Ring of Truth (Marie Lightfoot) [Paperback]

Nancy Pickard (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 6, 2007 | Series: Marie Lightfoot

SEX, VIOLENCE, EVIL, AND BETRAYAL

The shocking murder case splashed across the Florida headlines has all the right elements for true-crime writer Marie Lightfoot's next bestseller. A charming minister's love affair with a beautiful, wealthy new church member ends in the murder of his wife. The accused now sits on death row, while his lover walks free. Justice appears to have been served, but Marie senses there is more to the story. From the day two little girls found the dead woman in an abandoned mansion to an unexpected visitor's shattering confession, the case's disturbing twists teach Marie a bone-chilling lesson: underestimating the criminal mind can be deadly.

Award-winning author Nancy Pickard has created a wonderfully unique and intriguing character in the "gutsy and charismatic" (The Fresno Bee) Marie Lightfoot, a woman with a shadowy past and a passion for the truth.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The appearance of The Whole Truth a year ago jolted readers and thrilled critics. Pickard, a popular writer of conventional mysteries, took off on a risky, imaginative tangent, making her protagonist, Marie Lightfoot, an author of true crime books, and alternating Lightfoot's personal story with her work-in-progress. Now Lightfoot is back, and once again Pickard crafts a marvelous behind-the-scenes thriller. As the novel begins, Lightfoot is beginning to edit her latest true-crime thriller, set in her hometown, Bahia Beach, Fla. The tale she has to tell is riveting minister Bob Wing and his lover, Artie, murder the minister's wife, Susanna but Lightfoot can't shake the feeling that some crucial element is missing. Nobody has anything bad to say about the charismatic Wing, who was an anti-death penalty crusader. He is now on death row himself, right next to Steve Orbach, a young man he had been trying to liberate. Once Lightfoot begins to investigate, both cases are revealed to be full of holes. How to explain the seven pairs of wedding rings found by the two little girls when they discovered Susanna's body? Is it possible that the police were too eager to arrest and convict both men? The clock is ticking for Orbach and Wing, and the separate solutions to the mysteries only come to light at the very last minute. Cleverly unraveling Lightfoot's original manuscript as she proceeds, Pickard constructs an intricate, perfectly timed double mystery. The dastardly plot she reveals at last is satisfyingly grotesque, and Lightfoot is a down-to-earth heroine, plagued with all the convincing problems of a real-life writer. Pickard never lets her premise descend into gimmick this second installment is as fresh and satisfying as the first. Mystery Guild Main Selection.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Nancy Pickard, creator of the acclaimed Jenny Cain mystery series, won the Anthony Award for Say No to Murder, a Macavity Award for Marriage Is Murder, and two Agatha Awards for Best Novel, for Bum Steer in 1990 and I.O.U in 1991. Her first Marie Lightfoot mystery, The Whole Truth was a national bestseller. A former reporter and editor, she is a past president of Sisters in Crime. She divides her time between Kansas and Florida.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Pocket Books (September 6, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416575960
• ISBN-13: 978-1416575962
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,196,724 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Fascinating Read, December 14, 2001

By 

sweetmolly (RICHMOND, VA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ring of Truth (Hardcover)

This is a mystery with a difference! Our heroine, Marie Lightfoot, is not a lawyer, police officer, private detective or journalist for starters. She is a best-selling True Crime novelist. What vistas this opens up for a series! She has every reason to be nosing around the crime scene, the courtroom, the witnesses and families of victims; and she has no boring boss to slow her down. She has a highly comfortable life style, easily explained. Marie has no background, so the reader is sure to exercise his/her own imagination. I have always felt Kinsey Mahone was far more effective before Sue Grafton hung a back story around her neck giving her a plethora or relatives and details about an ex-husband.

Marie switches from first person observation to chapters from her current manuscript with the lackluster title, "Anything To Be Together." It is the story of a charismatic minister convicted of beating his attractive wife to death, probably with the aid and assistance of his girlfriend. Rev. Wing is awaiting execution on Death Row. Ironically, the rector has received much local publicity in the past for his anti-death penalty activism. She has just completed the text, but feels dissatisfied with parts of it, particularly the lack of background and insights on the principal players.

The plot is excellent, complex with a labyrinth of twists and turns. There are a few attitudes that boggle my mind, but perhaps that is just me. Ms. Pickard is a fine writer and has created a thoroughly likeable heroine. A fine read.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A chilling thriller, May 12, 2001

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ring of Truth (Hardcover)

True crime fighter Marie Lightfoot has completed her latest true crime novel, Anything To BE Together, and sends it to her editor in New York. Her latest book centers on Robert F. Wing, a Florida minister, convicted of murdering his wife. Robert's co-defendant, Artemis McGregor, the woman he was allegedly having an affair with, received a not guilty verdict.

Marie feels the case has too many loose ends to fully satisfy her that Robert killed Susana. When she obtains new evidence, she uses it to bait the person she thinks committed the crime. However, that ends tragically with the person guarding the information dead and the evidence gone. As Marie digs deeper, she places herself in danger from someone who prefers the status quo rather than the truth.

Once again, Nancy Pickard has created a fascinating thriller centering on people who are not what they seem to be. The novel contains several shocking revelations, but nothing matches the frightening climax. Proponents of the death penalty will reconsider their position after reading RING OF TRUTH as Ms. Pickard makes her views quite clear on the subject.

Harriet Klausner

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Six stars, September 2, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Ring of Truth (Hardcover)

This is one of the BEST books I have ever read. It is a book in a book.

I have 9 of Nancy Pickard's books and all of the are really great but this one is the top of the list. It was hard to put down. I read it every chance I had to read. She is a wonderful author.

This is the story of a true crime writer and we get to read the book she wrote and then how she feels about the crime and what she did after she wrote it.

Do read this book. You will be glad you did.