Book Description
Readers raved about the fabulous first novel from author Blaize Clement. Now everyones new favorite sleuth, Dixie Hemingway, is back with her second riveting case. As Dixie and an adorable dachshund named Mame are out for a morning walk, a car speeds by and Dixie waves to the driver. Later, after the dachshund discovers a dead body, Dixie realizes that she has waved to a killer. And since the killer mistakenly believes Dixie can identify him (or her), the chase is on...
Customer Reviews:
Duplicity dogged the Dachshund......too many broken animal legs.......2007-09-16
I think this new author is good.
However, most people who read mysteries with animals do not want to read about kittens whose legs have been purposely broken. I stopped there. Then I went back. Next thing I knew, I was reading about a MONKEY whose legs had been purposely broken.
What is this thing the author has about having animals tortured like this?
I can't read her, which is too bad, because, aside from these animal torture scenes, I think she is good.
I could deal with the death of the dying Dachshund (sort of), but most writers who feature animals realize they are writing for animal lovers.
We are not looking for horror, or even the sadness.
I am so sorry this author can't do without the cruelty to animals in her mysteries. I sat down thinking I was going to have an entertaining read, and ended up depressed.
Could you try again, and leave out the animal torture?
We know animals are mistreated, and most of us contribute to funds to make sure they are not. We don't want to read about it in what I supposed was sort of a "cozy" mystery.
I definitely DO NOT recommend this to any animal lover with a heart.
Excellent series.......2007-06-14
Another very nice job by Ms. Clement. Interesting story with a main character that is changing and growing as she works though her personal tragedy. The information on pet behaviors and care are a nice addition. Most of all the mystery is pausible and the characters are interesting. I vacation in Siesta Key and the author's local details and observations are right on the mark. Readers note: I am a very tough reviewer so consider my four stars a high recommendation.
Could have been an excellent book but..........2007-06-06
I wish I could have given this book a higher rating. 99% of it is highly enjoyable with excellent writing, well-drawn and interesting characters, and a beautifully depicted setting. But, unfortunately, this otherwise terrific writer chose to throw in some really nasty bits of animal cruelty that ended up staying with me longer than the positive qualities of the book. I usually enjoy passing books along to my mother and sisters, but I really couldn't do that in this case as I know that they would find certain elements of the book far too disturbing.
Good Series.......2007-06-03
I enjoyed both books in this series. I like the incidental information given about animal behavior, the Siesta Key setting, and the fact that Dixie is an interesting character. I like that she has depth and although she has men in her life she cares about and who care about her, she doesn't need to be rescued by them. (Must be something to do with her 3 showers a day and her endless supply of "clean white Keds" HA!) I'm looking forward to #3.
Not just for dog lovers.......2007-05-20
I enjoyed Blaize Clement's writing style and her characterization of the main character. What makes this book infinitely enjoyable are the details around the Sarasota area. Having just visited, I felt part of the story due to the details.
I'm not a dog lover, but related to the story all the same. I look forward to reading more about Dixie.
Book Description
Boyles, who has lived and worked in France for several years, examines the internal crises--a falling birthrate, an expanding Muslim minority, economic stagnation, a lessening of international prestige--that have changed the personality of what was once La Belle France.
Download Description
In this bitingly funny and insightful polemic, Denis Boyles, who has lived and worked in France for several years, examines the internal crises-a falling birthrate, an expanding Muslim minority, economic stagnation, a lessening of international prestige-that have altered the personality of what was once "La Belle France," transforming it into a nation afflicted with status anxiety. He explains how a country that endlessly repeats its credentials as America's oldest ally has become one of our most resolute enemies, wielding the biggest weapon in its arsenal-the European Union-against the interests of an America that it fears and envies.
Customer Reviews:
Blinkered jingoism + intellectual dishonesty = this book.......2007-04-15
I wasn't going to waste the time dumping on this piece of dyspeptic intellectual chaff -- which was given to me, presumably as a joke, by a buddy of mine; but when I read that the author had urged his minions to give him 5-* ratings whether or not they'd read the book -- well, that tore it.
