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Summary: Welcome to Las Vegas, as told by Mr. Brian Rouff.
Review: It is a gritty town full of high rollers and has-beens, opulence and slum. Fortunes rise and fall but the money keeps flowing in whichever direction lady luck allows, or so we all hope.What if there was a rhyme or reason to this money flow -- A predictable pattern that only a precious few understand? What if there were moments that we can recall having tapped into it, times when we could not lose. Can we learn to recognize it? Harness it? If you think it is not possible then remember the people that are banned from most any gambling establishment they visit. They have consistently won so much that the management has deemed them to be not welcome. Sure, some of them are card counters and mechanics -- but I submit to you a different type of winner, a dice angel. It seems there are only two types of people in Vegas; the ones that visit the casinos frequently and the ones that have made promises to themselves and others that they would not return. In this enjoyable new novel we get to peek in on the life of a man who is very likable, honest and a bit too trustworthy. After a real dose of bad events he becomes desperate and realizes what used to be the good life is about to be over. Not only is it over, but he is scared of losing his father's legacy and providing that final bit of proof to himself that his father was right to doubt him. The dialogue is sharp and witty and the story moves forward at a quick and enjoyable pace. The characters are rich and you get a real feel for the people portrayed in this book. In my opinion, this is what makes a book great -- enjoyable characters that the reader can visualize and relate to. We learn that Jimmy has made promises to himself about gambling. He avoids casinos because lady luck is against him, toying with him, but never letting him win. Given the opportunity, he will prove this anomaly to you. What every successful gambler knows is what Jimmy doesn't: Everybody loses. Losers and winners often both have the instinct to know when they should walk away -- it is the man with discipline that can act on that urge. A homeless man that used to be so much more tips him off to a mystery lady who might be able to help. 'What have you got to lose', is the cliché that had to be used. 'Why haven't you used this Dice Angel?' asked Jimmy to the bum-savant. 'What do I need with money?' he replies.
Things get pretty wild in this book and you will be rooting for Jimmy like all your bets were on him. What happens to Jimmy at the gambling tables is not nearly as important as what happens to Jimmy's approach at life. He learns to wake up, be aware and that people and things are not always what they seem to be. I suspect these are the very things that his father provided for him, and what Jimmy needed the most, he learns how to do.
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Summary: READ THIS BOOK!
Review: Just like other "Las Vegans" that have read this book, I have met more than a few Jimmy Delaney's in my 15 years in sin city. Rouff's talent is creating characters and lives so real, I feel as if I could visit Jimmy down at his bar any given day and ask him about Dice Angel in person. A light and easy read that is entertaining, humorous, and as real as it gets. If you need an escape, grab a copy of Dice Angel and let yourself go! Warning: This book keeps you up at night, I couldn't put it down!
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Summary: An involving and reader-engaging novel
Review: Brian Rouff's novel Dice Angel is the story of Jimmy Delaney, a divorced, nearly broke Las Vegas loser who is about to lose everything he owns to the vindictive IRS. Then the mysterious Dice Angel enters his life - seemingly a health nut floozy, yet with the mysterious touch to guide his hand to hot success at the crap tables. But for how long, and at what price? Unafraid to show the seamy side of life and the ups and downs of blind chance, Dice Angel is an involving and reader-engaging novel which is as unpredictable as any roll of the dice!
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Summary: Never a bad roll
Review: The kind of book I will like to read on a coast-to-coast flight. It is light, and entertaining, and shows us the human side of gambling.
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Summary: Dice Angel is All Aces
Review: Brian Rouff has written a tidy little page-turner of a book, filled with interesting characters and lots of one-liners. Some of the other reviews on this website capture the fast-moving plot quite nicely, and I highly recommend it. Without giving anything away, the main character is originally from Detroit, and the references brought the story home for this fellow Detroiter too.
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Summary: I couldn't put this book down!
Review: Brian Rouff has written an engaging story with likable characters and a suspenseful plot that kept me turning pages. I live in Las Vegas, and his depiction of the city is very accurate, but more than that, his characters are real. Even if I did not live here, I would have experienced the same familiarity, the sense of "I know these people," that I had throughout the book. The magical realism of the Dice Angel's powers was intriguing and very appealing. I wanted more! I am eagerly awaiting Rouff's next novel.
