BALTIMORE BLUES

When neophyte Baltimore private eye Lowell Ransom learns that the man he is tailing is not cheating on his wife as suspected, but rather moonlighting in the factory where he works, altering (though he doesn't know why) circuit boards used in jet fighters, Ransom sees a chance to make some quick money. This streak of avarice sets him apart from most of his fictional brethren—who are usually driven by more noble aims—and establishes the tone for Moler's fast-paced first thriller. Ransom needs the money to convince his estranged wife that his new endeavors can be profitable, and soon convinces Walter Samski, the hard-drinking fellow West Virginian he has been following, to join with him in an effort to determine why the boards are being altered and, more importantly from a financial standpoint, who is behind it. But once the investigation is underway, everyone Ransom approaches about the case ends up immediately—and violently—dead. In too deep to stop, he has to call on some old friends for support: a former Vietnam buddy turned Zen millionaire and a Vietnam draft-dodger turned munitions purveyor—both among the three least believable but most memorable characters here (the third is a strikingly beautiful young woman whose not-quite-gratuitous appearances are marked by her constant states of advanced nakedness and penchant for talking dirty). The trail eventually leads to a sleazy Congressman and a Watergate-era villain who worked for (and now sounds, looks, and acts like) Spiro Agnew, amidst some reasonably believable derring-do—at least until the ending, which is one of those bloody extravaganzas that are somehow overlooked by the police and other authorities. A pretty solid debut, overall; readers who enjoy the contemporary hard-boiled adventure will welcome Ransom and associates to the ranks.