Some truths are forged. Others are buried. All of them burn.
At 2:47 PM, a Louvre guard collapsed—blood streaming from his nose—as a priceless Vermeer blistered and cracked beneath the gallery lights. Beneath the paint, something impossible was revealed: a lie buried not just in the canvas, but in history itself.
For decades, renowned art authenticator Maximilian Devereaux has quietly shaped global politics through forgery—crafting perfect "masterpieces" used to influence diplomacy, shift alliances, and dismantle regimes. But when his former protégé begins exposing the forgeries from within, Maximilian’s empire of deception starts to unravel—and so does the fragile world order it helped uphold.
Renata Vail, an Interpol forensic investigator, has spent five years unraveling the conspiracy that destroyed her mother’s career and erased her from history. What she uncovers is more than art fraud: it’s Project PHOENIX—a covert operation embedding chemical compounds into forged artworks to manipulate public emotion and belief. For generations, paintings have been used to rewrite national narratives, redraw borders, and engineer regime change—without a single vote cast.
As global authentication systems collapse and Council operatives close in, Renata races from the catacombs beneath Romanian monasteries to high-stakes Geneva auctions, chasing encrypted metadata and buried signatures that could expose PHOENIX—and ignite worldwide chaos.
Legacy of Lies is an explosive international thriller where art isn'''t just culture—it’s weaponized history.
What happens when the truth becomes the most dangerous weapon of all?
Perfect for fans of:
Dan Brown’s Origin – for its fusion of art, science, and existential stakes
David Baldacci’s The Whole Truth – for its chilling look at perception warfare and media-driven influence
And anyone who devours conspiracy thrillers grounded in real-world plausibility, cultural manipulation, and legacy-driven suspense
Genre: Thriller
At 2:47 PM, a Louvre guard collapsed—blood streaming from his nose—as a priceless Vermeer blistered and cracked beneath the gallery lights. Beneath the paint, something impossible was revealed: a lie buried not just in the canvas, but in history itself.
For decades, renowned art authenticator Maximilian Devereaux has quietly shaped global politics through forgery—crafting perfect "masterpieces" used to influence diplomacy, shift alliances, and dismantle regimes. But when his former protégé begins exposing the forgeries from within, Maximilian’s empire of deception starts to unravel—and so does the fragile world order it helped uphold.
Renata Vail, an Interpol forensic investigator, has spent five years unraveling the conspiracy that destroyed her mother’s career and erased her from history. What she uncovers is more than art fraud: it’s Project PHOENIX—a covert operation embedding chemical compounds into forged artworks to manipulate public emotion and belief. For generations, paintings have been used to rewrite national narratives, redraw borders, and engineer regime change—without a single vote cast.
As global authentication systems collapse and Council operatives close in, Renata races from the catacombs beneath Romanian monasteries to high-stakes Geneva auctions, chasing encrypted metadata and buried signatures that could expose PHOENIX—and ignite worldwide chaos.
Legacy of Lies is an explosive international thriller where art isn'''t just culture—it’s weaponized history.
What happens when the truth becomes the most dangerous weapon of all?
Perfect for fans of:
Dan Brown’s Origin – for its fusion of art, science, and existential stakes
David Baldacci’s The Whole Truth – for its chilling look at perception warfare and media-driven influence
And anyone who devours conspiracy thrillers grounded in real-world plausibility, cultural manipulation, and legacy-driven suspense
Genre: Thriller
Used availability for K J McGillick's Legacy Of Lies