Club Deception is a paranormal mystery novel by Sarah Skilton. This is another one of the way too long list of novels that I have been meaning to read for way too long. (it is part of my personal netgalley challenge of 2021) Though I am happy that I finally checked this book off of my TBR, I do wish I enjoyed this one a little more. I loved the premise of the book, but in the end I thought Club Deception was just ok. it' wasn't bad. It simply didn't wow me very much.

Club Deception has a trio of great M's- magic, magicians, and murder. I was super excited to read about a secret world of magicians wrapped in a murder mystery. I kind of enjoyed the magic element, but I found the mystery side of the story to be a bit fluff and predictable. My favorite aspect of the book was the bitter rivalry between the magicians because it got really tense. So many of the characters in this story are morally grey, or just plan amoral. They have no problem taking what they want, even if it is at the expense of others. Because of this I found it hard to find redeeming qualities in many of the characters, and had a hard time connecting with them. Jessie was my favorite of the bunch.

If you are a fan of lighthearted mysteries and dramatic magicians, I think you might enjoy this book a little more than I did. The mystery was fun and the characters were interesting. I flew through this book very quickly, and it was an ok read, I just didn't end up loving it as much as I thought I would.

Is this a mystery or a cat fight? I can't remember exactly how this book ended up in my bookshelf. The blurb sounds intriguing and the start of the book is nicely done with Claire coming across a little like Sharon Stone in Basic Instincts. I thought this would be a murder mystery or maybe a bit like the movie Prestige. Not so...the only resemblance to Prestige was the extreme rivalry between magicians.

I didn't like any of the characters in here except for Jessica. Looking for the worst in humanity? Look no further. This book is filled with spite, broken marriages, pettiness and laziness. Just when I thought there could be some redeeming factor near the end after forcing myself to get through this book, I'm disappointed with Cal's response to Claire's new position.

Let's be clear, Claire is a woman who has issues and whilst the blame of her situation cannot be all on her, she did play a part in it. Jessie is the only one who comes up with solutions and is good person. Jessie may have felt she married up with Cal, the magician. But in reality, Cal isn't good enough for her. I can't tell whether all these characters are designed to be shallow on purpose or they just didn't know what they wanted to be. I loathed all of them (except Jessie), even Felix who wanted to do right by Claire.

Usually, I can get past hating characters and still enjoy the story. In this one, I couldn't. This book is more about backstabbing and cliques to make other people feel bad. The plot in this story is a bit weak. It is overwhelmed by marital infidelity in a crude form. There is an over abundance of the dirty and skivvy side of magic. Basically this book makes magicians come across as arrogant misogynist con artists who compare who is bigger in size. Or that magic is a great pick up tool to get a sexy woman in bed. But be sure to first make the sexy woman feel insecure and unwanted by flirting with her ugly friend first. Based on the males in this story, I would venture to say...it is probably better to bat for the other team if you are a woman. Because you will receive nothing but disappointment and heartache from a male magician.

If you enjoyed the movie Mean Girls and thought it was hilarious and you like magic, then this book is you.

A very dramatic, over-dramatic sometimes, but a nice read which served as a good break from my normal reads.

So I was new to Sarah Skilton when I started this book. But man do I love her now.

This book was so great. I honestly can say I loved every page of it.
It was just one of those books that draws you in, and you sit not being able to put it down until you get to that very last page.

It just has a ll the makings of a great read... The stunning characters, the mystery and suspense, a well thought out plot and cohesive story.

I can't find a thing to complain about.

And man did I really enjoy these characters. They were fun and so full of depth. It made the reading experience that much better. Giving you someone to relate to and want to root for or want to hate. I love characters that can do that and Sarah definitely delivered.

Definitely a 5 star read!

Author Sarah Skilton gives readers a unique story about the lives of magicians and their secret clubs, as told by the WAGS (wives and girlfriends, or widows and girlfriends, given how you want to look at it). Rotating between a few women’s perspective (and even one up-and-coming male), readers uncover a deadly mystery in this new “whodunit” novel.

Why I Chose This Book: While the cover art nearly steered me away (it seemed a bit childish with the animation), the description sounded like nothing I had yet come across or read. Not many authors chose to write a plot line around the art of magic. I imagine even fewer chose to make such a story revolve around strong female characters.

I am constantly drawn to novels centering on female characters, particularly female characters that aren’t ultimately portrayed as “victims,” and while this book may have started out indicating a female “victim,” said female was incredibly confident and certainly not the victim in the end.

Why I Liked This Book:
1. Strong female characters, including one that ran a successful (albeit secret club) in the shadow of her husband.
2. A unique plot surrounding magicians – not only does this book revolve around magic, but it also shows the magicians as “sexy” rather than “nerdy” AND combines this with a murder mystery plot.
3. Every child has experienced at least ONCE in their life the “wow” factor of magic. Whether from a magic trick they saw in person or on one of the many circulating TV shows (Criss Angel Mindfreak & David Copperfield come to mind). This book does a great job playing into this feeling and includes strong character development with some very mild sultry scenes to seal the deal on a great book surrounding the art of magic.

Why I Dislike This Book: Simply the cover art. The cover did not draw me into this book. It does not seem to fit the style or message the book should be sending. It seemed to be the “cartoony,” animated artwork that nearly caused me NOT to pick this book up.

*Disclaimer: This book was provided to me by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

My Highly Caffeinated Thought: This book is a good mix of drama, duplicity, and romance all combined with the misdirection and magic of a good illusion.

CLUB DECEPTION opens up the world of magic to its readers. What is so great about this book is that the story give us all the wonder that is a magic show, but deconstructs it all at the same time. With a sleight of hand and a bit of misdirection, Sarah Skilton weaves together a character driven mystery so captivating that I wasn’t able to put this one down.

