Perfect Scoundrels (Heist Society #3) by Ally Carter

Perfect Scoundrels (Heist Society #3) by Ally Carter

There are a limited number of things that are certain. That an Ally Carter book is the perfect remedy to one of my reading slumps is one of them.  My reading slump had gotten bad.  I knew if I pushed through a few inferior books, my reward was this book, and it lived up to all my expectations.  While none of the author’s books are going to be groundbreaking or particularly cutting-edge, they are reliable, and that means a lot.  There’s much to be said about always being able to count on something, and I count on these to be fun, thrilling, and an all-around good time.  The tossing in of a fun romance is also always appreciated. 

Perfect Scoundrels follow much of the same pattern of the first two books in the series, in that there is a central heist, things are not all fun and dandy in the world of Kat and Hale, and that Gabrielle is going to be awesome.  What distinguishes this book with the rest of the series is that you get to learn so much more about the secondary characters.  The first two books focus on Kat, and while she, being the narrator, is still prominently featured, we get more of an understanding of everyone in her world.  I really enjoyed learning more about Hale through his interactions with his family.  I really think the development of Hale, Uncle Eddie, and Marcus’s characters will only help the series in the future.  They all have really been brought to life. These characters are so wonderful that I often forget how young they are. At one point Kat states her age as 15 and I was completely thrown off. She always comes off as so much older that I forget her age, and Hale’s for that matter.  As much as I want their relationship to be further along than it is, at the age of 15 it’s right where it needs to be.

I don’t know if I love the actual heist in this story as much as I did the first two, but it’s still so much fun. The villain in the story was so well written and so believable, that I was willing to go along for the whole ride. I also love the travel to various countries to accomplish the heist. I really hope at some point readers of these stories will want to travel to all these countries to see how awesome they are for themselves.  I can say, from a personal point of view, that if I had to do all that traveling, I would be comatose from sleep deprivation, even if I was on a private plane.  I guess that’s what makes them such fun fiction. 

I want to finish by talking about Gabrielle. I think she may actually be my favorite character in the whole series.  I love how even though she’s a secondary character, over the last three books she’s been such a big part of the story.  The scenes she’s in are inevitably my favorites, and I want to skip ahead to where she shows up again.  I actually wouldn’t be mad at a short story told entirely from Gabrielle’s POV. 

If you haven’t read any of the Heist Society books yet, go ahead and treat yourself to a fun read.  I can unequivocally recommend the Gallagher Girls books too.

4 footballs out of 5