The Heir Hunter - Hardcover

Larsgaard, Chris

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0385333633 ISBN 13: 9780385333634

Publisher: Delacorte Press, 2000

Synopsis

Nick Merchant is an heir hunter--a little-known species of private investigator who searches for a dead person's next of kin when no will exists, and collects a percentage of the estate. Gerald Jacobs is a reclusive millionaire, found dead in a creaky old house in upstate New York. His net worth: twenty-two million dollars. Nick and his beautiful partner, Alex Moreno, think they're about to score the payday of a lifetime.

Unfortunately, they've got some pretty stiff competition. A rival firm is doing its best to beat them to the punch. And someone else--someone who knows every dark secret in Gerald Jacobs's grave--will stop at nothing to see that no one ever breaks this case. Nick and Alex work against the clock, narrowly eluding their rivals, dodging bullets, and unearthing a history a lot of people would rather keep buried. Moving from San Francisco to New York City, from Geneva to Washington, D.C.--and dozens of points in between--they struggle to uncover the guilty secret behind a dead man's fortune.


Unfortunately, he's got some pretty stiff competition. Working with his partner (and former girlfriend) Alex Moreno, Nick races against the clock, narrowly eluding his rivals, dodging bullets, and unearthing a history a lot of people would rather keep buried. He and Alex, moving from San Francisco to New York, from Switzerland to Washington, D.C.--and dozens of points in between--struggle to uncover the guilty secret behind a dead man's fortune. -->

About this title

About the Author

Chris Larsgaard, a real-life heir hunter with more than a decade of experience on the job, lives in San Francisco. The Heir Hunter is his first novel.

From the Back Cover

"The Heir Hunter is original and cool. Larsgaard's debut is a masterly bit of suspense writing."
--The Denver Post

"The Heir Hunter is a labyrinth: one way in, a hundred unexpected twists, and only one way out. A very cool and fast-paced novel. If you like your fiction a thrill-a-page, hunt no further than Chris Larsgaard."
--David L. Robbins, author of War of the Rats

"Chris Larsgaard has combined a wonderfully original premise with his natural gift for characterization to create a truly memorable debut. I'm looking forward to his next one."
--Kyle Mills, author of Rising Phoenix and Free Fall

"In The Heir Hunter, Chris Larsgaard has created that most unusual thing--a truly original, utterly compelling thriller. Once you've plunged into the murky and mysterious world of Nick Merchant, first-class heir hunter, you won't come up for air until you've reached the final pulse-pounding page. This is a book you do not want to miss."
--William Bernhardt, author of Silent Justice

From the Inside Flap

t is an heir hunter--a little-known species of private investigator who searches for a dead person's next of kin when no will exists, and collects a percentage of the estate. Gerald Jacobs is a reclusive millionaire, found dead in a creaky old house in upstate New York. His net worth: twenty-two million dollars. Nick and his beautiful partner, Alex Moreno, think they're about to score the payday of a lifetime.

Unfortunately, they've got some pretty stiff competition. A rival firm is doing its best to beat them to the punch. And someone else--someone who knows every dark secret in Gerald Jacobs's grave--will stop at nothing to see that no one ever breaks this case. Nick and Alex work against the clock, narrowly eluding their rivals, dodging bullets, and unearthing a history a lot of people would rather keep buried. Moving from San Francisco to New York City, from Geneva to Washington, D.C.--and dozens of points in between--they struggle to uncover the guilty secret behind a dead man's for

