The jogger bobbed by his car. Same time every day on the way to work, she was more of an eyeopener than his morning black coffee. A man passed her this morning running in the other direction, he turned and began to chase her under the bridge. Nicholas Tartaglia, Private Investigator jumped from his car, only pausing long enough to grapple under the seat for his gun, but couldn't find it. He stranded his car in the road and ran toward the screaming woman. He confronted the man straddled over her and found two other brutes eyeing him. He battled with the larger man attacking the woman as one of the other assailants jumped him. Nick pummeled the men. The smallest man ran off as police sirens pealed.
Nick thought this morning couldn't get worse. Arriving at his office at Safehouse Investigatons, he found a young woman seated in front of his desk. Darla begged for his help. The cult would sacrifice a young girl on Halloween night just like they murdered me last October. My mother was going to contact you. "My mother was the only person you ever truly loved."
Nick confronted with the idea of a ghost appearing in his office thought his boss Ned Baxter was playing a trick. But as time passed, he realized no one could play so sophisticated of a prank.
Caring, compassionate Nick will need to face his spirituality as he finds Darla is what she says she is, dead. She was the daughter of his high school sweetheart, Karis Bristol. Seeing her made him realize he still loved Karis. Chinks in Nick's self-confidence appear as three women show interest in a man that has had no love interest for ages.
As Nick investigates Darla's death, through information from his brother-in-law, homicide detective Tommy Cerio, Nick finds she overdosed on liquid cocaine and DOM, a drug nicknamed tranquility. The story takes him into a satanic cult on college known as Tenth House - a world of unnatural *** and drugs. "The Tenth House is like a constellation. You know, star clusters studied by astrologers and astronomers. It is said that anyone born under this sign is the devil."
Phillip Tomasso's supernatural tale develops three-dimensional characters for a different style of detective series. One where the unexpected prevails. This first story in a series of Nicholas Tartaglia thrillers is not for the meek reader. Stay alert for the surprise killer as the book builds to a fiery ending. Tomasso's previous writings include the critically acclaimed thriller, Mind Play, and more than thirty short stories and articles. He is currently writing the script for a digitally animated sequel of Raven and the next Tartaglia thriller.
[...] © 2001, N. B. Leake, Reviewer All Rights Reserved