Loaded Dice Audiobook By James Swain cover art

Loaded Dice

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Loaded Dice

By: James Swain
Narrated by: Paul Boehmer
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For ex-cop Tony Valentine, life in balmy Florida provides little R&R. In fact, he’s in demand now more than ever. Armed with a special grift sense, Valentine can spot card cheats and even bigger game whose sole purpose on earth is to relieve a casino of its cash. But when his son, who was going to card-counting school, goes missing, Valentine jets to Las Vegas. Once in town, he is pressed into service—and lands inside a treacherous game with higher stakes than he has ever encountered before.

There’s a new casino in town, aptly named Sin, the largest on The Strip: three thousand guest rooms and a gambling floor as big as an airport terminal. The owners of Sin want Valentine to show them how the scams are done. But these powerful men harbor ulterior motives: They want to use their newfound skills to put a rival casino out of business.

Sin’s competition is the Acropolis, run by Valentine’s longtime pal. Nick taps Tony to figure out how an amateur won $50,000 at his blackjack tables. But the small job is full of landmines. For starters, the suspect bears a strong resemblance to his late wife. What’s more, Valentine’s son is still M.I.A. Upping the ante, a dead stripper is found with Valentine’s calling card—and her grief-stricken boyfriend is vowing revenge.

Yet in a city where barracudas wear pinstripes, time seems motionless even while it flies, and reality and illusion shift depending on the neon light, a greater threat maneuvers through the streets: an all-new breed of criminal with an agenda propelled by fury that will shake not just Valentine, but the city of Las Vegas.©2004 James Swain; (P)2004 Books on Tape Thriller & Suspense Las Vegas Police Procedural Mystery Crime Thrillers Suspense Crime Thriller Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction

Critic reviews

“Leaves us wanting more of this pulsing, buoyant book.”
–Los Angeles Times

“Loaded Dice, like all Tony Valentine novels, is pure entertainment.”
–San Jose Mercury News

“This smooth, funny series has got to be one of the finds of the decade.”
–Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“The author packs his books with mind-boggling cons and scams–how to do them, how to stop them–along with entertaining dialogue and vivid characters, [most] notably the strong, sympathetic Tony.”
–Publishers Weekly
All stars
Most relevant
Although Audible has not yet designated it as such, "Loaded Dice" actually comes fourth in Swain's Tony Valentine series. Unfortunately, the first two entries in the series -- "Grift Sense" and "Funny Money" -- have not yet been recorded on audiobooks, as far as I know; so we have no choice but to start in the middle of this entertaining series. (I always prefer to listen to series novels in chronological order.) I recommend listening to "Sucker Bet" (#3 in the Tony Valentine series) before starting "Loaded Dice," just to pick up some backstory: Tony Valentine, retired Atlantic City cop, now works as a consultant to gambling casinos, exposing grifters. I enjoy this series a great deal. Swain clearly knows whereof he speaks, showing us the many -- frequently cunningly clever -- ways in which people can cheat the gambling establishments out of large sums. Most of these tricks involve deft sleight-of-hand, almost like that practiced by magicians. In "Loaded Dice," we get the additional element of Muslim terrorists thrown in, as well. Clearly this series will not suit everybody; however, I think that anybody who enjoys poker or craps or Las Vegas will probably get a kick out of all of James Swain's Tony Valentine novels. Narrator Paul Boehmer does not have a beautiful voice, but does a better-than-adequate job narrating "Loaded Dice."

Terrorists in Vegas

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I am a truck driver, I love these James Swaim books with Tony Valentine, makes my day go much faster never a time that losses my interest.

Once start listening hard to stop

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Got the audio book from the library...should have saved the gas and time...narrative is terrible...naive and illogical...reader is not good..nothing else to say that isn't bad....
PL in Ct

a no star book

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I know that I am taking somewhat of a risk buying any book, even if it has good reviews. Well, the book folks sure put one over on me this time. After about 10 minutes I knew that I had been had. Take out the profanity and even a six year old will look for something else.

This book fails on all levels -- no matter how many or what they are. You don't need to know Latin to be familiar with the phrase, "Buyer beware."

Dumbest?

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