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Goldengirl by Peter Lovesey
Owner of the Dryden Merchandising Empire, Jack Dryden, is invited to a weekend at a tennis ranch, owned by one of his clients, Dick Armitage.
Figuring the chance of meeting another star tennis player in need of an agent, Dryden clears his calendar.
Instead, he meets Goldengirl.
A track runner. Daughter of Armitage's physiologist. Not what he was expecting at all.
Neither was he prepared for what was to come.
Adopted by Dr. Serafin and his wife at the age of three, Goldengirl was home-schooled and virtually segregated from children of her own age group.
Conditioned from an early age, and trained to within an inch of her life, Goldengirl's focus is on one thing and one thing only: winning at the next Olympic games in Moscow.
Unknown as an athlete, Goldengirl sets out to shock the world. Following incredibly intense training, she tries out for the Olympics.
Dryden, initially sceptical, is finally convinced that Goldengirl does have the potential to deliver. Working against the Olympic games policy, Dryden agrees to act as Goldengirl's agent, drumming up potential interest ahead of the games.
But Dryden is no fool. Convinced there's a catch, and uncertain about the reasoning behind the other committee members' interest, Dryden goes in search of the truth.
Surely there is more to Goldengirl's story than meets the eye?
The Olympic games are fast approaching. Dryden needs to ensure his reputation is not put on the line, or eliminated altogether, on the back of a risk he takes...
First published in 2002 by Severn House Publishers Ltd.
Peter Lovesey's other novels include Wobble to Death (1970; part of the Sergeant Cribb series), The Last Detective (1991; part of the Peter Diamond series), and Spidergirl (1980; written under the pen name, Peter Lear).
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