I truly loved the way that the author gave us strong female characters that are more crucial to the story than the men on stage. From the veteran magician’s wife Claire to the newbie young trophy wife Jessica to the girlfriend impersonator Kaimi, all of these women show strength, heart, and a bit of fierceness.

This book is a wonderful tale that has the glitz and glamour, but also isn’t afraid to show the underbelly of the illusionists' world. So prepare for the card tricks, the illusions, and the backstabbing. This is going to be one heck of a show.

received in exchange for a honest review.

So I loved Jessica and her husband. Claire was a well developed and complex character.

This story had many stories going on to through you in different directions. The illusions of each persons lives was there like the magicians sleight of hand themselves. The writing is alluring and each story is unique in its own deception and addition to the story itself. There are so many secrets and back stories that play a part it is sometimes hard to keep up but you are completely drawn in and intrigued by all he politics and and pandering for position.

Claire at the end did something I didn’t like to the man who helped her achieve her dreams and it did help you open you eyes to who she really is. She is deceptive, manipulative and not exactly nice. She treats people like pawns and she definitely follows the thought that we are all either kings or pawns. To her she is the king and wants to stay there.

the solving of the murder of her husband brings up some ugly truths, reveals secrets that many wish would stay hidden but also helped brings Jessica and her husband closer and show Kaimi who she had become and what she wanted to be as well.

the story is given in many POV’s so at times your head spins from all the views you get but it does help you gain perspective on each complex and multidimensional character.

A story intricately written with sleight of hand going on , secrets to reveal and deception at its basest level occur while sucking you into the intrigue and drama that doesn’t let you go and has you get caught up in the politics and murder that you need to solve and see who is standing at the end of the day.

Painfully slow at times, reminiscent of Young and the Restless mixed with Penn and Teller. The general plot and magic themes were great, but boy did it drag at times. And literally everyone was related to or sleeping with someone else, and that seemed a bit unimaginative.

Note: I did not finish this book.

Why was I interested in this book?
The magic/magician aspect of this book was the big draw for me. I was a bit hesitant though. Many of the books I’ve read with magic aspects get those things wrong, or (maybe worse) just use them as a light flavoring to the plot.

What Worked
Skilton does a great job with the magic. It’s not just “Houdini, yeah, he was a magician, right?” There’s references to tons of historical magicians and allusions to some modern ones. One of the plot points revolves around lost/stolen original drawings from Erdnase’s The Expert at the Card Table which is an excellent idea. From a magic standpoint: this was totally the book for me…

What Didn’t Work
…but otherwise, it’s not at all the book for me. Truly, I think this is a case of “it’s not you, it’s me.” I’ve never connected well with noir, which Club Deception shares some aspects of. I’m also not a fan of the heightened drama that goes along with Dynasty-like storytelling. It was hard for me to stay engaged with the story when most of the characters are scheming wives and unfaithful husbands. I stopped reading at the 32% mark because I really wasn’t enjoying my time with this book.

Overall
Despite the magic, I’m not the audience for Club Deception. Now, if you grew up with Dynasty and/or rather enjoyed Revenge (the 2011-2015 TV series) give this book a try.

This book just didn't keep my attention. I just wasn't in the mood to read and forced myself so maybe that is why I just couldn't get into it. I will try it again in the future.

Try this if you are interested in magic and magicians. It's a combination romance/mystery with a pretty good plot line. We seldom read about the women in magic acts so I appreciated that Skilton told the stories of Claire, Jessica, and Kaimi. These three are all intriguing and quite real. The story sagged for me a bit in the middle (a good detached edit would have tightened it up) but it was still a good read. Thanks to net galley for the ARC.

This was a fun book for me to read and the storyline was really good it just took me a while to finish it.

Club Deception

Club Deception was a great mystery that kept me on my toes. I didn't know what to expect when I first started reading but I needn't have worried because what I got was girl power to the max. The women of the story were amazing and I was glad to see them painted in such a strong light. Fortunately, my hopeless romantic-self was presented with some romance to keep me tied over.

We follow the POVs of four different characters; Claire, Jessica, Kaimi, and Felix. Each one brings the story close together and ties it up with a big pretty bow in the end. There was so much happening at times that my head would spin. That being said, it started off a little slow for my taste in the beginning. Luckily, that didn't last long.

Claire is beautiful and intelligent. Jessica is the young and hot new wife of magician, Cal. Kaimi's character is a little more complex but amazing all the same. I wish we had more scenes with her in them. Felix is a magician in training. All these characters have so much depth and I enjoyed reading their stories.

Now as you know, this book is about magicians (really the wives and girlfriends of them.) We get a a glimpse into the behind the scenes ways of what one does when entertaining people with illusionary tricks. I know nothing of magic shows or anything like that. But it sounds like it would be a lot of fun. I always wished that I knew how to do tricks. Anyways, Club Deception is the exclusive club of, you guessed it, magicians and their wives/girlfriends. It got me thinking about secret little societies in our world now. Guess they wouldn't be so secret if we all knew about them.

Overall, I liked the book. It's one filled with betrayal, lies, and all the goodness of high drama. Oh, and then there's a murder. What more could one want?

*Thank you to the publisher for providing a copy for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

3.5 Star Review:

Club Deception is a work of illusory goodness. Skilton caters to readers with an interesting, in depth description of tricks and lingo. The Club Deception world of magicians is brought to life in a cloud of intrigue and the undiscovered. This was a slow read for me, but as the characters began to reveal themselves I found the pace did not bother me. I wish the intensity of the prologue had been felt throughout the story instead of in the beginning and at the end. That being said, Claire's character was fantastic! She was intelligent and gave depth to the story. I look forward to reading more from Sarah Skilton.