Rules of Deception

by Christopher Reich

book data

257 ratings, 3.32 average rating, 90 reviews (more data...)

rating	frequency	%
5		8%
4		35%
3		38%
2		13%
1		3%

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published

July 15th 2008 by Doubleday

binding

Hardcover, 320 pages

isbn

0385524064 (isbn13: 9780385524063)

description

Dr. Jonathan Ransom, world-class mountaineer and surgeon for Doctors Without Borders, is climbing in the Swiss Alps with his beautiful wife, Emma, whe

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08/24/08

Doug rated it:

Read in September, 2008

I enjoyed reading this book and read it fairly quickly. However. I decided to give it three stars instead of four because even though it kept me going and entertained, I felt it was a bit too contrived. Here are some of my observations:

1. The book reads like a Dan Brown or Ludlum novel. Very short chapters, moving from one key player to another and back again. We see things happening simultaneously from three or four different perspectives. However, there are some surprises thrown i...more I enjoyed reading this book and read it fairly quickly. However. I decided to give it three stars instead of four because even though it kept me going and entertained, I felt it was a bit too contrived. Here are some of my observations:

1. The book reads like a Dan Brown or Ludlum novel. Very short chapters, moving from one key player to another and back again. We see things happening simultaneously from three or four different perspectives. However, there are some surprises thrown in and some long pauses between some of the characters that didn't quite work timing wise. The boogeyman is always there ready to jump out and kill him and yet sometimes, he keeps his distance and we forget about him.

2. Like in a Ludlum novel, the main character, Dr. Jonathan Ransom, is constantly confronted with shocking and crazy things that plunge him deeper and deeper into a maze that seems like he will never find his way out. Can you imagine being in love with a wife who is actually leading a totally provocative second life?

3. So the plot thickens, the world is about ready to experience world war three, while Jonathan is dodging bullets, gets lucky over and over again and escapes death and being arrested by the Swiss police, all while having just lost his wife in a skiing accident. A little too much Hollywood here. And yet, like Hollywood, it's fun. That said, I would enjoy it even more if he'd read a little LeCarre or Len Deighton and incorporate more plot plausibility, a little subtlety, a little more real spy stuff and a little less harrowing and exaggerated story lines. Not that the story lines themselves are bad. But they're too quickly put together and too immediate and I felt, too unbelievable, which makes the story not quite as gripping as it could have been.

All and all, it's worth the read, and like "Da Vinci Code," moves along quickly and in short readable chapters with characters you like and care about. It's a great airport novel but with a little work, could have been better. (less)

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05/11/08

Sarah rated it:

bookshelves: american-authors, amsterdam-used-books

Read in September, 2008

recommends it for: Noone

You should probably never read fiction based on your job. It annoys you when they get things wrong and it distracts you from the plot - making you wonder what else the author got wrong. I'm only half way through - thumbing through it listlessly before bed every night. It is very Dan Brown - esque; right down to the useless facts thrown in there that are supposed to explain sentences that the author just said - and given my understanding of all the errors that he made with MSF, I REALLY don't tru...more

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02/05/09

Bookmarks Magazine added it

Critics largely agreed that Rules of Deception is a smart, timely, and page-turning thriller. Filled with high-profile politicos, fake identities, and a nuclear arms conspiracy, the novel is so adeptly composed that readers were unable to quickly discern the good guys from the bad. Although one critic panned Ransom's characterization, reviewers generally agreed that the doctor-climber is the quintessential classic espionage protagonist��a believable, compelling man, even if he does possess near

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06/06/09

Toni Osborne rated it:

Read in June, 2009

Jonathan Ransom, book1

This is an exciting thriller, it has everything: a likable hero facing enormous amounts of danger and scuttling out of it, exotic locals with amazing settings, an over the edge story that will keep you turning page after page.

The prologue is slow to start, then, what appears to be a butterfly flying around a high-security compound is discovered to be a mechanical device…the alarm is sounded…..

