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The Deception by Kim Taylor Blakemore
The Deception by Kim Taylor Blakemore
A sleight of hand. A trick up the sleeve. A call for the dead. It's all part of the game in this twisty tale by the bestselling author of After Alice Fell.
New Hampshire, 1877. Maud Price was once a celebrated child medium, a true believer in lifting the veil between the living and the dead. Now penniless, her guiding spirits gone, the so-called "Maid of Light" is desperate to regain her reputation--but doing so means putting her faith in deceiving others.
Clementine Watkins, known in spiritualist circles for her bag of tricks and utmost discretion, creates the sort of theatrics that can fill Maud's parlor again, and with each misdirection, Maud's fame is restored. But her guilt is a heavy burden. And the ruse has become a risk. Others are plotting to expose the fraud, and Clem can't allow anyone--even Maud--to jeopardize the fortune the hoax has made her.
When the deception hints at a possible murder, Maud realizes how dangerous a game she's playing. But to return to the light from which she's strayed, she must first survive the darkness created by Clem's smoke and mirrors.
“THE DECEPTION captures the fascinating world of 19th century mediums in this story of intrigue, deceit, and the otherworldly. Historical fiction lovers will delight in the wonderfully captured details and the mystical elements at the center of this novel. A must read!” LYDIA KANG Bestselling author of The Half-Life of Ruby Fielding
“Delightfully wry as it is unsettling, The Deception had me turning pages at a blistering pace. Blakemore bewitches with her shrewd, incisive look at the Spiritualist movement and two downon-their-luck heroines bound in an unlikely partnership. Teeming with intrigue, seething jealousies, and theatrical atmosphere. Absolutely impossible to put down!” —Paulette Kennedy, author of Parting the Veil and The Witch of Tin Mountain
Beware of dangerous women.
Kim writes historical novels that feature fierce, audacious, and often dangerous women. She writes about the thieves and servants, murderesses and mediums, grifters and frauds - the women with darker stories, tangled lies and hidden motives.
She is the author of the historical thrillers THE DECEPTION, Silver Falchion Award winner AFTER ALICE FELL, THE COMPANION, and the historical novels BOWERY GIRL, and CISSY FUNK, a WILLALiteraryAward winner for Best Young Adult novel.
In addition to writing, she is a developmental editor, and founder of Novelitics, which provides workshops and community to writers in the United States and Canada.
She lives with her family and passel of rescue cats and dogs in the Pacific Northwest. She loves the rain, is afraid of scary movies, and thinks the best meal consists of a grilled cheese sandwich and tomato soup.