Any American ridiculing the ruling class in any other country -- whether by "ruling class" you mean "the political leadership" or "the wealthy" -- is so mind-numbingly hypocritical that it beggars the imagination. Take a look at *our* ruling class -- defined either way -- and we take a backseat to nobody else for egoism, egotism, narcissism, or sheer dishonesty. The gang in power in Washington -- who brought you "Mission Accomplished" three years ago (or, to put it in better perspective, 3000 American military lives ago, or several hundred billion dollars ago) -- has systematically and methodically lied its way into power, and systematically and methodically abused that power by heaping lie upon lie, all with the arrogance and self-righteousness of men (and it is mostly men) without scruples or conscience.
You support the men who have built a vast palace of glass, Mr. Boyles; how dare you throw stones? How dare you accuse anyone else of duplicity or cowardice while you support a gang of duplicitous cowards?
American ego.......2007-03-16
After reading the majority of comments posted for this book, it is clear that most Americans think you are either with them or against. No middle way. If you don't agree with every American whim (even tragic ones such as Iraq), you are anti-US. Sick and tired of it. Get a grip
We Are At War With America.......2006-11-24
With those words Francois Mitterand urged French support for the Maastricht Treaty and the European Union. And Denis Boyle goes on to prove that Mitterand meant every word. Vile France, as almost every reviewer reminded us, is kind to the people of France. Well-- understanding of their limitations might be a better phrase, but for those who live within Le Beltway: the journalists, the Labor Unions and their workers, the Universities and their jaded left-wing ageing Professoriate, the service crew such as waiters, hops, and clerks, Boyles is as incisive and biting as Silent Bob!
Want to knew why Chirac will be in jail after his Presidency, read here! Want to know who's rooting for (and conniving that) America takes a huge hit in Iraq, read here. Why the EU isn't about Europe, but about France and Germany, read here. Why the UN is a pretty useless place, read here.
This book is every Francophile's nightmare because it goes after the French with no John-Kerry like nuance whatsoever but a whole lot of funny, funny stuff. It's Boyles' version of South Park set in Paris.
This is only half of it!.......2005-12-31
Great book! With gallic humor!
The French do not like interference especially by American. They tried to kill me three times because, during WWII I discoverd their plans, and for having helped Ho Chi Minh. Because I was born in France they did not considered me a US Citizen. According to them I was a traitor subject to their rules until I die. I did not return to France for 43 years, only after those threatening me had died!
René J. Defourneaux, Author
The Winking Fox/The Tracks of the Fox
rene@defourneaux.com
This is not a book that bashes the French,,,.......2005-12-31
...but it does take a good poke at the French ruling elite -- something the French themselves do in their own books incidentally. The author makes this very clear in his introduction: The 'France' in the title is the 'ongoing invention of its...elitist, self-satisfied, self-obsessed...Paris-dwelling governing class' who, the author goes on to point out, treat the typical French citizen with 'cynical contempt.' Surely many French men and women would agree!
I received this book for Christmas as it was on my list. However I am quite surprised at the way these reviews are done. So I shall write one of my own as many of these seem to be a collection of disingenuous rants.
Most of the one-star 'reviews' here seem to be by people who quite obviously have not read the book but assume anything anti-French must be a right-wing rant. That's very odd. I reckon the American left must be reduced to thinking well of anyone who speaks ill of the US. (The author of this book points out that French behaviour toward the US is the same now as it was under Clinton and other presidents.)
But what is even more odd is the lengths to which some of these people have gone. 'Jonathan' for example quotes a line from page 144 of the book and says:
"Let me give just one example of what I mean. On Page 144 he says:
"'The economy of the eurozone rests on the solid bedrock of irrational faith.'
"Okay, so far - so good. I think I know where he's going here and I expect he'll finish it off with some good solid examples of the European's irrational economic faith. But here's what he says next:
"'Take, for example, the EU's economic stability pact, an agreement intended to make nations obey the God-given law of the checkbook. But don't take it seriously, because nobody else does.'
"And in the next paragraph he goes on to talk about something else.
"So, am I crazy?"
To which I would answer, no -- but 'Jonathan' is either a lazy reader or a dishonest one, since the author goes on for several pages through an entire section of a chapter to discuss the European stability pact, giving a summary of its history and the reasons for and results of its ineffectiveness.
I found this book to be witty and insightful. I am giving it 4 stars instead of 5 because it lacks an index and is frankly too brief. I wish there had been more. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a quick and balanced look at why the French govenment does what it does in relation to the US.
