Newport Beach private eye Matt Murdock returns (Murdock for Hire) in a complex and gritty story highlighted by Bruce Halliburton who hires Murdock to look into the death of an Orange County businessman who had tripled the value of his insurance four months before his death in a car crash. When similar cases come to light, indicating that the businessmen involved might be living on after their deaths, Murdock suspects a vast conspiracy he coyly starts to think of as "Death Inc." But amusement ceases when he and Roxanne Mendez-Madrid, one of the apparent widows, confront the hidden conspiracy and discover the extent of its many resources. Insurance investigator Bruce Halliburton checks into what he suspects is a faked death and winds up on LA's Huntington Beach, dead for real. That leaves Roxanne, the lovely widow Bruce was the same Roxanne whose chubby husband, Emiliano Mendez-Madrid, died of a heart attack after insuring his life ten times over. How is Roxanne Mendez-Madrid connected to Claude Belker, the subject of Bruce's investigation? Claude is also officially "deceased," and he's one of several heavily insured, supposedly dead rich guys. Then there's Claude's girlfriend--Mary-Sue, aka Sheena, a glossy exotic dancer .... Who knows what about the case? What's Roxanne up to? Roxanne hires Matt to keep her safe. Now he smells trouble. If he falls too hard for the widow and connects all the dots, he might just end up decorated with a line of lead like his old pal Bruce. Ray's well-wrought consideration of what can happen to those overtaken by "greedy little-boy dreams" will leave readers eager for the next Murdock adventure. Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. Hand Signed by the Author. #hardcover#mystery#newportbeach#orangecounty#detective#collector#reader#hardtofind#gift#authorsigned