Review in Leader's Edge Magazine
Titanic Trail of Intrigue
Murder, fraud, theft, sex, alcohol and mayhem—this is not your father’s insurance company.
Louise Lague April, 2009
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Book review on Blogger News Network
All in all, The Worst Kind Of Lies is worth a look, I will be interested to see how book two of the series comes out.
Simon Barrett 04-01-2009
Lies, betrayals, fall at fictional Titanic Insurance
Corruption, with deadly implications, at the highest levels of management.
A level of deceit so pervasive in the organization that sales staff can't trust management, management can't count on what sales tells them and clients have no idea what they're buying.
It's just another day at the office at fictional Titanic Insurance Co. of Kansas in author John Patrick Lamont's new novel, "The Worst Kind of Lies." The book, which was published by Booklocker.com Inc. and is available on Amazon.com, is the first installment in the new author's Sum of Life trilogy.
The first novel in the murder/ thriller series establishes the main plot against numerous subplots and a plethora of characters: Upper management loses a piece of incriminating evidence that would expose its corruption, and top executives suspect the material has fallen into the hands of someone in the company's sales force, Mr. Lamont explained. A sales team manager, against his own antihero instincts, is drawn into the drama as top management plots to recover the material by any means necessary. Meanwhile, various sales agents - all victims of industry corruption in some way - try to maintain as much professional integrity as they can while balancing personal lives in which they haven't always made the right choices.
Mr. Lamont, a pseudonym, said he uses that plot to open a window to the insurance world, where he was an agent for 14 years before moving to the securities brokerage industry. Mr. Lamont, 56, now works for a small, family-run brokerage in the Quad Cities area of Iowa and Illinois, he said.
The author stresses that the novels are not meant to provide readers financial advice. But an overriding theme of the project is that consumers have to take greater care in understanding the various kinds of insurance products they purchase and how much personal risk those products create.
He said he is close to finishing two more books in the series, "Betrayals of the Heart" and "Fall From Grace."
Business Insurance magazine 08-04-2008
The Best Kind of Reading
The Worst Kind of Lies introduces the reader to the main character whose career as an insurance agent unfolds in dramatic fashion as he confronts corporate greed and personal betrayal. Ted Fisher, a man with a haunted past, is a regional salesman in the Titanic Insurance Company of Kansas who begins to uncover secrets of deceitful and underhanded business methods promoted by corporate leaders to inflate the financial success of the business. A variety of colorful individuals contribute to the drama as the author develops the plot line with some of these figures being likable and many who the reader finds villainous. Details of the story require some instruction in the finer points of insurance dealings; the tutorials become intertwined with the motives and schemes of the characters and the plot inevitably is full of intrigue, including mysterious international figures and murderous events. Ted is a member of one of the celebrated sales groups who qualify to join in a boondoggle trip to Caracas arranged by the company to reward their sales success. At the close of The Worst Kind of Lies, Ted has become the champion of righting the unethical detours taken by the Titanic management team. In a chance meeting, Ted forms an alliance with an alluring Titanic employee that he hopes will offer great promise, of both investigative and romantic nature. With luck, he won't be the one betrayed by his new collaborator. By the story's end, I was eager to learn where the action will lead in Lamont's next novel, Betrayals of the Heart.
Melody
F. Beighley
Rating: 5 of 5 Stars 09/13/2008
I can't wait for the next one.
John Patrick Lamont delivers in spades. The Worst Kind of Lies, Lamont's first offering in the Sum of Life Trilogy, is an incredibly well-crafted story that draws the reader deeper and deeper into a rich tapestry of characters, plots and story lines that captivate. Lamont takes care to masterfully lay the foundation of the story, build the framework and then wrap it up as if he has done this one hundred times before. The cadence of the story picks up with each chapter until you are finished before you know it. The Worst Kind of Lies contains all the makings of a hit. With characters we all know and some we hope we never meet, the reader will find good people trying to help their clients in an industry the public loves to hate. Who would have thought the insurance industry could provide a setting for intrigue, romance, tension and adventure. Lamont's personal experience gives the story life and credibility through his attention to detail and his in-depth knowledge industry business practices, both good and bad. Whether you are a seasoned insurance professional or have never purchased an insurance policy in your life, The Worst Kind of Lies is a read well worth the time. I enjoyed it and look forward to the next segment in the trilogy. Well done Mr. Lamont!
DWK
Rating: 4 of 5 Stars 11/06/2009
Great read.....eager for second book !!!
John Lamont has done an amazing job at capturing both the intricacies/pecadillos of the insurance industry and creating and developing a host of interesting, provocative characters. The detailed information about the technicalities of the business may put off some readers by its sheer volume. There is also a tendency to give out more information than might be needed to develop the story. That being said, I encourage readers to slog through some of the more mundane details to get to the delicious characters that people this book.....and the story line that weaves them in the complex tapestry that makes this book hard to put down. The author writes with wit, depth and passion about his field and the characters who people it. Beyond the obvious story line are delicious subtle tidbits for the reader who's savvy enough to catch them; this would make a great book for a book club as it has layer upon layer of areas to explore. Lamont has a rhythm to his writing that is extraordinarily engaging......and belies the reality that this is his first book.
