Performing a background check on a prospective surrogate mother for childless tycoons Millicent and Stuart Colbert, detective John Marshall Tanner uncovers terrible secrets when the surrogate disappears two months into her pregnancy.

The first novel in Stephen Greenleaf's classic series featuring John Marshall Tanner, San Francisco ex-lawyer turned private detective.When her husband begins acting strangely, the wife of a famous legal crusader hires San Francisco P.I. John Marshall Tanner to find out why. Tanner is convinced the case is a simple matter of blackmail. Certainly a man like Roland Nelson has made his share of powerful enemies in a career devoted to exposing fraud and corruption among the mighty....

When SurfAir 617 crashes on its way from Los Angeles to San Francisco, the disaster touches many lives.For Alec Hawthorne, an internationally famous aviation lawyer, it means money - and the chance to fight once again for safety in the skies.For Keith Tollison, a small-time lawyer, the crash has a more personal implication; Jack Donahue, the husband of the woman Keith loves, was on board the plane.On Laura Donahue's behalf, the former friends reunite to take on the ...

Stone v. Stone, Finders v. Finders, Preston v. PrestonMareth Stone's comfortable life comes under threat when her wealthy husband unexpectedly files for divorce and full custody of their children.Disabled and poverty-stricken, Esther Preston finds her life in danger when she decides to sue her ex-husband for help with her medical bills.Young, pretty and badly battered, Lucinda Finders must leave the man she loves to save the life of her child.

When his friend, police lieutenant Charlie Sleet, breaks into sudden acts of violence, San Francisco PI John Marshall must unearth the repressed memories at the heart Charlie’s corruption and vigilantism to put an end to the killing.

Called in to help dying millionaire Maximilian Kottle locate his estranged son, P.I. John Marshall Tanner doesn't know what to expect.Soon Tanner is on a quest to find Karl Kottle, a former sixties radical and alleged murderer. As his search continues, Tanner encounters a host of potential clients, including a muckraking newspaper editor whose star investigative reporter may have finally gone too far...

There's no place like home...P.I. John Marshall Tanner returns home to the Midwest for the first time in thirty years to help decide the fate of his family farm. With his brothers and sister at loggerheads, tensions are running high.But family squabbles give way to suspicions when Tanner's nephew Billy is found hanging from a tree in the local park. The verdict is suicide, but Tanner doesn't believe that Billy took his own life and there is no lack of suspects for the crime...

He thought he knew everything about her... but someone knew more.Peggy Nettleton has been a loyal secretary to P.I. John Marshall Tanner for over eight years, and he thought he knew her well. But a mysterious phone caller, who threatens Peggy with mutilation if she doesn't tell him her most intimate secrets, seems to know her better.Tanner sets out to silence the caller once and for all in a violent, treacherous case that hits a little too close to home, uncovering secrets ...

Tom Crandall - war hero, social crusader and P.I. John Marshall Tanner's close friend - is discovered dead in an alley in San Francisco's sleazy Tenderloin district. The police call it suicide.But a cryptic answerphone message leads Tanner to suspect that Clarissa Crandall's affair with millionaire Richard Sands may have sealed her husband's fate.As he investigates his friend's death, Tanner turns up suspicious clues that lead to the city's vulnerable blood supply and to To...

When P.I. John Marshall Tanner is asked to act as bodyguard to glamorous novelist Chandelier Wells, he is initially hesitant. Tanner is inclined to think that Chandelier is exaggerating the danger posed by the anonymous death threats she has received.But when a car bomb kills Chandelier's driver, Tanner soon regrets his laid-back approach to the case.Chandelier writes romantic suspense novels, but her books take on tough issues; her new book attacks the cosmetics industry, ...

Publisher Bryce Chatterton receives a manuscript that has all the makings of a bestseller; brimming with sex, money and scandal, it's his last hope of keeping Periwinkle Press afloat. But there's one small problem - nobody knows who wrote it.P.I. John Marshall Tanner is called in to discover the author of the mysterious manuscript, but it soon becomes clear that he is in possession of an exposé that will blow the lid off some of San Francisco's most sordid secrets.In a race...

Recuperating in hospital from a near-fatal gunshot wound, P.I. John Marshall Tanner meets Rita Lombardi, a fellow patient recovering from life-changing surgery. Struggling with a deep depression, Tanner finds a friend and confidante in Rita.When Rita leaves the hospital, she and Tanner promise to stay in touch - but tragic events prevent a reunion. Rita is found murdered, killed by an unknown assailant.Determined to solve the mystery surrounding his friend's death, Tanner j...