‘DIRTY DIAMONDS’ is about the plight of JASMINE LOUISE GRAY, a twenty three year old attractive woman, after she committed a jewelry heist in Oklahoma City.

She lured CARL HOPKINS, her unwanted lover and a skilled computer hacker, into stealing diamonds. Jamey accompanies Carl to the hotel where the courier, BOB EVANS was scheduled to spend the night. During the robbery, Carl was wounded, but manages to transfer the loot to Jamey, who escapes before the police arrive.

Jamey travels cross country to Los Angles where she spends a night with TINA RANDOLPH, her high school girlfriend who couldn’t keep a secret if her life depended on it. Jamey knew Carl would track her on the computer and contact Tina. So she feeds her friend a false story about how Carl abused her and she was heading into Mexico for a short vacation.

Jamey had no intention of going anywhere but to Medford, Oregon, where she’d
inherited a small cottage from her aunt. She planned to hide there until the heat blew over. When she leaves Tina’s, she destroys her credit cards and replaces them with ones that are printed with her alias, Jasmine Louise Schyler.

When she arrives in Medford, she meets Private Investigator, TOM CASEY, better known as ‘HAWKMAN’. She gets a job at Curly’s Bar & Grill and thinks about hiring Hawkman to protect her when someone follows her home from
work one night. But when Hawkman pumps her about personal information, she drops the idea.

REVIEW

They may be Dirty Diamonds but everyone wants to get their hands on them. So what is it that makes the diamonds so dirty, yet so desirable? In Oklahoma Carl Hopkins learns that a diamond courier is registered in the same hotel in which he and Jamey Cray are staying. Well, what's a respectable thief to do when he knows all those jewels are so close? Naturally, in order to maintain his reputation he's going to rob the courier, in spite of Jamey's trepidations. But things didn't go quite as smoothly as Carl expected. He knew he had given the courier a good, solid hit on the jaw with his brass knuckles, but the courier had a gun and on his way down from the blow managed to get off a shot that ripped through Carl's shoulder. Carl staggers back to his hotel room, shoves the little velvet bags at Jamey and tells her to get out, that he will be alright and will meet her at Rusty's Bar in Amamrillo, Texas, when this all blows over.

Jamey packs up and heads out of Oklahoma. She arrives in Amarillo and checks into a motel with her Visa card. She knows Carl is a computer expert and can track her trip easily on the computer through her use of the card. But wait. The next day she drives through Texas and heads straight for Los Angeles, California, to visit a high-school girl friend, Tina Randolph, with whom she has stayed in touch over the years. Wow, so long Carl, you've been taken, and not for a ride, just left, dropped, with nothing, nada, zilch, and in the hospital with a bullet wound. Jamey is not exactly honest with her lover.

When she arrives at Tina's in Los Angeles, she discovers that things are not all strawberries and cream with Tima either. Tina has a rather nasty tempered boy friend, Nick Albergetti. Jamey didn't stay at Tina's long enough to meet Nick so had no idea what he looked like. But she was there long enough to use his computer to plot out her next travel route. Her next stop is to be Medford, Oregon where she has a little house she inherited from her foster parents, the Schyler's. Mistake one, she should not have planned her route on Nick's computer.

In Medford she quickly becomes Jamey Louise Schyler, a name she knows Carl will not recognize. No one knows about her foster parents, nor does anyone know their name in connection with her. It is not something she talks about, even to her closest friends, nor to her lovers. She finds the house in Medford has been trashed by youths who have left remnants of their pot smoking all over the premises. While she is assessing the damage to the property a man approaches giving his name as Tom Casey, a private investigator who has been keeping an eye on the property. She, of course, informs him in no uncertain terms that he did a lousy job, and shows him all the roach clips and remnants of cigaretter,setc. that the kids had left in the house. Tom is very surprised to hear of the intrusion on her property and gives her his card and tells her to call him if she ever needs help.

After a couple of weeks Jamey is settled in, but is becoming bored, as well as discovering that she need some money. Someone told her about Curly's Bar & Grill. After a talk with Curly she is hired as a waitress, and is happier now that she is becoming acquainted with the town's people. This includes Tom Casey, otherwise known as Hawkman.

Curly has a son named Mark with whom Jamey becomes involved. At least that what Mark thinks.

Jamey is a very clever adversary, and quite adept at using people. And Mark makes a perfect victim and lover for her purposes. But Jamey runs into trouble when she tries to outsmart Nick Albergetti. He is one tough enemy that will not be wooed by her charms.

In this, the fourth Hawkman book of the series, Ms. La Pierre has written a smooth flowing suspense story in which Hawkman meets his cleverest adversary. And to make matters worse for Hawkman's ego it is a woman who seems to be outsmarting everyone. This does not set well with him, but he does hang in there to the end.

This is one of the best thought-out, cleverly-executed plots this reviewer has had the pleasure of reading in a long time. The writing flows perfectly, and the characters are alive and moving. One does associate with them. Ms. La Pierre's talent of coming up with superb plotting is one not to be rivaled. You will miss an excellent suspense story if you pass this one up.

Reviewed by: Shirley Truax from San Diego, California USA

EXCERPT

Carl took Jamey by the shoulders and looked into her eyes. “Okay. It’s almost time. Be ready to split the second I yell.”

She shivered and slumped down on the edge of the hotel bed.

He pulled the truck keys from his pocket and placed them in her hand. “You’ll do the driving. The cops won’t be looking for a woman.” He smiled as he leaned over and pecked her on the cheek. “Don’t be scared, baby. Everything’s going to be just fine.”

Opening the tote bag she’d dropped on the end of the bed, he removed a suit coat and pre-knotted tie. Shrugging into the jacket, he slipped the tie over his head and let it hang loose around his neck, giving the appearance he’d just come in from a party.

Keeping his gaze on Jamey, he reached into his pocket and withdrew a pair of brass knuckles. She tapped the tips of her painted nails across her lips as she watched him shove them over his fingers.

He cuffed her lightly on the chin and grinned. “Yes, sweetheart, I know how to fight. When you’re six foot two, you learn to use your brawn as well as your wit.” He glanced around the room and snatched the cell phone off the bureau. Dropping it into the tote, he handed her the bag. “Bring this with you. Be sure we don’t leave any evidence here.”

Trembling she slipped the handles over her arm.

“Hey, what’s the matter, sweetie, cat got your tongue?”

She shook her head. “No. Just a bit scared and nervous.”

Pulling her toward him, he planted a long sexy kiss on Jamey’s lips, then held her at arms length and winked. “We’ll celebrate when this is over. And if you think silk dresses and fake bangles around your wrist are pretty, just wait until you take a gander at the next ones we get.”