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Summary: A Las Vegas Page Turner
Review: This is a true page-turner set in Las Vegas and follows the fortunes of Jimmy Delaney. Jimmy has a comfortable life as the owner of a bar, which also serves a pretty mean pizza. He is quickly established as an all round nice guy who is well liked by his customers and employees alike. As with many stories set in Las Vegas, this book deals with luck, both good and bad. When Jimmy's luck turns down thanks to a rogue accountant who also happens to be his brother-in-law, he is faced with the prospect of losing his bar. Obviously not a pleasant situation to be in, but made even more unpleasant by the fact that the place used to be his fathers and he had vowed to make it a success. In what becomes a final act of desperation he decides to ring a woman who advertises herself as a 'Dice Angel'. Figuring he's got nothing more to lose he puts himself in her hands and we are taken on an entertaining trip around a few of the casinos of Las Vegas. As well as providing a very entertaining story, we are also treated to a view of Las Vegas seldom seen by the visitors to the town. We are given the insider's tour giving us an idea of the local customs and tricks not known by the tourist trade. It adds a whole new dimension to the city of Las Vegas for someone like me who has only ever experienced the tourist-trap side. It's an upbeat novel that provides us with a likable main character who is not without his faults, but who you find yourself rooting for as he tries to save his bar.
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Summary: Lady Luck Lives!
Review: The neon lights of Las Vegas are not shining brightly on Jimmy Delaney. Jimmy D's bar/restaurant has just been robbed and things will only get worse for him in the opening chapters of Brian Rouff's debut novel "Dice Angel." That is until a homeless man, who Jimmy has taken under his wing, hands him a business card that might just change his luck. In sheer desperation, Jimmy meets up the title character -- Amaris, a wacky middle-age woman with a wardrobe to match, who promises to end his Vegas nightmare. Will Amaris earn her wings? Well, perhaps the incessant bell ringing of slot machines will provide the answer. "Dice Angel" is a rollicking and fun novel. It was by far my quickest read of the year (I effortlessly sped through the first 60 pages in my first sitting). While the reader must suspend belief regarding Amaris' magical abilities on the casino floor (hey, this is fiction!), Rouff has created a memorable cast of lovably quirky characters who ring true -- from Joy, Jimmy's ex-wife, who never quite lives up to her name to an all-Asian Jimmy Buffet cover band headed by an IRS agent to Bev, Jimmy's co-worker who would give Cheers' Carla a run for her money in the wisecrack department. Having had my fill of many of the Strip's all-you-can-eat buffets, I only wish I could add a stop to Jimmy D's on my next weekend jaunt to Sin City. "Dice Angel" is an enjoyable and recommended read!
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Summary: Dice Angel
Review: Jimmy Delaney is the owner of local Las Vegas landmark pizzeria/bar, Jimmy D's; which he inherited from his father. Jimmy's life is cruising along nicely. He loves being the owner of Jimmy D's. He loves his daughter Jenny and has a great relationship with her even though he is a part-time dad. He even gets a kick out of phone sparring with his ex-wife. Everything changes when Jimmy's ex-brother-in-law, who is also his accountant, suddenly disappears; along with all of his cash. Not only is his money gone, Jimmy finds out he is in hock to the IRS for over $$$ because his brother-in-law never sent in his tax payments. It seems there is no way out. One of Jimmy's 'regulars', a homeless man gives him an old business card with the name Dice Angel on it. As a last resort, Jimmy calls the number. Dice Angel is a quick enjoyable read with a likable main character, some comedy, some snappy dialogue (although there is some overuse of comparison humor), a dash of fantasy, and a tidy ending.
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Summary: 4 1/2 stars
Review: See storyline above. As a gambler myself, I could definitely see the big picture and felt alot of what Delaney (Jimmy D) felt. The fear of going back to the casino when you know you mostly lose. This was a fun book to read though I would have liked it to be a little longer with just a bit more depth. A perfect book for the ride to and from Vegas. Brian Rouff has a lot of potential and I will keep my eye out for his future novels. Recommended
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