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  • Published: 15 August 2006
  • ISBN: 9780345475510
  • Imprint: Ballantine
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 384
  • RRP: $22.99

Deadman's Bluff

A Novel



James Swain's popular Tony Valentine novels evoke the sly wit and expert plotting of Carl Hiaasen and Elmore Leonard.

“In this series about gambling, the main character is a big winner.”
–Janet Maslin, The New York Times

“Bask in Swain’s Las Vegas without having to set foot in the place and risk being skinned alive.”
–The Washington Post Book World

A blind poker player named Skip DeMarco is scamming the world’s largest poker tournament in Las Vegas, and cheating-expert Tony Valentine and his son, Gerry, have been hired to find out how. DeMarco is tied to some dangerously desperate characters who will go to extremes–even cold-blooded murder–to ensure that the obnoxious DeMarco wins big.

While Gerry flies to Atlantic City to suss out DeMarco’s secret, Valentine stays in Vegas and teams up with an aging grifter named Rufus Steele, who has his own score to settle with DeMarco. On opposite sides of a deadly game, father and son work their way through a colorful landscape of conmen and hitmen. Together, they will have to prove there’s more to any game of chance than meets the eye.

Featuring insider tips for catching poker cheats, as well as a glossary of card hustler terms!

  • Published: 15 August 2006
  • ISBN: 9780345475510
  • Imprint: Ballantine
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 384
  • RRP: $22.99

About the author

James Swain

James Swain is the bestselling author of Grift Sense, Funny Money, and Sucker Bet, and is considered an authority on crooked gambling and casino scams. He lives in Odessa, Florida, with his wife, Laura, where he is currently at work on his fifth Tony Valentine novel.

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Praise for Deadman's Bluff

Praise for James Swain

"This smooth, funny series has got to be one of the finds of the decade." --Kirkus (starred) on Loaded Dice

"Swain's series starring freelance casino consultant Tony Valentine has quickly established itself as one of the freshest, most entertaining hard-boiled comedies to risk setting up camp in Elmore Leonard country... Great fun with just the right amount of edge -- sort of like a night at the blackjack table." --Booklist on Loaded Dice

"Ingenious entertainment." --The New York Times Book Review on Sucker Bet

"Wonderful... a cast of characters that would make Elmore Leonard's mouth water." --Michael Connelly, bestselling author of The Narrows, on Sucker Bet