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LOADED DICE
by James Swain
Ballantine, June 2004
320 pages
$22.95
ISBN: 0345463269


Buy in the UK | Buy in Canada

Tony Valentine is a retired cop who now has a consulting business, Grift Sense, that investigates and helps casino owners stop cheaters and con artists from breaking the system. Tony is in Vegas to demonstrate a new computer system to a conglomerate of casino owners. This is to help them learn how to stop cheaters from using the electronic device, DeadLock, from breaking the casinos financially.

At the same time, his son, Gerry, is learning card-counting from one of the best in the business. Little does Tony know that his life and Gerry's are about to be changed dramatically.

From the opening scenes, where Tony is attempting to talk a potential jumper down, Lucy Price, who claims the casino stole her $25,000 that she won, until the exciting, explosive climax where Tony has to make a choice that would leave him hurting emotionally, LOADED DICE is James Swain taking a huge risk and succeeding successfully in developing his characters with an emotional depth rarely seen in mysteries.

There are several memorable scenes which take place throughout the book. One, in particular, is both humorous and serious. The FBI is trying to break into Tony's house, claiming he is a traitor and is wanted for a stripper's murder in Las Vegas. His neighbor, and co-worker, Mabel gets the drop on both agents by going to the refrigerator and pulling a gun on them, then handcuffing both agents to a chin-up bar. Swain shows the readers that all senior adults are not incapable of thinking on their feet, and that they can outwit the cleverest of people.

There are several plot twists which can leave the reader wondering if Swain is really playing fair. The answer is yes, as the loose ends are tied up somewhat too neatly, but satisfactorily to the reader's contentment. This is a series that I will plan on following, as Tony Valentine and his cohorts continue to outwit the best in the business of casino scamming.

Reviewed by Steven Sill, June 2004

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