This NY Times bestseller-from “America’s best true-crime writer” (Kirkus Reviews) and the writer of The Stranger Beside Me-is a shocking tale of greed, sex, scandal, and murder with an isolated and eerie island in the Pacific Northwest.

With more than 50 million copies of her books in print-from her chilling personal account of knowing Ted Bundy to sixteen collections in her #1 bestselling Crime Files series-Ann Rule is a legendary true crime writer. Here, used to Deceive, Guideline about Practice to Deceive unravels a shattering case of Christmastime murder off the coastline of Washington State-presented with the clarity, expert, and psychological depth that Rule’s visitors expect.

Nestled in Puget Sound, Whidbey Island is a gem from the Pacific Northwest. Accessible only by ferry, it really is known for its artistic communities and stunning natural beauty. Lifestyle there is certainly low-key, as well as the island’s year-round residents tend to know one another’s business. But when the blood-drenched body of Russel Douglas was uncovered your day after Xmas in his SUV in a hidden driveway near Whidbey’s most unique mansion-a single bullet between his eyes-the entire island was stunned. At first, law enforcement suspected suicide, tragically common on the height of the vacation season. But when they found no weapon in or close to the SUV, Russel’s manner of loss of life became homicide.

Brenna Douglas, Russel’s estranged and soon-to-be-ex wife, allowed him to come home for a Christmas visit using their children. The couple owned the popular Just B’s salon. Brenna’s buddy Peggy Sue Thomas worked there, and Brenna complained often to her that Russel was physically and psychologically abusive. Peggy Sue’s personal life continues to be among extremes. Married 3 x, hers is certainly a rags-to-riches-and-back-again tale in which she’s played many functions, from airplane mechanic to “drop-dead beautiful” beauty queen being a former Ms. Washington. But in 2003, her love affair with married guitarist Jim Huden led both Whidbey Isle natives to pursue their supreme dreams of wealth and privilege-even at the expense of human lifestyle.

Unravel the tangled web woven by Russel Douglas’s murder in Practice to Deceive, a heart pounding true-crime tour de power.