Mic (w/out a mic)  FREE*
*Absolutely free for all!
9:00 pm   Arcade Karaoke: SF’s Wild New Thursday Night Party + $3 Shots (SF)  FREE*
*Free with RSVP. - 21+
9:00 pm   Every Thursday: “Inner Circle” Dance Party at White Rabbit (SF)  FREE*
*Inner Circle is always Free with RSVP
9:00 pm   Latin House + Live Drummer Queer Dance Party (Oakland)  $10*
*Advanced / Door
10:00 pm   Free Karaoke Night Every Thursday (Bottom’s Up)  FREE*
*FREE ENTRY ALL NIGHT
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