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Kathryn Dodson
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Portrait of Deception (A Southwest Suspense Novel) Kindle Edition

by Kathryn Dodson (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 53 ratings
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A photographer on the brink of fame. A dictator with a dangerous agenda. A terrifying trap that may be impossible to escape.

Margo McAllister is mere hours from her dream. In Italy to compete for a prestigious award, the young photographer turns down a corrupt politician who offers her an insane sum to polish his reputation with a clever portrait. But her plans shatter when she’s slipped a blackout drug, awakens to $40,000 in damages to her hotel room, and is expelled from the contest.

Suddenly a beggar with no options, Margo travels to the despot’s personal estate to earn enough money to cover her debts and get her life back on track. She quickly discovers the remote mountain castle is crawling with secrets and lies, and she fears the oligarch’s increasingly creepy propositions and rough demands leave no way out.

Portrait of Deception is the dark and gritty thriller in the Southwest Suspense Series. If you like tough females, relentless action, and hints of steam, then you’ll love Kathryn Dodson’s twisted adventure.

Readers can’t put down Portrait of Deception:

‘Fast-paced thriller that hits home' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
'I highly recommend this book, wonderful world and character building.' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
'This was my favorite Kathryn Dodson book so far.' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
'Suspenseful, romantic, thrilling' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
'This is a great story...and had me at the edge of my seat...highly recommended!' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
'Wow!! This book really blew me away.' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
‘Just the right amount of darkness, danger, high drama, suspense and tension ' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
'Great suspense book!!!' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

Previous page
  1. Part of series
    A Southwest Suspense Novel
  2. Print length
    203 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publication date
    January 18, 2024
  6. File size
    3151 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  10. See all details
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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0CH44P9GC
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Renegade Reads (January 18, 2024)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ January 18, 2024
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 3151 KB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 203 pages
  • Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ B0CQ1X8NFG
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 53 ratings

About the author

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Kathryn Dodson

Kathryn Dodson

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Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Kathryn Dodson grew up writing and riding horses in far West Texas. She graduated from SMU in English/Creative Writing and went on to get an MBA from Thunderbird and a PhD from Clemson. Now she spends her days writing about women who become their own heroes.

She has worked on both sides of the US/Mexico border and has held jobs with governments, chambers of commerce, and other businesses. Kathryn loves to travel and has visited 30 countries and 44 states. This inspires her novels about interesting women in fascinating places.

Originally from Texas, Kathryn had the good fortune to live in Spain, Mexico, Tanzania, and several U.S. states, and the good sense to end up in Carlsbad, California. She loves travel, fiery food, hanging out with the neighbors in the front yard on Friday evenings, and reading.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
53 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Marie W. Watts
5.0 out of 5 stars Chilling Read
Reviewed in the United States on April 17, 2024
Verified Purchase
A fun, harrowing read! Thoroughly enjoyed it.
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Tulip
4.0 out of 5 stars Press on it get better
Reviewed in the United States on March 31, 2024
Verified Purchase
The story starts as one of those sappy romance novels but switches into a thriller. It is worthwhile to continue.
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Wendy Minichiello
5.0 out of 5 stars Fast-paced thriller that hits home
Reviewed in the United States on February 18, 2024
Verified Purchase
I very much enjoyed the ups and downs of Margo's adventures! A perfect vacation read!
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Leslie Piggott
4.0 out of 5 stars Intriguing
Reviewed in the United States on January 25, 2024
Verified Purchase
I enjoyed this book overall. It had some slow parts in the middle where I struggled to see the focus. I liked the interactions between the characters, especially Aunt Joyce.
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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars My favorite... So far
Reviewed in the United States on February 2, 2024
Verified Purchase
This was my favorite Kathryn Dodson book so far. Already looking forward to the next. This one had a great heroine, great underlying message.
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Beverly
4.0 out of 5 stars Always Trust Your Gut
Reviewed in the United States on February 4, 2024
So it’s said to never judge a book by its cover. Well the cover of Portrait of Deception is what drew me in. What I didn’t expect was how the contents of the novel played out. It wasn’t at all what I expected. The author wrote a twisted story that sucks the reader in. Bringing the reader into a world of fame, fortune, deception, fear, and dictatorship. Beautifully weaved together to give the reader a story that keeps them turning the page.
Margo thought she made it. However, when a fellow colleague as well as flame deceived her and took it all away she was left with nothing. A career that would take years to salvage, a crazy hotel repair bill, and an offer from a man that she doesn’t feel comfortable taking. Unfortunately she’s left with no choice. The president of Tiranistan had a twisted plan and Margo is the defining piece. He’s twisted, cruel, and gives off bad vibes so when tries to hold Margo captive she has no choice but to run for her life.
Will she get away?
Will that be the end?
Well at that point the stories really taken off and is left to the reader guessing which event will happen next. You can begin to guess the events by the clues the author leaves, it's the order in which those events happen that keeps the reader on their toes.
If you want a well written book with some twists, turns, and a little bit of romance I suggest you jump right in.
One person found this helpful
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chrissey
5.0 out of 5 stars So Fast Paced, keeps you on your toes.
Reviewed in the United States on February 24, 2024
Portrait of Deception
By: Kathryn Dodson

Kathryn Dodson has become one of my absolute favorite authors and when I saw this was being released I was excited. This book delivered on my excitement in so many ways. This book is such a page turner. It has so many themes that play out from chapter to chapter. Margo was such a fantastic character who has really been left holding the worst of everything. She has been burned by a fellow colleague and has a career that is in shamples, a huge hotel bill and an offer that, well, she doesn’t want to take but the man doesn’t take no for an answer. She becomes the missing piece to a dictator who is going to hold her captive to get what she wants. Which leads her to run….which is where things get extra interesting.
I truly loved this book and I definitely loved the amount of suspense in this. I really did not want to put it down because I wanted to know what was going to happen next. I definitely recommend reading this especially if you love a good suspense book.
One person found this helpful
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shadel
4.0 out of 5 stars Loved it
Reviewed in the United States on February 1, 2024
Portrait of Deception (A Southwest Suspense Novel) by Kathryn Dodson is a great thriller series

Margo McAllister's dream is only hours away. As the young photographer travels to Italy to compete for a coveted award, she declines an outrageous offer from a dishonest politician to enhance his reputation with a deft image. Her preparations, however, are dashed when she takes a blackout pill, wakes up to discover her hotel room has been damaged for $40,000, and is kicked out of the competition.Margo, who is suddenly left with no choice but to beg, visits the despot's mansion in an attempt to make enough money to pay off her obligations and restart her life. She soon learns that the isolated mountain castle is full of secrets and falsehoods, and she thinks there is no way out from the oligarch's increasingly spooky demands and propositions.

Every page was exciting and I couldn’t wait to see what would happen. The story really brings us into their world. I couldn’t put the book down.
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