THE MOMENT OF TRUTH

This is a first novel, ambitiously and pretentiously titled, about some high voltage big business intrigue. Troy Wellman, assistant to the chief counsel of a billion dollar insurance company, is assigned to field check the account of the Andrian Construction Company. When Troy, ex-football player, ex-parachutist -- a Mike Hammer type in a grey flannel suit, discovers discrepancies in Andrian's books he unearths Jules Andrian's intricate looting operations, finds himself irrevocably involved with Andrian's ex-mistress -- the beautiful and brainy Cosima- and just manages to avoid a Mann Act charge drummed up by Andrian's secretary. In a free-swinging finale Troy and Cosima are confronted by a deranged and enraged Andrian who tries to kill Troy and kidnap Cosima. Abducted by Andrian, Cosima, hysterical, causes their car to crash, killing Andrian and inadvertently herself. Troy's minimum compensation: his big promotion with the Company. The outstanding peculiarity of this book, written in the first person, is the speech of all the characters which most often resembles inept private-eye fiction.