WINSTON-SALEM, N.C., Jan. 30, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- Many financial and investment experts say that people make most of their wealth in the real estate game. Ex con Rick Spencer agrees. However, he's not buying; he's stealing. In the new novel, Borrowed Money (now available through 1stBooks), author Robert Shaver Martin spins a tale of mystery, deceit and romance surrounding this swindling criminal.
Rick Spencer thinks he has it all figured out. With a little help from his old cellmate, master forger Jimmy Watson, he's sure he can pull off his big real estate swindle and satisfy an unsavory crime family before they become impatient with him. His sights are set on the coastal village of Bayport, Maine and the neglected 1836 Chandler Mill he plans to turn into luxury condominiums. He has already convinced his feuding jet setting mother, Dorie Johanson, and his maiden aunt, Maddie Candler, to invest in the conversion. He has the secured financial support of local authorities, negotiated a multimillion dollar construction loan at Farnsworth Trust and hired a diverse, yet surprisingly skilled construction crew. His next step is to execute the legal documents and collect the ladies' 200,000 dollar investments.
Using bogus offers to purchase, forged bank statements and exaggerated vendor invoices, he plans to steal enough money to make the crime family happy and line his pockets with millions before destroying the evidence. However, nothing ever goes the way he plans. In another part of town, Allison Hart, a Boston art dealer, is on her way to pick up a valuable painting from Aunt Maddie. Struggling through the aftermath of a bitter divorce, Allison has no clue she's about to battle with Rick over a long lost treasure, find love and discover secrets in her past.
With plenty of mystery, romance and tension, Borrowed Money keeps readers engaged until the very last page.
Martin was educated at Duke University and Emory University. He has been a practicing real estate appraiser and consultant for more than 25 years and is the author of a number of industry books, courses and seminars. He loosely based part of the plot of Borrowed Money, his first book, on several events he has witnessed in the past.
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