Deception

At last, a modern heroine with a slightly sordid past.Hannah Gray, by chance, find herself propelled into an adventure that spans continents . Pursued because she has unwittingly ended up with a valuable mathematical formula, Ms. Gray discovers resources she never knew she had. It's an atmospheric ride, and pure escapism, but presented in a thoughtful as well as entertaining way.

The stories and characters are immensely alive, well-plotted, and consistently engaging;give yourself a gift of this (along with his other books!)...

Ms. Hannah Gray, an ordinary woman living in Chicago with job and boyfriend problems, escapes her humdrum life by going on a cruise where all hell breaks loose. This fast paced thriller has it all - plot, characters, suspense, good writing - and is the perfect beach book or vacation bring along. Angelina Jolie should play Hannah (or Vicky, her pseudo identity) is the movie version. Highly recommended for a fun read!

What I really like about his books is that his main characters are always women -- and they're never entirely evil or entirely good. In this one, Hannah makes one mistake that blows up in her face -- and it's the kind of thing that could happen to anyone. A spy thriller with great action and suspense, but characters who remind you of people you meet in the street? Altman and maybe Ken Follett when he was at the top of his game are the only two people who I think do that. Read it in about two hours -- it's shorter than the first two for some reason.

Though Hannah Gray found the medical insurance fraud committed by Frank Anderson, she failed to report him because of the affair they were having. When he repeats his illegal activity, she realizes she is implicated by her lack of action. Her cousin tells Hannah that she is giving up her non-refundable Adriatic cruise for a better all expense paid trip to England. Hannah sees an opportunity to escape her Chicago troubles and figure out what to do next.On the Aurora II, elderly Renee Epstein befriends Hannah, who is using the name of Vicky Ludlow. Renee lends Hannah a book that provides insight to the path the vessel is following, that of the Fourth Crusade. Renee's husband wants the book back because the mathematician has written inside the tome the formula he developed that uses black holes with a force that makes nuclear bombs look like firecrackers. However, before he retrieves the book, assassins hired by his employer kill him and his wife. Next they go after Vicky as the only logical person who could have the formula.John Altman is quickly gaining a following for his suspense-laden novels and his latest tale, DECEPTION, will enhance that reputation. The non-stop action plot never slows down, but also insures the reader understands the motives of the heroine. Though how she escaped the country so easily seems shaky and the fraud situation back home over the edge, fans will be pleased with this loaded thriller.Harriet Klausner