The Deceived

By: Brett Battles

Narrated by: William Dufris

Length: 11 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

“Unputdownable.” (Tess Gerritsen)

“Brilliant and heart-pounding.” (Jeffery Deaver)

“A tightly written page-turner.” (Booklist)

Brett Battles won rave reviews for his debut novel, The Cleaner, which introduced hero Jonathan Quinn. A freelance operative and professional "cleaner", Quinn knows better than to get emotionally involved in any of his jobs. But in this superb powerhouse of suspense, Quinn's latest job is different. A friend and old colleague has been murdered. A woman has gone missing. And for Jonathan Quinn, this time it's personal.

Anonymity. Trust. Professionalism. In his world, Jonathan Quinn has a few rules. He'll get rid of bodies that have to disappear; nothing ever gets traced back to him. But when Quinn is called to a busy Los Angeles port where a shipping container has just come in from the sea, it's clear his rules have been violated. Inside the crate is a dead man - a man who once saved Quinn's life. And while no one knows how CIA agent Steven Markoff died, Quinn has to do more than clean. He has to find Markoff's girlfriend, Jenny. To tell her that Markoff is dead. To find out why someone sent Markoff's body to him.

Until a week ago, Jenny Fuentes was an assistant to an ambitious congressman. Now Jenny is missing, too, and a lot of man power is making sure she isn't found. But Quinn has his own man power. He has tools that can pry into secrets held anywhere in the world. He has the skill to trade blows with killers and spies. And he has covert weapons: his eager and smart apprentice, Nate, and brilliant Orlando, his closest friend, who's saved his life more than once.

Racing from the corridors of power in Washington to the bustling streets of Singapore, Quinn won't stop until he uncovers the truth behind his friend's violent death, the astounding reason Jenny has vanished - and what she knows about the most explosive deception of all.

©2008 Brett Battles (P)2008 Books on Tape

Critic reviews

Winner, Barry Award for Best Thriller, 2009

Ups and Downs

There were some places where I liked the writing and story then there were other places that I was either bored or annoyed. Orlando is portrayed better in this book than his first book. The other two women, Jenny and Tasha, were annoying and their dialogue was trite. Jenny was especially annoying although the author added a twist towards the end that made her seem a little less irritating. There were other incidents that impacted key characters which I am interested to see how that plays out in future books.

I was not a huge fan of the narrator, especially his female voices. The voices for Jenny and Tasha were whiny and grating. Still not sure how much of my dislike of Jenny and Tasha is the writing vs the narration.

Good book, Narration was a let down.

The Cleaner was a good book with an excellent narrator, Scott Brick. William Dufris is painful to listen to. When I started listening to ???The Deceived,??? I had to check the title on the IPOD to make sure I didn???t down load a western. Dufris adds a John Wayne twang when voicing Quinn. I was anticipating Quinn to utter the phase ???...but, Pilgrim, you caused a lot of trouble this morning; might have got somebody killed; and somebody oughta belt you in the mouth. But I won???t. I won???t. The hell I won???t!??? ??? McLintock (1963)
It is quite irritating. So much so, that this is the first review I have written. In and of itself not notable, but I have over 200 titles in my library. The only other time I was this disappointed in a narrator switch is when John Lee read George R R Martin???s "A Feast for Crows." I am happy to see Roy Dotrice is narrating Martin???s "A Dance with Dragons" and I am equally happy to see Scott Brick is back for Battles??? "Shadow of Betrayal."

"The Deceived" is a good book, but it may be worth buying at B&N and reading in lieu of spending 11 hours listening to Dufris.

Not his best

This one just didn't hit the mark. Narrator annoying; storyline not up to par for me, but then again, I'm picky.

Thought I had this one figured out........

What did you love best about The Deceived?

I was convinced that I had the plot down cold....right up until the plot twist....a great listen.

What did you like best about this story?

The plot was excellent and believable...sets up well for a sequel.

Have you listened to any of William Dufris’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I haven't listen to other William Dufris performances but he made the story enjoyable and suspenseful. Just listened to the Cleaner with the audio by Scott Brick and thought is compared favorable. I thought Dufris women's voices all sounded the same - the only real drawback to his performance.

Definitely not his best

Truly a bit boring, especially the first 2/3s of the book. He did his best to have a surprise ending, but it was too little too late.

Ho hum

Story just ok. Way too whiny when doing the womens voices. I wiil still listen to the nextin the series.

Need a better narrator

Love the Series. That said - the narrator for this book is driving me nuts. This is the second or third time for me listening to the series & never reviewed. Must be my age, but I couldn’t let it go this time. The narrator keeps put an emphasis on words that makes no sense & is a total distraction. I am still early in listening & had to take the time to rant. The story is up to par — but jeez! I feel like throttling the guy reading! A fantastic story gets destroyed by the wrong person reading it.
I do recommend the book because you don’t want to be wondering what a future book is referring to as they do intersect. Pity to have to say anything negative, but people do want honesty…. J

I don't know what I thought of the story

because after less than an hour I knew I couldn't listen to 10.5 more hours of the terrible awful narration.
In each sentence the volume went up and down so much that I couldn't pay attention to the story.
While I have some issues with Scott Brick and his unwillingness to differentiate between characters, especially women, he's still one of my favorite narrators.
So I'm skipping to next in series.

What a mile churner! Loved it!

What did you love best about The Deceived?

Well crafted story, with twists and turns. Just when you thought you had it figured out......oops...

Who was your favorite character and why?

Aside from Quinn, Orlando... complex and great asset to Quinn.

What does William Dufris bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Not having to read it myself!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

yes, and almost did

Any additional comments?

Other reviews lambasted the reader, but they are unfair. Don't let that review stop you from getting this book! Glad to have ignored them!

Loved the content, but struggled with the narration

I’ve grown quite fond of this series listening for at least a little bit each day. The narrator for book 2 was not the same as book 1.

If he was just reading, his voice was great. His voices for the characters almost made me give up. I checked halfway through book 2 to see who narrated the next book. Thankfully, it will be the original person.

As far as the book itself, it kept me guessing until the end! So many twists and turns and never a dull moment.

Here’s to the next!