Product Description

A down-to-earth forensics expert has just discovered a crime scene that is out of this world.

In criminal forensics they train you to uncover evidence, no matter how brutal or bizarre the murder.

But what if one night you make contact with a crime scene so terrifying, no one on earth can explain it?

It begins at a chaotic crime scene in the deep woods of the Pacific Northwest--site of a reported shoot-out. Investigator Colin Cellars cannot find a trace of perpetrator or victim--or even confirm that anyone has been killed. As he doggedly pursues the case, he realizes there is far more at stake here than murder. Someone--something?--will stop at nothing to prevent him from discovering the truth. For the truth is not "out there." It is locked away in Cellars's own evidence file. The evidence points to a killer far outside Cellars's experience--far outside any earthly experience. But who will believe one maverick cop?

From the New York Times bestselling author of Balefire comes a chilling tale of murder, forensic detection, and vivid speculation, pitting a unique crime scene investigator against a culprit who may be unlike any this world ever spawned....

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #263937 in Books
• Published on: 2000-02-01
• Released on: 2000-02-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 464 pages

Amazon.com Review
Ken Goddard is a forensic scientist and criminologist, and so it comes as no surprise that his high-tech thrillers take place in a world of chemicals, formulas, and scientific evidence. Yet First Evidence goes beyond science.

Colin Cellars is a senior crime-scene investigator for the Oregon State Patrol. After the apparent murder of his longtime friend Bob Dawson, Cellars uses the latest cutting-edge equipment to collect the bullets, blood, and other physical evidence. But this is no ordinary murder case--a series of weird, unexplainable events take over. Shadowy shapes lurk in the woods around Dawson's cabin; a lovely woman who looks exactly like the girl he used to know many years before reappears; an envelope full of pebbles moves on its own across a desk; corpses and cop cars disappear from one place and reappear elsewhere. All too soon we realize that we're out of the real world and into The X-Files. The truth may be out there, but most of Goddard's scientific sense is long gone. Still, readers who enjoy their thrillers served up with a good helping of the supernatural will enjoy First Evidence.

From Library Journal
Crime scene investigator Colin Cellars thinks that murder has been committed. But there's no culpritAand no body. From the author of best sellers like Double Blind.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
Crime-scene investigator Colin Cellars gets more than he bargained for when he responds to a call at the scene of a violent gun battle that seems to have taken the life of Robert Dawson, an old but lately estranged friend. When Dawson's body disappears from the morgue, when evidence seems to produce bizarrely contradictory results, when the only suspects in his friend's murder seem to be the shadows themselves, Cellars finds himself faced with a puzzle more baffling than any he's encountered before. Fans of The X-Files will enjoy this smart, well-plotted thriller. Cellars comes into the story as a skeptic and winds up believing that the explanation for the strange, inexplicable circumstances surrounding his friend's death may not be entirely normal. Readers who prefer their thrillers to be firmly grounded in reality may have a few problems with this novel, but those who enjoy a little clever speculation will be quite pleased. David Pitt

Customer Reviews

A "must-read" book if you love mystery!
I enjoyed Balefire and decided to read more by this author. I read "First Evidence" and found I could not put this book down...stayed up until 4 a.m. and that rarely happens with a book for me. What more can I say? If you love mysteries and a touch of sci-fi, you will surely enjoy this story. I finished it and ordered copies of his other books.

Spooky as heck at times -- great fun!
Scary thriller about a crime scene investigator, Colin Cellars, who is called out to a murder scene at a hidden cabin in the woods. When he arrives, the two officers waiting for him are visibly shaken and extremely terrified, constantly watching the edge of the woods while telling Cellars that the two officers there before them are missing and their radios don't work. Cellars sends them off to get help while he begins collecting evidence. Inside the cabin he finds the mutilated body of a person who might be his old friend, Bobby. He also is attacked by someone or something he can only see in the shadows. When he escapes, he returns to the station and finds out the two cops he'd sent for help are now missing too. Determined to find out what is happening, Cellars keeps returning to the cabin. But each time he tries to find clearer evidence, something even spookier happens and confuses everything even further. I couldn't put this book down, even when nighttime rolled around and the combination of the story and the dark gave me the screaming heebie-jeebies. I was a little disappointed by the ending, which seemed too sudden and too convenient, but the rest of it was so great I barely minded. Recommended!

Oregon Terminator
"Terminator" was the first thought in my mind as I read about shadows in trees. First time I've read Goddard, but ordered all of his others the day I finished First Evidence. Mailed the book to a relative and kept him up all night. Sci-fi and a strained 15-year romance keep this rolling, plus a little of Hazard County humor and Gov't computer nerd for a touch of enlightenment. The book certainly kept you guessing and didn't give away the ending. Yes, Goddard was in a hurry to end the book, but believe that was because he saw the sequel possibilities. A fast read and not boring.