“Outstanding.… Mina’s Deception is a deft psychological thriller.”
—Adam Woog, Seattle Post-Intelligencer
“Wonderful.… Although the narrative engine that moves Deception along is strong and leads up to what they call a blockbuster finale, it’s the twists and turns of Lachlan’s mind as he struggles with deceiving us about Susie’s deception that really make this a most satisfying reading experience.”
—Dick Adler, Chicago Tribune
“When a book is called Deception, the reader is forewarned. And when that book’s author is the dazzling, deception-loving Glasgow writer Denise Mina, readers might as well assume that the red herrings have red herrings. Or not.… Readers of Agatha Christie might feel certain this book is headed in one direction, but Mina is such a clever writer that within pages, one’s suspicions turn to sympathy, then back again.… It’s tempting to say that the prose rings perfectly true—except, of course, in Deception, it might not.”
—Michele Ross, Cleveland Plain Dealer
“Fascinating.… Deception quickly emerges as an intense psychological study that careens along a collision course on which Mina has total control.”
—Oline H. Cogdill, Florida Sun-Sentinel
“A masterly psychological web of people on the edge and the devils that lie beneath their apparent respectability. Engrossing.”
—Guardian
“Deception leaves the reader as anxious as the betrayed husband to figure out how a seemingly happy wife, mother, and psychiatrist could go off the rails so completely.”
—Connie Fletcher, Booklist
“A shocker that’s exhilarating in its energetic, witty sordidness.”
—Ken Tucker, Entertainment Weekly
“The crime novel as intellectual puzzle is still with us. One good example is Denise Mina’s bizarre, fascinating Deception.… A skillful piece of work.… Lachlan’s diary is car-crash irresistible.… A smart example of the crime novel as postmodern puzzle, a work that coolly offers to match wits with the unwary reader and is not likely to lose the game.”
—Patrick Anderson, Washington Post Book World
“Those who have already encountered Denise Mina’s gritty Glasgow-based Garnethill trilogy will find Deception a change of pace and a further example of Mina’s not inconsiderable talent as a novelist.”
—Charles L. P. Silet, Mystery Scene
“There are plenty of shocks in Deception, which is only to be expected from an elegantly engineered novel of psychological suspense.… Mina executes a stunning shift in style and tone to come up with an entirely different perspective on her recurring theme—that domestic dysfunction breeds criminal violence.… Mina works an astonishing degree of tension—and a lethal amount of savage humor—into Lachlan’s progressively unhinged behavior as he loses himself in his research, discovering secrets his wife never meant him to know.”
—Marilyn Stasio, New York Times Book Review
“Something special.… A tour de force.”
—Times Literary Supplement
“An entertaining and engrossing Rubik’s cube of a novel.”
—David Lazarus, San Francisco Chronicle
“Deception is as much an intriguing character study as it is an expertly plotted mystery.… Mina impressively balances a novel of unnerving suspense with the uncommon pleasure of being inside Lachlan’s unreliable, charmingly vain, and appallingly funny head.”
—Ellen Shapiro, People
“A dark, discomfiting tale of murder and obsession.… Lachlan is utterly, nakedly human and his compelling voice drives the narrative to a stunning, fitting conclusion.… Deception adds to Mina’s considerable reputation.”
—Lynn Harnett, Portsmouth Herald
“Denise Mina is one of Britain’s hottest new crime novelists.… She is a master of Scottish noir.… Deception is superb, a full-rounded novel by a master of the heart’s dark reaches.”
—Tom D’Evelyn, Providence Journal
“Not only one of the best crime writers going, but one of the best writers of any stripe. Drawn in shades of gray with streaks of bright wit, Deception is true to its title, told from the point of view of the deceived husband, who is perhaps not a trustworthy narrator himself.… There are many small, fine moments in the book.… Mina’s sharp observation and lovely prose shine a disturbingly bright light into dark corners of life. Don’t miss this book.”
—Jane Dickinson, Rocky Mountain News
“Deception could be a page-turner, but the reader will want to pause and think as the story unfolds.”
—Judith Evans, St. Louis Post-Dispatch