The Alchemist - Hardcover

Goddard, Kenneth

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0593010124 ISBN 13: 9780593010129

Publisher: TBS The Book Service Ltd, 1986

Synopsis

They are called designer drugs, and they're worse than lethal--they're legal. A beautiful undercover agent and her partner are brutally murdered in Southern California. A special task force of highly trained police officers go underground to find out why. What they discover is a billion-dollar criminal conspiracy--and an elusive mastermind known as the Alchemist. The Alchemist is a respected chemist who has conjured up a substance worth its weight in gold: a synthetic "designer" drug as potent as cocaine or heroin and twice as dangerous--because its unique chemical formula is perfectly legal! Caught in the crossfire between a desperate Mafia chief and two ruthless drug lords, the task force must step outside the law to crush the impending crime war, risking being lured so far out from behind the protection of their badges that there is no turning back.

About this title

Review

"Goddard's prose has sheer explosive energy and it seems clear that he has a long and successful career ahead of him."--Eric Lustbader"Tense...fast...violent...entirely plausible, because of Goddard's brutal attention to detail and police procedure."--"San Diego Tribune""Cleverly plotted. . .Things happen and scenes shift at breakneck speed."--"The Washington Post Book World"

From the Author

The book my Mom would just a soon you didn't read.
The story of The Alchemist came out of my early work as a deputy sheriff/criminalist (forensic scientist) at the San BernardioCounty (CA) Sheriff's Department, where I volunteered to pose as a dope chemist to infiltrate an underground drug lab (never said I was smart) ... and went to my old organic chemistry professor at UCR for technical help (same comment applies). At the time, I had no idea how much my professor actually knew about making drugs ... especially of the designer variety. But I sure found out ... which led to a scary part of my law enforcement career, and, ultimately, The Alchemist. But why would any of this upset my New England raised Mom, you ask? [she already knew I was prone to doing stupid things as a kid]. Well, at the SBSO, the narcotics detail was actually --- and more appropriately --- titled Vice/Narcotics. And boy, did I ever get an education! More info at: members.aol.com/kengoddard/kenhome.htm

Edition details

• Publisher: TBS The Book Service Ltd
• Publication date: 1986
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0593010124
• ISBN 13: 9780593010129
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 416