Rating: 
Summary: Fast paced and engaging.
Review: This is the first novel in James Swain's Tony Valentine series. I had already read the sequel, Funny Money, and quite frankly, had found that book to be rather mediocre. Grift Sense, I'm pleased to say, is much, much better.
This very entertaining book grabs your interest on page one and holds it to the very end. Most of the action takes place in Las Vegas and Swain has succeeded in conveying the unique feel of that intriguing place.
Perhaps the most amazing aspect of Swain's writing is its remarkable readability. Both the dialogue and the narrative portions flow so smoothly, the reader can't help but keep turning pages. Where this novel differs from the weaker Funny Money is in the critically important areas of character developement and plot construction. Grift Sense has several well defined characters, each with a number of interesting and many times colorful attributes. And the plot unfolds in a way that really engages the reader's imagination.
My only gripe about this otherwise appealing novel concerns the way in which the crooks manage to rack up big winnings at the blackjack table. If this method worked in the real world, it would be used all the time and the game of blackjack would rapidly become unprofitable to casinos.
Grift Sense is a lot of fun to read. I'm looking forward to seeing how the third Tony Valentine adventure, Sucker Bet, stacks up against the first two.
Rating:
Summary: Grifters, Con Artists and other Characters!
Review: Tony Valentine is a former cop and something of a legend in gambling circles. Retired to Florida, Valentine now works as a consultant with casino owners who know that they are being cheated by some of the players. Known as "Grifters" these players have perfected cheating to a science and work the circuit from Las Vegas to Atlantic City and back again using disguises, misdirection and other techniques. For the casinos where profit and staying in business is a razor thin edge one talented grafter can bring a casino down fast.Nick Nicocropolis, owner of the Acropolis Casino & Resort in Las Vegas has been hit hard for several days in a row. The player going by the name of Frank Fontaine played blackjack at Nola Brigg's table and walked away with over one hundred thousand dollars over several days. He vanished and left the ten-year veteran employee, Nora, to take the heat. Nick brings Valentine from Florida to Las Vegas to help catch Fontaine who quite possibly might be planning a bigger score. There are signs that his schemes have a personal edge to them as if he wants to bring down Nick and no one, including Nick, seems to know who he really is or why he would have it in for him. But he does and as Valentine works the case, others involved seem to set their sights on him for one reason or another, which may put those that he cares about in harm's way. This is the first novel of a planned series and was a very enjoyable read. Tony Valentine is a gruff but engaging character that is less than thrilled with some aspects of modern life. He has a deeply sarcastic streak that while a kick to read is often missed by the other characters involved in the book. This novel reminds me of early Sue Grafton novels. It had that same feel to the read with the offbeat storyline and characters, a detective that fumbles around from time to time trying to get a handle on the situation and a complicated story. This read is well worth your time and promises to be the start of a very good series.
Rating:
Summary: First and so far the best of series
Review: Working backward through Swain's Tony Valentine series, I finally got to Grift Sense.Well, I would not have read all four if the latest was not worth the time, but thinking on it I've got to say I like this one best. Swain gets just enough into the casino life (if you are winning, you're cheating)for a somewhat jaded Valentine to stick to his fixed ideas despite the eternal hope that pervades even the most cynical casino employee and owner types. We do not go down the highly technical lanes of blackjack odds or slot machine mechanics which Swain threatens in some other novels. Also, the cast of characters, Mabel, Nick the frequently remarried Casino owner and nee'r do well son Gerry, are all here.
The conclusion, which takes place in the swirl of a Vegas fight night, is a fine piece of action. Events are logical, thrilling and satisfying to those of us who like to guess an ending or unsuspected rogue but really get upset when we see them coming ten chapters ahead of time.
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