I have mixed feelings about this book. The blurb had me interested, but I faded in and out as I read. Elle was an interesting and likable protagonist, but there were parts of the book that seemed to go somewhere and were never mentioned again. I could definitely see it as a movie.

I received a copy of this book from netgalley in exchange for my review

In the book The Burglar, author Thomas Perry writes about Elle Stowell who is a professional burglar. While stealing from a house she stumbles onto a murder. After watching a video of the murder, she realizes that she is now being stalked. Who can she trust? The only way to stay safe is to solve the triple homicide. This was a good read but the ending was a little disappointing. I would recommend this book! I received a copy of this e-book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Burglar by Thomas Perry follows Elle Stowell, a young woman who has spent a good amount of her young life trying to find ways to survive on her own. She has developed a specific set of skills that make her really good at burglarizing houses and not getting caught. She only targets houses of the rich and famous who live in the LA area. She has been able to make a decent living at stealing small, but valuable collectibles and cash from different houses she vandalizes. Life is going fairly well for Elle Stowell, until she breaks into the wrong house.
As she makes her usual paces through a house she has already studied thoroughly from the outside, she stumbles into an apparent triple homicide. She ascertains that she has made the discovery before the cops have found the bodies. Elle discovers a camera running in the master bedroom that appears to have covered the murder. Elle takes the camera and studies the footage. While the footage doesn’t reveal the killer in detail, it also does not reveal much of Elle either. She decides to follow her conscience and turns a copy of the video over to the police. News of the murder soon breaks and LA is abuzz as news of the murders of 3 high profile, rich residents makes the rounds. Elle tries to put the grisly murder scene behind her. She makes an effort to get back into her routine.
However, her routine is disrupted when she discovers a black SUV trailing her movements as she comes home one night. Believing that the person in the black SUV may be responsible for the 3 murders she discovered, Elle, decides she is best off trying to keep a low profile and stay clear of her house or any of her regular haunts. Elle decides to stay with a close friend for awhile, and they plan a trip to Australia. Elle hopes that if she leaves town, the people who are trailing her movements will forget about her. All her plans are shattered when a mystery killer executed her good friend and her male companion. Elle believes the person that killed her friend is the same person that killed the 3 people in the rich, fancy house. At this point, Elle realizes that she cannot run from this, and she can only expect to have a normal life again if gets to the bottom of the plot to kill her.

I did quite enjoy the character of Elle. She is resourceful, independent, very smart and thoroughly developed. She has a lot of courage, but also seems to be vulnerable and kind of lonely since she keeps most people at a distance because of her job. She is the best part of the story. The final resolution may be a bit far fetched, but I was engaged enough with Elle to remain interested to the end. Overall, a fairly quick, fun read. Novel provided by Netgalley.

The premise of a cat burglar getting the table turned and being hunted herself really drew me in. Elle is a female burglar who stumbles across a murder scene while robbing a house she thought would be empty. She finds not only 3 dead bodies but also cameras running and soon she's being hunted and it's a race for her to figure out who's after her before it's too late. My issues were that I prefer more complex mysteries and plots and this seemed not only very far fetched, but a little chaotic in places. I didn't connect with Elle at all and often thought she seemed slow and not that intelligent.

I thoroughly enjoy spending time in the imagination of Thomas Perry. The Burglar is an excellent who-done-it with an unusual primary protagonist - a twenty-three year old burglar. Elle Stowell had a rough time growing up. Her mother died when she was very young, and her grandmother raised her until her death when Elle was only 14. She went on the street trying to find funds to feed her family. When she returned to their common home everyone had moved away.

Granny was a small time thief who had been the sole support of her two remaining daughters and their children as well as Elle. Elle did not do well in school, had no chance at a dependable job, and her only life skill was learned at the side of her grandmother. Elle, however, has spent a great deal of time actually learning the skills that made her a very good burglar. Attractive, small and fast, she has honed her skills in making a simple entrance, the common hiding places for small valuables and cash, and a quick and fast retreat. And so far, she has never been caught. Knock on wood.