Next we meet Jonathan Ransom and his wife...more

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04/18/09

Nancy (Hrdcovers) rated it:

Read in January, 2008

Reich is one of those authors whom I feel I discovered all on my own. More than ten years ago, when he was making the rounds plugging his debut book, Numbered Account, I saw him on one of the morning shows and was immediately interested in him. He had an investment banking background and had lived for quite awhile in Switzerland where he got the inspriration for that first book he wrote. After Numbered Account, there came The Runner....a book that proved he was no flash in the pan. Here was the ...more Reich is one of those authors whom I feel I discovered all on my own. More than ten years ago, when he was making the rounds plugging his debut book, Numbered Account, I saw him on one of the morning shows and was immediately interested in him. He had an investment banking background and had lived for quite awhile in Switzerland where he got the inspriration for that first book he wrote. After Numbered Account, there came The Runner....a book that proved he was no flash in the pan. Here was the real deal -- two great books in a row and I discovered him!! I have followed Reich's career since then always buying his books the first day they hit the bookstores. I may not always read them that first day but I certainly do buy them.

I have to say that not all of Reich's books have been as good as those first two but he's still a huge cut above most of the other mystery/thriller authors out there. I'm particularly drawn to his books that have a financial background simply because that seems to be Reich's expertise. And then came The Art of Deception, a book that caught me right up in its web of intrigue but, unfortunately, got too convoluted for me in the end.

Many of the other reviewers here have already spelled out the story of part-time mountain climber and full-time surgeon Dr. Jonathan Ransom. He's affiliated with the Doctors Without Borders organization which becomes the perfect occupation for the backdrop of this book as these doctors travel all over the world to perform these surgeries . Ransom finds himself in the middle of a life and death struggle when he finds out his wife has been leading a mysterious double life. This book is a real cat and mouse chase and, as I look back at all of Reich's other books, they can also be described the same way.

When I finish reading a book, I usually like to do some research on the author and I found out some interesting tidbits when I researched both Reich and The Rules of Deception. Apparently Reich loves the character of Jonathan Ransom....so much so that this was the first book in a series featuring him as the main character. He said in a recent interview that "he didn't start out with the idea of it being a series but realized halfway through it that Ransom was the hero he'd always wanted to write. He said he came alive to him in a way that others hadn't." I can't tell you how surprised I was to read this because I just never felt the connection with this character while reading the book. When I was finished, I never felt the need to go back and visit with him once again although now I find I will be. I just hope that in the next book, Reich goes back and develops Ransom a little bit more so that his readers will feel the same way about him as Reich does.

The second very interesting thing I found out was that the inspiration for the book came from none other than General Tommy Franks. Apparently, the two were working on a TV show together as consultants and Franks told Reich some stories about members of the Joint Special Operations Command. But Franks was very clear on one point about these "operators." They never spoke about their missions and nothing could ever make them do so. So Reich began to wonder what would happen if you were married to one of these operators.

So after meeting Franks, the stage was set for this book. I can see now that the ending does leave itself open to some sequels and it will be interesting to see how Reich pulls this off. As a loyal follower of this author, I selfishly wish this series had a banking background to it as opposed to a medical one but that won't keep me from reading books by one of my favorite authors. I just have one question for Reich....."Why couldn't the series have centered around one of my favorite characters...Nick Neumann from Numbered Account?" Is that too much to ask? (less)

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11/16/08

Thomas rated it:

Read in November, 2008

Any review should acknowledge what this book is, and intends to be: a way to pass a few hours on the beach, or on that airplane. Having started with that, allow me to say that I could have found many other books with which to pass those hours.....

This is, at best, a run-of-the-mill thriller. I spent much of the book imagining my high-school english teacher yelling at Mr Reich, demanding that he stop using so many cliches in his writing (opening the book to a random page will allow ...more

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01/19/09

John Baptiste rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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03/20/09

Courtney rated it:

Read in April, 2009

This book was very hard for me to follow. I thought it would be so suspenseful that I wouldn't be able to put it down, but because each chapter was about a different character and there were so many different FBI, CIA, policemen, heads of state or country, etc I couldn't remember who was who for the first half of the book. It also didn't help that I (forgive me here) do not know a lot about the politics involved on the war on terror (or whatever it is Obama changed its name to now) and in the mi...more

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02/20/09

Trish rated it:

