THE COUNT

by David Lane

Inspired by a true story, Jim Austin is a professional card counter that takes on the casinos in the game of blackjack. Haunted by his own inner demons, the gambler strives to make it to the top of his profession, ultimately in hopes of playing on the international circuit. Follow his adventures as his rise from the lowest level of play graduates to its highest form complete with all the changes brought about by his abilities and the unknown forces that influence his life. Once he steps up into the big leagues of Las Vegas the professional card counter is approached by powers to be that manipulate him through his own ego and self delusion. As different characters, each with their own agenda, make their respective moves, Jim finds himself caught in the middle of a grand scheme involving organized crime, drug sales, money laundering, and the reality of his diminutive valued life being on the line.

432 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

David Lane is emeritus fellow of social sciences at Emmanuel College.

Reviews

[David Lane]

BOOK Review
This book was extremely interesting and based on a true story about a professional blackjack card counter. The main character has flashbacks about the Vietnam war and was informational as well. The story has a lot of surprising "twists and turns" and evolved from a relatively simple beginning to a complex yet understandable turn of events.

The realism of the book is detailed even including the descripition of the casinos and the game of blackjack as well. The reader does not need to have knowledge of the game of blackjack or "21" as it is sometimes called. The story explains the game without becoming boring.

There are many different character and many different plots yet the novel flows and the ending brings all the plots together. I was thrilled with the ending.

I rate this novel as great and would recommend it to anyone.