Book Description
Most people would agree that compulsive lying is a ''sickness.'' In his provocative Lying, Paul Griffiths suggests that consistent truth telling might evoke a similar response. After all, isn't unremitting honesty often associated with stupidity, insanity, and fanatical sainthood? Drawing from Augustine's writings, and contrasting them with the work of other Christian and non-Christian thinkers, Griffiths deals with the two great questions concerning lying: What is it to lie? When, if ever, should or may a lie be told? Examining Augustine's answers to these questions, Griffiths grapples with the difficulty of those answers while rendering them more accessible. With rhetorical savvy Augustine himself would applaud, Griffiths aims to ''seduce'' rather than argue his readers into agreement with Augustine. Augustine's historically significant, characteristically Christian, and undeniably radical thoughts on lying ignite Griffiths's searching discussion of this challenging and crucial topic. Marvelously erudite and energetic, Lying will draw Augustine enthusiasts, students of ethics, and anyone who is committed to living a more honest life.
Average customer rating:
- Very intriguing
- Classic defection story
|
The Defection of A. J. Lewinter: A Novel of Duplicity
Robert Littell
Manufacturer: Overlook Hardcover
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
 United States
| World Literature
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
| 18th Century
| 19th Century
| 20th Century
| African American
| Asian American
| Classics
| Collections & Readers
| Drama
| General
| Hispanic
| History & Criticism
| Humor
| Jewish American
| Letters & Correspondence
| Native American
| Poetry
| Short Stories
| Women Writers
Contemporary
| General
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
Literary
| General
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
Spy Stories & Tales of Intrigue
| Thrillers
| Mystery & Thrillers
| Subjects
| Books
Similar Items:
-
The Once and Future Spy
-
The Debriefing
-
The Amateur
-
Walking Back the Cat
-
The Sisters
ASIN: 1585673471
Release Date: 2002-10-10 |
Book Description
The legendary spy thriller from bestselling author Robert Littell-whose newest book, The Company, is receiving rave reviews and acclaim-is finally back in print. Fans, reviewers, and booksellers will cheer. This first novel, originally published in 1973, established Littell as a master and immediately elevated him to the ranks of John le Carré, Len Deighton, and Graham Greene.
The Defection of A. J. Lewinter is a masterpiece of irony and intrigue, an unconventional and gripping anatomy of a defection. A. J. Lewinter is an American scientist, for years an insignificant cog in America's complex defense machinery. While at an academic conference in Tokyo, he contacts the KGB station chief and tells him he wants to defect. He tantalizes the Russians with U.S. military secrets he claims to possess, but is his defection genuine? Neither the Russians nor the Americans are sure and Lewinter is swept up in a terrifying political chess match of deceit and treachery. Each side struggles to anticipate its opponent's next move and the superpowers are locked in a deadly contest that exploits friendships, destroys loyalties, and manipulates human beings as expendable pawns. Deft and dazzlingly plotted, this is the book that introduced Robert Littell-the opening shot of a brilliant career.
Customer Reviews:
Very intriguing.......2006-04-13
"The Defection of A. J. Lewinter" is a great book and a page-turner at that. A guy you wouldn't give a second thought to decides to defect while on a trip to Tokyo. As the Americans you have to decide if the defector has anything worth defecting for! At the same time the Russians have to do their best to figure out if he's genuine or a plant!
If you've ever seen a cat chasing its tail then you'll get a kick out of this book. Everyone is chasing shadows and the one caught in the middle is A.J. Lewinter. The ending is a great little plot twist and a thoroughly enjoyable read.
Classic defection story.......2003-07-02
Littell's book reads as well today as it did when published. This is an excellent introduction to the cold war science of defector exploitation told from both the US and Soviet view. This short book is a good, fast read from an author who frequently "does" intelligence right. After a career in the business myself, he is one of only a few authors who I can always read.
Average customer rating:
- I felt duped by "Duplicity"
- Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful!!!!
- Great military suspense novel
- Needed More!
