A peaceful writing retreat becomes the setting for a carefully engineered crime when a disappearance, a coerced murder, and an illusionist’s arrival place Sean McPherson at the center of another deadly scheme. Laurie Buchanan’s fifth Sean McPherson novel brings an unusually varied group of writers into the conflict, then asks them to turn their individual skills into a deception convincing enough to outmaneuver an organized-crime boss.
Illusionist
Author: Laurie Buchanan
Series: A Sean McPherson Novel, Book 5
Genre: Mystery & Suspense
Date Published: April 15, 2025
Publisher: SparkPress
For fans of Louise Penny and Robert Dugoni, Illusionist is a contemporary crime thriller where PI McPherson must choose between killing an author at a writing retreat in the Pacific Northwest or letting a college student die.
When an illusionist joins the Pines & Quill writing retreat, one of the owners vanishes without a trace in the middle of everyone, but the surrounding would-be witnesses don’t see or hear a thing. That’s when crime boss Georgio Gambino makes a checkmate move against his nemesis, Sean McPherson. He forces a writer in residence to kill another writer and frame McPherson. In a video call, Gambino warns the writer, “If you don’t follow orders, your daughter will die.” Then, he pans the camera to prove access to her college dorm room.
McPherson discovers that Carmine Fiore, Gambino’s second in command, covets his boss role and is staging a coup. As Gambino’s soldiers traffic drugs, weapons, and humans, Fiore plants incriminating evidence against the notorious Sureños gang. Can McPherson leverage that knowledge for a temporary truce and the gang’s help?
The writers in residence—a former NASCAR driver, a professional triathlete, an architect turned house flipper, and a world-renowned magician who may not be who she appears to be—band together with McPherson to create the illusion of a lifetime.
The central threat in Illusionist is not simply a murder waiting to happen. Gambino has selected an unwilling participant, placed a student under surveillance, and designed the crime so that Sean McPherson will carry the blame. That structure gives the suspense several pressure points at once: the intended victim remains unknown, the person ordered to kill is also a hostage, and McPherson must recognize the trap before it closes around him.
The Pines & Quill setting adds another distinctive layer. Its residents are not interchangeable suspects but people with specialized backgrounds—a former NASCAR driver, a triathlete, a house flipper, and a magician—whose abilities may become part of the solution. The resulting clash between criminal strategy and theatrical misdirection gives the novel a premise built around cooperation, timing, and the dangerous difference between what witnesses see and what actually occurs.
Gambino picks up his cell phone and makes another call. His heart races with anticipation. When the recipient answers, he says, “If you hang up, I’ll kill your child. Do you understand?”
"Is this some kind of sick joke?”
"I assure you this is no joke. When I disconnect, you’ll receive a video call from my associate. He’s visiting your child's class—Market Power in the New Economy. If you don’t do what I say, it will cost the life of the person you love most.”
"Who is this? What do you want from me?”
"I’m the person who’s going to kill your child if you don’t do what I say. In two days, you’re heading to Pines & Quill writing retreat. While there, you will frame Sean McPherson for murder.”
"Frame someone for murder? What do you mean?”
"No, not just someone. You’re going to frame Sean McPherson. You’re going to kill one of the other writers in residence. I don’t care which one, nor do I care how you do it. You’re a crime writer. Figure it out. You arrive at Pines & Quill on October first and leave on the twenty-first. You have three weeks to accomplish the task.”
Illusionist should suit mystery and suspense readers who favor elaborate criminal traps over straightforward investigations. Its writing-retreat setting will be especially appealing to those intrigued by stories in which authors, creative work, and staged appearances become part of the danger rather than decorative background.
Established followers of Sean McPherson can return to his conflict with Georgio Gambino, while newcomers drawn to ensemble problem-solving may appreciate the unusual residents gathered at Pines & Quill. The combination of organized crime, divided loyalties, coercion, gang politics, and a magician whose identity is uncertain also makes this a strong match for readers who enjoy plots where every alliance carries a risk.
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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Illusionist builds its suspense around control: Gambino controls the threat, the coerced writer controls the immediate danger, and an illusionist may control what everyone believes they have witnessed. Against that design, Sean McPherson and the residents of Pines & Quill must create a countermove that depends on people whose professions seem unrelated until their particular talents become essential.
The premise makes this fifth series installment notable for more than its central mystery. It turns a place devoted to storytelling into contested ground where framing a convincing narrative could determine who survives—and whose version of events the world accepts.
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