The Wagers

by Sean Michaels

Scotiabank Giller-winner Sean Michaels is back with his widely anticipated second novel, The Wagers, a deeply satisfying story of long odds, magical heists and the dizzying gamble of life. Where does luck come from? What is it worth? And how much of it do you need to be happy?

Theo Potiris is a grocer and a comedian who never repeats his jokes. After 15 years of open mikes, he's still waiting for his break--bicycling to the comedy club at night, stacking plums at his family's grand and ramshackle supermarket by day. His girlfriend is halfway around the world, searching for enlightenment with a patron who happens to be the richest man on Earth, and when two other loved-ones get struck by bolts from the blue, Theo decides he can't keep chasing his old dreams any longer. He resolves to trade his wishes in, pursuing a bigger score.

Here Sean Michaels' novel takes a surprise left turn, away from the price of milk and into a shabby, beautiful, imaginary Montreal where peacocks strut on street corners and gamblers bet on sunny days. Theo uncovers a mysterious association of sports-obsessed mathematicians, The Rabbit's Foot, which is turning probability into riches, and the vigilante No Name Gang, who steal luck from those who have taken more than their fair share.

Bursting with sheer story-telling pleasure and stylish prose, The Wagers carries you along on wave after wave of invention--a literary motorcycle chase that soon has you wondering about the randomness of good fortune and all the ways we choose to wage our lives.

Genres: Fiction, Canada, Magical Realism, Fantasy, Literary Fiction, Audiobook

384 pages, Hardcover

First published September 24, 2019

About the author

SEAN MICHAELS is the author of the novels Us Conductors, The Wagers and Do You Remember Being Born?, and founder of the pioneering music blog Said the Gramophone. His non-fiction has appeared in The Guardian, McSweeney’s, Pitchfork and The New Yorker. Sean is a recipient of the Scotiabank Giller Prize, the QWF Paragraphe Hugh MacLennan Prize, the Grand Prix Numix, the Prix Nouvelles Écritures, and he has been nominated for the Dublin Literary Award, the Kirkus Prize, and the Prix des libraires du Quebec. Born in Stirling, Scotland, Sean lives in Montreal, Canada.

Reviews

[Candace · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars

Part of this novel is great, and part is a big struggle. "The Wagers" starts off well, like a promising family drama. Theo works in the family grocery business somewhere in Canada. The whole family is involved the the store is a neighborhood staple, selling the Greek goods the family started out with and expanding to foods from all over the world. The family mostly lives in apartments above the store.

Theo has a Friday ritual. He places a bet on a horserace, and the result says whether he'll go do a set at a local comedy club. Following a family tradition, he takes his 13 year old niece to place a bet on her birthday. She's been researching, and wins four million dollars.

This is where the novel veers off. Theo becomes involved with The Rabbit's Foot, an organization that researches luck. It's a lot of algorithms and hacking weirdos--charmless, all--but then he becomes with the Non Names, who believe luck is an actual thing, a sort of sand. They research lucky people and attempt to find is they have any of this sand, and if they do, they try to steal it. I ended up skimming this part.

I likes the opening of this novel well enough to go on the hunt for one of Sean Michaels' earlier novels. I'm not sure how much of an audience there is for a book that sort of combines Anne Tyler and Neal Stephenson.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for approving me to read and review!

~~Candace Siegle, Greedy Reader

[CarolG · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won a copy of this book through a Goodreads giveaway so many thanks to Goodreads and to Random House Canada. I don't think I'll ever get over that feeling of excitement any time I win. I had never heard of this author but was intrigued by the description of his novel. The book is well written and is an interesting story but moved a bit slowly, especially the first 1/3 or so. The author seems to really like to list things using as many phrases/adjectives/nouns/etc. as he can in a run-on sentence. Some of it's cute but some of it's very annoying, especially at one point where he listed 64 Christian names in a paragraph (I counted). It's different than most of the books I read and presents an unusual take on luck but I did enjoy it. It's not a book everyone would like but I'd recommend it to a friend.

