Rating: 
Summary: Great con, great characters
Review: Casino consultant Tony Valentine is trying out a new life, with a new woman--a professional wrestler. When his girlfriend admits she's been lying to him about contacts with her ex-husband, Valentine heads back to Miami and his business. And business is good. Con men and thiefs around the world are ripping off casinos, generally with inside help. One job, in an American Indian casino is practically local and Valentine agrees to take it. Things escalate quickly when Valentine is attacked by aligators who somehow made it into his car. Author James Swain knows his gambling business. Following Valentine around lets the reader know about the way gamblers work and how the cons run. And there is a con being run--a huge one that mobster Rico Blanco has been running. He doesn't need Valentine cutting into his action. The con is clever and sophisticated and the aging and widowered Valentine makes a sympathetic protagonist. The problems in his love life and with his semi-crooked son let the reader sympathize with his sometimes abrupt and angry actions. Hooker Candy Hart and Valentine's neighbor, Mabel add interest to an already fascinating story. SUCKER BET hooks the reader, then reels him in. I found the conclusion a little confusing--exactly who hit whom--but that didn't stop me from seriously enjoying this novel. Now, if I can just get my sandpaper and head for the nearest casino...
Rating: 
Summary: Tony's getting better
Review: Continuing character mysteries must improve or they fizzle. Readers want continuity in a character, but gradual revelation and growth are also necessary, still the author must avoid the trap of constantly repeating plot patterns. When the author reveals his character a bit at a time, building upon events and clues dropped in previous works the mystery novel becomes a true pleasure. For example, other Florida based characters, in the novels of White and HAll, demonstrate constancy and change. The reader is in a familiar place but on the edge of something new, empathy and fear neatly balanced. The other side is the excess of formula that became Travis McGee. Swain must watch this trap for his principal.
Tony Valentine, retired Atlantic City police detective, living on Florida's west coast, having spent his career solving casino scams, finds himself recently widowed and has opened a consulting business assisting with difficult to solve cheats. This is an opportunity for exotic settings, different levels of violence/threat and perhaps just a touch too much of the procedure mystery. Certainly, the concentration on blackjack and slots is noticable. Some ventures into roulette and craps seem to promise future adventures. Also the mechanics of the casino operation: cameras, security, count rooms, cashing in and out, etc. are also directions in which the author promises to give us future adventures.
This novel begins with a nice piece of misdirection, Tony and his girlfriend Kat ( meet her in his previous novel Funny Money) are part of a wrestling promo. Events at the Micanopy casino (also on the horizon in the previous novel)will soon interfere. What is the scam and who is really involved will take up the rest of the book. Son Gerry -"Son grow up. Get a Job,"and Gerry's girlfriend Yolanda as well as Tony's neighbor MAbel all reappear. No trusty sidekick yet. Given the Micanopys, the Miami/Everglades setting provides for some local thrillers on the beach and in the swamp. There is a nice twist, as the car-bomb in Funny Money which has carried off a couple thugs suggests to some Miami mobsters that Tony is "connected" and thus must be respected.
This is a fast read. Plot is tighter and better controlled than Funny Money. There is wit and thrills and more than a touch of the believable. having preferred Doc Ford"s relationships to Travis McGee's (Randy White vs John MacDonald) I hope, as the series develops that we do not get into predictable "significant other " dumpin used to keep romantic plots alive. Somehow a well balanced group of characters lends a sense of community .
Rating:
Summary: Don't try these tricks at your neighborhood casino
Review: Don't try these tricks at your neighborhood casino Mr. Swain has done it again. The third book featuring Tony Valentine is just as funny and really interesting as the first two. Here again is our hero, assisted ably by Mabel. This time he helps the Micanopy Tribe of Southern Florida, whose casino is being ripped off by a whole bunch of black jack dealers. Thus we meet Jack Lightfoot, a dealer, Smooth Stone, who is in charge of security, and Chief Running Bear, whose specialty is wrestling alligators. Bill Higgins, head of the Nevada Gaming Commission, is an old acquaintance. New is Rico Blanco, the connected gangster of the Gotti Family, Nigel Moon, the super rich musician from England, with his hooker girlfriend Candy. A very special addition to the cast is Mr. Beauregard, an ape who acts and thinks like a human. It is difficult to say what is funnier - the various tricks or the criminal action. And don't forget that Mr. Beauregard also plays the ukulele, carefully choosing the songs to fit the mood. Altogether a book that will lighten up your weekend.
