The Art of Deception (Brilliance Audio on Compact Disc)

Rating:
Summary: Too easy to put down.
Review: Art of Deception has all the elements which make for a great mystery/detective. The Seattle underground was actually really cool-- I was interested in the victims, it wasn't too bloody and it was really pretty well written.

Unfortunately, it never came together well as a novel for me. Partly this was due to Daphne as a lead detective. It got irritating that every man she ran across became irrationally obsessed with her, and I just plain old wasn't interested in the progression of her relationship with John.

Too bad, but I'll probably pick up another Pearson to see if it gets better.

Rating:
Summary: Great infro to Pearson's work
Review: Art of Deception is the first book I'v read by Ridley Pearson. I found it very entertaining and attention-grabbing. I am a big fan of suspense novels and I will be back for more Pearson.

There were a few slow parts but overall I can highly recommend this book.

Rating:
Summary: How did this get into print?
Review: LaMoia has beaten an addiction to oxycodone, and Matthews is turning into the workaholic that Boldt narrowly avoids becoming.
Matthews does a favor for LaMoia and is sucked into a mess of stalking, voyuerism and murder. Her houseboat becomes an unsafe place, so she has two choices--move in with LaMoia or move into a hotel. Thank goodness she has the sense to know she needs to move in with a friend. Contrary to some reviewers, I found Daphne to be a strong woman again, but often unwilling to ask for help. Boldt is aware of a growing closeness between LaMoia and Matthews and it bothers him--but not to the point where it interferes in his doing his job. He's able to clear a relative(?) of Mama Lu's by proving he was murdered--then they find the killer(s) after Daphne is abducted. Too late to save the homeless, pregnant teen but not to save her baby, Daphne, and LaMoia.

Rating:
Summary: Seattle Underground In A Star Turn
Review: Lou Boldt is third banana in "The Art of Deception" and psychologist Daphne Matthews takes over the lead with studly Jack LaMoia in the co-starring role. This freshens up a series that was running on fumes. Lou's troubles (wife with cancer, guilt ridden affair with Daphne, job dissatisfaction) were taking on the proportions of Job and becoming tiresome.

A troubled young woman is tossed off the Aurora Bridge. Lou is investigating the disappearance of two local women, one of whom is a personal friend and takes on a request from Mama Lu to investigate the "accidental" death of her cousin, Billy Chen. Daphne is up to her elbows in charity work at a local woman's shelter and trying to turn the life of a pregnant client around. All of these threads lead to the Seattle Underground, a city below the city, buried over more than 100 years ago.

Mr. Pearson excels on two levels: his characterizations are sharp and interesting. Via Daphne, Pearson gives us an in-depth look at suspects Lanny Neal, Ferrell Walker, and Nathan Priar. He keeps them in our face, and they are always lurking (sometimes literally) at the edges of our thoughts. Secondly, the locale. Pearson is magnificent in putting us in Seattle; you feel you should be reading holding an umbrella. And then the underground---the decay, the sickening odors and terrain, the sense of claustrophobia, the occasional dusty shop window untouched in 100 years reflecting your surprised image, the very real sense of an imminent cave in, and LaMoia's comment that graveyards are over their heads.

This is an excellent read with a smash of a finale and Pearson ties up the threads as neatly as an expert tailor. I could have done with a little less of Daphne's interior monologues. Sometimes I wondered what she was doing besides being lost in thought while all this furious action was taking place. Also feel the subplots of Margaret; Daphne's client, and Billy Chen were there strictly for plot purposes, not for their necessity to the story. However, these are minor quibbles. The gruesome level is fairly high, but manageable for all but the very faint hearted. "The Art of Deception" is an excellent addition to Ridley Pearson's fine stories.
-sweetmolly-Amazon Reviewer

Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable and thrilling.
Review: Mary-Ann Walker has struggled with difficulties all her life. From the secrets buried in her family's past, to her abusive boyfriend.

Daphne Matthews is a forensic psychologist trying to cope with the memory of a teenage runaway who committed suicide a year earlier. Daphne is the first to arrive at the crime scene where a young woman's body has been found underneath the Aurora Bridge.

After a positive ID the body is that of Mary-Ann. Did the woman commit suicide, or was she killed?

Mary-Ann's brother is pointing the finger at the abusive boyfriend, and the boyfriend swears his innocence.

Daphne knows this case is shrouded in secrets, but what she doesn't know is that a stalker is watching her every move. Is this person there to help, or harm her?

With the help of Lieutenant Lou Boldt and Sergeant John LaMoia, Daphne will unravel the lies surrounding Mary-Ann and begin a game of cat and mouse with a killer so cunning if she is not careful she may be the next victim.

'Art Of Deception' is a fun thriller. Parts of the novel are a little hard to follow but the overall plot is thoroughly enjoyable. Matthews, Boldt and LaMoia are great characters, and readers will welcome them back in this new investigation.