[Yulia · Rating 2 out of 5]

A very light read, by which I mean this book has very little to offer in terms of substance. It is definitely not a thriller and it fails as a family drama it pretends at times to be. None of the characters are particularly likable, memorable, compelling or well developed. I could not bring myself to care about their quest either. A preposterous idea of luck being a physical substance does not work outside of the fantasy genre and the pseudo-scientific strains the author employs in the middle of the book do nothing to redeem it.
I cannot believe Sean Michaels won the Giller Prize. I have not read his debut novel, and I don't think I will, considering how weak his writing is here. His style is somewhat uneven, full of gems like: "an owl made an owl sound", "they passed roller-bladers rollerblading", "inconsistency like this was inconsistent with the profile", and then on page 258 there's a mix-up of which character is supposed to say the line "Is that what the building's for?" Who was the editor on this?!? At times, the author remembers the need to be 'literary' and then every sentence contains a simile. The 'book withing a book' trick is completely gratuitous and the entire chapter Labrador Sea could be omitted altogether to the benefit of both the book and reader.
There's not much to recommend here. The Wagers tries to be too many things: a family drama, a thriller, a philosophical examination of the role of luck and chance in people's lives, and it comes up short on all counts.

[Liz (Quirky Cat) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 1/2 stars

I received a copy of The Wagers through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

The Wagers is the second novel released by the one and only Sean Michaels. This time around, he’s writing about a comedian, and he needs a major change in his life. Or in his luck. Either would suffice, at this point.

Theo Poitris has been doing standup comedy on the side since he was a teenager. He’s loved the thrill and truth of it, refusing to ever tell a joke more than once. But then one day he realizes that he’s chasing an old dream and not getting anywhere, so it’s time for a dramatic change.


“When Theo went on stage he wanted to be able to trust whatever happened – to get up and tell a joke and to know without a doubt, for a few faint seconds, whether that joke was any good.”


The Wagers is one of those slow-burning, steady buildup novels. Theo’s journey is an eclectic one, but it takes a bit of time before we can truly dive into the insanity that is waiting for us.

Actually, before I begin my review, let me take a step back for a moment. I have a confession to make; the real reason that The Wagers caught my attention? The cover! I’m a sucker for black cats, so this cutie on the cover immediately caught me and made me want to learn more about it. Sadly, that appearance is more thematic than literal. Still a great cover!

Much of Theo’s life has remained static for years, and that does show clearly in this novel. I’ll admit that I had trouble getting into this book, because of how slow the beginning was. I was impressed with the writing – but I just found myself wishing time and again that something more would happen.

The story does start ramping up in time, adding more and more inane bits of humor and reference throughout. It actually gets a bit crazy – in a fun way. But the journey to get there diminished some of that for me.

On the whole, I found that the ending made the read worthwhile. Actually, the writing itself did that. I liked Michaels' way of writing, regardless of what was actually happening on the pages. The humor and conclusion was just icing on the cake.

For more reviews check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks

[Sarah S · Rating 1 out of 5]

I made it to page 78. I can't go on... the story is a slow drag. Nothing is happening. NOTHING. Many ordinary descriptions of many ordinary things. I lack the patience.

[MargaretDH · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up because I loved Us Conductors, and, as a sophomore effort, it's not quite as good, but still an enjoyable read.

Theo lives in Montreal and has a routine. He works at the family grocery store, Provisions K, makes one $10 bet at the race track every week, and if he wins, does one set, never the same, at the Knock Knock comedy club. But when Theo takes his 12 year old niece for her inaugural bet at the track, Theo's life starts to spiral irrevocably away from routine, delving into probability and luck.

I remember Us Conductors going a little deeper into character than Michaels does here, but Theo and co. are interesting and compelling. And I liked the exploration of risk taking and its rewards, and whether or not we are all taking the same risk, even when attempting the same thing.

The writing is fairly light here, skewing towards the charming-and-whimsical end of the scale. Given the exploration of luck, this worked for me here.

If you're looking for something that goes down easy, but is more thoughtful than the average read that could be filed under whimsy, I think you'll like this.

[Denver Public Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

Give this book a chance—the author spends a good bit of time setting up the Montreal setting and characters, but once it gets rolling, go with it! Theo Potiris is a grocer and a comedian who never repeats his jokes. After 15 years of open mikes, he's still waiting for his break—bicycling to the comedy club at night, stacking plums at his family's grand legacy supermarket by day. He also loves betting on the ponies, with moderate returns, until one day when taking his niece to the track for a traditional birthday wager she hits it big—really big! Then Theo uncovers a mysterious association of sports-obsessed mathematicians, The Rabbit's Foot, which is turning probability into riches, and the vigilante No Name Gang, who steal luck from those who have taken more than their fair share. This is where The Wagers turns into a caper, Ocean's Eleven-like at times, and so much fun. Just give into the probability and unprobability of it all! For fans of Spoonbenders by Daryl Gregory and The Invention of Ana by Mikkel Rosengaard.