And then she decided to rob art dealer Nick Kavanagh and stumbled into a triple murder that just gets more complicated as it goes along. In no time the death toll has risen to 6 and Elle is running for her life. But now she is mad. And she will get even....

I received a free electronic copy of this excellent novel from Netgalley, Thomas Perry, and Grove Atlantic, Mysterious Press in exchange for an honest review. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me.

I received a free copy of this book from the author. I had the opportunity to review or not.

Elle Stowell is a burglar. A very accomplished burglar. She knows exactly what to look for in any given neighborhood to determine whether any house is worth burglaring. And she has chosen. She’s quietly entering a house that should prove to have the money she needs hidden in its secret places. Her attention to detail in the homes she has chosen has been very successful. But something completely unexpected has happened here.

Elle finds three dead bodies in the bedroom. Two women and a man. And a camera. A running camera. With her in the picture. When Elle realizes she has been recorded she has to take the camera and erase herself from the disc. Which now presents another problem for her, she has to get this to the police and keep a copy for herself to prove she did not kill these people if she is caught.

Elle grabs the camera and leaves as cars pull into the driveway. After successfully escaping the murder house, Elle goes back the next day! She returns the camera. Breathing a sigh of relief, but ever watchful, she begins to realize she is being followed. Why? By whom?

Elle decides she has to find out who is following her and why are the police not doing their job: Her life changes as she attempts to solve the mystery herself. She is in danger as more and more moves are taken against her. It is fascinating to read how the author takes Elle through one danger after another as the mystery comes together. The story, the characters, the investigation are so well done I had to take a peek out my window to make sure I wasn’t being followed. I recommend this book to any and all mystery lovers and look forward to reading more of Mr. Perry’s books.

I have been a fan of Thomas Perry since the publication of his first book, the Edgar winning The Butcher’s Boy through the Jane Whitman series and then into a number of standalones. Perry’s latest The Burglar can stand proudly with the rest of Perry’s books.
Perry has always been a master of instruction, whether it is how to nation build, then hold a small island; to how to permanently go into hiding or how to obtain perfect fake i.d. in the pre-internet days. He doesn’t change with The Burglar because he is terrific on telling how to be something or someone. I am confident I could go out and be…..well, never mind all that.
Elle Stowell grew up in the land of plenty having next to nothing. Elle is an orphan and having been deserted by the rest of her family when she was 14, picked up the trade she was best suited for, burglarizing high end southern California houses. Her tiny gymnast physique and observational skills gave her a sharp advantage. Her moral compass is a bit twisted.
All this changes when Elle stumbles on a triple murder. Because she is seen, Elle becomes a target and has to learn the skills for another type of survival and to use her burglar skills to become an investigator.
I purposely calm my reading speed when I am immersed in a Perry book. I don’t want to miss a single one of his wry observations such as this one. “The problem was that men thought of themselves as being more similar to anything else on the planet .....than to female human beings. To them a 32 year old male physicist was more similar to a billy goat than a 32-year-old female physicist “There you have it folks, the human condition.
The twisted reason for the triple murders, the chase of Elle and the crimes that follow was fascinating and original. Not even a crime, really until murder entered into the picture. I’m not sure it had to be explained twice though. Also, at times Elle seemed to display an amazing amount of naivety. I found the secondary characters to be flat, except the handsome cowboy.
It usually makes me crazy when a character doesn’t do the smart thing and contact the police, but Perry deftly explains Elle’s efforts and failures.
Oh lordy, I never quote from books, but here is one more from The Burglar; “When it’s late at night and you’re with a pretty woman, a single mall is like having a second friend at the table who is older and wiser and will disappear when you want him to.” Makes me almost want to acquire the taste for whisky.
I do like that the ending is neatly tied up as endings should be in standalone books. Elle may have started the investigation to save her life, but at the end justice for the victims kept her going.
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