- A well written piece of suspense and romance.
|
Duplicity
Vicki Hinze
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
General
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
| Classics
| Comic
| Contemporary
| Literary
Suspense
| Thrillers
| Mystery & Thrillers
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Mystery & Thrillers
| Subjects
| Books
Similar Items:
-
Acts of Honor
-
Shades of Gray
-
Lady Justice
-
All Due Respect
-
Lady Liberty
ASIN: 0312968949 |
Book Description
Things aren't always what they seem. And Captain Tracy Keener, a military lawyer, learns this firsthand when she's ordered to defend a fellow officer accused of treason, cowardice, and of murdering his own men in what promises to be a volatile, highly publicized case. Everyone knows Captain Adam Burke is guilty--including Tracy. But Adam claims he's been set up--and so, he insists, has Tracy. A conspiracy with roots at their own Mississippi Air Force base is about to become a threat of devastating proportions.
Adam's suspicious death leaves Tracy reeling with guilt...until the unexpected happens and she's forced to choose: Does she forfeit her honor and self-respect and follow the direct orders of her superiors--assume Adam Burke is guilty and close his case? Or does she risk her career and her life, being swept into a dangerous odyssey to expose the truth?
Hunted by those who want her dead, Tracy risks everything--including her own jaded heart--by entering those dark places where secrets lie, evil dwells, and love waits to be set free from the tangled layers of ... Duplicity.
Customer Reviews:
I felt duped by "Duplicity".......2001-02-10
"Duplicity" is the second Viki Hinze book I've read and what a disappointment compared to the sustained suspense and interpersonal tension portrayed in "Shades of Gray." This one really strains the reader's credibility. What really killed it for me was the inconsistency in the details: the main character, lawyer Tracey Keener, does nothing to investigate the case she's been given except to meet with presumed guilty Burke a few times. None of the aspects of dealing with the chemical warfare agent were convincingly portrayed. The sub-plot element with Tracey's daughter and dead-husband's brother was ludicrous. I liked the hero Burke a lot better before he decided (on no discernible evidence to the contrary) that Tracey wasn't just a "fluff" lawyer. As for how they get back on to the base after everyone's been tracking them down, oh, please. (There was one of these unbelievable and surprising interventions in "Shades of Gray," too, but in isolation, it wasn't quite as jarring. In "Duplicity," there's incredible and unexplained things happening every chapter.) And I may be naive, but I bet this isn't any where close to how real chemical companies go about conducting efficacy trials for deadly chemicals.
All I can say is, yuck. Had to go read a good Merline Lovelace to get rid of the bad taste this one left.
Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful!!!!.......1999-10-12
Thank God for Amazon! I loved Hinze's first, Shades of Gray, but I missed it in the stores when it was out. I went hunting for this book and other Hinze thrillers and was so glad to find them here. Amazon and Hinze both have a big fan in me. Can't wait for Acts of Honor. I'm pre-ordering now because I want to be first, first, first to read it.
Great military suspense novel.......1999-08-06
This is my second novel by Vicki Hinze and amazingly it outshone Shades of Gray.
When military lawyer Captain Tracy Keener is assigned to defend fellow officer Adam Burke, accused of treason, cowardiance and murder, she realizes this is career suicide. Everybody, including Tracy, knows that Captain Burke is guilty, but things may not always be what they seem. Adam tells Tracy that he has been set up and so has she. Not believeing him, she searches for answers. When Tracy uncovers some proof to what Adam is telling her, Adam mysteriously dies in a fire.
Haunted and feeling guilty for Adam's death, Tracy risks her life to find the answers. In the meantime, love blossoms from an unexpected source.
This book was great! If you love a legal thriller-throw in some romance-this is the book for you!
Needed More!.......1999-06-19
This is the second book I have read from Ms.Hinze and I was sorely dissappointed in this book. The 2 main characters seemed to have "fallen" in love without ever getting to know each other. I mean Tracey only visited Adam twice in prison and this was enough to risk everything for him? I think that Ms. Hinze has a great future but really needs to work on developing relationships between her main characters. The story was very compelling in the beginning and lost steam at the end.
A well written piece of suspense and romance........1999-06-09
Mrs. Hinze has incorporated the two types of literature I like to read --suspence and romance. Her use of the military as a setting makes the story more believable. I have read both her novels Shades of Gray and Duplicity. I was involved and inraptured in both novels up to the very end. Mrs. Hinze, please keep writing these types of books because I can guarantee you will always have an avid reader for your stories.
