This is a book about the lies we tell ourselves, and Giannetti approaches his subject by intriguing routes. In the natural world, he surveys the art of deception such as orchids simulating female insects to trick the males. He considers chemical deception introduced into the body by drugs. He assesses the role of self-deception in individual acts of daring and the degree of self-interest we hide from ourselves but are very ready to spot in others. Of profound interest is the paradox which allows one part of the mind to lie to another which Giannetti weighs up from an ethical point of view as it reflects on the individual and impacts on society.