Rating: 
Summary: Stunning Work
Review: The Roaring Twenties was the greatest decade for stage magic in American history. Where those who could afford it skipped off to Europe, professional performers and master illusionists consistently amazed those who could not. Harry Houdini is the most famous of these magicians, but Charles Carter is the subject of Glen David Gold's debut novel, Carter Beats the Devil. Without mirrors or smoke, Gold creates a world that is satisfying and imaginative, while at the same time steeped in realism and historical fact. Just hours after being dismembered and returned to life by Carter the Great, US President Warren G. Harding is dead. While doctors declare that there is no evidence of foul play, Secret Service Agent Jack Griffin is not so sure. Griffin he doggedly pursues the truth of what happened the night the President died. At the same time, the reader is launched back and forth in time with Carter from his earliest days with magic to his return to the business after a tragic accident involving his wife. Throughout the novel, the only person with more tricks up his sleeve than Carter is the author himself. Gold not only the portrays the real Charles Carter but also ropes in a diverse cast of additional period figures including Houdini, borax tycoon Francis Smith, and television inventor Philo T. Farnsworth. As Griffin becomes convinced of Carter's guilt, the magician struggles to find joy in his life, works to create a new act with which to dazzle increasing hard-to-please audiences, meets a mysterious women who steals his heart, and guards against the treachery of one who he believed to be a friend. With an ending that holds a surprise for everyone, not least of all the reader, Carter Beats the Devil is the real deal in a literary world filled with imposters. A writer for television and movies, Gold delivers dialogue that is fast-pitched and fun to follow and creates characters that are larger than life. While the novel occasionally gets bogged down in some point of obscurity, these slips are brief and do not detract from the intelligent pace of the plot. All in all, this is a work of the first rank, an excellent display of erudition and a fine tale with adventure to spare. Carter Beats the Devil is highly recommended, and I will eagerly await Gold's next book.
Rating:
Summary: A wonderful, rollicking old-fashioned adventure story!
Review: Glen David Gold's Carter Beats the Devil is a wonderful, rollicking, addictive old-fashioned adventure story. Set in the early 1920's, the story revolves around Charles Carter-master magician and illusionist. The book opens onto one of Carter's shows, one in which President Harding is an observer and a participant. Harding dies that night. Following the show. The secret service believes Carter played a role in the President's death. The book is a wonderful character study filled with interesting, eccentric characters-both fictional and historical. It is a fine piece of period historical fiction of late 19th and early 20th Century San Francisco. It has wonderful detail about magic and magicians-both fictional and historical, including some of the greats of the early 20th century, like Houdini and Thurston. It is a novel of suspense and intrigue. In short-this is a deep, rich narrative that works very, very well on many levels. I frankly became engrossed in it and found it a very hard book to put down. This is a great story that is well written and very engaging. If you love great stories, this is your book! I hope that Gold has many more such tales "up his sleeve" (so to speak)!
Rating:
Summary: I am craving more Gold!
Review: I would love to read this book again. But what would be the point! I remember each detail as though I had read it yesterday.
Just looked up my old review and was amazed that it has been
2 1/2 years since I read it. This will always be one of my all-time favorites. Glen, you are really Gold.
Rating: 
Summary: An enjoyable read
Review: The amount of research that Gold put into Carter Beats the Devil is readily apparent - yet this work of historical fiction reads like a novel. The first 80% of the book leads in a very pleasant and engrossing way up to the climactic scene that takes place during Carter's last major show. While Gold doesn't give away many tricks - he does make you feel as if you were standing in the wings of the Orpheum Theater. You can see, hear and almost touch the audience, the catwalk above, the dressing rooms...you are there with Carter (albiet with a slightly blocked view) as he performs his greatest tricks and has the time of his life - and as the other plotlines come to a head. I started into this scene at 10:30pm - and didn't stop until 12am even thought I had to get up at 5am! The details of life in San Francisco in the teens/20's are rich, the writing is clear, Carter is well fleshed out (though the rest of the characters are a little stereotypical)...this is a good read. I'd recommend it to someone who was not in the mood for anything deep but didn't want anything cheesy or trashy. A fun book worth your while.
