Mortal Pursuit (Michael Prescott)

Trish Robinson, a rookie Santa Barbara County patrol officer, responds with her partner, 20-year veteran Pete Wald, to a prowler call at the posh residence of criminal defense lawyer Charles and Barbara Kent. It's soon to be a night she won't ever forget.

What's envisioned to be a routine false alarm investigation turns out to be something quite tragic after all – murder, a potential rape, drowning. Trish makes her first arrest, but it sure isn't easy. She first has to escape, handcuffed, from the trunk of a police car sitting at the bottom of a lake.

We learn that Cain, the gang leader and someone from her past, had inside help. And we soon learn how and why. Unfortunately, Alison (Ally), the Kents' 11-year-old daughter, has seen Cain's face with its unforgettable scar and surely will be able to identify him.

Trish works her way back to the house and helps Ally escape, but they're trapped on the grounds. A deadly game of hide-and-seek in the house ends up outside as their quest for freedom jeopardizes Cain's $5-million payday.

Mortal Pursuit is exciting from the git-go. I guarantee it'll be hard for the reader to put the book down, even to do essential things like eating and sleeping.

Michael Prescott published Mortal Pursuit under his nom de plume, Brian Harper, in 1997, recently rereleasing it as a Kindle ebook under his true name.

Mortal Pursuit (1997)

Michael Prescott, writing as Brian Harper

Signet ($2.99 list, Kindle ebook edition)

ASIN: B004CLYO8W