Legal Thriller Exposes Legal Scams and Fraud

When business guide author Jack Payne came out of retirement for one last book--after fifty-five business books with over one million total sales--he expected it to be still another non-fiction work of little-known crimes business con men legally commit. But when Payne, the founder and first editor / publisher of Business Opportunities Digest, realized he was sitting on a pile of information that could incriminate more than a few American businesses, he decided to give his findings a fictional slant. The result is the new novel Six Hours Past Thursday(ISBN 1-59113-502-8, Impact Books, http://www.sixhrs.com), set for release on Christmas Day.

Although it is a novel, Six Hours Past Thursday is also a virtual encyclopedia of legal crime; indeed, that was the title Payne originally had in mind before changing tack. Woven into the story are explanations of such descriptions as unlisted and undervalued inventories, short selling, the smoke-and-mirrors inflating of the value of a business up for sale, collecting multiple fees, kickbacks and commissions from a single business transaction, and many other means of unethical--yet entirely legal--scams for profit. However, says Payne, his book certainly does not advocate the shell games it depicts.

"Being aware of such practices can only be helpful to anyone engaged in a business of any kind, for 'defensive mechanism' purposes," the author explained. "Six Hours Past Thursday will help equip readers to defend themselves from many of the commonly used types of legal crime out therein our big, ever ethically-challenged jungle of American Business."

Detailing under-the-table deals, kickbacks, now-you-see-it,now-you-don't escrow accounts, and many other forms of barely legal crime, Six Hours Past Thursday centers on the double life of Steve Draves. Draves, the devoted husband, father, respected business broker,enjoys a solid reputation in his community and a modest living as a small business owner. Under wraps, it turns out, Draves, the Martini-swilling con man, is worth millions, taking businesses for all they're worth while endlessly pursuing beautiful women. But his delicate balance of shady business practices, rampant sexual conquests and respectable family life begins to collapse after he gets involved with a mobster--and the mobster's daughter--leading to a price even Draves cannot afford to pay.

Kate St. Amour, reviewer, BookReview.com, writes, "Death of a Salesman character Willy Lohman has nothing on Jack Payne's loathsome,womanizing, dirty-dealing protagonist Steve Draves."

"...a gut-wrenching probe of the psyche," is the way retired publications guru, Lane Stevenson, puts it. "The innerworkings of the devious mind are stripped bare for all to see."

CONTACT:

Jack Payne,
Impact Books--through the Web Site:
http://sixhrs.com
(Read the first two Chapters and The Con Man's Handbook. Free.)
Order from: amazon.com
or your favorite book store