Practice to Deceive is a 2013 true crime nonfiction book by the American author Ann Rule that details the murder of Russel Douglas, found shot between the eyes in his car on Whidbey Island, north of Seattle, Washington, the day after Christmas 2003.

The case takes nearly 10 years to solve, mostly due to the lack of physical evidence linking the scene of the crime or a weapon to anyone who knew Russel Douglas.

While the detectives considered a possible motive for Brenna, Douglas's estranged wife, a former law enforcement officer reveals that he has a Bersa semiautomatic gun that fits the description of the weapon the police were searching for, and that he had been asked to hold it by James Huden.

The book details Thomas's short and tempestuous marriage to Mark Allen, a wealthy rancher and co-owner of famed thoroughbred Mine That Bird.

In 1963, Mary Ellen Stackhouse, Jimmie's first wife, was brutally murdered in her home by Gilbert Thompson, a teenager who lived nearby.

[7] Kirkus Reviews wrote that "the reigning true-crime queen dips into the darker side of love and mayhem in her latest microscopic take on homicide.

"[8] At the same time, Kirkus wrote, "While the crime’s particulars might be fascinating to Whidbey (Washington) residents and friends of the participants, in Rule’s hands, they’re underwhelming and dull."

Reviewer Kathe Connair for StarTribune wrote, "Bestselling author Ann Rule falters in her latest book Practice to Deceive", noting that first-person asides "creep in toward the end of the book, including multiple, jarring references to the fact that Rule had to keep changing her plane tickets to accommodate new trial dates.