About the Book

Meet Preston “Presto” Kane, freelance writer, former newspaper reporter, and part-time researcher for a Pacific Grove private investigator. When Presto is assigned to ferret out background information on the upcoming auction of a legendary gem, it all seems part of a normal day’s work—until a young woman turns up dead in Presto’s shower and he’s the prime suspect. Suddenly Presto is a man with a target on his back—the grand prize in a cat-and-mouse game played out in renowned locales throughout the Monterey Peninsula, from Pacific Grove’s quaint cottages to the mansions in Carmel Highlands and beyond.

Even though Presto’s favorite weapon is his wry wit, he is forced to learn to shoot straight and drive like Mario Andretti as he eludes his pursuers and digs for the truth. The stakes ratchet up with players ranging from old money families to a crooked cop, Hollywood wannabes, and a feuding pair of high-tech moguls—all against the fog-shrouded backdrop of the world-famous Monterey Peninsula.

About the Author

Jeffrey Whitmore is a novelist, screenwriter, journalist, encyclopedia book editor, and magazine editor. Under the pseudonym Sterling Johnson, he wrote Dangerous Knaves and the St. Martin’s Press best-selling humor book English as a Second F*cking Language. Under the pseudonym Prescott Hill, he wrote more than thirty books for young readers, from original fiction, non-fiction, and adaptations of classics.