The Kings of Vegas: A Vegas Thriller of Mob Intrigue Family Betrayal and a Sister Who Won't Fold

by Karen Mack, Jennifer Kaufman

Succession in Las Vegas! From bestselling writing duo Karen Mack and Jennifer Kaufman, a sexy and suspense-packed thriller about the prodigal daughter of a Las Vegas casino empire who returns to take over her family business, only to discover that she’s up against the Mob, the Feds, and her own brothers.

When Josie King left Las Vegas in the 90s, she never looked back. The daughter of gambling mogul Roy King, spirited math whiz Josie grew up on the casino floor but deliberately turned away from the family business. She’s been living a quiet life in LA as an accountant and a single mom when she finds herself summoned back to Sin City. Now, fifteen years later, her father has died unexpectedly, and Josie’s siblings are already gathered for the reading of his will...only to discover that in order to inherit they must spend three years working together at the notorious family casino, The Jackpot.

Josie’s pride won’t let her walk away from the family empire again, so she agrees to take charge of the casino’s finances. She quickly discovers that while Roy King was once the most powerful man in Vegas, times have changed. These days, everyone has a piece of the Josie’s brothers, the FBI, the local mobsters, even the sexy rival casino owner who’s more than a friend. Las Vegas is more dangerous than ever, but Josie knows that to save the family business she’ll have to wade in deeper…

Stacked with sex, crime, sibling rivalry, and mountains of cash, The Kings of Vegas is an electrifying thriller with a tough and irresistible heroine at the center of the action.

304 pages, Hardcover

Expected publication June 30, 2026

Reviews

[Kimberly · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5⭐️

Some families pass down recipes or heirlooms. The Kings passed down casinos, corruption, emotional damage, and enough dysfunction to make Thanksgiving dinner feel like a hostage negotiation.

Karen Mack and Jennifer Kaufman’s The Kings of Vegas pulls readers straight into the glittering chaos of Las Vegas, where money talks, loyalty is conditional, and everybody seems one bad decision away from either prison or a body bag. William Morrow, thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the gifted ARC.

This book honestly felt like old-school Vegas drama wrapped in family betrayal, mob ties, dirty money, and sibling warfare with a side of expensive whiskey and questionable life choices. Think Succession wandered into a casino at 2 a.m. and decided to start threatening people.

Josie King absolutely carried this story for me. She’s sharp, stubborn, emotionally bruised, and trying so hard to convince herself she escaped the King family legacy while simultaneously getting dragged right back into it. The forensic accounting angle gave the story a different edge than your typical mob thriller, and watching Josie untangle financial chaos while dealing with her brothers, the casino, the FBI, and the Vegas underworld kept me invested even when the family dynamics made me want to scream into my coffee.

And honestly? The siblings were a mess. Not cute quirky mess. Actual “someone needs therapy and possibly a federal investigation” mess. But weirdly… that worked for the atmosphere of the story. The tension between Sam, Josie, and the rest of the family constantly felt like a ticking time bomb sitting underneath all the casino glamour.

That said, I’m not going to pretend this book was perfect. Some of the characters felt emotionally distant, and there were moments where I wanted more depth and stronger emotional payoff. A few scenes leaned a little over-the-top Vegas cliché, and some of the dialogue made me raise an eyebrow hard enough to sprain something. But somehow the sheer chaos of it all kept me flipping pages anyway.

“You are either at the table or on the menu.”

Honestly? That line pretty much sums up the entire vibe of this book.

If you love casino thrillers, crime family drama, morally gray characters, old-school mob energy, inheritance wars, forensic accounting twists, and stories where everybody is hiding something shady behind expensive suits and neon lights, this one will probably work for you.

⭐️⭐️⭐️½

This wasn’t my favorite thriller of the year, but it was definitely entertaining in that dramatic “watching rich people self-destruct in Vegas” kind of way. And honestly, sometimes that’s exactly the reading mood.

Also… am I the only one weirdly obsessed with books set behind the scenes of casinos? Because fictional Vegas is always ten times messier than real Vegas and I eat it up every single time.

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[Punkin’ · Rating 1 out of 5]

“Moe cut him off: Don’t talk. Don’t think. Just do what the —- I tell you. Are we clear?”
“What is this, Hitler Youth?” Sam muttered.

You’re kidding right? You are absolutely kidding? Why is this line of commentary, regardless, if it’s a joke or not, or a sarcastic comment from one of your characters/ inside of this book? Either you live under a rock or you’re ignorant. This is completely inappropriate for given the state of the world and the current climate we are in.

I digress; my book review continues down below.