Reviews

An unclaimed $22-million estate is up for grabs in first-time novelist Larsgaard's ingenious thriller. Sexy attorney Alex Moreno-the Albany, N.Y.-based partner to former cop Nick Merchant who now specializes in finding heirs to unsettled estates-slips a county deputy attorney a $10,000 bribe to get a sneak preview of four probate files 10 days before the official release date. One of the files contains the mind-boggling multimillion-dollar legacy of Gerald Jacobs, an 87-year-old Hudson, N.Y., recluse who died with no apparent heirs. Since Nick's customary finder's fee averages about 30%, this represents the proverbial jackpot. Unfortunately, there is absolutely no record of the deceased's life earlier than his final three years at the Hudson address, so leads for Nick and Alex are meager. Unaware of clandestine forces working to quash any probe into the dead man's background, the intrepid heir hunters stage a daylight burglary of Jacobs's residence, but are interrupted by a mysterious intruder who shoots a cop investigating the reported break-in. Accused of attempted murder, Nick follows sketchy clues obtained in the burglary and winds up in Germany, where he finds an old lover of Jacobs and learns that the mysterious retiree was part of the FBI's witness protection program. The plot thickens and the chase picks up speed as Nick investigates in Iowa and Geneva. Grim reminders of the Holocaust and Swiss bankers' collusion with the Nazis--plus a sobering look at federal agencies operating outside the law--are well drawn, as is an artful undercurrent of sexual tension. If one forgives a brief lapse in the middle of the story that gives a bit too much plot away, and sporadic missteps from the fledgling author's earnest tendency to overwrite, this fine debut oozes authenticity and provides a fascinating glimpse into the quixotic and dangerous realm of high-stakes "assets recovery." 20-city satellite tour. (Feb.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Peppy, satisfying by-the-numbers series debut about a globetrotting Nick-and-Nora duo (they had a fling in college, but the fire still smoulders) who locate missing, estranged, or unknown heirs in exchange for a percentage of the bequest. Nick Merchant is in San Francisco, Alexandra Moreno is in New York. They can do all the standard p.i. shtick: bend or break laws; get chased, shot at, beaten up; spend lots of time and money traveling; talk tough to guys in suits; and even discover whos been naughty or nicejust so piles of money can go to the right folks. We first meet Nick, a typical good-natured, good- looking action-hero-manqu, surprising needy, long-lost relatives who can barely remember the deceased, with a $60,000 inheritance. Kind of like working for the Publishers Clearing House Sweepstakes, Nick muses. After the papers are signed, Nick and moderately sleazy Doug Spinetti pocket 20 percent, which, Spinetti reminds Nick, might as well be charity work. Nick's father Joe started this line of business, but died under mysterious circumstances. Nick is also wondering how to make ends meet when Alex bribes a New York deputy attorney general to get a peek at a $22 million estate listing belonging to the freshly dead Gerald Jacobs. That much money shakes all kinds of neer-do-wells out of the woodwork, starting with the reptilian Lawrence Castleton, founder of Nick's competition, the hugely efficient General Inquiry. The thoroughly ruthless Castleton may also know why Nick's father was killed. Ambitious FBI assistant director Arthur Gordon is miffed that Jacobs was murdered while in the FBI's Witness Protection Program and puts his best agents on the case. Add to this a pair of homicidal hoods looking for incriminating photos that Jacobs hid, along with other assorted plot-thickeners: smuggled Nazi loot, a corrupt congressman, and a courtroom filing deadline after which the money will be taxed into oblivion. A new crease in the conventional p.i. trenchcoat, with plenty of hair-raising escapes, nasty violence, and snarling villains. (Radio satellite tour) -- Copyright ©2000, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

In his first novel, Larsgaard sets up an interesting premise and follows through with a gripping story. Like the author, protagonist Nick Merchant is a private investigator who specializes in finding heirs to unclaimed estates. Facing stiff competition, he sends his East Coast partner, Alex Moreno, to bribe a county bureaucrat in Hudson, NY, to get an early look at probate files. To their astonishment, Nick and Alex find themselves holding the first clues to an estate worth $22 million. As they begin their hunt, they realize that matters are not going to be as straightforward as they would like. They're up against competitors, the FBI, and possible assassins in a search that takes them from New York to Switzerland. Although at times it is difficult to keep track of the various factions, the novel's fast pace and interesting details more than compensate. Recommended for public libraries.
-Jane Jorgenson, Madison P.L., WI
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Nick Merchant is the head of a San Francisco PI agency that specializes in conducting searches for estates filed without a known heir. Heir hunter Merchant is partnered with Alex Moreno, a former lover who manages the agency's East Coast operation from Albany, New York. The pair find themselves in over their heads in the matter of Gerald Jacobs, whose $22 million estate has attracted the interest of all variety of unsavory characters, including the FBI, which hopes to keep the estate out of the limelight since Jacobs was in the witness protection program. Fleeing across country, and eventually overseas, Merchant and Moreno begin to uncover a story of international money laundering and governmental conspiracy that reaches the White House. The plot requires considerable suspension of belief, especially regarding the omnipresent bad guys chasing the heroes. Still, first-novelist Larsgaard, himself an heir hunter, keeps things moving and does a good job with character development. Finally, this novel will appeal to those able to accept the paranoid atmosphere. Gary Niebuhr

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

The pivotal moment of the negotiation had arrived, the point in the dialogue when pen was poised over contract. Nick Merchant studied his latest clients and felt his pulse drum at his temples. They were simple people, probably possessing no learning beyond the ninth grade, if that. They sat across from him--Emma McClure in her faded floral dress and house slippers, and her son, a greasy, yellow-toothed biker named J.P. They huddled on their worn living room couch looking like two expectant parents. Nick expected their reaction to his forthcoming disclosure to be on a par with being told they held the winning lottery ticket.

"Do you have any further questions, Mrs. McClure?"

"I can't think of any."

Nick leaned over the table and pointed to the blank line that read Client. J.P. looked over his mother's shoulder.

"Sign it, Momma."

"Quiet, J.P."

"He wants you to sign it."

"I told you to hush, boy!" she hissed. "Don't you be hanging over me like a vulture when I'm tryin' to think."

Nick searched his mental data bank for the few properly placed words that would sway Emma McClure to give her autograph. Twelve thousand dollars hovered like the horseflies buzzing in the stagnant air of the McClure shack. He leaned forward and tried to speak soothingly. "You seem a bit unsure, Mrs. McClure. Is something unclear?"

"Well, it's just that . . . well, things like this don't usually happen around here."

