Deadly Impressions by Art Johnson

Author Art Johnson describes “Deadly Impressions”:
FBI special Agent Chris Clarke and his partner Carlos “Chubbs” Gonzales are off to Los Angeles to investigate the kidnapping of a twenty-four year old heiress. Her grandfather, multi-billionaire Ezekiel Fick, who has the President of the United States on speed-dial, cracks the whip over the Mayor of Los Angeles, which puts L.A. Police Chief Fergus McCreary on the hot seat to find Stephanie Fick--and fast.
After organizing the departmental investigation, Chief Mac goes behind closed doors to call in Arnold Blackburn, an ex-LAPD Lieutenant recently booted off the force who is now a Private Detective in L.A. County. Arney Blackburn has respect from both sides of the law which gives him access to information the LAPD isn’t privy to.
But her abductors won’t follow the rule book. A week goes by and yet no ransom is demanded. Why was she kidnapped if not for money? Is her grandfather’s Swiss/German background and the fact that his uncle was a key architect under the wing of Adolph Hitler during World War II giving this crime a political slant? To what degree are some of Hollywood’s most famous involved; especially those who had relatives in Europe during the war whose art collections were confiscated by the Nazi regime?
How do Victor Gastaldi, one of L.A.’s most prominent drug Czars, and Danny Ballantyne, a Chicago gangster, fit in?
What do thirteen un-cataloged paintings by a French Impressionist have to do with the outcome? Deadly Impressions asks hard questions about the past and the answers will dictate who lives and who doesn’t.
With Arney in tow, Chris and Chubbs make their way through the murky waters of Hollywood to find clues which don’t connect until the very end. The action travels to Cannes, France, Monaco and Tunisia with all roads leading back to L.A. as the conclusion smacks you in the face like a wet boxing glove in the dark. You won’t see this one coming, you can bet on that!

Art isn’t kidding! The end is a complete surprise. But no spoiler here.
Deadly Impressions is like a roller coaster in the dark! The plot twists appear out of nowhere and it is impossible to tell who is pulling the strings. I love the characters Art has created, they live and breathe just like us and they seem so real.
Did I mention how much I enjoyed this book? The descriptions of locations are wonderful and very realistic. I am a big fan of Arney’s hobby also. Whoops, I almost gave it away.
I give Deadly Impressions 4.6 of 5 stars!

Deadly Impressions is available:
https://www.amazon.com/Deadly-Impressions
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Deadly-Impressions
https://www.goodreads.com/deadly-impressions
 
You can follow Art:
https://twitter.com/artjohnson18 

​Copyright © 2016 Mark L Schultz except for the author's introduction ​