A Book A Week

With just three books to go before completing my goal of reading a book a week this year, I'm finding that the end of this journey is looking much like it began. My reading has taken me through many more genres than I typically encounter, but I'm falling back into a more comfortable territory to close things out.  I started the year off by reading Just Watch Me, the start of a new series by Jeff Lindsay. Lindsay shot to fame for his best selling Dexter series, and his newest character proved to be just as fascinating. When his publisher offered me a copy of Fool Me Twice, the second novel to feature Lindsay's burglar protagonist Riley Wolfe, I jumped at the chance to read it. I'm pleased to report that this sequel more than delivered everything I grew to love about the first book. 

Riley Wolfe is really good at his job. He's meticulous in the preparation, execution, and clean up of each job he undertakes. He has to be. When you devote your life to pulling off the kind of heists that even the most competent thieves wouldn't even dream of attempting, there's really no room for error. In fact, that's why Riley is so frustrated with himself at the start of this novel. You see, despite all the precision and careful planning, the disguises, the fake names, and the payoffs, Riley has been double-crossed. He finds himself in the exact position he has worked so diligently to avoid. He's at the mercy of another crook. 

Held captive for several days, chained in place, his finger broken, Riley is pretty much done with whatever the heck is going on. He's not used to this kind of treatment, and he's ready to do whatever it will take to gain back his freedom. It is soon revealed that his captor, notorious arms dealer Patrick Boniface, is ready to make a deal. Boniface is prepared to trade Riley's freedom in exchange for a heist. But this isn't just your ordinary theft. What Boniface wants is impossible. He wants Riley to bring him a famed fresco by Raphael that is directly painted onto a wall within the Vatican. Fortunately for both Riley and Boniface, Riley has a knack for achieving the impossible. 

With Fool Me Twice, Jeff Lindsay is two for two in providing clever thrills and intriguing drama in his series. Like his more famous character Dexter, Riley Wolfe is a classic anti-hero. The man literally lies, cheats, and steals his way through life, and I couldn't get enough of him. There's something delightfully irresistible about Wolfe. It is fun in the way that any heist story is. You know what the protagonist is doing is technically wrong, but you're so caught up in the thrill of the attempt that you can't help but root for them. While reading the first book will provide more insight into the existing relationships between the main characters (there's a noticeable lack of continued character development in this book compared to the previous one), not reading it won't disqualify you from enjoying the main story of this one. That being said, the first book is really fun too. Do yourself a favor and read both! As for me, I'll be anxiously awaiting the next book to feature this fun character, and quickly reading a couple more books to finish my book a week goal. 

For more information visit the author's website, Amazon, and Goodreads. 

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