[Marilyn Boyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think Michaels is a wonderful storyteller. I enjoyed Us Conductors (all three times I read it), and as far as flow of a story, this is much better. There was no need to flip back to find out who said what or any repetition by the narrator. All was clear, and Michaels swept you into his reality/fantasy. What might have seemed impossible was plausible. The form shifted pleasurably with elements (coming of age - yes, at 36, utopian structure, and thriller). I felt in the sure hands of the author, so it never felt like a misfire. There were a couple of editing problems, but it was obvious that it was an editing issue, so didn’t interrupt the flow of the novel. Definitely a good read.

[Ashod · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinating premise, imaginative writing, ultimately unfulfilling.

[K.R. Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I often find myself reading a book because of how much I enjoyed the author’s previous work. That’s what took me to Sean Michaels’ spectacular second novel THE WAGERS, which is not only a ripping yarn about luck, it’s also so dense with stylistic goodness it feels like it should be heavier. Michaels really knows how to craft a scene, or a sentence, or a world.

And speaking as a writer who’s always hoarding names for characters, I have to admire the way he profligately dumps 64 of them into a single paragraph, for no other apparent reason than to delightfully illustrate Montreal’s diversity.

[Deon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Theo has spent his youth trying to make it as a comedian while working at the family grocery store. Once a week he places a bet, from the outcome he decides if it is a good night to try the comedy club. He has been doing this faithfully for years, riding his bike between his various destinations; racetrack, grocery store, comedy club. On her birthday he takes his niece to place a bet, it is tradition, she wins big. All these years of his betting and his niece hits it big on the first try! Theo gets involved in a group that steals from those who win more than their fair share. Things, of course, get out of control.

[Alexander Kosoris · Rating 4 out of 5]

In The Wagers, Theo Potiris believes in luck. He works at his family’s supermarket by day and does stand-up comedy at night, but he only performs a set if he wins a bet at the racetrack beforehand. Though he briefly saw some minor success with his comedy––receiving interview requests and performing on late night television––his career fizzled. In fact, luck seems more and more to be passing him by. After his mother passes away suddenly and his cousin wins millions––at the racetrack he bets at weekly, no less––he puts his dreams on hold to try and find a way to improve his luck. He discovers that luck exists in a physical form, improving the fortune of anyone possessing it; Theo joins up with a gang of outlaws, travelling the world to rob people of their luck.

The Wagers is a slow burn, a bit of a drag, in fact, in what at times feels like an extended introduction to the meat of the story. (Though, this characterization isn’t exactly accurate in spite of this feeling; the pieces that feel like a slow build to a main plot turn out to be more significant than they first appeared.) I don’t, however, want to suggest that some major piece of the book is entirely dreary. Not far into it, Theo delivers a stirring speech that seems to brighten the text immediately following it. And the writing of character speech in general is really what shines the brightest in The Wagers. Michaels uses it effectively to inject life into his characters, which in turn brings out realistic emotions and gives the plot heft as it moves along. What results is a story about maturing that feels mature in its outlook and presentation.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the way he wrote, but the ending just irks me.
Perhaps I enjoy books where the main character gets a happy ending and in some ways he did, but I feel that of all the ways it could of went it just fell short. So much build up only to come full circle and end up right back where he started.

The first 1/3 of the book tells the normal life of our main character. Things start to build pace after that, and by around 3/4 of the way through you think perhaps there will be a sequel because so many things are left unanswered and you can't see how everything gets answer with so few pages left. But it does.... Somewhat and just crashes down on you.

There is a bond being built between Theo and Simone and then at the end it is just dropped. She just leaves with no trace of coming back. So much time goes into their little encounters and their conversations and the ending it's as if it meant nothing. It just left an unsatisfied feeling within me.

Not too mention, the second heist they do was so weird. It just felt like filler. They could of made a real quarrel occur. A battle of wits between a billionaire and a gang of thieves, but nothing. He does nothing even though they stole from him. His weird little robots were useless guards. The story just cuts it right there.

[Zach Garber · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was quite fun but left a lot to be desired in the ending, preventing me from giving it 5 stars.

