A Gentle Thief ~ Book Tour & Review

A Gentle Thief
by Amanda Dickson
ISBN: 978-1466304277
Published by:
Kindle Edition: $9.99

About the Book:
Maddie Johnson loved Shakespeare. Unlike everybody else she knew growing up, she seemed to understand him, enjoy him, more with every reading. It was partly because of this love that she drove from her home in rural Pennsylvania to college at Southern Utah University, home every summer to the Utah Shakespearean Festival. It was partly that, and partly the desire to get as far away as possible. Maddie thought being in Utah would help her forget, that the stark beauty of the scenery and the power of the metaphor would be enough to clear her. They weren’t.

In her freshman year, she met and, after graduation, married a much older man, Robert Able, the first person Maddie had ever known who understood her love of Shakespeare.

At 21, Maddie felt too young to be married. At 23, she felt too young to be divorced. Maddie was found dead on New Year’s Day, clutching a gun to her chest. Everyone assumed she committed suicide. Everyone except her father.

A Gentle Thief is Maddie’s story, and that of her father and the young attorney he hires who becomes devoted to him and the truth of his cause.

My Thoughts:
An engrossing story that moves fast and keeps the reader involved and unwilling to put the book down. It's the story of 2 women ~ one murdered in 1984 and the other a woman just beginning a new career with a case that could easily make or break her future.

Madeline is a young woman who has known upheaval and abuse her entire life. Her mother was abusive to her father and when they divorced Maddie spent time between to homes. She was very close to her father and they each supported and encouraged each other over the years while her mother and his wife tore him down every chance she got.

Marrying at a young age and divorced 2 years later, Madeline is found one day by her neighbor who claims that she committed suicide. The gun is found in her hands, she has obviously been cleaned up and the bedding has been changed thereby destroying evidence. The police and the investigators completely botch the case, evidence goes missing and her father spends the next 20 years trying to get the authorities to change her cause of death from suicide to murder. And then Sophie Brownlie enters the picture as a fresh from law school lawyer who is assigned the case to see if it has merit....

A Gentle Thief reminded me of Conspiracy Brief (with Julia Roberts) - the atmosphere is similar with the legal speech, the mystery surrounding the death of Maddie, the fast moving pace as the story builds and then heads toward it's conclusion.

A very long book at over 500 pages you can purchase it on Kindle or purchase the paperback copy. It's a great story and well worth purchasing the $17.99 paperback - you'll definitely want it in your home library. My only thought is that at $18 the book should of been a hardback book not a paperback. It's a great read for a cold snowy day and if you have a fire going it only adds to the atmosphere as you read.

A Gentle Thief is a book nearly 20 years in the making, inspired by a case the author worked on while a lawyer. She is the mother of Aiden (4) and Ethan (6) and the step-mother of Laurel (22), Ashley (21) and Cameron (18) and currently is not only an author but also a radio announcer for www.ksl.com and the host of "A Woman's View". When she isn't at home caring for her family or on the radio you may be able to find her in front of an audience - Amanda speaks to all kinds of businesses, women's groups, governmental groups, gatherings of every size and scope on the topics of joy in work, team building, change, friendship, hope, finding untapped energy and every variation on those themes imaginable.  She would be delighted to speak to your group if the opportunity should ever arise.

Amanda's Website
Amanda's Blog
Amanda's facebook page


You can learn more about A Gentle Thief on the MediaGuests.net website during the blog tour in November and December.


I received a copy of the ebook to review. I was not required to post a positive review and no money exchanged hands. Thanks to MediaGuests.net and Amanda Dickson for sharing a great book!


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