Book Description
A masterpiece of irony and intrigue, deftly and dazzlingly plotted, The Defection of A.J. Lewinter is the novel that established Robert Littell as a master of the Cold War thriller and immediately elevated him to the ranks of John le Carré, Len Deighton, and Graham Greene.
A.J. Lewinter is an American scientist, for years an insignificant cog in America's complex defense machinery. Now he is playing both sides against the middle-telling the Russians he wants to defect and tantalizing them with U.S. military secrets he claims to posses. But is his defection genuine? Neither the Russians nor the Americans are sure, and as each side struggles to anticipate its opponent's next move, Lewinter is swept up in a terrifying chess match of deceit and treachery.
Customer Reviews:
Murky Doings.......2007-07-03
I picked up Littell's first book after enjoying his opus, The Company and another short book, "The Debriefing". "The Defection of A.J. Lewinter" was another enjoyable story in the "who's fooling whom" tradition of defectors. Lewinter is an obscure American scientist who apparently defects with critical knowledge about ICBM's (intercontinental ballistic missiles). There are some excellent passages about how the CIA evaluates the sincerity of defectors, and the ending is in keeping with the theme of the book. My copy suffered from a repeated typographical error with a character name that was ultimately meaningless, but was confusing for awhile given how characters often change names in spy stories. Rather than a perfect distillation of Littell's work, "The Defection of A.J. Lewinter" seemed more like the first novel that it was, to be expanded and improved upon on the way to "The Company". Recommended to fans of Cold War stories, but I'd suggest that those with a wide range of reading interests proceed directly to "The Company", unless 300 pages fits their reading schedule better than 900 pages.
Entertaining first novel!.......2007-01-10
I had read Littell's "The Company" (epic CIA tome) and loved it, and also greatly enjoyed "AJ Lewinter"...different time duration, more intimate look at a few specific characters, but definitely worth the read! If you've enjoyed Littell's other books, this one does not disappoint!
Spies Versus Spies.......2006-12-17
This book shows the depths of paranoia spies can become immersed in. A guy tries to defect to the Russians. Is he for real? The Russians don't know, the Americans don't know. Littell deftly describes how each side tries to nudge the other side into believing that Lewinter is or isn't a plant. It can get quite confusing as they play out their ping pong game of espionage. While the thesis of the book is original and interesting, the book itself is, in my mind, not very compelling. Littell's best work was "The Company". In my estimation, his other efforts fall well short of that masterpiece.
Quick, entertaining tale of espionage, counter-espionage, counter-counter espionage . . ........2005-12-17
It's hard to believe that "The Defection of A.J. Lewinter" is a first novel. Sure, it's brief (barely 300 pages, using a large typeface), but it's so self-assured, so brilliant, so audacious, that it smacks of a later work written by a giant who's merely taking some time off from writing epics.
The title is seemingly dead-on. American scientist A.J. Lewinter defects to the Soviet Union during the height of the Cold War. (While the time period is never specifically stated, it's definitely post-Kennedy and pre-Gorbachev.) The defection is surprisingly easy, and Lewinter has an easier time ditching his American security than he does convincing the Soviets to let him defect.
And that's the crux of Littell's lean novel of espionage and paranoia. The Americans are understandably paranoid -- they've got a defector, which is embarrassing enough, but this guy may know some military secrets of considerable value. But the Soviets are equally paranoid, if not more so. What if this Lewinter is a CIA plant, and this is a phony defection? If the Soviets misread Lewinter, it could mean a disastrous hit to the Soviet system of 5-year plans, not to mention a few bullets put into the backs of a few heads.
Littell keeps the pressure on, as the Americans and the Soviets plot and scheme to figure out just what the heck has happened by this defection as well as how to play it. For the Soviets, will the Americans use reverse-psychology and act like the defection is no big deal (thereby hopefully leading the Soviets to conclude that Lewinter is a fraud)? Or are the Americans playing reverse-reverse psychology, hoping that by doing nothing the Soviets will interpret this as the Americans trying to convince the Soviets that Lewinter is a fraud, when really Lewinter is the real thing? More layers than an onion are involved here, and Littell spices things up with dashes of humor interlaced into the web of deceit and danger.
