by Laurie Buchanan
A Sean McPherson Novel, Book 5
Mystery/Thriller/Private Investigator
Date Published: 04-15-2025
Publisher: SparkPress
A contemporary crime thriller perfect for Louise Penny and Robert Dugoni fans,
Illusionist presents PI McPherson with an impossible dilemma: kill an author
at a writing retreat in the Pacific Northwest, or let a college student
die.
When an illusionist arrives at Pines & Quill, one of the
retreat’s owners vanishes—right in front of witnesses who see
nothing. Meanwhile, crime boss Georgio Gambino tightens his grip, blackmailing
a writer into murder and framing Sean McPherson. His threat is clear: obey, or
your daughter dies.
As McPherson investigates, he uncovers a brewing
power struggle—Carmine Fiore, Gambino’s second-in-command, is
staging a coup. While Gambino’s network traffics drugs, weapons, and
humans, Fiore manipulates the Sureños gang, planting evidence to shift
blame.
Desperate to turn the tide, McPherson seeks a dangerous alliance.
But when deception is the game, only illusion can outmaneuver the truth.
Enlisting the retreat’s eclectic writers—including a NASCAR
driver, a triathlete, a house-flipping architect, and a magician with secrets
of her own—McPherson sets the stage for the ultimate trick: survival.
Excerpt
Sean “Mick” McPherson drives the Pines & Quill van to
Bellingham International Airport. The last time I went to the airport was to
drop off the September writers in residence who barely lived to tell about
their stay.
His thoughts home in on Gambino, head of a
trifecta-based crime family—Seattle, San Francisco, and New Orleans.
Mick tightens his grip on the steering wheel. You learned the hard way that
Gambino’s reach is long and elusive. That his minions infiltrate even
the most inaccessible places to do his bidding, so stay on your A game.
Last month, over the Labor Day weekend, Emma, Mick’s pregnant
wife, and Carly and Brianna, the daughters of one of his best friends, Joe
Bingham, were abducted and held hostage in a secluded cabin on Mount Baker by
Gambino’s thugs. Joe, a Bellingham homicide detective, took a bullet in
his right shoulder, saving his daughters.
After the
incident, local police chief Bruce Simms referred to him, Joe, and Rafferty,
Mick’s other best friend, as “The three musketeers” at a
press conference. He went on to say, “Though nontraditional—an
ex-cop turned PI, a homicide detective, and an FBI special agent—they
accomplish what no others do; they solve crimes and put bad guys behind bars.
Consistently.”
Mick smiles at what Simms didn’t
say to the press—they let me assist in criminal investigations because,
unlike Rafferty and Joe, I have fewer restrictions, protocols, and no red tape
as a PI.
About the Author
A blend of Dr. Doolittle, Nanny McPhee, and
a type-A Buddhist, Laurie Buchanan is an active listener, observer of details,
payer of attention, reader and writer of books, kindness enthusiast, red
licorice aficionado, and lover of the Oxford comma.
As a novelist,
photographer, and voracious reader, she never travels without three
essentials—a laptop, a camera, and a book.
Growing up, she dreamed
of being a magician, an international spy, and a mad scientist. There’s
still time!
Her writing studio is the hayloft of a historic carriage
house in the Pacific Northwest, where creativity thrives. Her husband, Len, a
private pilot, and Henry, their not-so-standard Standard Poodle, join her on
daily walks. She always carries a camera because sometimes, the best word
choice is a picture.
A journey that left an indelible imprint on her was
a 20-day, 211-mile trek across the majestic landscapes of Scotland. She, her
husband, and their son hiked from the North Sea to the Atlantic Ocean, with
the pinnacle being the climb of Ben Nevis at the midpoint of their adventure,
the highest point in the British Isles.
“My writing goal is simple: to
leave you wanting more.” —Laurie Buchanan
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