The stronghold of white-collar crime in the rarefied world of high financeÏthis is the setting for Peter Spiegelman's edgy, suspenseful, sharply-honed debut novel.

At the center: John March, who walked away from his family's venerable merchant bank for the life of a rural deputy sheriffÏa life that would explode in personal tragedy and professional disaster. Three years later, he's back in Manhattan, working as a PI and running from his grief and the expectations of his wealthy family.

March takes the case of Rick Pierro, a self-made man who has everythingÏand who's in danger of losing it all. An anonymous, poisonous threat has implicated him in a vast money-laundering scheme already under investigation by the feds.

March's own investigation uncovers a blood-stained paper trail that leads him deep into the lives of both insiders and outcasts on the street. He discovers that his client may be the latest victim of a serial extortionist diabolically adept at psychological and physical intimidation, but the more March learns the more questions he has about Pierro, his wife, and the secrets hidden beneath the glossy surfaces of their lives. And the more he begins to fear that his own blood will be added to the trail before the case is closed.

With its headlong narrative, quick, incisive language, and brilliantly clarified details of financeÏthe legal and the illegalÏBlack Maps is a stunning first novel.