A #1 New York Times bestselling author and two-time Anthony Award winner, Ann Rule has established herself as one of the foremost true-crime writers, having delivered fascinating works on notorious killers Ted Bundy and Diane Downs. Practice to Deceive unravels the 2003 murder of Russell Douglas, the father of two found dead from a single gunshot wound to the head just a day after Christmas. But as the list of suspects grows to include an ageing beauty queen, her lover, and Russell' s widow, there emerges a disturbing portrait of violence and small-town life.