PAREIDOLIA
Illusions, Deceptions, and Murder
by J. Herman Kleiger
November 23, 2026 – January 1, 2027 Virtual Book Tour
Synopsis:
A Nicola Kitts Psychological Thriller
What if the greatest danger isn’t a killer in the shadows—but your inability to trust your own mind?
Former FBI agent Nicola Kitts has lost everything.
Disgraced by scandal, haunted by combat trauma, drowning in guilt and grief, and on the verge of ending her life, Kitts receives a desperate late-night phone call: her only friend Carmine has vanished. With nothing left to lose, she drives through a violent storm to find him.
But when she arrives, the world tilts beneath her feet, leaving her stranded in a murk of confusion and mounting terror.
From acclaimed psychologist and novelist J. Herman Kleiger comes a gripping psychological thriller that explores trauma, loss, redemption, and the fragile line between illusion and reality. Filled with haunting and haunted characters, razor-sharp dialogue, and relentless suspense, Pareidolia asks a haunting question:
When you can no longer trust what you see, how do you uncover the truth?
As people begin dying and buried secrets surface, Kitts must confront the one thing she fears most: the possibility that her own mind can no longer be trusted.
Perfect for readers of Tana French, Gillian Flynn, Michael Connelly, and psychological crime thrillers that blend emotional depth with edge-of-your-seat suspense.
Praise for PAREIDOLIA:
“Pareidolia is a bombshell of a psychological thriller, the third in J. Herman Kleiger’s mesmerizing, wonderfully written series. A nightmare in a house of mirrors—where what is real or a deepfake, who is dead, innocent, or guilty, are impossible to distinguish.”
~ Sheila Sharpe, PhD, author of Locked in a Box and Artist, Lover, Forger, Thief
“A brave, gripping, and wonderfully written story with a rich cast of characters who will have you racing through the pages well into the night.”
~ Graham Bartlett, Police Procedural Advisor and Author, The Jo Howe Detective Series
“Pareidolia offers readers a suspenseful plot, crisp dialogue, and haunted and haunting characters. Like his earlier fiction, Pareidolia is a story of trauma, grief, and the crucible of healing, instructing and delighting its readers, as all powerful art does.”
~ Jeffrey Berman, Ph. D. is a Distinguished Teaching Professor at the University of Albany, UNYSA. He is the author of over 20 books, including Clinical Fictions: Psychoanalytic Novelists and Short Story Writers
“A wickedly absorbing mind-bender where seeing is anything but believing… The busy plot sometimes requires careful attention, but brisk dialogue, dark humor, strong character interplay, and steady suspense keep things moving. Kleiger also gives the darkness a welcome human core: beneath the deception and danger is a bruising story about friendship, grief, and finding reasons to keep going. Fans of dark, character-driven mysteries should find Kitts hard to forget.”
~ The Prairies Book Review
Book Details:
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Published by: Munn Avenue Press
Publication Date: August 31, 2026
Number of Pages: 305, HC
ISBN: 9781969679612 (ISBN10: 1969679611), HC
Series: Nicola Kitts Psychological Thriller, Book 3
Book Links: Amazon | Kindle | Goodreads | BookBub
Author Bio:
Dr. James H. Kleiger is a diplomate in clinical and assessment psychology. A psychologist and former psychoanalyst in Bethesda, MD, Dr. Kleiger is the author of Disordered Thinking and The Rorschach (1999); Assessing Psychosis: A Clinician’s Guide (2015, 2024); Rorschach Assessment of Psychotic Phenomena (2017); and two edited volumes: The Psychological Assessment of Disordered Thinking and Perception (2021) and Bipolar Spectrum Disorders (2023). Writing under the name J. Herman Kleiger, Jim has published four novels: The 11th Inkblot (2019) and a psychological thriller series that includes Tears Are Only Water (2023), Whispers: A Tale of Madness, Betrayal, and Revenge (2025), and Pareidolia: Illusions, Deceptions, and Murder (2026).
Catch Up With J. Herman Kleiger:
JHermanKleiger.com
J. Herman Kleiger on Substack
Amazon Author Profile
Goodreads
BookBub
Instagram – @jhermankleiger
Threads – @jhermankleiger
LinkedIn
Facebook
Tour Participants:
Tour Host Info:
Book Formats: ePub, Print, KindleUnlimited
Hosting Options: Review, Showcase
Giveaway: There will be a tour-wide PICT Giveaway
More: According to the author PAREIDOLIA: ILLUSIONS, DECEPTIONS, AND MURDER is considered to be R-level content or less. Readers may still encounter potentially sensitive material. If you have specific trigger or content concerns, please contact Partners in Crime Tours directly for more detailed information.
