According to Their Deeds (Paperback)

~ Paul Robertson (Author)
Key Phrases: fall catalog, John Borchard, Patrick White, Karen Liu (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"... a suspense-filled, Christian-themed tale in which justice and mercy become something more than abstractions...." --Tim Davis, Bookloons.com

"The dialogue... is without a doubt the most clever I have ever read.... I would highly recommend this book...." --Susan Miura, FaithfulReader.com

Product Description

Charles Beale lives happily in the shadows of Washington, D.C., as a respectable rare-books dealer. Or mostly respectable. He has a streak of the gambler in him and when a devoted client dies--a man deeply connected to the Justice Department--Beale eagerly regains the man's book collection...and soon finds himself with more than he bid on. In one volume, Beale discovers documents incriminating a host of major political figures--blackmail material that might have led to murder. Weighing questions of justice and mercy--and with a bull's-eye on his back--Beale must untangle a complicated knot of deadly lies and dangerous secrets.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Bethany House (March 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764205684
• ISBN-13: 978-0764205682
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #476,186 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Insightful and Outstanding Mystery, March 3, 2009

By	RCmom2 - See all my reviews

It is not too gushy to report that this novel is brilliantly written. Paul Robertson evokes marvelous atmosphere and displays great wit in his descriptions of a colorful diversity of people and circumstances. At the same time, he shows much sympathetic understanding of human nature in addition to healthy and unhealthy psyches during the narration of his mystery story. This author also has a way of using delicious metaphors in this book that satisfies one's mental appetite!

This mystery is well-thought out and presented with a surprise twist to the puzzle at the end. The main characters are sculpted dimensionally and painted in logical perspective. Throughout the entire book, there is intriguing and enjoyable analysis of history and philosophy built into conversations between characters, especially two of the main characters during their games of chess, which is a pleasant distraction for the reader as well as being an integral part of the tale. The author manifests a strong comprehension of various arts AND sciences in the writing, which is quite a successful feat in and of itself.

"According to Their Deeds" is highly recommended reading -- your heart and mind will be greatly enriched from the experience. His previous two books are excellent, also!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid Story, Clever Mystery, and Characters, May 8, 2009

By	Kelly Klepfer (Iowa) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

When I opened Paul Robertson's latest book I wasn't sure what my final opinion would be. The characters, mainly Charles, reminded me of the type of character played by Woody Allen. Charles and his friends were a little odd, I love quirky, but these folks had to grow on me a bit. Charles, the POV character, considers books as his livelihood and his passion, after his lovely wife Dorothy, of course. Book characters, scenes, lines and titles become fodder for his many puns and descriptions.

The mystery within According to Their Deeds takes a few unexpected turns and is layered, involving past, and present, and I guess I could even say future because there are some snippets of theological conversation. Bibliophiles, especially antique/rare edition fiends and bookstore lovers should find this a satisfying read. Fans of mysteries will probably enjoy the twists. Of Robertson's three novels I'd say According to Their Deeds is my least favorite, but I'm glad I had the opportunity to read it.

2.0 out of 5 stars Non-existent Character Development, June 27, 2009

By	DoorC - See all my reviews

The mystery in the book is OK, and the pacing is not bad, but the language used in the book and the supporting characters is horrid. Besides the main character and a few others integral to the story, most of the characters seemed to have no personality, they all have similar styles of dialogue. I felt like I was reading about a cast of robotic automatons. At one point, I screamed at the book "NO ONE talks like that!" If you care about how people "sound" and like all the characters in a book to have personality and be interesting, I would suggest picking up something else.