Noah Braddock considers himself a surfer first and a P.I. second, taking on cases to pay the bills. But the job becomes personal when Marilyn Crier hires Noah to find her missing daughter, Kate -- who just happens to be his high- school sweetheart. The couple was broken apart by her parents, who now reluctantly come to Noah for help. Noah finds Kate, but he's too late to save her and the missing- persons case turns into a murder investigation. As he discovers more about Kate's past, he finds that the golden girl he knew had become a troubled young woman. Haunted by "what ifs" and "might have beens," Noah will risk his own life to unravel the mystery behind Kate's final days and bring her killer to justice.

This surfer dude has more in common with Spenser than Spicolli -- smart, tough and a closet romantic beneath a wise-guy exterior. Hanging out with an assortment of unsavory and colorful characters, involved in a rocky relationship, surfing off the coast of San Diego to relax, Noah stands out amid the dozens of other P.I. stories on bookshelves today. I'm eagerly looking forward to his next adventure.