Rating:
Summary: Another Valentine from Swain
Review: Elmore Leonard has nothing on Jim Swain: who else could mix in card hustlers, Indian gaming, a boozed-up English rock star, the Mafia, a pyschopathic killer who lives in the swamp,a couple of alligators ,an empathic chimp, as well as a few love stories, set them down in hot, simmering Florida and let them stew? The action starts at page one and doesn't let up. Along the way we learn a little about Indian gaming laws, catch up on Tony Valentine's somewhat complicated personal life (being a retired widowed cop isn't easy with a romantically inclined neighbor and a ne'er-do-well son with an affinity for law-breaking), as well as his burgeoning business as consultant to casino security officers, and get tutored in the fine art of card counting at blackjack. Swain manages to capture Florida perfectly ( no surprise - he's lived there for over twenty years) and can second-deal with the best. (He's also one of the best close-up deck technicians in the world.) He knows how to force a card without forcing the plot, and he keeps us guessing to the end of the book. Just when you think you've spotted your deuce, Swain turns it into an ace. This is the third of the Tony Valentine novels, featuring a retired New Jersey, no-nonsense detective who kept things honest in Atlantic City. Tony is a straight-and-narrow guy who wears clothes that don't go out of style, just like his old-fashioned ethics. His car isn't fancy, but it runs and gets the job done. Just like its driver. Sucker Bet was a treat. "Hamburgers, Mr. Beauregard?"
Rating:
Summary: Lots of action, plenty of laughs.
Review: First of all, let me report some detective work of my own. At the end of chapter 25, Tony Valentine cites an anecdote which fans of the late Dashiell Hammett will undoubtedly recognize. It's a close variation of the famous "Flitcraft story" told by Sam Spade in the Maltese Falcon (the book, not the movie).
The rest of Sucker Bet is, however, quite original. In this the third installment of the Tony Valentine series, author James Swain takes us on a hilariously over the top joyride through South Florida.
The story is a gutsy one. Complex and full of surprises but at the same time not overly convoluted. The plot starts off with Tony Valentine investigating a dishonest blackjack dealer at a low rent Indian casino in the Everglades. But that's only the beginning. Before long, Tony finds he's become involved in a gangster's scheme to make millions from the outcome of a college basketball game.
A lot happens along the way. Tony is attacked by alligators. He exposes a clever way of cheating at blackjack. His beloved neighbor Mabel is taken hostage. And his ne'er do well son, Gerry, cuts short his honeymoon to help his Dad out.
Swain introduces us to a number of really interesting and colorful characters. Candy Hart, the redheaded hooker who falls for her client. Splinters, the Cuban limo driver who doubles as a hitman. Bobby Jewel, the 400 lb bookie and many many more. But perhaps the most unforgettable supporting character is Mr. Beauregard, the ukulele strumming chimpanzee who is smarter and more insightful than most human beings.
Sucker Bet, like Funny Money and Grift Sense before it, is remarkable for its "readability". Page after page and chapter after chapter just flies by.
James Swain is obviously a talented writer. It'll be fun to see what else he has in store.
Rating:
Summary: Lots of action, plenty of laughs.
Review: First of all, let me report some detective work of my own. At the end of chapter 25, Tony Valentine cites an anecdote which fans of the late Dashiell Hammett will undoubtedly recognize. It's a close variation of the famous "Flitcraft story" told by Sam Spade in the Maltese Falcon (the book, not the movie).
The rest of Sucker Bet is, however, quite original. In this the third installment of the Tony Valentine series, author James Swain takes us on a hilariously over the top joyride through South Florida.
The story is a gutsy one. Complex and full of surprises but at the same time not overly convoluted. The plot starts off with Tony Valentine investigating a dishonest blackjack dealer at a low rent Indian casino in the Everglades. But that's only the beginning. Before long, Tony finds he's become involved in a gangster's scheme to make millions from the outcome of a college basketball game.
A lot happens along the way. Tony is attacked by alligators. He exposes a clever way of cheating at blackjack. His beloved neighbor Mabel is taken hostage. And his ne'er do well son, Gerry, cuts short his honeymoon to help his Dad out.