I'm not sure where Littell gets all the insider information he has for his novels (I have already enjoyed "The Amateur" and adored both "The Sisters" and "The Company"), but he writes as if he knows this world of Cold War espionage like the back of his hand. While the lack of scope of this novel (arguably, a "mere" novella) prevents me from awarding it with a five-star rating like I gave his epic "The Company," that's a statement of the awe in which I hold the larger work. "The Defection of A.J. Lewinter" is a clever bit of work that never strains its convolutions or jumps the tracks.
A quick, thrilling read, "Defection" offers a delightful day-trip into the back rooms of the Cold War, and it's well-worth the trip. This is the perfect appetizer to choose before diving into Littell's longer, darker works.
no spoilers.......2003-12-29
Having read and thoroughly enjoyed The Company; I decided to give this one a shot. Littell does not disappoint as he weaves layer upon layer of intrigue in this brief tale of espionage. The story involves the defection of a scientist and what we learn about him through the eyes of oppossing agencies. Yet through the deft touch of Littell we are never quite sure what to think of the man. Is he serving the interests of the United States, the Soviet Union, or himself? Are there any hints that let on? That is the charm of this novel. The tone of the novel fits right alongside that of The Company. Especially appreciated is the fact that Littell leaves the road open for the reader to navigate the end course. He doesn't spoon feed conclusions to his readers. You'll see what I mean when you read the fantastic ending.
The only problem? This was the only other book of his that I could find at my local store.
why not five stars? I wished that it was a longer read...
Customer Reviews:
An enjoyable read.......2007-06-23
Lee Saunders has been in love with co-worker Carter McCrea for over a year. But Carter only thinks of Lee as a friend as he's been involved with his girlfriend Sylvia for three years. Suddenly Carter calls Lee - Sylvia has suddenly broken up with him.
Lee can't believe that Carter has called her for comfort and now suddenly seems to want her - again and again. While she enjoys the attention, a part of her is wondering why - is he really interested in her or is he just on the rebound?
Sylvia keeps reappearing in the story as there's a slight mystery - who's giving Sylvia advice on her relationship with Carter? She broke up with Carter hoping to get him to pop the question based on someone's advice. Who is that?
Lee has the typical doubts that anyone would have when a relationship changes. The sex is steamy, (as fitting an Ellora's Cave novel) though it seemed there were some contrived situations that didn't seem believable with Lee's character and her supposed professionalism. Also, her inability to keep her hands off of Carter seemed more like a male fantasy. But even with all that, this is still a fun read.
lovely.......2007-05-14
every one can somewhat relate to this story, i'm glad the hero woke up in time.
the love scenes were scandalous....
Average customer rating:
|
Lessons in Duplicity
Peter McGregor
Manufacturer: Trafford Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Contemporary
| General
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 1425100651 |
Book Description
John Tamplin is shattered when, during a normal business trip to Central and South Africa in 1970, he finds himself at the Victoria Falls Hotel in bed with Avril Llewllyn-Rhys. They were separated by her parents 26 years earlier when he was 18 and she was 15. He is still unable to resist her, although the sweet young girl has turned into a sophisticated, self-assured and mysterious woman who expects to get what she wants. She introduces him to members of the Rhodesian rebel government, and shoots their way out of a sudden terrorist ambush. They part, not expecting to meet again.
Back in England with Eleanor, his adored wife to whom until then he has always been faithful, he finds that the family shareholders in the company for which he works are squabbling about its future and that he cannot avoid being sucked into the argument. He tries to put all thoughts of Avril out of his mind and get on with his difficult business task with its many complications in which he learns that his normally open and honest way of managing becomes increasingly impossible, even when he is trying to save the livelihoods of most of his colleagues. Eleanor worries that the man she loves is changing, and they are both unhappy that they are ceasing to share a common view of the world.
Unexpectedly, Avril appears in England and attempts to take charge of his life. As he fights his way more and more ruthlessly through labour disputes, takeover bids and merger talks with a German company, he is subjected to the influence of the two women. Eleanor is offering him a future in which he would try to live a good life. Avril is offering one in which you do what you have to do to get what you want. It is Eleanor's determination and the surprising relationship which develops between her and the younger of the two women family shareholders which, in spite of his last treacherous action, enables him to find a way forward.