Ridley Pearson has written a thriller that will please his many fans. With it's complex plot, fast pace, and exciting climax 'Art Of Deception' will ride the best-seller list's, and prove to be a good late summer beach read.

Nick Gonnella

Rating:
Summary: Underground intrigue
Review: Police psychologist (or "profiler") Daphne Mathews has a long history in these exciting Seattle stories, and with Police Lt. Boldt, her mentor, idol, and more. Here she finally takes front center stage, with Boldt usually far in the background, and that ain't good. One thing that becomes clear is that Daphne is not only a bold, if erroneous, profiler, but is personally a bundle of boiling insecurities and anxieties in all directions. Here she seems like a caricatured throwback to pre-feminist women who sterotypically fall apart under pressure. I found this offensive, and maddening because it's not clear why she's suddenly folded into gibbering paranoia. While she tries to deceive her prime suspect into revealing himself, he is tying her up in his own unsuspected web of masterful deceptions.

The authorial tactic of personally involving the hero in criminal attacks is a cheap way for an author to ratchet up tension in his story without the effort of creating another victim from whole cloth-but you also know he won't eliminate a central series character. This tactic also tends to turn a "good, clean" mystery into an hysterical horror story-the reason I don't read Patricia Cornwall's Kay Scarpetta series anymore. Sorry, you might not have the same dislike.

What's neat is that even with a suspect in hand early, there are more surprises. And Pearson has again researched obscure facts about the city of Seattle that provide vital sidelights. There are two suspects chased into a fascinating Underground historic city (who knew?)-but how Boldt decides between the two eerie suspects is still a mystery to me. It's stock in this genre not to follow police procedure at critical moments because the detective is "special" or taking brilliant shortcuts-just so the author can put a desperately frazzled Lt. Mathews into the hands of unsuspected murderers. And real smart crooks don't go out of their way to toy with police. The chapter titles provide an amusing by-play.

Rating:
Summary: PURE PEARSON - PURE PLEASURE
Review: Seattle police biggie Lou Boldt is trying to track a serial killer, while Daphne Matthews, gorgeous forensic psychologist is investigating the untimely demise of Mary Ann Walker who was thrown (?) jumped (?) from Aurora Bridge. A boyfriend, known for physically abusing Mary Ann, is a prime suspect.

Before we know it Pearson, always a master of surprises, connects the two cases by spotlighting one suspect. However, a solution is never that easy.

Along the way emotions are stirred as a member of Boldt's team finds himself drawn to Daphne, who once had a fling with Boldt. Add a mega underground chase scene through streets long buried beneath contemporary Seattle and you have a high octane finish.

Pure Pearson - pure pleasure.

Rating:
Summary: Deception is the Name of the Game
Review: Seattle Police forensic psychologist Daphne Mathews is asked to join the investigation when a woman's body is found underneath the Aurora Bridge. The body is identified as Mary-Ann Walker. Mary-Ann's brother Ferrell is quick to cast blame on Lanny Neal, Mary-Ann's boyfriend. Ferrell not only latches onto the idea of vengeance, but he wants Daphne to help prove his theory. Then the stalking begins - noises outside Daphne's house, shadows that move in the night, phone calls.

Lieutenant Lou Boldt is working another investigation, following the trail of a murderer through Seattle's dangerous underworld. When the investigations suddenly point to the same person, the deception takes an artful turn and considering the books title, that shouldn't be too surprising.

Mr. Pearson has delivered a deceptive thriller, giving the reader a lot to sink his teeth into early on, but early conclusions made quickly become confused with all the twists and turns delivered up in this five star offering.

Reviewed by Vesta Irene

Rating:
Summary: Are the Killer and the Stalker the Same Person?
Review: Seattle Police forensic psychologist Daphne Matthews is asked to aid in the homicide of Mary-Ann Walker, when Walker's body is found under the Aurora Bridge. Ex-lover and boss Lieutenant Lou Boldt is also part of the team.

Walker's abusive boyfriend is a possible suspect. Mary-Ann's brother Ferrell assists the officers immediately after the crime. However, his behavior becomes stranger and stranger and his inappropriate attraction to Daphne increases as the investigation continues. Could he have killed his own sister? Then someone starts stalking Dauphne, someone who is watching her every move.

Boldt investigates another suspicious death within the Underground beneath Seattle and begins to suspect that his case is connected with the Walker homicide.

Pearson combines the investigations of Boldt and Matthews into a thriller you'll be up all night reading, and his description of the Seattle Underground will have you rushing to the internet to check it out.

Review submitted by Captain Katie Osborne

Rating:
Summary: Get Down and Get Down
Review: This is the first of this series that I read and it has a real solid plot line. Lots of layers and plot development in several directions. This comingling of the 3 main protagonists was artfully done. The scenes taking place in the Underground were fasinating and completely realistic. I felt the decay and funky vibe. Made me shiver in the night.