Steven M. Thomas has crafted a fine 1st crime novel, set in Southern California during the mid 1990's. Robert Rivers is a thief, doing high end armed robberies in rich towns along the California coast. During a robbery he stumbles across a white slavery ring and rescues a beautiful Asain girl. He is forced to confront these evil forces and save himself and his friends. There is a lot of potential in Criminal Paradise. Thomas's characters are well developed. There is also excellent California ambiance and Thomas nails the mid 1990's time period. Some of the plot lines are over the top, still this is a very entertaining 1st book, I look forward to his next.

Richard