Read in February, 2009

This book reminded me of 24 only without Jack Bauer. Or more like pieces of Jack Bauer were found in more than one character. I enjoyed reading it even though it was hard keeping everybody straight. It was definitely an interesting look at power and what motivates people. The zealot in the story had a surprising religion and it was probably intended to be a surprise. I felt sorry for the American spy who clearly did not deserve what he got. And I would love to see Switzerland someday. The extrem...more

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08/21/08

Saturn Booksellers rated it:

Author Christopher Reich’s book is set in the present, but as a reader you get the feeling that you could be immersed in a classic cold-war espionage fiction.
A plot is afoot to blow up a civilian airliner and set off a chain reaction of retaliating countries that would start an Armageddon like no other.

Dr. Jonathan Ransom gets himself in the middle of warring superpower spy action when his wife is killed in a skiing accident and he receives in the mail two of her baggage clai...more

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08/21/08

Tony rated it:

bookshelves: thrillers

Read in August, 2008

Reich, Christopher. RULES OF DECEPTION. (2008). ****. This thriller has gotten rave reviews from scads of critics, and I think it is Reich’s best book to date. It is still formulaic and is a good source of seafood – especially red herrings. The protagonist is Dr. Jonathan Ransom, a surgeon for Doctors Without Borders. He is an enthusiastic mountaineer in his off time, and is enjoying a vacation in Switzerland with his wife after being transferred there from a working stint in Africa...more

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08/02/08

Christine rated it:

Read in August, 2008

Authors and critics have been coming out of the woodwork to praise the latest effort of Christopher Reich, comparing him with the literary greats of the spy novel business: Ludlum, Le Carre, Follett, and others. Then there’s the hype the novel has drawn, shooting up to best seller status. Finally, there is the International Thriller Writers Award from 2006. Are all of these accolades warranted for Reich’s latest techno-thriller, "Rules of Deception"? In a word, “yes.”

...more Authors and critics have been coming out of the woodwork to praise the latest effort of Christopher Reich, comparing him with the literary greats of the spy novel business: Ludlum, Le Carre, Follett, and others. Then there’s the hype the novel has drawn, shooting up to best seller status. Finally, there is the International Thriller Writers Award from 2006. Are all of these accolades warranted for Reich’s latest techno-thriller, "Rules of Deception"? In a word, “yes.”

There are so many things that make his writing great, but the most outstanding is Reich’s ability to surprise. There were so many unexpected twists and turns that it nearly defied belief that he could pull them all off, but Reich does. And that is due in large part to the fact that the story is rooted in his character portraits of a grieving husband and his beloved wife. Dr. Jonathan Ransom, an American surgeon for Doctors Without Borders and his British born wife, Emma, an administrator for the same group, travel to the world’s hot spots to help where few others will. Their lives and careers have taken them to Africa, the Middle East, and eventually back to desk jobs in Switzerland, where the story begins.

Jonathan and Emma are mountain climbing as the story opens, when Emma has an accident on the mountain. Bad weather conspires against them, and a desperate Emma tries to climb down after it appears Jonathan is having trouble getting rescue help for her. When Jonathan finally returns, he discovers a horrible scene. Emma has taken a fatal fall into a crevasse. Soon thereafter, and still reeling with grief, Jonathan receives a letter intended for Emma, which contains two mysterious baggage receipts.

When Ransom goes to the local train station to retrieve the baggage, he experiences his first life-threatening encounter, and the story proceeds from there. Able to escape his potential attackers, Ransom kills one in the struggle, and thus becomes a fugitive from the Swiss police. Shocked by what he discovers in Emma’s suitcases, Jonathan Ransom soon realizes he is only at the beginning of a dangerous and emotionally devastating journey to discovering the truth about the woman he thought he knew so intimately. Emma has been living a double life, and getting to the bottom of the situation leads to many unsuspected paths that make up this challenging thriller.

Each new clue adds a twist to the story. The more Ransom (and the reader) learn about Emma and her activities, the more action and drama are added to the plot. The heart of the story is as contemporary as the evening news. As readers become more emotionally invested in the lives of this married couple, so too will they be drawn into a plot that seems ripped from today’s headlines. Reich has managed to use these characters to tell a story that is fascinatingly contemporary, with new developments building to a crescendo of danger inherent in the post-9/11 world.

