The Color of Greed (Raja Williams 1)

What do a private detective, a hacker and an assassin have in common? The desire to help when justice needs a hand.The Color of Greed introduces Raja Williams and his partner Vinny Moore. Neither the dark, tragic anti-hero nor the James Bond super-hero type, Raja Williams is a wealthy Oxford-educated PI of mixed Caribbean descent who possesses a strong empathic power and a sixth sense for evil that gives him headaches and steers him straight into trouble. His partner Vinny Moore is a gorgeous hipster geek who prefers hacking computers to haute couture.When the young husband of a wealthy heiress is found dead on his yacht floating off the California coastline, his death is ruled an accident and the case is closed. The grieving widow, certain her husband was murdered but getting no help from the police, turns to Raja Williams who has dedicated his resources to help those in need of justice. When Raja arrives in Los Angeles and more bodies begin to pile up, he suspects a cover-up that may go up as high as the governor. With the help of Vinny, Raja must unravel the case before everyone involved, including the two of them, winds up dead.A colorful cast of characters, great dialogue and a suspenseful, twisting plot make The Color of Greed an entertaining read.ReviewBook of the Month October 2012A Classic Thriller – Review by Mike SmithA few weeks ago I caught an old episode of the Rockford Files on one of the gazillion channels that we have these days and it took me back to the golden era of detective shows on TV: Ironsides, Columbo, Kojak. They don’t make ‘em like that any more … or do they?The Color Of Greed isn’t going to win the Booker prize, but I don’t suppose the author, Jack Thompson, had that in mind when he created his private investigator, Raja Williams. The story’s leading man is a wealthy, Oxford-educated philanthropist of Jamaican descent who tells it like it is, but, underneath the blunt exterior, he wants to catch the bad guys.Jack Thompson doesn’t stray far from the beaten track of the classic detective thriller: a rich heiress wants the death of her husband investigated but the police are denying that there was any evidence of foul play. Raja Williams takes the case – no payment required as he already has his own private jet and money to burn.In running e-thriller.com I get to read – or at least start – a number of books that follow this proven formula, but The Color Of Greed is well-written, has a good plot and the dialogue works. And yes, we would all like to be Raja Williams with a private jet and the ladies falling at our feet.Jack Thompson gives his readers what they want: a good plot with a central character painted in bold colours. Who loves ya, baby?! About the AuthorJack Thompson is a professional writer, finding voices in a number of different genres. So far he has written a wide variety, including children's stories, fairy tales, science fiction, paranormal romance, political thrillers and mystery detective stories.