Fool Me Twice

October 5, 2020
In Lindsay’s intense sequel to 2019’s Just Watch Me, an ally’s betrayal leads to wisecracking master thief Riley Wolfe being forced to work for Patrick Boniface, “an arms dealer who scares the crap out of the other arms dealers.” Boniface, who’s also an art collector, wants Wolfe to steal Raphael’s Liberation of St. Peter, a fresco painted on a wall inside the Vatican. Wolfe agrees to this lunatic scheme in order to avoid being tortured by Boniface’s sadistic sidekick. To make matters worse, Wolfe’s meeting with Boniface comes to the attention of a rival crook, Bailey Stone, who abducts the thief and threatens to harm Wolfe’s love-interest, art forger Monique, unless he double crosses Boniface. Stone wants Wolfe to commit the theft, and then use the delivery of the fresco to Boniface as a cover for Stone and his team to kill Boniface. Meanwhile, Wolfe remains the quarry of a dogged FBI agent. Lindsay devises a satisfying plan for the impossible crime, and continues to make Wolfe, who has a violent side of his own, an intriguing protagonist. Only the solution is a bit of a letdown. Readers looking for a page-turner won’t be disappointed. Agent: Nick Ellison, Nicholas Ellison Agency.

It's not uncommon for an audiobook to have a plot that challenges the listener's sense of realism but still succeeds because of the narrator's compelling performance. This entertaining work, ably narrated by Braden Wright, fits that description. Riley Wolfe, a world-class thief, must steal a fresco from the Vatican or face certain death. As the suspense builds, Wright's precise delivery complements author Jeff Lindsay's superb dialogue. As the story reaches its conclusion, Wright's reading adds the most. Whether it is his pacing or his use of varying tones, Wright allows the listener to enjoy every twist and turn, no matter how unconventional. D.J.S. � AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine