The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Private Investigating. Finished 5-21-08, rating 3.5/5, non-fiction, 2nd Edition 2007

“I can’t think of anything more interesting than being a private investigator.  But it also has hour after hour of sheer tedium.”   Chapter 1

Are you thinking of hiring a private investigator?  Are you considering a career in the field?  Do you think your spouse is cheating on you?  If you answered yes to any of these questions, then this is the book for you.

This book covers a wide range of topics and handles each with ease and humor.  The first section of the book details what you need to do if you are interested in a career.  How do you break into a field where there are many more applicants than jobs?  Details such as firearms training, salary, licensing, camera and computer needs, and desired skills are all covered.

The book then moves into the do-it-yourself section.  The basics of how to find someone, how the courthouse works, and how to beat the telephone company are all covered.  I must admit that I spent a few hours checking out some of the free databases online that the book suggested and had fun until I put my own name in and realized how easy it was for someone to get information about me!

The next section they call on-the-job training.  It covers the interview, the neighborhood investigations, and surveillance (including tips on tailing someone).  It gives intruction and ideas for pretexting, which basically means what lie to tell to get the most information.  It offers six ways to get around caller id and also offers a whole chapter (16) on how to tell if your spouse is cheating.

The books was interesting, useful and full of stories of the author’s own investigations.  I was amazed at how much information was covered.  If you are ever in need of a private investigator I would recommend buying this book first.  You will save yourself a lot of money.