New York Times bestselling author Barbara Parker introduces one of the most unforgettable female characters in suspense fiction: high-profile Miami defense attorney C.J. Dunn.C.J. is an expert at spinning her clients’ image in the media—the perfect lawyer to deflect suspicion from Rick Slater, head of security for an influential U.S. congressman. A beautiful model has vanished from a party on Miami Beach, and Slater was the last person seen with her. C.J. has reasons to dislike the congressman, but if she takes this case he can arrange a host position for her on a major news outlet. For a woman who grew up dirt-poor, with a past she would rather forget, the celebrity life has its appeal. The story of Alana Martin’s disappearance soon sets off a media frenzy. Reporters and paparazzi hound everyone connected to the case, and C.J. must work fast before they uncover her own secrets, too. When Rick Slater tells her that a friend of Alana’s could be his alibi witness, C.J. realizes the girl is someone she knows: Kylie Willis, a seventeen-year-old runaway from the same north Florida town where C.J. was born. The problem is, Kylie won’t talk. As C.J. digs into the case, she finds connections between Alana and a group of investors in a project on environmentally sensitive land. One of them is the elusive architect Milo Cahill, one of C.J.’s own VIP clients, who may be bribing the congressman. Another is C.J.’s lover, Miami Beach socialite Billy Medina. But when C.J. asks Billy for information, he brushes her off. She wonders if she’s been foolish about Billy. Or is the problem just her growing attraction to her client Rick? Then Alana Martin is found—dead. Her body washes up on a beach late one night, and the coroner says it was murder. The police have evidence against Slater. C.J. is slammed between the media and the need to defend a client she doesn’t trust. She must find Kylie Willis. The girl could save Rick Slater—but she might also reveal a devastating secret, one that could destroy C.J.’s career, and even, her life.

With a sizzling Cuban setting and a murder plot that hits too close to home, the New York Times bestselling mastermind delivers her most dramatic case to date. Miami lawyers Gail Connor and Anthony Quintana have recently married. Gail hopes to learn more about her new husband by visiting the island that still claims his heart. Anthonys loyalties are divided between his family, who believe in the Revolution, and his friends, dissident writers Jos Leiva and Yolanda Cabrera. No one is aware that Yolandas idealistic twenty-year-old son, Mario, belongs to an underground group plotting the assassination of a top Cuban general. The night before Gail and Anthony leave for Havana, the CIA pays a visit. They want Anthony to deliver a message to his brother-in-law, General Ramiro Vega: He is in danger, and unless he defects, he could be killed. Why is Vega so important to the CIA? The answer leads to the discovery of a violent death, a secret terrorist threat, and a love from the past that could tear Gail and Anthony apart.

The Barnes & Noble Review
A fast-paced ride through the politics and hidden agendas of a sweltering Miami, Suspicion of Deceit is the latest novel in author Barbara Parker's bestselling Suspicion series, featuring upscale attorney Gail Connor. The ironic title works well for all plot threads unraveled in this engaging tale, from personal, terrifying deceptions to those with vast ramifications for a wide array of characters. When Gail Connor is asked to become the attorney for the Miami Opera, it's for more than the simple reason that she's a damn fine lawyer. The upper echelon has its own objective in inviting her to a fund-raising function-they want to question her boyfriend, Anthony Quintana, on just how the city's Cuban political factions will respond to an opera star's questionable visit to Cuba some two years earlier. If the opera continues to employ opera star Thomas Nolan, there is a chance that the Cuban exile populace might become violent at one of the performances, if they view him as a traitor to his people. Fueling the fire is Anthony's brother-in-law, a commentator for Radio Free Cuba, who not only stokes the rage of his listeners but also finds time to cause troubles between Gail and Anthony. A violent murder-and the wounding of Gail herself-forces Gail to take matters into her own hands. She employs Felix Castillo, a mysterious investigator and longtime friend of Anthony's, to further question contacts in Cuba in order to discover the real nature of Thomas Nolan's visit there. Yet there is another level of investigation occurring here. Gail is eager to uncovermore of Anthony's past, about which he's been extremely tight-lipped for years. As more of their mutual friends reveal startling truths about Anthony-including the fact that he once spent time in Nicaragua with the Sandinistas-Gail must battle her own suspicions to decide whether she will stand by the man she's come to love or betray him. Parker is masterful at weaving clandestine situations and the politics of both the past and the present with the pertinent actions of the moment. History-personal and bureaucratic-plays a large part in this novel, and scenes involving Anthony's large family and all their many beliefs, passions, and fiery emotions play out with an incredible vitality that greatly contributes to the flow and grip of the story. Gail and Anthony are a fervent couple, in love but also finding excitement in the friction of ideology that occasionally comes between them. The author refuses to allow for any black-and-white, easy answers at any time. All parties involved are constantly discovering more about themselves and exactly what the cost might be for each conviction and stance taken. "Suspicion of Deceit" is deceivingly simplistic, but it works on several levels at once, as the main mystery plot element often takes a backseat to equally intriguing story lines of a more personal nature. The gray areas of conflicting opinions lend a credence to the novel that isn't usually found in the more idealistic, hero-versus-villain crime thrillers on the market. It's the author's worldview, and her understanding of human nature, that make this novel one that readers can trust to arrive at a gripping, satisfying, and wholly genuine conclusion.-Tom Piccirilli

A romantic trip to the Florida Keys turns deadly as Gail Connor and Anthony Quintana return in another thrilling murder mystery. When a young former client of Quintana’s comes under investigation for murder, it seems like an open-and-shut case of innocence. But, strange lies and more dead bodies lie hidden in the lush landscape of the Keys. As Gail and Anthony meet the island’s odd assortment of inhabitants, they find that everyone has a scheme of their own. Now, a tropical storm looms overhead, trapping them all in a tinderbox of explosive danger and deep passions. In this seventh title in her Suspicion series, author Barbara Parker delivers all the intrigue, romance and suspense that hold readers, new and old, on the edge of their seats.

Gail Connor and Anthony Quintana make a combustible mix on many levels. Passionately attracted to each other on a personal level, they are equally passionate defenders of their clients even when their interests don’t always work in tandem. Set all this against the sultry background of a Miami that is riddled with crime and corruption, drowning in drugs, illegal immigrants and shady deals, simmering with a melting-pot clash of cultures and you have a recipe for highly entertaining, hotly explosive crime and justice. In the second title in the Suspicion series, SUSPICION OF GUILT, Gail has the biggest case of her life, a career-maker and a guarantee that a partnership will soon be hers, until she discovers that a suspected forgery is only the top layer of a cover-up for brutal murder and a step into deep conspiracy and deadly risk. Attorney Gail Connor finally has the case that could make her career. But it involves a murder and a nasty battle over a vast inheritance. Gail is suspicious of everyone--even her mother. She's driven to win the case in order to forget her sister's death--and damn the consequences. From the author of Suspicion of Innocence.