Average customer rating:
- Great Story
- Great Story, Painful Writing Style
- Deluded perception
- Couldn't put this book down!!!!
- This has got TV movie written all over it...
|
Deadly Deception : A True Story of Duplicity, Greed, Dangerous Passions and One Woman's Courage
Brenda Gunn , and
Shannon Richardson
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
General
| Sociology
| Social Sciences
| Nonfiction
| Subjects
| Books
Murder & Mayhem
| True Accounts
| Nonfiction
| Subjects
| Books
True Crime
| True Accounts
| Nonfiction
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Women's Studies
| Nonfiction
| Subjects
| Books
Similar Items:
-
A Stranger in the Family: A True Story of Murder, Madness, and Unconditional Love
-
Never Leave Me: A True Story of Marriage, Deception, and Brutal Murder (St. Martin's True Crime Library)
-
Gone Forever: A True Story of Marriage, Betrayal, and Murder (True Crime (St. Martin's Paperbacks))
-
While She Slept (St. Martin's True Crime Library)
-
Deadly Mistress: A True Story of Marriage, Betrayal and Murder (St. Martin's True Crime Library)
ASIN: 0882822039 |
Book Description
To Brenda Gunn, a hard working medical professional, it seems like a fairytale come true.
Customer Reviews:
Great Story.......2005-03-26
I only read non-fiction and this was a great book. Sometimes hard to beleive that someone would put up with so much, but when your in love I guess you try to see only the good in people. It was actually nice to read about the bad guy getting it instead of the inocent person. Most true crimes do not end that way. I'm a big fan of Ann Rule and this was even better than some of her books!
Great Story, Painful Writing Style.......2004-02-02
Brenda Gunn's story is compelling and frightening, and that's why I managed to finish this book, despite the awful writing. I then promptly threw it in the trash. Besides having to endure the graphic love scenes involving these very unattractive people, all of the characters were one-dimensional and spouted the worst TV-movie dialogue imaginable. And the story was so one-sided (since the victim wrote it), and left many ends hanging. For instance, what happened to Jane, the best friend whose affair with the husband precipitated all of this? What about Morgan, the guy who was stalking Brenda?
It's hard to believe that even a love-starved, lonely woman wouldn't figure out there was a problem when she was almost killed in a fire, run off the road, poisoned, set up for a lion attack, and her pets started dying off. Throughout it all, Brenda portrays herself as an innocent, naive, loving wife, which actually comes across as incredible naivete and desperation for the love of even a complete louse such as her husband.
It's a very sad and dramatic story, and in the right hands, could have been a good book. But this effort is terribly misdirected, and this book is one of the worst I have ever read.
Deluded perception.......2003-09-29
I love true crime and I have read many. This was one of the worst books I have ever read. Some of the situations are so ridiculously portrayed, you know they are exaggerated, if at all true. Every character fits into overused fictionalized story stereotypes. Imagine the worst Lifetime TV Movie, and it would be worse than that. To top it off, there are several descriptions of these two people, whom no one would want to imagine naked, in intimate moments described in typical romance-novel fashion. The bonus is the "love" poem, written by the victim, sounding more like the prose of a third grader. Such a waste of what could have been an interesting story.
Couldn't put this book down!!!!.......2003-09-03
I read this book in a couple of days, due to the fact that it was very interesting from the first page on. I have read a lot of true crime books, but this was one of my favorite ones. It is unbelievable how a person can love someone so much and be so blind as to not see what horror lies right before their eyes. It would definitely make me pursue a background check on a perspective spouse.
This has got TV movie written all over it..........2003-08-29
Agreeing with previous reviewers, the stars are for Brenda Gunn's courage, not for the writing style. It's a great story but Ann Rule should've written it. The trashy novel style is not meant to be used for true crime--I skipped a lot of pages (cut to the chase, so to speak) because I lost all patience with the writing style. Brenda is an intelligent woman who made a good living and smart investments but she married a guy only 2 months after meeting him and he turned out to be an ex-con...the entire marriage and relationship was a set-up involving the woman Brenda thought was her best friend: maximum betrayal. Hats off to Brenda for getting smart just in time to save her own life, but I sure wouldn't have gotten the tombstone with hearts and planned to be buried beside the guy who literally died trying to murder me....