As most other reviews state, it’s a slow burn to get started but I enjoyed the writing so stuck with it. Especially because the synopsis had me dying to know more. When things finally take off around the 200page mark it’s an adventure! I loved following Theo from job to job to job and the people along the way.

I’ll admit the book was hard to follow time to time. Random letters between Theo and Lou thrown in, a chapter of a book Theo reads, a scientific paper, jumping into a heist and then explaining characters disguises after the fact.

Despite all of that the book had me reading the last 200 pages in a matter of days. I couldn’t stop. My heart was pounding, waiting for the big finale.

Unfortunately. It seems it’s left to the readers imagination what happens with Theo’s life.

[Aly · Rating 4 out of 5]

On croit tout d'abord à une histoire qui parle de famille lorsqu'on fait la connaissance de Theo, montréalais dans la quarantaine, qui travaille à l'épicerie familiale, place quelques paris aux jeux de course et tente aussi sa chance en racontant des blagues sur scène certains vendredi.

Mais l'univers dans lequel nous entraîne Sean Michaels n'est pas aussi linéaire qu'il veut nous faire croire. À quelques reprises dans le récit, il prend le tableau qu'il a d'abord peint sous nos yeux et fait pivoter l'image pour nous offrir une autre vérité puis une nouvelle proposition encore plus captivante. Mais toujours en gardant le focus sur la chance et le hasard.

Un pied entre la réalité et l'imaginaire, c'est ce que j'ai aimé de ce livre et c'est d'ailleurs ce que j'apprécie souvent dans les livres édités par Alto.

[J.L. Slipak · Rating 1 out of 5]

MY THOUGHTS:

I received this book in exchange for my honest review.

Are we sure that the author of Us Conductors, is the same one who wrote this mess?

Wow... I've never been more disappointed in a book as I am now. Slow, grinding slow for a large part of the book kept me growing more and more resistent to finishing the book. I'm finding it hard to believe I can love an author one moment only hate him so much in another. This book was a mess. It's way too slow, the pacing is painful; and, the character development even slower. The concept feels unfinished and the climax... a waste of time.

A stinker to say the least.

I will give credit where it is due, to the author for his use of dialogue. It was effective.

[Galactic Hero · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hapless Theo tries is luck at the racetrack and the comedy club when not managing the family business, but things aren't quite working out. Then a chance encounter with a mystery babe sets him on a course to changing not just his luck but luck in general.

Lots of ideas. Lots of loose ends. I guess with a theme this general, pretty much anything goes. A light enjoyable read, with an exciting though fairly typical heisty final act. I would have liked to see it to go in more weird and surprising directions. Didn't read the jacket as per usual going in, so it least there were some nice surprises in the first part.

Bonus star for being set in Montreal, albeit with slightly different birds!

[Sarah Rowan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always seem to come away from Sean Michaels' writing feeling torn. I love his style - his writing is vivid, poetic, humorous, entertaining. Yet - I'm never quite sure I really *like* the book itself.

This was definitely better than Us Conductors, but that's not saying much from me. Perhaps in a nut shell, I found this book to be stretched too thin - too many disparate parts trying to form a whole, without the necessary scaffolding to make it work. In that sense, perhaps I felt that getting to know Theo was a window into Michaels himself - the comic/writer who has some good material, but can't quite make it work and no one really knows why.

I still gave it 4-stars because like I said, I do appreciate his writing style and ability to capture a scene and write descriptive location.

[Annie · Rating 2 out of 5]

The ancients used to think of luck as a supernatural force. I find it hard to argue with them. Luck is fickle. Sometimes we try to woo it to our side by not shaving or not changing our socks or carrying around a lucky charm. Luck is a lot more identifiable in Sean Michaels’s The Wagers, but no less mysterious. In the world of Theo Potiris, part-time grocer and comedian, luck is a finite resource and he is one of luck’s losers. We see him drifting through life until a chance (heh) encounter with a group of luck thieves makes him finally realize what makes him happy in life. At least, that’s what I think this book is about. It’s muddled...

Read the rest of my review at A Bookish Type.

[Jan Heppner · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am feeling torn. I love his style - his writing is vivid, poetic, humorous, entertaining. I just had to reread some sentences I loved them so much. I loved his description of his family and the grocery business and, frankly, I would have liked to have just stuck with that story. Having said, that, I really enjoyed his look at what luck is....a bag of sand? Kind of a cool concept. I found this book to be stretched too thin - too many disparate parts trying to form a whole, without the necessary scaffolding to make it work.
I still gave it 4-stars because like I said, I do appreciate his writing style and ability to capture a scene and write descriptive location.

