Sacrament of Lies - Softcover

Dewberry, Elizabeth

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0425188612 ISBN 13: 9780425188613

Publisher: Berkley, 2003

Synopsis

When Grayson Guillory's mother died, she helped her father get rid of the empty vodka and pill bottles next to the body. It wouldn't do for the governor of Louisiana to have a wife who committed suicide after years of mental illness—especially just as he’s contemplating the presidency. Grayson's husband—her father's speechwriter—helps him keep the story quiet, and the family doctor makes sure the cause of death will be listed as a heart attack. But Grayson has a problem. When she thought she was helping her father cover up a suicide, she might actually have been covering up a murder. Because Grayson's mother left a videotape hidden among her personal effects in which she claims her life is in danger. Of course, Grayson's mother did suffer from paranoid delusions. And maybe Grayson does too: manic depression is a highly hereditary illness. But just because she’s paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get her...

About this title

About the Author:

Elizabeth Dewberry is the author of two previous novels, Many Things Have Happened Since He Died and Break the Heart of Me. She lives in the Florida panhandle.

Review:

“One is sucked into the story on the first page, but rushing to the end is futile. The writing is so skillful and the wordplay so exquisite that one wants to savor each paragraph the way the characters savor their Sazeracs. Perfection from start to finish.”—Library Journal (starred)“[A] well-paced novel that manages to be both taut with suspense and fluidly lyrical.”—Publishers Weekly

“Immensely readable and smart.”—Richard Ford“Elegant and frightening...Dewberry combines a Faulknerian sense of history's power with a clever murder mystery. The result is an unsettling story of ambition, repression and madness set in the gothic capital of America, New Orleans ...impossible to put down.”—The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

“A whodunit with a central question that's more Henry James than P.D. James: Is Grayson going mad, or is she the only sane one in the bunch?”—The Washington Post“A powerful novel of secrets, love and evil...should not be missed.”—Minneapolis Star Tribune

“[A] Hitchcockian gem.”—Publishers Weekly“A page-turner...Keeps the reader guessing until the end.”—Tim Gautreaux, author of The Next Step in the Dance

“Packs an unexpected punch.”—The Denver Post“Ms. Dewberry has fashioned a neat, fast-paced, immensely readable and smart murder mystery, set against the lurid intrigues and vivid backdrops of Louisiana politics—which means sex, death, money, ambition, and of course moral loss. What could possibly be better?”—Richard Ford, author of A Multitude of Sins

“The book ends with powerful and terrifying impact.”—The Bloomsbury Review

“A delicious blend of nail-biting action and sensual imagery. Dewberry lets it simmer then build to a boil.”—The New Orleans Times-Picayune

“In Sacrament of Lies, the line between certainty and madness is as thin as a razor and equally as dangerous. Elizabeth Dewberry has given us a rare gift, a literary thriller that will keep us up all night. This book is riveting.”—Ann Patchett, author of Bel Canto“[A] compelling page-turner.”—Library Journal (starred)

“An enimently readable literary thriller...a very distinctive narrative voice.”—Booklist“An intense mystery novel with a wallop...[a] straightforward story about a murder—at least that's what the novel's narrator, Grayson, believes—in a contemporary Louisiana setting of squalid politics, sex and betrayal. That, of course, adds up to a delicious gumbo, and Dewberry's richly told tale assures it has plenty of spice...It's certainly a page-turner. Dewberry's story balances a lot of elements of literature and thriller with a keen eye, and she has constructed a mystery that likely will keep readers asking questions right up to the explosive conclusion...engrossing...It is indeed a mystery, but the real mystery goes a lot deeper than who did it.”—The State (SC)“Dewberry compellingly evokes the claustrophobic effects of fear and suspicion.”—Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine“A tight, fast-paced murder mystery set against the backdrop of Louisiana politics. It keeps you guessing until the very end...dark and whimsical moments...a page-turning, explosive showdown.”—The Tallahassee Democrat“Dewberry uses New Orleans beautifully, avoiding the Big Easy stereotypes, integrating into the novel the city's history and spectacular decadence...a cunningly wrought puzzle.”—The Atlanta Journal-Constitution“An absolutely original retelling of Hamlet...What recommends this story beyond mere cleverness is that it operates so compellingly as a novel in its own right.”—Nashville Scene

“A page-turner.”—

About this edition

• Publisher: Berkley
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0425188612
• ISBN 13: 9780425188613
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 260