Although Reich covers some areas that have been done already (his technological wizardry has been explored by other novelists writing in the genre; his evil doers are familiar targets for counter-terrorists), none have done it as well or as compellingly as Reich. His writing chops have earned him the well-deserved praise that continues to be heaped upon "Rules of Deception." This book is one that no spy-story-loving reader should miss.
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07/17/08

Anthony rated it:

bookshelves: fiction

Read in August, 2008

recommends it for: Anyone who has already read every other ‘four star’ or better book on my list.

Aside from the fact that the protagonist in the novel is a strikingly handsome, athletic, brilliant, versatile, no-nonsense doctor, with prematurely grey hair and a humanitarian streak, (remind you of anyone you know?, come on you can get it…) I found Christopher Reich’s, Rules of Deception, to be rather disappointing and thoroughly uninspiring.

Rules of Deception is a political espionage thriller with so many convolutions and a myriad of characters with double, triple, quadrupl...more

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06/13/08

Jackie rated it:

bookshelves: work-review-related-reading

Read in July, 2008

recommended to Jackie by: Charles Stillwagon
recommends it for: Ludlum and Clancy fans, spy thriller lovers, etc

Due out July 15, 2008

The political climate that this international spy thriller is based on could not be more current or better researched--agencies within agencies, leaders lying to their people, wars being started for public reasons that have nothing whatsoever to do with the agenda behind them--it's all there. Reich won the International Thriller Writers Award a couple of years ago, and it doesn't take long to figure out why. Fans of Robert Ludlum and Tom Clancy will embrace t...more

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11/03/08

Robin rated it:

bookshelves: 2008

Read in November, 2008

Phew! I was up until 2 am last night finishing this one so that I could get it back to the library on time. Not so sure it was worth it though. Contributing to this was brain fatigue and maybe just not being in the espionage mood. I chose this book based on a starred review in Publishers' Weekly. The plot was well-woven and in many ways very clever... but it felt like there was a little too much going on and nothing was fully told. There were also a lot of characters and it quickly came to the p...more

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09/08/08

Donald rated it:

bookshelves: 2008

Read in November, 2008

recommended to Donald by: Paul Toczko

I had a ball reading this one. I do not read much cloak and dagger stuff mainly because they can begin to blend together.

The main character, Dr. Ransom, loses his wife in a skiing accident (really not a spoiler because it happens right at the beginning and get the snowball rolling) and shortly after receives a package mailed to her. What's in the package tells him things about his wife that he should have known all along. Kind of formulaic as the snowball gets bigger on its way down ...more

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11/23/08

Kathy rated it:

Read in November, 2008

This was a good fish out of water spy story. The main character loses his wife in a mountain climbing incident then finds two claim checks for packages intended for her. Collecting the packages leads him into a major intrigue involving Iran, Israel and the U.S. and exposes him to his wife's "other" life. Perhaps too many characters but an interesting plot with the requisite spy, double agent, traitorous leaders, etc. that you find in spy novels.

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07/16/08

Donura rated it:

bookshelves: own

Read in June, 2008

DATE: June 2008
TITLE: Rules of Deception
AUTHOR: Christopher Reich
PUBLISHER: Doubleday
COPYRIGHT: July 2008

RATING: 4.5 out of 5

Christopher Reich absolutely has a winner with this book. Rules of Deception has it all. With a full and varied cast of characters, current political climates in different parts of the world, and enough action it keeps you up all night trying to figure out the roles of everyone. No one should ...more

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06/26/09

Jennifer rated it:

Read in June, 2009

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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08/01/08

Robinson rated it:

bookshelves: mystery-thriller

Read in September, 2008

Reich can write. Good plotting and excellent research. But his lead character is flat. Yes, he's the brilliant altruist doctor that can do a billion things well, but he has no edge. I don't really care about him. Reich needs to give his leads some balls, making them either tougher, more of wise-ass, or more tortured. One of the age-old covenants about writing characters is that you can't fall in love with them. Example is Hannibal Lechter. Phenomenal character in the first two Harris boo...more

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