Swain introduces us to a number of really interesting and colorful characters. Candy Hart, the redheaded hooker who falls for her client. Splinters, the Cuban limo driver who doubles as a hitman. Bobby Jewel, the 400 lb bookie and many many more. But perhaps the most unforgettable supporting character is Mr. Beauregard, the ukulele strumming chimpanzee who is smarter and more insightful than most human beings.
Sucker Bet, like Funny Money and Grift Sense before it, is remarkable for its "readability". Page after page and chapter after chapter just flies by.
James Swain is obviously a talented writer. It'll be fun to see what else he has in store.
Rating:
Summary: You dont Know Great Books If You Haven't read Sucker Bet
Review: For all of you who found this book on a shelf one day and have never heard of James Swain, or Tony Valentine then you lucked out. Tht's exactly how i found this book. I was was browsing, read the back and the next thing i know I cant put it down. What other book has, prostitues, basketball games, alligators, native americans, casinos, blackjack, neighbors named Mabel, and a guy with a name like Tony Valentine. Yet, not only are the themes and ideas great the style is great. Ounce you get through a page your hooked and in suspense. ONE PAGE!!! The fun does'nt stop there though, the whole book is full of wonderful twist and turns so you can never put it down. The good thing is that if you like this book (which I know you will) then you got two more great books coming your way; Grift Sense, and Funny Money, two more wonderful stories about Tony Valentine.
Rating:
Summary: You dont Know Great Books If You Haven't read Sucker Bet
Review: For all of you who found this book on a shelf one day and have never heard of James Swain, or Tony Valentine then you lucked out. Tht's exactly how i found this book. I was was browsing, read the back and the next thing i know I cant put it down. What other book has, prostitues, basketball games, alligators, native americans, casinos, blackjack, neighbors named Mabel, and a guy with a name like Tony Valentine. Yet, not only are the themes and ideas great the style is great. Ounce you get through a page your hooked and in suspense. ONE PAGE!!! The fun does'nt stop there though, the whole book is full of wonderful twist and turns so you can never put it down. The good thing is that if you like this book (which I know you will) then you got two more great books coming your way; Grift Sense, and Funny Money, two more wonderful stories about Tony Valentine.
Rating:
Summary: An absolute pleasure...
Review: From the early Tony Valentine novels to this one I enjoy them more and more. The characters become clearer. As a gambler the scams are often dead on and there are just enough turns to keep you guessing! A great fun read.
Rating:
Summary: Grifters, Con Artists and others: The Third Installment
Review: Having read and enjoyed the first two books of this series ("Grift Sense" and "Funny Money") I was really looking forward to reading this one. James Swain has done it again in that he has created another every enjoyable work as well as tying up several loose ends from the first novel. To appreciate this one, you simply have to read the first two so that you get a sense of the story arc that moves throughout all three novels. Using a secondary theme from the previous novel "Funny Money" to great effect, James Swain brings Tony Valentine back. He also brings back his son Gerry, the neighbor Mabel and others while adding a host of eccentric characters that would make Elmore Leonard proud. Once again he relies on his heavy knowledge of gambling and card manipulation to tell another intriguing story with plenty of action and depth. Harry Smooth Stone, head of security for the Micanopy Indian Reservation has a major problem. One of his dealers, Jack Lightfoot, dealt a player 84 winning hands at a Blackjack table. The player was Nigel Moon and the only possible way it could have happened was if the dealer, Jack Lightfoot, was in on it. Sooth Stone wants Valentine not to figure out why the dealer is suddenly missing but how he did it. Valentine begins to work the case and soon figures out that the actions of Jack Lightfoot are the proverbial tip of the iceberg. Valentine follows an increasing violent and convoluted trail to Rico Blanco who once worked for Crime boss John Gotti involved, as well a numerous other characters who are also working their own illegal deals. With millions in an ongoing scam and college basketball at stake, Valentine is soon marked for death as more as more things go wrong and the bad guys start dying. This third novel in the series continues to flesh out the Tony Valentine character as well as further explore the complicated backgrounds of others in his life. It features the tight writing, plotting, occasional humor and eccentric characters found in his first two novels but in considerably more abundance. Much like Robert Ludlum did with his wheels within wheels espionage novels, James Swain novels feature cons within cons at so many levels it becomes a very enjoyable reading experience.
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