Middleman

Times are tough for `middleman' Julian Corbett.
He operates as a half-respectable, half-crooked businessman in what was once the rough dockside of the Welsh capital. But a multi-billion pound redevelopment is transforming the seafront into the stylish Cardiff Bay marina-style housing and shopping area, and Corbett is determined to grab a piece of that action.
At first, Corbett thinks the opportunity to help shady developer Sid Hyson dispose of his lakeside casino/hotel/nursing home complex is his road to riches, but he soon realises that all is not well. Hyson is suddenly worried the sea might come flooding in and before that happens wants to `liquidate' his assets. But 200 million pounds isn't chicken-feed and potential buyers are asking awkward questions.
Time soon starts to run out for Corbett and he knows that if he doesn't find an acceptable buyer - and quick - he's as good as dead. The body of one failed `middleman' has already been washed up on a nearby beach. Then Corbett realises he's negotiating with people twice as ruthless as Sid Hyson.

Bill James offers a stand-alone, Middleman, the tawdry if wryly amusing tale of a small-time Welsh operator who runs into trouble when he agrees to help a crooked real-estate developer sell an expensive property on the Cardiff waterfront. James is the author of Pay Days and other titles in his acclaimed Harpur & Iles series.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.