Ladystinger

by Craig Smith

Maggie Rohrer, a burnt-out young woman on the grift, takes on the challenge of a high-stakes swindle and realizes too late that her life is on the line. 15,000 first printing.

232 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 1992

About the author

Craig Bradford Smith was the screenwriter for three crime films made between 1996 and 2002. Nominated for an Edgar in 1993 as Best First Novel for Ladystinger.

Reviews

[Frank Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book, great story, plenty of twists and turns and is fully believable. Sadly was the only book this author ever wrote, which makes me think....
Someone writes a really good book about spies, espionage and double dealing with scammers based at the international and local levels and is supposedly named Craig "Smith"....
Now I am a Smith myself and maybe I am reading too much into it, but makes you wonder....
Anyway first got into this book years after seeing the TV movie it was based on, the movie was called "Scam", it came out in 1993 and starred Christopher Walken and is one of my best ever, in fact I'd say is probably one of the very few films ever, which really do the book justice, well wroth the watch.

[Bookend McGee · Rating 4 out of 5]

A gripping page-turner. It got off-putting and too much in terms of violence near the end though. But he's a clever writer and doesn't over or underwrite, everything and everyone was believable, I was totally immersed in the book, had no idea how it was going to end. Maggie Rohrer was a great and sympathetic character and I totally bought her abandonment wound which would keep going off around the non trustworthy Jack Shanks. The first chapter was terrific, written from the POV of Maggie's first mark whom we never hear from again, but who sets up the novel wonderfully. I wonder how Craig Smith knows so much underhanded con stuff - I just recently saw the movie Argylle - haha. Would love to know more about Craig Smith. What were the movies he wrote (apart from the screenplay of this)?