Edward Mark "Tedy" Merrill grows up in the deep South surrounded by friends, bicycles, and baseball cards. A series of troubling and defining events throughout his life lead him to the field of medicine, where he eventually settles into a lucrative position as a top plastic surgeon.But after becoming terribly disillusioned with the state of the health care system in the United States, he and his brilliant wife move to Paris, France, where they develop a lucrative Internet company based on what has become of the decimated American medical system.When Tedy meets the son of a former career diplomat, he and his wife are introduced to the violent world of the Russian Mafia. Tedy becomes deeply entangled in a dark underworld-ripped away from his medical roots and immersed in a dark, evil side of his psyche. As Tedy's involvement with the Russians deepens, they become more persistent, dedicated-and dangerous. He must find a way out. Or end up dead.A powerful psychological thriller, Perception as Reality: The Life and Times of Tedy Merrill is a sobering look at a life's accumulation of experiences-and their devastating consequences.