Ridley Pearson has written quite a few books. The main character in some of the books is Seattle Police detective Lou Boldt. The latest Pearson novel also has Lou Boldt as the lead character. The name of the book is The First Victim. It was published by Hyperion and copyrighted in 1999.

In one of the lesser bays in Puget Sound a ship called Visage is experiencing a lot of problems. The end result is a cargo container is set adrift. When other ships come by to check out the container, they find it full of illegal aliens. There are three women who died and nine others who are malnourished and scared. These women were Chinese. Where did they come from and where were they going?

Lou Boldt steps into the investigation. He is now the Lieutenant in charge of the Seattle PD's Crimes Against Persons squad. Lou and two of his squad, John LaMoia and Bobbie Gaynes, go to the shipping yard where the container has been brought in. They run afoul of a Customs official, Brian Coughlie.
It seems that Customs wants to control the investigation. Lou and his CAP squad have a thing or two to say about that.

As the police and Custom officials are investigating the illegals from the container, someone else is checking out others. Stevie McNeal is the star news anchor for a local television station. She has biting commentary and has intense investigative stories. Stevie has an assistant named Melissa Chow. Stevie's family had adopted Melissa when she was a child. Stevie calls Melissa her "Little Sister." They are hot on the trail of a scam to sell blank Driver's licenses to illegal aliens. Stevie sends Melissa undercover to get the scoop.

As Boldt tries to find out who was responsible for the illegals, he runs up against a woman who controls a lot of the Chinese organized crime in the Seattle area. Lou wants her to help him find the people who are behind the whole thing. Is Mama Lu the kingpin of the illegal alien smuggling or is she just caught in the middle? And as the investigative reporting heats up, Melissa disappears.

Stevie tries to enlist the help of the police in locating Melissa. Through a series of events, both Stevie and the police trace Melissa's last movements. It is a race against time to find Melissa before something bad happens to her. And in finding Melissa, the investigation might reveal who the bad guys are.

The First Victim is a great addition to the Lou Boldt series. It has just the right amount of surprise to keep you guessing and enough drama to make you come back for more.

Copyright © 2000 Bruce E. Von Stiers