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Book Summary and Reviews of Web of Deceit by Katherine Howell

Web of Deceit by Katherine Howell

Web of Deceit

An Ella Marconi Mystery

by Katherine Howell

  • Critics' Consensus:
  • Published:
  • Dec 2015, 352 pages
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About this book

Book Summary

Shortlisted for the 2013 Ned Kelly Award for Best Crime Fiction

Often compared to Karin Slaughter and Patricia Cornwell, prize-winning author Katherine Howell thrills readers in this gripping novel featuring a determined homicide detective and a team of emergency medics.

When a frantic man refuses to leave the car that witnesses say he deliberately crashed, paramedics Jane and Alex think it's a desperate cry for help. But his paranoid claims that someone is out to get him only confirm official reports that he is delusional.

When he is indeed found dead in what looks like a suicide, Jane is uneasy: she remembers the raw terror in his eyes.

Detective Ella Marconi shares these doubts, which are compounded as the case becomes increasingly tangled. The victim's boss tries to commit suicide, a witness flees, and closer to home, a woman is attacked in front of Jane's house. Then Alex's daughter goes missing.

As Ella tries to add up the clues, the investigation is hampered by her budget-focused boss. Then, just when she thinks she's closing in, a shocking turn of events endangers more people, and Ella just may see the killer slip through her hands.

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"Starred Review. Excellent ... How the main characters balance the pressures and stresses of their professional and private lives further elevates the brisk plot." - Publishers Weekly

"This was one of my favorite books of the year. A real winner." - Tess Gerritsen

"A murder, a secret and a detective who won't let go-pace, precision, and a wonderful sense of place." - Michael Robotham

"Howell's books are always suspenseful and her plots thicker than minestrone." - Saturday Age

"Not to be read on public transport: you might miss your stop." - Sun-Herald

This information about Web of Deceit was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

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Author Information

Katherine Howell

Katherine Howell worked as a paramedic for fifteen years while completing her Bachelor and Masters degrees in creative writing. Her novels make the Australian bestseller list and she has twice won the Davitt award for best crime fiction. Her books are published in multiple countries, languages, and formats. Howell teaches writing and editing, and she lives in Queensland with her partner, who owns a bookshop.

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