This psychological thriller shows both the hypnotic appeal and the deadly danger of psychopathic seduction. This novel traces the downfall of a married woman, Ana. Feeling trapped in a lackluster marriage, she has a torrid affair with Michael, a man who seems to be her soul mate and her dream come true. Having already tired of his fiancée, Karen—in spite of the fact she does everything possible to please him and keep him in her life—the seducer moves on to his next prey. Although initially torn between love for her family and her passion for Michael, Ana eventually relents to her lover’s pressure. That’s when Michael’s “mask of sanity” unpeels to reveal the monstrously selfish psychopath underneath. Written in the tradition of Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina, The Seducer shows that true love can be found in our ordinary lives rather than in flimsy fantasies masquerading as great passions.
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Moscovici’s new psychological thriller, The Seducer, reminds us of classics like Anna Karenina and Madame Bovary, but with a contemporary twist. The new seducer is a psychopath, a dangerous predator without genuine emotion. . . . The narrative is bold, vivid, and lucid. (Edward K. Kaplan, professor in the Humanities at Brandeis University )
The Seducer probes the chilling depths of alienation and selfishness as the heroine, Ana, is caught in the spider’s web of her narcissistic lover, Michael. . . . A powerful novel about an unfortunate reality many women face. (Carmen Firan, author of Words and Flesh )
Like the best, most delicious novels, Claudia Moscovici’s psychological thriller, The Seducer, grips you in its opening pages and holds you in its addictive clutches straight through to its dramatic, remarkable conclusion. This is a fascinating novel, on every page of which Moscovici’s intimate understanding of the psychology of psychopaths and their victims gleams with a laser’s concentrated brilliance. (Steve Becker, MSW, LCSW, LoveFraud.com feature columnist, expert on psychopathy and narcissism )
In her exciting second novel, The Seducer, Claudia Moscovici depicts with talent and psychological accuracy the spellbinding power of these charming yet dangerous Don Juans. (D. R. Popa, author of Lady V and Other Stories )
The Seducer probes the chilling depths of alienation and selfishness as the heroine, Ana, is caught in the spider’s web of her narcissistic lover, Michael. . . . A powerful novel about an unfortunate reality many women face. (Carmen Firan, author of Words and Flesh )
Like the best, most delicious novels, Claudia Moscovici’s psychological thriller, The Seducer, grips you in its opening pages and holds you in its addictive clutches straight through to its dramatic, remarkable conclusion. This is a fascinating novel, on every page of which Moscovici’s intimate understanding of the psychology of psychopaths and their victims gleams with a laser’s concentrated brilliance. (Steve Becker, MSW, LCSW, LoveFraud.com feature columnist, expert on psychopathy and narcissism )
In her exciting second novel, The Seducer, Claudia Moscovici depicts with talent and psychological accuracy the spellbinding power of these charming yet dangerous Don Juans. (D. R. Popa, author of Lady V and Other Stories )
About the Author
Claudia Moscovici is a Romanian-American fiction writer and art/literary critic. She is the author of the critically acclaimed novel Velvet Totalitarianism (2009), as well as Dangerous Liaisons (2011), a nonfiction book on psychopathic social predators. She has also written several scholarly books on Romantic art and literature, including Romanticism and Postromanticism (2007).
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More About the Author
Claudia Moscovici is an art and literary critic as well as the author of the critically acclaimed novels "Velvet Totalitarianism" (2009) and "The Seducer" (2011). "Velvet Totalitarianism" was republished in translation in her native country, Romania, under the title "Intre Doua Lumi" (Curtea Veche Publishing, 2011). In 2002, she co-founded with Mexican sculptor Leonardo Pereznieto the international aesthetic movement called "postromanticism" (see http://postromanticism.com/), devoted to celebrating beauty, passion and sensuality in contemporary art. She wrote a book on Romanticism and its postromantic survival called "Romanticism and Postromanticism," (Lexington Books, 2007) and taught philosophy, literature and arts and ideas at Boston University and at the University of Michigan. Most recently, she published a nonfiction book on psychopathic seduction, called "Dangerous Liaisons" (Hamilton Books, 2011).
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By Peace
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
From the moment I started reading this book, I couldn't put it down. I can't recommend this enough for every single person out there recovering from psychopathic abuse, and even those who aren't. The characters and storyline in The Seducer are so unbelievably validating and realistic. Claudia has a beautiful way of writing the different character perspectives so that you really get inside the heads of everyone involved, including the psychopath. I found myself relating to characters like never before, giving me an opportunity to introspect on so many aspects of my own personality.
Claudia doesn't just tell us a tale of psychopathic seduction, she shows us how our insecurities and vanities can be used against us, no matter how well-intentioned we might be. By the end of the book, I had a better understanding of myself, and my heart felt one step closer to freedom -- that's the true mark of a talented author.
