When I first read Theives’ Gambit, I knew that this was a series that I would fall in love with. After reading Heist Royale, I know I wasn’t wrong. While not as great as the first book (though many reviews on Goodreads swear this one is so much better), this was still a thrilling and fun read with SO much romantic tension that I felt like I was going to die. In my review for Heist Royale, I’ll talk about my favorite characters, the plot, pacing, and a few random things here and there.

With the characters, you get to see almost everyone from the first book. I loved seeing Ross grow in her friendships and finally learn to trust people (even after the hell that everyone put her through in the first book). She still has a very rocky relationship with Devroe, but it honestly made me so invested in the book that I didn’t want to put it down. My least favorite characters were probably Ross’ mom (easy because she is seriously bonkers), and the newest addition, Baron (because he is also bonkers and seems to have no depth). My favorite? Devroe. All the way. Even after the shit he pulled. 

As far as the plot goes, you’re basically set up in a NEW gambit where there are teams vying against each other. I won’t spoil who is on whose team except that Devroe and Ross are on opposing sides (like I said, this book had some serious reasons to be invested). They are followed through a series of three tasks that they have to win the majority in order to win the gambit. What’s at stake is their lives and I honestly felt like none of the characters were that worried except maybe the actual adults. It felt… odd that none of them cared that much that they could potentially die if they lost. The ending itself was okay… but I was honestly hoping for another cliffhanger like the first book. This one was kind of tidy and didn’t really feel that satisfying because the third and final task was so lackluster. All in all, though, it was a super fun plot. 

With the pacing, the beginning is slow for the first 25% of the book, I think? After that it picked up so much that I finished it pretty quickly after getting past that point. There were moments when I just stayed up (even though I definitely should have gone to bed because I ended up late to work… lol) just to find out what happened next. The pacing was on point after the first quarter of the novel. 

Random things that I want to mention: 

• The family dynamics are absolutely insane and not a single one of these kids have healthy family relationships (which I guess is understandable since they’re all thieves?)
• Devroe and Ross’ relationship doesn’t really heat up that much in this novel, but the tension is absolutely crazy. I often continued reading just for the little snippets of time they got together. So worth it. 
• The final showdown, while the third task was lackluster, was extremely high-anxiety-inducing. Very well done. However, the secret that Ross’ mother reveals really didn’t make sense to me. Can anyone explain it??

Overall, this was such a fun addition to the series and I am so thankful that I got to read it before its official release!! A huge thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for this opportunity. Solid 4/5 stars and I’m going to be honest, if I don’t get more of Devroe and Ross soon, I’m going to have withdrawals!! Next book quickly please 🫶🏻.

Source: Advanced Reader Copy from NetGalley

(P.S. You can read this book for free by signing up for a free trial of Audible, which gives you two free audiobooks of your choice!)