Humor, a thief, a master of disguise, a twisty plot lines and a crime thriller- what more can you ask for? This super-thief caper was entertaining, and quite the page-turner.

This is the third book in the series and I will say this one I did not like I much as the first two or really the first one. First, it took me a while to get into the story even though for the most part it picked up where the last book left off. I still felt off with his relationship with Monique and though in the stories he thinks about her and even in the other books she did so much to help I just feel that there is no growth between them and it is frustrating for me. Yes, he does all of his stealth to get in and out but after a while, I was just looking for more, felt let down with this book, maybe just me.

Published by ‎ Dutton on December 6, 2022

Three-Edged Sword is the third Riley Wolfe novel. I started reading the first one but I was so turned off by Wolfe’s boastfulness that I set the book aside and never got back to it. The second book evaded my radar. By the time I saw this one, I had forgotten about the first one, so I gave it a try. I am pleased to report that Wolfe, while occasionally reminding the reader that he is the best criminal in the history of crime, has toned down his arrogance.

Wolfe’s real name is Wiener. He uses aliases because that’s what thieves do and besides, Wolfe is so much cooler than Wiener. As a successful thief, Wolfe has plenty of money. He needs it to maintain security and to keep his mother’s body breathing, despite her brain death.

As the novel begins, Wolfe’s companion (not quite a girlfriend despite one blissful night together) Monique is in a coma. She was working for Wolfe when she took a blow to the head and Wolfe feels responsible for her welfare. Wolfe knows she will recover because he dictates outcomes. Well, apart from his mother. As much as Wolfe believes he can will it to happen, nobody wakes up from brain death.

While he’s waiting for Monique to awaken, Wolfe attempts to pull a complicated heist involving diamonds in Botswana. The target turns out to be a setup. A CIA agent named Prescott recruits Wolfe to steal a flash drive from a safe at the bottom of a missile silo on a heavily guarded private island. In exchange, Wolfe can keep the Ushakov icons that are stored in the vault. Also, Prescott will release Wolfe’s mother and Monique, who are being held hostage to assure Wolfe’s cooperation.

The plot follows Wolfe as he creates and executes a plan to steal the drive and icons from a fellow who once ran an espionage circuit for the Soviet Union. Wolfe’s plan is reasonably clever and more believable than your typical Mission Impossible plot. Once Wolfe discovers the contents of the drive, he turns his attention to Prescott and to his imprisoned mother and friend.

Three-Edged Sword moves quickly, fueled less by the fights that are typical of thrillers than by the con artistry and parkour that are common to heist stories. Notwithstanding his conceit, Wolfe is a welcome break from the tough guys who dominate crime novels. As he proved in his Dexter novels, Jeff Lindsay can make dark personalities appealing, even if you might not want to befriend his characters. I wasn’t convinced to give Just Watch Me another try, but I’ll look for future entries in the series with the hope that they match the energy of this one.

RECOMMENDED

This is pretty good. I haven't read the others in the series, but I liked Dexter. This author can write, so the plot is pretty solid. I enjoyed this, and may have to circle back to the first two books.

Thanks very much for the free review copy for review!!

Three books in and I still have mixed feelings about this series.

I really enjoyed the second book in the Riley Wolfe series. The first one was good enough, and this one was probably my least favorite to date. For me, it’s a series whose success is predicated almost completely on quality of plot, because, well…I just don’t like Riley all that much.

His arrogance doesn’t have the charm with which some male leads pull off this kind of persona. It feels way too desperate and try hard and detracts from his very legitimate skills as a thief and master of disguise.

I’ve also struggled a lot with the fact that this series portrays principal female characters in only two ways: Faceless villain or helpless weakling. Monique, the only woman in the series ever granted even-GASP-a skilled role in helping Riley, spends this entire book either in a coma or recovering from one while telling herself “the man will rescue me” Sigh.

I’m not totally opposed to rescue by a proverbial knight in shining armor in fiction upon occasion, but not in a modern story where women are relegated to playing ONLY this role. There are only two women in Riley’s life, and they’re BOTH in a coma for most of this book. <rolls eyes>

It’s the kind of idiotic, ego jerking drivel that male authors often fall back on when writing female characters, and it’s disappointing because Lindsay’s work is otherwise pretty sharp.

The ending to this book also took a strange turn with which I’m not entirely thrilled. While I don’t blame Riley for the actions he took under the circumstances, it’s a pretty severe tone shift from the typical light-hearted action/heist content we expect from this series, and felt out of step with the general vibe of these books with its bleakness and grotesqueness.

All that said, the actual theft around which the story centers this time is cleverly plotted and entertaining. But it’s not quite enough this time to save a book that has a lot of flaws.

Fast Paced Action with Super Thief Riley Wolfe

Riley Wolfe, a super thief, specializes in robbing the very rich. Riley’s powers of disguise, agility, and the ability to disappear into thin air qualify him as a super hero. This time Riley is faced with an almost impossible situation. His mother and Monique, an art forger friend, have been kidnapped by Chase Prescott, a CIA team leader, to force Riley to break into the secure residence of a Russian icon collector to steal a tiny jump drive with secret information.

Riley has no choice but to accept the challenge, but the time pressure are almost more than he can deal with. He’s helped in this adventure by Frank Delgado, an FBI agent, and Miranda Shaleki, a hacker friend. They try to locate where his mother is being held. This is an interesting plot line, but can break up the action.

If you like fast paced adventure, this is a fun read. The dialog is amusing and while Riley’s feats are quite impossible, it makes the plot move quickly. There are plenty of twists to keep you guessing.

I received this book from Penguin Random House for this review.