A nifty little thriller about Elle, a 24 year old woman who burgles houses for a living. Regrettably, on a long planned job, she finds three people- a man and two women- shot dead in, ahem, compromising positions. She also finds a video camera still running in the corner of the room. While it doesn't show the face of the killer, it shows the act. Things rapidly fall apart for Elle, as she is pursued by mysterious black SUVs. No spoilers but no one and no where is really safe. Elle, however, is determined to figure out what has happened- and the answer to that was more complex and surprising that I expected. I like Perry's writing style, which can seem detached but it fit the character and the story. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. For Perry fans (for sure) and for those looking for a good plot driven read.

I’m a little on the fence with this story. I didn’t dislike the story and I didn’t like it—if that makes any kind of sense?

Let’s start with what I liked about the story. Elle Stowell certainly wasn’t your average run-of-the-mill thief. Elle had some boss ass skills to say the least. Balancing scaffolding like a true gymnast to landing on her feet as quietly as a cat, her skills were masterful which made her being a burglar a true destiny. Unfortunately, that’s not an occupation anyone should aspire to be, but Elle came into the profession like a trooper and some unfortunate circumstances that helped catapult her to this level.

On one of her heists, she got a whole lot more than what she bargained for—three dead bodies shot execution style lined together in a row. Hmm, immediately Elle knew this wasn’t what she was expecting. To steal money and jewelry is one thing, but dead bodies, that’s a completely different matter altogether. It was then that she realized a camera was standing at attention on a tripod. Uh-oh! Was she on the camera? Was someone watching these dead bodies? And if so, what purpose would it serve? To Elle’s knowledge, dead bodies certainly didn’t get up and walk around—this was not that kind of story. So, what was she to do? You’ll have to read the story to find out the rest. And if you think that sounds exciting, you’d be correct, except the story fell completely flat and that’s why I’m on the fence.

For one thing, Perry did an exceptional job detailing Elle’s skills and level of intelligence, but after the first and second robbery, I didn’t find it necessary to continue explaining that to the reader. The details became somewhat overkill and that drove me a little crazy. And not only the detail of Elle’s situation, but the area of Los Angeles. If you didn’t know much about the lay of the land, when you finish this book, you most certainly will. It was like the reader was following a GPS of everything Elle was doing and that agitated me tremendously. I don’t need to know every direction a character is driving or landmarks and things the character is seeing. That’s doing way too much and that got on my nerves to the point I began losing interest in the story because it was more of the same. I also felt there were a few continuity issues wherein Elle was doing one thing and then the story jumped to something else. Or characters were introduced that didn’t make much sense to the story at that particular time.

So, readers, now you understand my dilemma. I really did enjoy the story as a whole. It had some really great moments, but with the detail it grated a little on my nerve. This is the first time I read Perry’s work, but I wasn’t overly excited as I thought I’d be, which is unfortunate.

The Burglar isn’t a bad read. It is very well written and if you’re the type of reader who enjoys a very detail-oriented story, you’ll most definitely enjoy this novel.

Elle Stowell is a thief. She chooses the houses to steal from carefully. She looks at wealthy neighborhoods, studies the inhabitants until she knows their schedules by heart, and tries to destroy nothing on her forays. She goes for the small items ...money and jewelry mostly.

She's been highly successful .. until tonight. While exploring the house chosen for tonight she experiences something she could never have imagine. In the mater bedroom, 3 bodies are laying on the bed. Two women and one man ...each with a bullet hole in the head.

What she also sees is a camera ... and it's running. Thinking quickly, she grabs the camera and gets out the same way she got in ...barely ahead of the black vans screeching to a halt in front of the house. They aren't cops .. or if they are, they're using very different transportation and cops don't usually have silencers on their guns.

