I’ve been reading (and enjoying!) more dark and gritty tales with suspense and psychological play. Is it a reflection of the cold dark winter, my changing tastes, or simply a willingness – like Mikey in those old Life cereal commercials – to “try it, you’ll like it!”?
Here’s a novel that’s out today (January 17, 2012; HarperCollins/William Morrow), The Face Thief by Eli Gottlieb, author of The Boy Who Went Away and Now You See Him. Even the titles conjure up something mysterious and sinister, don’t they?
A bit about the protagonist, from the jacket flap:
Gottlieb introduces the mystery of the charismatic Margot, a promising journalist who morphs—with stunning panache—from a high-achieving affluent twentysomething into a grifter making her living preying on the weaknesses of men. Having studied the ancient Chinese art of face reading, she becomes an expert at reading people and is also able to rearrange her look and persona with uncanny skill to fit any social situation. She is an avenging angel, shattering marriages and draining bank accounts.
In this excerpt, her mentor gives her some last minute advice before her fourth lesson, the one is which she’s sent to the streets, his “live laboratory,” to assess passersby (p. 48):
“… And here’s a little bit of neurolinguistic programming for background. Most people in the world are right-handed. When right-handers are creating an image in their minds, their eyes generally look up to the right … But if they’re recalling something they’ve heard, like an old song, they look to the left and tilt their head as if listening. If they are remembering a feeling, like say a physical sensation or an emotion, they look down and to the right. People talking silently to themselves also look down to the left. It’s like a compass rose of a sort.”
Now, raise your hand if you’re going to be completely paranoid the next time you’re put on the spot with a question. Will you be thinking about the direction in which your eyes are focusing, the tilt of your head, and other clues your body is signaling? Yes, I will be, too.
Margot sounds like a real con artist, cold and calculating. She has her finger on the emotions of her victims, while not giving away the slightest peak at her own feelings. Is she someone you’d like to get to know through this novel?
This sounds like a great winter read that I’d be interested in, especially since I’ve always considered myself really good at reading face:)
I am intrigued! Actually, when I was working in internal audit, we were given training on reading facial expressions to tell when people were lying. I don’t remember much, but it sure came in handy because even if people had done no wrong, they were so scared we were going to catch them doing something wrong. Yeah, I was real popular back then. I can see where you could turn this skill to ill use. This sounds fun.
Raises Hand.
As I was reading the quote, I started thinking about stuff. I tried not to do the things he said but it was impossible.
Thanks for sharing. I’m adding this to my pile.
Here’s my teaser.
I have this on my shelf and looking forward to reading it. Face reading is an old Chinese tradition and am eager to see how it’s used here.
OOh, this sounds good…I like this…I wonder how I act when doing these things? I am right-handed, so maybe that’s a sign that I do what is mentioned here. I’ll have to investigate later.
Hm, as I was trying to compose my thoughts, I looked up – I wonder what that means? I’m intrigued!
Oh, I need to read this one! I love the title, and the excerpts you posted make this sound like a fascinating read. I am sure the library won’t have it yet, but I can be patient. Great little teaser today, Dawn. You’ve intrigued the heck out of me!
Oooh, this is kind of creepy and intriguing. I’m going to have to add this to my list….you know that’s not really a good thing right? Thanks for the wonderful review.
I have not been into dark and gritty lately but this sounds way to good to pass up. I’m adding it to my list today. I’m also thinking about what way my eyes look when asked a question, hmmm.
Whoa … This has totally grabbed my attention. So much so that I’m putting it at the top of my list!
Happy Tuesday, Dawn!
This sounds like good deliciously evil fun. ANd I know anyone could read my face like a book — I’m not good at pulling off anything secretive!
Sounds creepy, in a good way.