Funny Money

Tony Valentine has a gift for grift: He can walk into a casino and spot a cheater across a crowded floor. A man who still uses pay phones and won’t spend more than a buck for coffee, Tony has protected Atlantic City gambling palaces for twenty years and learned every trick of the trade—until a new one blows him away.

With his old partner murdered in a bomb blast, Tony returns to A.C. to retrace Doyle Flanagan’s last case. Investigating a six-million-dollar casino takedown, a square cop soon meets a whole lot of bent people, from a beautiful lady wrestler to some Manhattan mobsters; from a trio of beautiful casino “consultants” to a team of Eurotrash blackjack card counters. But while everyone around Tony Valentine (including Tony’s own son) is playing some kind of angle, Tony is determined to find a killer who is playing for keeps. . . . “FASCINATING . . . DAZZLING . . . ENTERTAINING . . . I CAN’T THINK OF A NOVEL I’VE ENJOYED MORE THIS YEAR.”
—Los Angeles Times

“Writing about a world where everyone is on the take, Swain has a soft spot for colorful characters. . . . [H]is direct style works just fine.”
—The New York Times Book Review

“SMART, SNAPPY . . . TREMENDOUSLY INFECTIOUS.”
—St. Petersburg Times
James Swain, a gambling expert, is the author of Grift Sense, Funny Money, and Sucker Bet. Swain is considered one of the best card handlers in the world. He lives in Odessa, Florida, where he is currently working on his next mystery featuring Tony Valentine. Visit his Web site at www.jimswain.com.