[Dessa · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s horrible, reading a second novel from an author whose debut knocked you down and made everything in the air glitter, for a little while. You’re afraid; you can’t bear to look; your brain beats with the question WHAT IF IT’S NOT AS GOOD AS THE FIRST BOOK? over and over while you read.

I am happy to report I’ve been knocked down again, and the air glitters even more thickly than before. This book feels like a lump in the throat, refusing to reveal whether it’s caused by sorrow or joy; this book is the heist movie I needed; this book is a testament to luck and all the ways we make and spend and thieve and mourn it, and all the ways it does the same to us.

[HeatherD · Rating 3 out of 5]

As with US Conductors, I really liked Sean Michaels' writing. However, the twists and turns in this new novel "The Wagers" were a bit too much for me. It felt like he had a bunch of interesting ideas and threw them all into this book. Some developments simply puttered, which made me ask why add them?

At the half way mark he introduced a magical element and I nearly just put the novel down for good. I'm glad I stayed, if only because by the end I rethought the purpose of the book. It's really a coming of age type novel for a 40 something protagonist, Theo. Despite all that happens and that his life is almost unchanged by the end, Theo is slightly better for the adventures.

[Linda Bond · Rating 4 out of 5]

When your stand-up comedy routines fail to entertain and your career is on the fritz, there’s nothing left but to join a gang of vigilante thieves and steal the luck from winners. When Theo Potiris gets sick and tired of the family grocery business and he can’t get a laugh out of anyone, his life takes a distinct swerve toward unexpected destinations as he chases luck around the world. A clever story but more than that, it’s a good look at life and where our choices can carry us.

I met this book at Auntie's Bookstore in Spokane, WA.

[Shazia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not sure what happened here. Michaels seems to have started one book, a family drama, and then finished with a different book, a supernatural heist escapade. The two halves do not fit together well at all, and I'd note that many of the reviewers either preferred the first or second half. I preferred the first half. The premise of what they are stealing didn't work for me, and the thefts themselves were conducted by people we largely didn't care about. The two stories are all right, but I wouldn't recommend this book.

[Joy · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's an interesting premise. I enjoyed the Canadian locations. The beaten down protagonist was somewhat pitiful and endearing. Not sure what to make of his long distance girlfriend- she remained out of focus and difficult to grasp. But it got a little bogged down in the middle with the storing and stealing of luck. Whole pages devoted to logistics. Didn't mind so much the supermarket mundane details of stocking and checking. Felt like slice of life.

[Joanne-in-Canada · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reminded me of Stanley Park by Timothy Taylor: flawed but likeable narrator, plot points crossing the border between improbable and fantastic, descriptions of a Canadian city (here Montreal rather than Vancouver) that suggest you could find the locations if you just looked hard enough...

[Chuk · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this better than Us Conductors -- very Canadian setting, neat looks into comedy and groceries, family and relationships, plus there's a kind of genre/weird element that shows up pretty far into the book. Mostly reads like literary fiction except for some heist scenes, works well.

[Lorraine · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Wagers was quite an adventure. Sean Michaels is a wonderful, creative and thoughtful writer. The story takes a turn at one point and it felt like a completely different book for a while. The characters stay true and consistent. The main character, Theo, goes through so many different circumstances in a short period of time. I will think about him a lot over the next few days. Great book!

[Charles · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, like so many books I acquire, I cannot recall where I got this recommendation, but I enjoyed it greatly -- quite unpredictable, a true tale with highs and lows and skullduggery not of the kind I have ever before encountered. While the ending seemed slightly surprising and flat, on the other hand, it was well within the framework of the tale, not far-fetched at all (well, not so within the novel's logic!). Maybe 2 1/2 stars really, but a great late spring read.

[Antoine · Rating 2 out of 5]

I Had to read this book for the first English class in Cégep. The book starts really slow but things start to speed up after the first half, however, it led to, in my opinion, a disappointed ending.

The author has an incredible talent for describing the settings but I found it sometimes overly complicated and harsh to read for someone who English isn't their first language.

Overall this book wasn't bad but it's not a book I would read again or recommend to someone else.