Book Description
Just as it "takes a thief to catch a thief," so the forger greatly aids the search for historical truth, maintains Anthony Grafton in this wide-ranging exploration of the links between forgery and scholarship. Labeling forgery the "criminal sibling" of criticism, he describes a panorama of remarkable individuals--forgers, from classical Greece through the recent past, who produced a variety of splendid triumphs of learning and style, and scholarly detectives, who honed the tools of scholarship in attempts to unmask these skillful fakers. In the process he discloses the extent, the coherence, and the historical interest of two significant and tightly intertwined strands in the Western intellectual tradition. "The desire to forge," writes the author, "can bite and infect almost anyone: . . . the honest as well as the rogue." Forgers are inspired not only by ambition or greed but also by impulses to play jokes, exuberant desires to see the past made whole again, or serious wishes to invoke divine or distantly historical authority for particular spiritual or national traditions. Whatever their goals, forgers in classical antiquity as well as in the modern era have often been well ahead of critics in the pursuit of methods of authenticating documents, and Grafton shows that many techniques normally considered the invention of scholars in early modern Europe were already employed in classical times. This accessible work discusses forgers as different from each other as Dionysus the "Renegade," Erasmus, Carlo Sigonio, James Macpherson ("Ossian"), Thomas Chatterton, and the great sixteenth-century Dominican scholar Giovanni Nanni (Annius) of Viterbo, whose forged histories by Berosus, Manetho, and other ancient authors drove the real histories of the ancient world from the literary marketplace for almost a hundred years. One chapter is devoted to comparing three scholars--Porphyry (third century), Isaac Casaubon (1559-1614), and Richard Reitzenstein (1861-1931)--whose efforts to deal with the same body of forged material, the Hermetica, reveal both continuity and change in critical method. What emerges from Forgers and Critics is a new appreciation for a strange literary genre that has flourished for over 2500 years--amusing its uninvolved observers, enraging its humiliated victims, and, most importantly, contributing to a richer sense of what the past was really like.
Customer Reviews:
anecdotal.......2000-04-03
A short book on the history of forged historical documents, and efforts to detect them, from ancient to modern times. It skips around too much, without giving enough context for most of its anecdotes. Part of its larger message is that both practices are age-old, and that the higher criticism of 19c Germany was not as new as it seemed. Also, forgery was always considered wrong; epistemological concepts haven't changed that much. Another message is that the two are intertwined, and even some of the "gravest" opponents and critics of forgery, such as Erasmus, at times were forgers themselves.
Books:
- Edge of Darkness: The Art, Craft, and Power of the High-Definition Monochrome Photograph
- Edward Weston's California Landscapes
- El Lissitzky: Beyond the Abstract Cabinet: Photography, Design, Collaboration
- Engineering Design: A Materials and Processing Approach
- Family Of Man, The
- Film Directing: Shot by Shot: Visualizing from Concept to Screen (Michael Wiese Productions)
- Finding Sanctuary: Monastic Steps for Everyday Life
- Forever in Blue: The Fourth Summer of the Sisterhood (Sisterhood of Traveling Pants, Book 4)
- From Caterpillar to Butterfly (Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science, Stage 1)
- From Here, You Can't See Paris: Seasons of a French Village and Its Restaurant
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- Forgotten Man: Understanding the Male Psyche
- A Summer of Faulkner: As I Lay Dying/The Sound and the Fury/Light in August
- The Floating Opera and The End of the Road
- The Toy & Miniature Poodle
- There's Nothing in This Book That I Meant to Say
- Atheist Universe: The Thinking Person's Answer to Christian Fundamentalism
- What Is A Scientist
- ECOL MARINE FISHES CUBA
- The last days of imperial Vienna
- Forgotten Valor: The Memoirs, Journals, & Civil War Letters of Orlando B. Willcox
Curiosity Killed the Cat Sitter: The First Dixie Hemingway Mystery (Dixie Hemingway Mysteries)
Meow is for Murder (Kendra Ballantyne, Petsitter Mysteries)
Whiskey and Tonic: A Whiskey Mattimoe Mystery
Murder with Reservations (Dead-End Job Mysteries)
Murder of a Botoxed Blonde (Scumble River Mysteries, Book 9)
