Risk Factor

"The perfect substitute for that good-time trip to California you''ve decided not to take after all."

—Kirkus Reviews

A new breed of brazen criminal forces Buddy Steel into unfamiliar territory. Will he outsmart the ingenious thieves before they get the best of him?

Buddy Steel, acting Sheriff of Freedom, California, is enjoying some well-deserved R&R at a friend''s mountain hideaway when he''s called home to investigate a home invasion—at his father''s address. The break-in is just one in a series, perpetrated by ingeniously inventive burglars. To complicate matters, Buddy must also investigate a spate of cyber crimes targeting local businesses and individuals—an area well outside of his experience and comfort zone.

Already on the trail of the cybercriminals is LAPD Gang Enforcement''s foremost computer geek, Detective Quinn Anthony. Buddy teams up with the unconventional—and much younger—brainiac to trace the convoluted trail of the hackers. From the adjunct of a vicious LA-based cartel to outside of U.S. borders, Buddy and Quinn race to take down the hackers and recover the spoils. The closer they get, the more danger they face; and the more danger they face, the closer they become...

Fans of Michael Connelly''s Harry Bosch have a new detective series to fall in love with from Michael Brandman—Hollywood screenwriter and contributing New York Times bestselling author in the Robert B. Parker Jessie Stone series.

Also by Michael Brandman:

The Buddy Steel Thrillers:

Missing Persons, book 1

One on One, book 2

Wild Card, book 3

The Jesse Stone Novels:

Robert B. Parker''s Fool Me Twice

Robert B. Parker''s Killing the Blues

Robert B. Parker''s Damned if You Do