Thinking quite clearly, she knows they have come for her. Somehow, they know she's there and is a kind of witness. Later, when her best friend and her date are killed in the same manner, Elle decides to fight fire with fire.

She's going to find the killers ..... before they find her!

This story moves at the speed of light and is a real page turner. Elle is a stupendous character .. young, quick-witted, intelligent, even has a sense of humor at times. Her chosen profession seems to fit her perfectly.

The ending was a little let-down for me. It came abruptly and leads me to believe either the author got tired of writing .. or ... maybe this is the start of a series.

Many thanks to the author / Grove Atlantic / Netgalley / Edelweiss for the advanced digital copy of this crime thriller. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

3.5 stars

This is my first book by Thomas Perry. I loved the idea/plot of this book. I haven't read very many books about a thief, so I definitely found this interesting before I even began reading it. I also liked that it was a female burglar.

Overall, while I did enjoy the book, I felt like the writing was a bit flat / blunt. While I typically have a hard time staying engaged with this type of writing, I am glad I was able to stick with it. I found at times the book a bit slow for me. Though, the writing style was not my favorite, I will give the author another chance.

Elle Stowell is young, pretty, and just what you’d expect to see jogging through the upper-class neighborhoods of Los Angeles. This is part of what makes her such a good thief in The Burglar by Thomas Perry. While she is robbing the home of a wealthy financial services executive, she discovers him naked and dead in his bedroom. Next to him are two wealthy women, neither his wife, all of them shot through the head. To top it all off, she finds a running digital camera which has recorded everything, from seduction to sex to murder, as well as Elle’s entrance.

Now Elle has a dilemma on her hands She intends to remove her own image from the recording and send it to the police. Elle soon discovers that either the murderers or the cops know about her and she makes plans to leave town. Before that can happen, she discovers that the killers are after her. Now leaving town and waiting for the police to solve the crime isn’t an option. Elle is going to have to solve it herself if she wants to keep breathing.

Thomas Perry has written an exciting mystery/thriller with a compelling character in Elle Stowell. The early part of the book, as Elle describes in detail her methods of casing targets, breaking into them and selling the proceeds is illuminating. Her brushes with danger and a rising body count as the killers see Elle as a loose end to tie up add to the thrills. This momentum carries the book through about two-thirds of the story. The final act, as Elle becomes the pursuer instead of the pursued lacks some of the punch of the early part of the story but still carries enough thrills to make for a satisfying read.

I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher.

This used the idea of a burglar who was against type. She was perfectly acceptable in any neighborhood and was able to slip in and out of homes due to her petite size. She learned her theft lessons well and never took what would cause her trouble. She worked upscale areas and took only enough to live a lifestyle which allowed her the freedom she wanted.

Her big turning point was entering a home she had targeted and discovered a triple murder had happened. Three people, naked and dead. Not what was planned...at all.

This tale takes the reader into the thief's head as she tries to assist the police without her getting involved. Unfortunately, those who did the crime have other ideas.

Elle Stowell is a young blonde burglar that is very good at her job. She has ways around everything and never gets caught even though she has been doing this for years. She breaks into one house and discovers a triple homicide. She is now being hunted. There is very very little dialog and all about Elle. Some paragraphs were pages long. Very repetitive. Did not find one redeeming quality of Elle. The writing was done very well just so slow and boring. She switches cars like most people switch underwear, she makes decisions that have people die, and she still comes out smelling like a rose.

Received this ARC for my honest review.

She came from a poor family and doesn't want to be there anymore, so she has become a burglar. She's petite and thin. She can fit through dog doors, louvered windows and more. She acts like a regular jogger and checks out empty houses. Then she robs them. The problem starts when she finds dead people in the house. She leaves but now she has folks after her...

Grove Atlantic and Net Galley let me read this book for review (thank you). It will be published the 18th of January.

The black SUVs are hard to ditch. She begins by thinking they are cops, then she changes her mind.

