Synopsis
Historical romance writer Iris Johansen introduces forensic sculptor Eve Duncan in this suspenseful tale about a woman desperately coping with the murder of her daughter while uncovering a shocking political conspiracy.
| Details | | Publication Date: | 1998-11-01 | | Series: | Eve Duncan |
| Size | | Length: | 354 pages | | Height: | 9.8 in | | Width: | 6.5 in | | Thickness: | 1.5 in | | Weight: | 22.4 oz |
Publisher's Note
An unidentified skull...a trail of terrifying secrets...and a woman whose talented hands hold the truth behind the most shocking deception of our time...From Iris Johansen, the nationally acclaimed New York Times bestselling author of And Then You Die and The Ugly Duckling, comes her most electrifying novel yet, a relentless buildup of suspense from the first page to the riveting conclusion. Forensic sculptor Eve Duncan has a rare--and bittersweet--gift. Her unique ability to reconstruct the identity of the long dead from their skulls has helped bring closure to parents of missing children. For Eve, whose own daughter was murdered and her body never found, the job is a way of coming to terms with her personal nightmare. When she is approached by billionaire magnate John Logan to reconstruct the face of an adult murder victim, only his promise of a sizable charitable contribution persuades her to accept. Its a simple bargain, yet its the most dangerous one shell ever make. The warning signs are clear. There is the specially equipped lab Eve is taken to, in a country inn turned high-tech security fortress in rural Virginia. Surveillance cameras monitor her every move. The telephones are tapped. And then there is Logan himself--by turns ruthless, charming, and desperate.But it's too late for Eve to walk out. The skull has begun to reveal its shocking identity, trapping her in a frightening web of murder and deceit. To free herself, she has no choice but to expose that identity and to trust Logan, the man who put her life in danger, a man who may see her as an expendable pawn.Already she has made very powerful enemies. Their only agenda is covering up the truth, and their method of choice is cold-blooded killing. To them, Eve needs to be silenced forever. Because the secret of the skull must remain in the grave--no matter who gets buried with it.
For forensic sculptor Eve Duncan, the discovery of what seems like an ordinary skull soon draws her into a frightening odyssey of greed, manipulation, and violence.
Industry Reviews
Forensic sculptor Eve Duncan is in trouble the face she has just reconstructed belongs to a man who is supposedly alive.
Jacobs
While not as unrelentingly grim as its predecessor, And Then You Die, this suspense thriller from an author who has successfully written historical romance with a dark edge has its share of grisly scenes, beginning in medias res at the execution of Ralph Fraser, the serial killer who has murdered protagonist Eve Ducan's only child, Bonnie. To overcome her grief, Eve takes up a (notably icky) career as a forensic sculptor, making busts from the skulls of unidentified murdered children so that their parents can identify them. New trouble comes when computer mogul John Logan recruits Eve to reconstruct and identify an adult male skull. The job comes with unforeseen risks and political implications; various criminal figures want to keep the skull's identity a secret and are ruthlessly determined to go to any lengths to avoid exposure. Eve, who combines a tough survivor's instinct with emotional vulnerability, is led to fear for her own life and for the lives of her mother and dearest friends. Despite slow early chapters and stilted dialogue, Johansen makes an admirable effort to give psychological depth even to her villains, and her action scenes use terse prose to build tension. With the help of well-timed, steady disclosures and surprising revelations, the book's twists and turns manage to hold the reader hostage until the denouement, a sure crowd pleaser (since it promises a sequel). Major ad/promo. (Oct.)FYI: A 16-page excerpt of The Face of Deception will be included in the paperback reprint of And Then You Die, out in September.
Naylor
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