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Casino Adventures: Adventure Is Where You Find It, and in the Casinos Sometimes You Just Can't Win

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We hope you enjoy these titles selected by Reader Advisor Paul Mathews.

Backflash by Richard Stark.
Although Parker is suspicious of the motives of a retired New York civil servant who wants him to rob a riverboat casino on the Hudson, he rounds up three partners to commit the crime. Afterwards, Parker and his gang realize that they have been set up. Parker series, book 18. Violence and strong language. RC 50460.
 
Bad News by Donald Westlake.
Professional thief John Dortmunder gets involved in a gambling casino scam. Little Feather Redcorn and her accomplices switch bodies from graveyards to prove that she is the last member of her tribe and is entitled to millions. Dortmunder series, book 9. Some strong language. RC 53434.

Bob the Gambler by Frederick Bartheleme.
Although they have lived in Biloxi, Mississippi, for years, Ray and Jewel Kaiser have never been to the gambling casinos. On their first night out, they discover that they like the excitement and thrill of winning, and soon they are addicted. Nicknamed "Bob the Gambler" by his teenage stepdaughter, Ray eventually loses a lot. Some strong language. RC 46676.

Cry Dance by Kirk Mitchell.
Investigator Emmett Parker, a Comanche with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and rookie FBI agent Anna Turnipseed, a Modoc, investigate a Bureau of Land Management employee's murder on an Arizona reservation. They soon discover corruption within the tribes and the lucrative casino business. Parker & Turnipseed series, book 1. Violence and strong language. RC 53786.
 
Glitz by Leonard Elmore.
A thriller about the world of casino gambling told with tension, tenderness, and humor. In Puerto Rico, tough Miami cop Vincent Mora meets pretty Iris Ruiz who is headed for a job in an Atlantic City casino. When Iris is found dead, Mora investigates her murder amid the hired killers and high rollers of the New Jersey resort. Strong language and descriptions of sex. RC 21502, BR 6085.
 
Hunting Badger by Tony Hillerman.
A casino robbery on the Ute reservation leaves one guard dead, while a second is wounded and held under suspicion. As Navajo Tribal Police sergeant Jim Chee tracks the criminals in the Four Corners canyons, retired cop Joe Leaphorn receives a startling tip identifying the perpetrators. Jim Chee & Joe Leaphorn series, book 14. Some violence. RC 49475, BR 12470.
 
The Palace by Paul Erdman.
With luck, curiosity, and a bit of know-how, a short, pudgy, middle-aged coin dealer turns his small Philadelphia shop into an extremely profitable foreign exchange business. Before long, he enters the high stakes world as the new owner of Las Vegas's glitziest and wealthiest casino, but suddenly he finds his path to prosperity blocked by opportunistic, greedy partners, unscrupulous former associates, and ambitious politicians. Some strong language. RC 27396, BR 7279.
 
Stateline by John Van Der Zee.
Taut tale of a man who plots to rip off a Nevada gambling casino and a middle-aged security officer who tries to solve the plot and trap the plotters. Strong language and some explicit descriptions of sex. BR 3420.
 
Under the Boardwalk by Bill Kent.
Louis Monroe is only five-foot-two, but he is tough and he is honest. Right out of police academy, he patrols the Boardwalk in Atlantic City. Rookies are given that beat so they can learn to smile at the tourists. Monroe intercepts a man bent on blowing up a casino full of people and earns a promotion to the vice squad. Then his education really begins. Some strong language and some descriptions of sex. RC 30312.

Writ of Execution by Perri O’Shaughnessy.
Lake Tahoe attorney Nina Reilly is hired to help a young woman who has won millions in a casino but who cannot reveal her true identity. Nina's sometime lover, Paul van Wagoner, helps to investigate even as witnesses are being murdered. Nina Reilly series. Some descriptions of sex, some violence, and some strong language. RC 52461.