Mostly what I want to say about this book is that it was really fun. It’s definitely my favorite of the series so far. I liked the plot the best, I liked the characters the best, and my favorite magical brothers, Jack and George, play a significant role. I loved them in the first book, and I’m glad they’re being used well in the rest of the series. I read almost this whole thing on Superbowl Sunday, and in my opinion, that was a much better way to spend the day.
Our main characters are: Audrey Callahan, a young woman whose family were all con-artists and thieves, but she hasn’t spoken with them in years. A family obligation pulls her back in to their orbit after years away, with the promise that it will be One Last Time, and she’ll be out. Audrey has a unique gift. She can unlock pretty much any door or safe using magic, of course her manipulative father and brother want to use her.
And then there’s Kaldar Mar, also a con artist and thief, and cousin to Cerise from book two. Kaldar is also a thief and con-artist, but he’s also extremely loyal to those he cares for, and family always comes first. Kaldar signed on to use his skills in service of the Mirror, the magical spy organization that helped his family relocate after the events of book two, so he’s pulled in when the theft of a magical object from an Egyptian pyramid in Florida (don’t ask, it’s just this series) blows up, threatening a diplomatic incident if the object isn’t retrieved. Kaldar’s investigation brings him into Audrey’s orbit, who just wants to forget the whole thing now that her family has the money from the sale. Only, she can’t. Dangerous people are after anyone involved in the theft or its investigation, and she and her entire family are in a whole heap of danger.
Kaldar convinces her to team up and recover the object she stole in the first place in exchange for guaranteed safety from the people who are after, something only the Mirror can provide at this point.
Kaldar and Audrey have instant chemistry, and while they are very different from one another, both of them feel a kinship with the other because of their chosen profession. I liked that the romance wasn’t the main focus here, though. Both of them have legitimate emotional arcs and things they have to overcome before there can be a HEA, but there’s also the heist plot, and the subplot with Jack the shapeshifting pre-teen, who stows away on Kaldar’s mission with his older brother George, a necromancer, and they all end up conning and heisting together, and it is great. What’s great about all the Ilona Andrews books I’ve read so far is that even though the romance is swoony, the authors don’t neglect everything else in the book. It’s all fleshed out, and it’s all fun. A lot of the times with romance, the main pair is the focus, and the rest of it is just scenery, and you prefer it that way, but the Andrews seem to be good at all of it.
Reading the last book sometime within the next couple of months. Hope it’s as good as the first three.