She stays over with a friend and comes back to the apartment to find her and her boyfriend dead. She didn't think she would endanger them! Even staying in a hotel isn't safe.

She decides to turn the tables on them and investigate them. She finds a lot. Now will she last long enough to turn it in?

Thanks to netgalley for an ARC of this book.

I enjoyed reading this book - it was fast paced, good adventure story and I like the main character, Elle. On the other hand, it's definitely not a book you want to think too much about. I had a lot of questions that I had to suppress - "wait a minute, how in the world did she know how to do THAT?"

Put on your "willing suspension of disbelief," and enjoy the ride. This isn't the sort of book that's meant to be taken too seriously or thought about too much, so don't worry about it - just have fun with it.

Elle Stowell is a thief that can walk into any rich neighborhood and no one will pay any attention to her. She has been successful in her career stealing enough to live on and pay her bills. When she goes into a house she discovers three naked dead bodies. Why are they dead? She discovers that a video is running so she takes the disc. She doesn’t want to be caught. She has second thoughts and to help the police, she erases the disc that has the part of her in the room. She makes copies of this disc sending one to the police dept. while hiding the other copies. She goes back to the house to put the original disc minus her scene. Soon after she discovers she is being followed by persons unknown. Why? What do they want?

I found this novel to bea page-turner. I found it to be a very mysterious story that didn’t stop. It only made me wonder why they were after Elle. It fascinated me to read how she decided why the three people were dead.
The novel has unexpected but excellent twists and turns to it. Don’t miss out, read it!

This was my first Thomas Perry book but I’m now sure it will not be my last! Elle is a twenty year old woman who has been taught at a young age she needs to be able to take care of herself. She is a cat burglar and she scouts potential homes by running in the neighborhoods of the wealthy and looks for homes where it’s obvious their not home or have pets. One evening she breaks into a home and while looking for jewelry and money she stumbles into the master suite and finds three dead bodies in bed with a camera running. Before escaping the home she snatches the camera to see if she was spotted on it. While going through the camera she discovers that yes the camera shows the murder happening but not the murderer. She erases herself from the film and makes a few copies for herself she returns the camera for the police to use. Soon after this she begins to hear of three people looking for her at some of her usual hangouts. She’s told they seem like cops. She wants nothing to do with them and starts hiding out, but soon people that are close to her end up dead , she now has to find out who the murders are and what led up to the crime she had stumbled on that started all of this , or she will never stop looking over her shoulder. This book was so different with having the main character a criminal herself. I really enjoyed this book and felt like I was sneaking into people’s homes with Elle. I give this four stars and it was a quick read for me! I want to say thank you to netgalley and grove Atlantic publishing as well!

A glimpse inside high stakes burglary

Elle Stowell is 24 years old and has been making her living as a high end burglar for years. She was out on her own at 14 years old, after living a few years with her grandmother, aunts and cousins after her mother died. She learned the burglary business and made the decision to go after rich victims. She fit into their neighborhoods and knew what NOT to take.

One day, after doing her research on a target house, she made her way inside and found the victims of a triple murder. She ends up getting the wrong kind of .attention and is soon on the run for her life.

This was an interesting story to read about burglary techniques but I wish the author had expanded on Elle's life story and her backstory more.

The story went in a lot of different directions, which was confusing at times, but it all tied together at the end.

This was a good story, just not a great one.

I received this book from Mysterious Press through Net Galley and Edelweiss in the hopes that I would read it and leave an unbiased review.

I really enjoyed the majority of this book. The protagonist was well-developed, the plot was very interesting, and I loved the various twists and turns.

However, I really did not like the last 15% of the book. It seemed to wrap up far too quickly, with a lot of narrative exposition. The ending to the book was super abrupt and came out of nowhere. Aside from the ending, this book would have been 4/5 stars, but the ending was just too much of a letdown to give it more than 3/5.