Dalene's Book Reviews: Deceitful Truths by Maggie Thom

Title: Deceitful Truths

Series: The Caspian Wine Series # 2

Author: Maggie Thom

Published: March 2014

Publisher: Quadessence Solutions

Word Count: 105,000

Genre: Suspense Thriller

Content Warning: Non-graphic sex and abuse

Synopsis:

He created a legacy that no one could imagine…

Tarin has lost a week of her life. She doesn’t know what happened but not long after she returns to work she is suspended from her job. Confused and pregnant, she quits and agrees to marry Stephen, only to be thrown into a whole new nightmare. Desperate, she grabs her son and moves across the country to get away from her abusive husband and to avoid her unforgiving father. Thrilled at getting the job at Knights Associates, where she’ll help them solve cyber crimes but also be able to use their connections and resources to find her own answers. Who stole a week of her life? And will they return to steal the secret she is now protecting?

Graham and his partner Guy, can’t keep up with the demand. They are being flooded with requests at Knights Associates, where they offer a combined service of private investigator and that of solving cyber crimes. It appears that someone wants to get their attention as not only have they been hacked but Guy’s family business, Caspian Winery, seems to be under attack as well. Hiring an assistant seems to be the answer but when Graham discovers she’s been accessing their high-security accounts, he realizes the cause of their predicament might be closer then he thought. Is there new assistant behind the problems they’re having? If she’s so innocent why does someone want to abduct her?

Tarin and Graham discover that although they don’t trust each other, they are forced to work together to solve several seemingly unrelated crimes that may lead to one disastrous conclusion. Can they figure it all out before Tarin’s nightmare plays out? An eighty year old woman pays with her life? Or before Tarin learns a truth that may seal her fate and be the one secret that will keep her and Graham apart as neither one of them may be able to forgive or forget…

(Caspian Wine Series, Book Two – Standalone but is a Sequel/Companion Novel to Captured Lies)

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Excerpt:

"I could get my dad to help if money is an issue?"

"God, no!" The words were spit out at her almost before she was done saying anything.

"Okay. I just–"

"I know. You want to fix it like you do everything. Just leave it alone Tarin. Okay?"

Tarin nodded but was taken aback by Bobbie's forceful, hard tone. Just then Bobbie's phone rang.

"Dammit. It's Mom. I'll be a while."

"No worries. I'll figure out something for this afternoon." She watched as her friend walked out of her room, already talking away. She hated to see her so upset. Her mom was something else though. Tarin had always thought she was a very selfish woman. Everything was always about her and what she needed. She'd rarely come to visit Bobbie and when she had she'd done nothing but complain about her life and gossiped about everyone else.

Tarin gasped. If Mrs. Benson told her dad, he'd know. If she asked for help for Bobbie, he'd know. How did my life become such a mess?

She had to get answers before her dad discovered anything about what was happening in her life. There was no way he was aware of the mess she was in and there was no way he knew he had a grandson. If he had, he would have taken control of everything but more importantly he'd have taken Chance and raised him like the son he'd always wanted.

She jumped out of bed almost in a panic. Her dad couldn't find out about her and what she was up to. Not yet. If Bobbie's Mom talked...

Chance's squeal of delight from the other room, where he was being entertained by Kim, was like a beacon pulling her back from the edge.

She had to do something. The pamphlet for a wine tour she'd seen on Bobbie's table, came to mind. There was no reason she couldn't go and take a look around at Caspian Winery. She might as well do something. She'd moved across the country to get answers. Maybe she'd get lucky. She rolled her eyes at that thought, as she really had no idea what she was looking for or what she hoped to gain by going there. If she could get near a computer maybe she could get some information.

She fell back against the wall, surprised by what she was thinking. She, who had never stolen a thing in her life, although she'd been falsely accused once, which had ended disastrously, was thinking of actually going and stealing something... something that really could land her in jail.

Deceitful Truths by Maggie Thom
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

First, I would like to thank that author Maggie Thom for giving me this book for an honest review. I enjoyed this story very much, it kept me guessing throughout the story. The storyline is very good. The characters are well developed and written.

View all my reviews

About the Author:

Award winning author, Maggie Thom, took the challenge and leapt off, leaving a fulltime, twenty year career in management, to write full time. After publishing her first suspense/thriller book Captured Lies, October 2012, she published her second novel, Tainted Waters, April, 2013. Tainted Waters went on to win 2013 Suspense and Thriller Book of the Year through Turning the Pages Magazine and Captured Lies won book of the Month through LAS Reviews (February 2014). She published her third novel, Deceitful Truths (The Caspian Wine Series – Book 2), March 2014. An avid reader and writer her whole life, she decided to break the monotony of wishing to be an author by making it happen. She is a wholehearted nature lover and likes nothing better than to take a book, hike to a remote spot by a river or waterfalls and read. Married toher best friend, she is learning that humor, love and patience help her navigate her way through her twins’ teen years. Her motto: Escape to read and Read to escape. “Maggie Thom writes a fast paced thriller laced with romance that keeps the reader interested and on edge!” InDtale Magazine.