Rating:
Summary: True Magic
Review: This is one of the most enjoyable novels I've read in the last several years. "Carter Beats the Devil" is fiction based on the life of Carter the great. Mr. Gold narrates Charles Carter's discovery of and fascination with Magic as a boy, his rise from doing card tricks to headliner, and his final confrontation (more detail would spoil it!) Many additional themes run through this book as well, I kept being amazed that this could in fact be Glen David Gold's first novel. Throughout this novel we encounter many historical characters (Warren Harding, Houdini, Farnsworth + dozens of cameo appearances), but in a fictional setting. I found this to be fascinating, and I enjoyed doing some research on these people's real lives as I plowed through "Carter beats the devil". If the devil is in the details, he must be in here, since Mr. Gold doesn't skimp on them. Truly original, and genre busting, this is a novel not to be missed. Encore!
Rating:
Summary: Carter Beats Boredom
Review: I haven't been inspired to write a review in some time, but felt that this book warranted it. This is a truly, truly enjoyable read. Mr. Gold has a talent for being bold while at the same time inserting subtle themes in his writing.
I hate reading reviews that just tell what happens in the book, so I'll just give a few opinions. This book features many colorful characters, some actual historical figures, some not. They come and go throughout the novel at perfectly measured intervals: just when you think a character has fallen by the wayside, he/she is reintroduced in a new light and with a larger role to play in the plot.
"Carter Beats The Devil" is fun, engrossing, and at times even educational. It's definitely worth your time and money.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting Story and Enjoyable Reading
Review: Carter Beats the Devil was a very enjoyable read. I enjoy fiction that refers to history, and this book was very interesting. I also enjoyed reading the references about Magic from that era, it really gives an interesting view of the theatrics that went on in that time period. As an actress myself, I was also very interested in the parts about the audience responding to the magicians shows. The book really shows an interesting view on people from that time period and how they participated in entertainment.
If you are interested in Theater history in general, and want to read an interesting work of fiction, I recommend this as a very enjoyable novel to read.
Rating:
Summary: Solid book
Review: This is a fun historic novel. It does a good job of grabbing you at the beginning and I will admit some of the middle of the book dragged. However, the climax and conclusion wrapped up things pretty nicely. Overall, a satisfying read. I will be looking at other things Glen Gold wrote.
Rating: 
Summary: Carter Beats Self
Review: Carter Beats The Devil is a fairly interesting read. This book would definately find a nice place in the hands of those that enjoy history and interesting tidbits about how things gained their names ie how lofts (apartments) gained their name. Futhermore, CBTD starts off with a jump and kept my attention until a little over half way through the book. At this point, I found myself struggling to finish the book. I began exclusively seeking those historical tidbits just to make the last half of the book bearable. With that (attempting not to give anything away) the romance shared between Carter and his lover became highly unrealistic. It almost felt like the author was struggling to turn the novel into some dime store romance fling (and not a well written one at that). I found it completely unbelievable and dreadful to read. All in all, I finished the book and would like to conclude that it is creative and there are many interesting little side suprises throughout the book. However, if your looking for something amazing then I would skip this book and keep looking.
Rating:
Summary: A Devil of a Good Time
Review: ***Some spoilers ahead*** This book took a little while to get moving for me, but once it did, it really took off and I was hooked. "Carter Beats the Devil" is a sprawling thing, loosely historical (very loosely) and freshly unpredictable. I didn't realize until I read Glen David Gold's afterword that Charles Carter was a real magician performing in the heyday (teens and '20s) of the magic boom in the U.S. But don't be scared away by a dose of history with your fiction. The history on display here is only history in the loosest sense of the word. This book is first and foremost a work of fiction; let's face it---any book that has Warren Harding living on a deserted island with his wife and a menagerie of retired circus animals can't be taken too seriously, right? The beginning of the book, detailing Carter's childhood and his motivations in becoming a magician, aren't that involving. For once, I just didn't care why he became a magician, and I would have accepted "he just wanted to perform magic" as reason enough. But on top of motivation not being necessary, the motivation Gold does provide isn't particularly interesting. On top of the weak beginning, I thought the book was going to run a predictable course: Begin with framing device, explain childhood of protagonist, explain success of protagonist, explain downfall of protagonist, explain comeback of protagonist, return to framing device. I thought the novel would end with Harding's death, since that it is where it starts. But I was pleasantly surprised to find that the real plot didn't even get started until after Harding has "died." Once I reached this point in the book, I couldn't put it down and found scene after scene to be thrilling and memorable: the demonstration of T.V., a secret meeting of anarchists, an over-the-top duel involving knives, a motorcycle, a tiger, a water tank and a levitation device....Oh don't ask----just read it. A very fun book, and definitely recommended if you're in the mood for a little escapism (pun intended).
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