"I understand," said Nick, with a smile. "I know this all seems a little strange. Do you have a copy of the yellow pages by chance? I'd like to show you something which may reassure you."

J.P. rose from the couch at his mother's prompting and returned with the phone book. Nick took it and flipped through it till he came to the heading Private Investigators.

"Here we are--Merchant and Associates. Our firm is a completely legitimate, family-owned business. We've been licensed by the state of California as private investigators for the last twelve years now. Our reputation in the field is excellent. If you'd like to check into us, you can call the local Better Business Bureau. I'm sure they would be happy to tell you all about us. I encourage you to do that if it will ease your mind."

"He's bein' honest, Momma," begged J.P., his voice almost frantic.

"You pipe down!" she snapped. She turned to Nick. "I don't think I'll be needing to call 'em. I believe I can trust you, Mr. Merchant. You say your family owns this business?"

Nick shifted in his chair a bit. He didn't want to lie to the old woman, but he felt it was best to shield her from the complete truth. "My father started the company, ma'am. He retired four years ago."

Emma looked over at her son. "I suppose a family-owned business couldn't be all bad, huh, J.P.?"

"Sure," replied J.P., happy to agree.

Nick nodded earnestly. "Ma'am, I promise you--there's nothing to be worried about. I wouldn't come into your home and lie to you. I guarantee you'll be very happy once you sign." He directed her gaze to the line requiring her endorsement.

Mrs. McClure frowned. Her life had never been complicated by important matters such as this, but Nick Merchant had a boyish, honest face, and even though she hadn't been brave enough to admit to him that she didn't really understand half the things he had explained to her that past half hour, she did feel that she could trust him. She gave J.P. one last uncertain look and, seeing nothing but encouragement on his face, scrawled her signature across the line. She handed Nick the contract and his pen and sighed.

Nick glanced over the signature and felt his saliva glands finally start working again. "Thank you, Mrs. McClure, and congratulations. This is a happy day for the two of you." He placed the contract into the folds of his portfolio. "I'd like to give you the details on your inheritance now."

"I'd appreciate that."

"The money is coming from your uncle, Andrew Thomas Galloway." He paused, gauging her reaction.

"My goodness," she stammered. "I . . . I don't-"

"My research indicates that you probably never even met him."

"You know, I never did, but my mother mentioned him a few times when she was alive. They had some sort of a feud goin'. Hadn't spoken to each other since the sixties."

Nick frowned sympathetically. Company research indicated that Andrew Galloway had not spoken to Emma McClure's mother since 1958. His research had uncovered more than dates, though. Andrew Galloway was actually a borderline psychotic with an unnatural attraction to young boys. But there was no need to bring out the darker side of his findings.

"Your uncle had been living up north in Placerville. He died about six weeks ago."

"And he remembered me in his will?"

"Actually he died without a will. When an individual dies without a will in California, the laws of inheritance are based on genealogy. Bloodlines. You're his closest living relative, so you get the entire proceeds of his estate."

"How much?" asked J.P., his entire body tensed.

"Brace yourselves, okay?" said Nick, breaking into a smile now.

"There was slightly more than sixty-three thousand dollars in his bank accounts. That's the entire value of the estate. Congratulations."

Mother and son remained motionless, and Nick could read no reaction until J.P.'s yellow grin spread across his face like a hairline fracture in glass.

"Sweet Jesus," said Emma, fanning herself with a magazine.

"It's all yours now, folks."

"Sixty-three thousand!" shouted J.P., rising to his feet.

Nick focused on Emma McClure. He was more concerned with the heir's reaction.

"I can't believe this," she muttered, her head in her hands.

"I'm happy to say it's true, ma'am. Let me tell you how it'll work: My attorney will arrange a court hearing where we'll ask the court to release your uncle's money. Once they okay our petition, it'll take about five or six weeks for my attorney to receive the checks from the county and send you your portion."

"And then you'll mail me the money?"

"I'll deliver it to you personally. The county will mail my attorney two checks--one for your portion, the other for my company fee. As soon as my attorney gets the checks, I intend to drive back down here and hand you your portion myself."

"I appreciate that."

Nick reached into his coat pocket. "I want you to have my card, also my attorney's card, and a copy of the contract you've signed. Be sure to keep that in a safe place." He closed and latched his briefcase. "If you have no more questions, I'll need to be on my way, but please feel free to call me anytime at my office if you feel the need. My number's right there on the card."

She smiled at him, misty-eyed. "This is a godsend--a godsend, Mr. Merchant. Do you know how long I've wanted to patch the roof here? I . . . I just can't . . ."

The words were lost. She stood and took a step toward him, her arms extended. Nick blushed a bit as she gave him a quick hug.

"I'm happy to bring you the news," he said, smiling. "I'm sure you'll put the money to good use."

"Oh, we will, won't we, J.P.?" she replied, dabbing at her eyes. J.P. beamed.

"Thank you again, ma'am. Remember--any questions, you call me." She nodded and Nick said goodbye.

Edition details

• Publisher: Delacorte Press
• Publication date: 2000
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0385333633
• ISBN 13: 9780385333634
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 368