Can't wait for the second book of the trilogy......here's a new favorite to add to your list of authors. Enjoy...
Treasure Hunter "bon's views"
Rating: 4 of 5 Stars 12/2/2009
Insightful, captivating.
I found this book very insightful, not only in explaining common insurance negotiations, but also exposing many of the underlying motives guiding the business practices of the salespeople and managers, from the genuine to the corrupt. Strictly from an aesthetic point of view, the book proved not only interesting, but captivating as I followed the plot. Mr. Lamont used a very good balance of detail and humor to keep one far from feeling "bogged down."
Jeremy
Menees
Rating: 4 of 5 Stars 02/14/2009
The Worst Kind Of Lies is the first in a trilogy, and a great book if you want to know the inside world of the insurance industry. It's an entertaining way to see all the devious methods the industry may use in cheating the average person if he or she is not careful.
The information given about the industry can be daunting for anyone not involved in it: but it does not detract from the main story line.
John has skillfully crafted his characters in a way that they are not seen as villains even though many of them partake in the underhanded methods used to separate the lay person from their money. For these insurance agents this method of doing business is simply a necessary means of survival. Yet John allows us enough insight into their lives and personalities to allow us to identify with them and see them as three dimensional humans.
Although the cast of characters is extensive, there are several who stand out. There are two people with albinism, who are anything but ordinary, a man who has an unusual relationship with his dead co-worker and a woman bordering on autism who is convinced that numbers live and breathe.
The book starts off innocently enough but escalates into a complex and intricate story of crime, passion, intrigue and greed extraordinaire.
A warning to the squeamish. The violence does get a little rough at times but all in all, a good read that will sweep you up into the shadowy underworld of corrupted power.
Virginia L. Small 07/21/2008
Sum of Life: The Worst Kind of Lies is peopled with characters from many cultures and with many points of view but within the common world of life insurance business. It can be read on more than one level: entertaining narrative with flashes of insight and character studies that form a microcosm of life in modern times. I particularly enjoyed the allusions to mythology and the encrypted meanings of names in the book. From his years of insurance experience, John Patrick Lamont knows people and he knows insurance. His story is a rewarding view of both. Highly recommended.
Hulda Sorensen 07/26/2008
The Titanic Insurance Company of Kansas is the poster child of all our fears about insurance in any form. Lamont treats us to greed, betrayal, and murder while creating characters caught in a web of deceit, misinformation, and the worst kind of lies-half truths. As Ted Fisher, the Sales Staff Manager in Milltown, struggles with deep regrets in his personal life, his conscience, in the form of deceased District Manager Jack Farley, leads him to question his business life as well. All the scams of insurance that we fear come into play, from greedy, deadly Felix Hurdsman and Cebere Kuislane who run the company, to agents, sometimes willfully, sometimes just ignorant, who take advantage of policy holders. The struggles, the tragedies, the darkness, and the promised hope among the characters make this a very good read.
Kathy Johnson 08/21/2008
"The Worst Kind of Lies" is a complicated book, but not for the faint of heart or mind. If you like inter-office politics, mystery, intrigue, and a deliberate and careful development of characters; "The Worst Kind of Lies" is that story. The story is an honest assessment of human character. Mr. Lamont is skilled in developing sympathetic and positive characters as well as characters that are quite negative. The reader, however, may find some of the character names kind of humorous. If you enjoy reading some of John Grisham's works, you may also enjoy "The Worst Kind of Lies."
Mr. Lamont has done an excellent job of exploring, and explaining the insurance industry. He is very detail oriented and describes many aspects of the industry that many people may not know. He also describes some methods used, or have been used, to sell the product. Most insurance agents and insurance companies are above reproach, there are of course some who may use less than honest means to make a living.
I am looking forward to reading the next two books in the trilogy.
Jim Varner
Brooksville, FL 09/12/2008
Good Read
The book explores the insurance industry in depth - reading like events actually have happened, although strictly fiction. Good definition of characters, especially like the "lead man" and his deceased friend. A member of the insurance firm's Board of Directors also lends a chuckle as she participates in the intrigue as the story develops.
Patricia
R. Nicholson
Rating: 4 of 5 Stars 09/05/2008
Sum of Life - The Worst Kind of Lies is a good read. The characters are interesting, and generally whole people. The author has an unusual writing style that builds context and suspense, without becoming extremely fast paced. The setting, a large insurance company, provides an interesting view of the life insurance business. Although it's fiction, it seems almost entirely believable. At times the book gets preachy, but that doesn't get in the way of its entertainment and educational value. I'm looking forward to the sequels.
Your Basic User review on Amazon.com
Rating: 4 of 5 Stars 07/13/2008