Elizabeth Benedict
The Practice of Deceit

Buy it:
Book Sense (your local bookstore)
Powell's
Barnes and Noble
Amazon From the author of the bestselling novel, Almost, comes The Practice of Deceit, a suspenseful novel about role reversals and domestic treachery in the suburbs. A nice guy — a loving dad and Scarsdale psychotherapist — runs afoul of a ruthless divorce lawyer — who happens to be his wife.
Alan Cheuse, NPR's "All Things Considered": "It's the first-person story of the marriage between a Scarsdale, New York, therapist and his South-Boston-born divorce lawyer wife, a marriage coming apart at the seams. Benedict tells it from the man's point of view, and the story practically spills into your lap as you turn the pages.... A lot of wicked fun."
Says Ira Levin, author of Rosemary's Baby and The Stepford Wives: "A terrific non-stop read."

"Benedict specializes in the subterranean currents of modern relationships, the secret motivations and betrayals that underlie everyday interaction. In her hands, everyone, no matter how savvy, sophisticated or sympathetic, is vulnerable - to be scared and lonely is our lot.... Benedict writes the hard, horrifying truth about human nature, and it is addictively entertaining.."
— Janice Nimura, Newsday

"Wickedly funny ... at times heartbreaking, always smart and entertaining."
— Hallie Ephron, Boston Globe

"Benedict's characters ... are marvelously alive. [She] juxtaposes the aggressiveness of the law with the sweet ambiguities of therapy in fascinating, often funny ways."
— Mopsy Strange Kennedy, Improper Bostonian

"Benedict's psychological thriller will make for the perfect read.... The genuine suspense is a bonus."
— New York Daily News

"One of those rare books one is loath to see the end of."
— Debra Hamel, thebibliofiles.com

"... a literary page-turner ..."
— Stephen McCauley, author of Alternatives to Sex and The Object of My Affection

"... smart, sexy, subtle ..."
— Book Sense (June Pick)

"... a swell novel!"
— Susan Isaacs

"Benedict turns the tables in the gender game .... Highly recommended ... a suspenseful and provocative look at the intricacies and dangers of intimacy with the wrong person."
— New Mystery Reader
(See www.newmysteryreader.com for a review and interview.)

About | Teaching | News & Appearances | Books | Essays | Contact