Peace, author of Psychopath Free: Recovering from Emotionally Abusive Relationships With Narcissists, Sociopaths, & Other Toxic People
Claudia doesn't just tell us a tale of psychopathic seduction, she shows us how our insecurities and vanities can be used against us, no matter how well-intentioned we might be. By the end of the book, I had a better understanding of myself, and my heart felt one step closer to freedom -- that's the true mark of a talented author.
Peace, author of Psychopath Free: Recovering from Emotionally Abusive Relationships With Narcissists, Sociopaths, & Other Toxic People
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By Paul H Dewey
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Note: I share an amazon login with my husband. This review is by Patty Dewey.
This is a fiction book which may help more women than any self-help book!
It is written by someone who experienced the horrendous emotional rape of being in a relationship with a man who is not what he appeared to be.
While there are excellent non-fiction books on these kinds of relationships, including Dangerous Liaisons, also excellent and written by this same author, Claudia Moscovici, I think this fiction book may end up having a GREATER impact on those seeking to recover from these horrible "relationships"... which are actually nothing less than manipulative exploitation of a loving person, by one who is incapable of love.
One of the most difficult aspects of recovery for a woman (or man) who has been exploited in this way is the cognitive dissonance that is experienced. One minute you are physically sick at the horror of what he did to you, and in the next, your mind flashes to the false mask he presented, which was so appealing, designed just for you. And yet it is hard to grasp how someone could be that duplicitous. This book will help you break out of that awful "he is good, no he's bad, no he's good, I can help him, no he's horrible" cycle. By contrasting what the woman THINKS is going on, with what is REALLY going on with the man, the story helps you understand how these pathological relationships unfold, how you could have been so duped, why the whole thing was so damn painful and confusing.
And beyond that, it is just a very compelling story that is extremely difficult to put down!
This is a fiction book which may help more women than any self-help book!
It is written by someone who experienced the horrendous emotional rape of being in a relationship with a man who is not what he appeared to be.
While there are excellent non-fiction books on these kinds of relationships, including Dangerous Liaisons, also excellent and written by this same author, Claudia Moscovici, I think this fiction book may end up having a GREATER impact on those seeking to recover from these horrible "relationships"... which are actually nothing less than manipulative exploitation of a loving person, by one who is incapable of love.
One of the most difficult aspects of recovery for a woman (or man) who has been exploited in this way is the cognitive dissonance that is experienced. One minute you are physically sick at the horror of what he did to you, and in the next, your mind flashes to the false mask he presented, which was so appealing, designed just for you. And yet it is hard to grasp how someone could be that duplicitous. This book will help you break out of that awful "he is good, no he's bad, no he's good, I can help him, no he's horrible" cycle. By contrasting what the woman THINKS is going on, with what is REALLY going on with the man, the story helps you understand how these pathological relationships unfold, how you could have been so duped, why the whole thing was so damn painful and confusing.
And beyond that, it is just a very compelling story that is extremely difficult to put down!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By Did Ilet
Format:Paperback
What would happen if Anna Karenina were a contemporary woman and Vronsky was a dangerous social predator? This is the thought
experiment that the novel The Seducer conducts in a compelling way. The scenario is not at all far-fetched, as in real life, as in fiction,
sometimes the most seemingly romantic individuals are also the most dangerous, using flattery and romance as their ruse.
experiment that the novel The Seducer conducts in a compelling way. The scenario is not at all far-fetched, as in real life, as in fiction,
sometimes the most seemingly romantic individuals are also the most dangerous, using flattery and romance as their ruse.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
What a book
This author takes you there. I needed to see I was not alone in the world of physcopathy and this book nailed it. Very good. You can relate and feel her pain. A must.
Published 24 days ago by flgrl
5.0 out of 5 stars
A must read
The Seducer is a must-read for any woman who has been involved with a
dangerous man or any man who is interested in the subject. Read more
dangerous man or any man who is interested in the subject. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Carl Pafisi
5.0 out of 5 stars
a great read, 5 star.
The Seducer is not only a great novel--well-written and engaging, with true-to-life characters--but also teaches you a lot about dangerous men. Read more
Published 6 months ago by HungryReader
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great reading!
The Seducer engages readers at every level: a style filled with lyrical, sensual passages, suspense, and realistic, interesting dialogue; great characterizations of the dangerous... Read more
Published 6 months ago by Radu D. Popa
1.0 out of 5 stars
unreadable
This novel was associated with an academic area of interest in the psychological field of couples and family counseling. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Willram
5.0 out of 5 stars
The psychopathic personality construct
Moscovici, with her novel The Seducer, has penned an insightful, informed and well researched portrait of the psychopathic relationship dynamic that causes a unique blend of harm. Read more
Published 14 months ago by Michael Pacitti
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