Deception: The Sunday Times Bestseller 2022

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Alice's journey into her mother's past is one of incredulity as she discovers a woman shaped by a truly traumatic childhood... Does Belle have the courage within herself to try and escape? Will she have any allies out there in her quest for freedom? Read this exciting book from wonderful author Lesley Pearse to find out!

Pearse enjoys introducing her readers to characters that they will connect with and care about. While other books in the genre she writes in rely on formulas to get from the beginning to the end, she doesn’t use any formula to write her novels. The genres that they are set in also vary from genres that aren’t totally defined, from crime to historical adventure or engaging books like Trust Me, which was based on the real events of child migrants from England that were being sent over to Australia after the war. An interesting story told across time and generations. The conflict between what is known to be true and what Alice comes to discover is the gripping aspect of the story. I really enjoy a novel that makes me wonder what I would do in the same circumstances- and this is one of those books. Part historical, part contemporary; the writing is wonderful. This is a heart-wrenching journey as dark secrets are exposed and we understand the decisions Sally was forced to make CandisI really liked Alice, mostly due to her ability to be rational and level headed. No matter what she found out, she always seemed to be able to keep calm and understand things from her mother’s perspective. Not only that but she carried the burden of this on behalf of her younger sister and her dad to protect them. It was interesting to read about Alice realising that some of her own character traits were inherited from her mother. After the funeral of her mother, Sally, Alice Kent is approached by a man named Angus Tweedy. He claims to be her father and tells her that he served time in prison for marrying Sally bigamously. Written with Pearse's typically engaging and effortless style of storytelling, Deception is an intriguing book of highs, lows, struggles and perseverance' CULTUREFLY

Lesley Pearse (born 24 February 1945) [1] is a British novelist, with global sales of over 10 million copies. [2] [3] She started writing at the age of 35, but was not published until she was 48. [4] She had accepted Sally's many faults, and her reluctance to never speak of the past. But faced with this staggering deception, Alice knows she must uncover the whole truth about her mother.I loathed Sally at the start of Deception, but as she transmogrified into her different personas and Alice found out more about her, I felt I had come to know a real woman. Her life choices may have been forced upon her, unwisely chosen or even criminal, but what Lesley Pearse does so well is to show the reader why Sally behaved as she did so that there’s a reality to her actions and an understanding In the reader. It is there that she meets Etienne, a mysterious man who she first met when she was a child. Belle knows that she still loves her husband but never expected to meet the man who played such an important role in her youth here in Europe. As she continues to talk to him, the young woman and former courtesan finds herself torn when it comes to matters of the heart. The book maintains a very good balance, offering just the right amount of intensity without overwhelming the reader. As the story reaches its conclusion, it does so in a satisfying yet somewhat anticipated manner. Nonetheless, the journey to that point is fulfilling and rich in emotional resonance.

Belle is the first novel in the Belle series. It is 1910 in London, and a young girl has grown up in a brothel all her life without ever knowing it. Now that she is 15 years old, she has suddenly discovered that all is not as it seems in the Seven Dials. Even though she grew up there, Belle’s life is forever changed and her innocence gone forever when she sees one of the girls that lives there brutally murdered.This book brilliantly builds intrigue as Alice uncovers her mum's life of deception, lies and love * Woman & Home * I have read a number of her books a few years ago and I saw this new one and thought I would buy it. I liked her as an author. This book felt like it was written by someone else. A bit disjointed and so boring! Alice's journey into her mother's past is one of incredulity as she discovers a woman shaped by a truly traumatic childhood . . . After the funeral of her mother, Sally, Alice is approached by a man call Angus Tweedy. He claims to be her father and tells her that he served time in prison for marrying Sally bigamously. What does he expect to get from telling her this now, thirty years on? How can her adored dad Ralph not be her true father? And why did her mother betray her so badly? She already knows her mother was manipulative at times, vain, very secretive and never spoke of the past.