The author either watches cop/mafia shows and his visited Vegas enough times as tourist to be enamored with the idea of glamorizing the seedy parts of Vegas or lives there and hates it. This book needs to scrapped or revised its rough. It’s crude and the sex scenes are not even sexy. It just the FMC being a mean, pick me girl as an older adult women. She’s mourning her dad who died, chooses to have sex on his office desk at his funeral? The scene isn’t even funny or hot. There is basically zero chemistry between characters. The only thing the plot had going for it. The reader is quickly shoved into a messy murder, kidnapping, embezzlement plot and romance takes a side set. The main character, Josie, basically contradicts her self every other chapter saying she doesn’t wanna live that way anymore, but then continues to live that way and foster that mafia Vegas lifestyle. It doesn’t make sense.

“Josie had made a point of turning the bedroom into a preteen paradise” …
“… far to expensive for twelve year old….”
“I’ve seen five-year-olds there. Are you taking Billie? She’ll love it.” Sam said. “They also have archery, but that’s for Girl Scouts and pussies”
“ When Billie woke up, Josie had told her that she had changed her mind and they were going shooting”
“Yes. An actual gun. This is Nevada, kiddo”

Your preteen, who the main character continuously states that she does not want her child having the same rough gangbanging trial that she had, you take her for shooting lessons and to familiarize her with guns. You let your child be around another child who is involving herself in criminal behavior but that’s okay because that other child’s mom could help you babysit. To top it all off there is a poorly written two page climax about a kidnapping scene that reads as if you only ever have seen something similar on law and order.

I genuinely stand by my opinion, that this book needs to be revised and or taken a different direction. There’s not a lot going in this book that I enjoy.

₊˚⊹⋆˙⟡Thank you to NetGalley for an advance copy! My opinions on this read and this review are my own!₊˚⊹⋆˙⟡

[Ali Bunke · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Kings of Vegas by Karen Mack and Jennifer Kaufman blends thriller, romance, and family drama as Josie King returns to her family’s casino after her father’s death. His will requires all siblings to work there for three years in order to inherit, placing Josie in charge of the finances and drawing her into the hidden problems surrounding the business.

The novel’s strongest elements are its plot threads. The murder storyline and the embezzlement plot are engaging and provide the most momentum. Readers who enjoy family driven drama or casino world thrillers may appreciate the mix of genres and the constant movement within the narrative.

Where the book fell short for me was in its character work. I found it difficult to connect with Josie and her siblings, who often felt unlikable and emotionally distant. Their ongoing dysfunction made it hard to invest in their relationships, and the emotional moments did not resonate as strongly as the plot itself.

Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow for the advanced reader copy. This is my honest review.

[Zoe Lipman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Did I finish this days ago and just continuously forget to write my review for it? Yes. Ignore that.

This is about the succession of a mob in Las Vegas. And it gets chaotic. As mob drama tends to.

I liked the crime family drama and politics, but I wanted a lot more from the characters. I just didn't really care about them.

This does have a little bit of everything in it: mob drama, theft, crime, a bit of romance, and fraud. But this is another case of me wanting it to have more oomph. But I do think plenty of readers will still enjoy. Especially if you like mob drama.

Thanks to NetGalley for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!

[Howard Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book to be mildly interesting as a saga of a family involved in casino operations in Las Vegas with ties to the mob. There is a lot going on with a mostly dysfunctional and feuding family—- drugs, alcohol, romance, intrigue and theft. It was of particular interest to me since I was a former CPA involved with hotels and casinos and it was my staff who uncovered the fraud with the scales perpetrated by the Stardust hotel. I thank NetGalley and Harper Collins for the opportunity to read and review this book prior to publication.

[Caroline · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Kings of Vegas was an okay read but it never fully grabbed me. The story is readable and the Vegas setting is interesting, but the characters often felt flat and the plot predictable. There were moments that entertained me, yet overall it lacked depth and tension. It might appeal to some , but it did not leave a lasting impression other than some down right ICKS


Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review

[TiedGame · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shades of Harold Robbins. I would rate this 3.5 stars if half stars were allowed. The Kings in the title refer to the King family; the now deceased father founded the Jackpot casino in Las Vegas. It is now up to his five children to keep it going. When one of them gets into deep financial trouble, he goes to the Mafia for help. Josie, the youngest sibling and the book’s protagonist, returns to Vegas and attempts to make sense of the Jackpot’s errant operation. With her knowledge of forensic accounting, can she help right the ship and defeat the mob? The story moves right along with a few hiccups. The way everything is tied up at the end may seem a bit pat, but it worked for me. A good read. Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins for providing me with a review copy.

[Sheila · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received a free copy of, The Kings of Vegas, by Karen Mack; Jennifer Kaufman, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Josie King is back in Vegas, but not by her choice, her father has passed away. Josie King is back in the family business of gambling and casinos. I did not care for this book at all.

[Cris · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an advanced copy thru NetGalley and the publisher. I enjoyed this story. It was about a family who inherited their father's casino. Josie being the youngest but turned out to be the smartest one out of all of them. I liked her character. I thought the book was easy to keep reading, I was never bored.

[Likestotravel · Rating 3 out of 5]

A difficult read for me - perhaps will be more entertaining for others.

Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for the opportunity to read this ARC.