Las Vegas Books

I listened to the audio version of this book. The reader spoke clearly and the story wraps up your mind in entertainment. While a part of a series, I heard this book only and it stood alone. The author weaves Michael and Dani's lives and love affair in a time-shifting novel filled with crime, sex, and secrets. You care about the characters and find their colorful lives delicious to listen too. Once you start listening, you'll want to hear the story all the way through.

Enjoyable book, received book quickly after ordering. Book in excellent condition.
Had been unable to find book in local bookstores

Jackie Collins' provacative and controversial novels are legend. She dedicates this one to: "all those who lost their lives in the American tragedies on September 11, 2001, and to the incredible bravery and tenacity of the firemen, policemen, and emergency workers who toiled far and above the call of duty. New York, Washington, and in the skies. Heroes and heroines every one."

It's in the genes, like father, like daughter -- raunchy characters from the mob, murderers, strip club owners, adultresses, and corrupt casino employees in Las Vegas. From the east coast to the west coast, they can't outrun their inner and actual demons. Persuing passion and fulfillment wherever they find themselves in sleasy clubs or glamorous settings, mainly they're out for revenge, money, and power. Two deaths in the family, who will be next?

With titles like THE BITCH, THE STUD, and THE LOVE KILLERS, this is both prequel and sequel to LETHAL SEDUCTION. She is a busy writer with a fanciful and vivid imagination.

This book reminded me of some of Jackie Collins earlier works....and because I had not read one of her novels in a long time, I was pleased to see that she has a lot of talent and weaves a good tale.

In Deadly Embraces, Collins tells the love story of Michael Castelli (a part time mobster, turned multi-billionare playboy) and Dani Castle (ex-Vegas Showgirl). Their romance, which spanned over 30 years is reviewed and we see their heartaches, relationships with other people, marriages to other people, birth of their children and various other life experiences.

The novel begins with Michael's beloved daughter, Madison taken hostage at a restaurant, while Michael's past comes to haunt him. Everything is not what it seems and we soon learn that revenge or retribution is a dish best served cold.

So far I have completed about 7 of Jackie Collin's novels and this one was by far the most entertaining. I love how she mingles, sex, hate, murder, etc. It is captivating -- I did not want to put this book down and the end did not disappoint. A must read.

After being out of print, we have this tale of a talented hit man back for our reading pleasure - and it is a pleasure. Like most hit men, the Butcher's Boy kills with cold efficiency. All goes well until he murders a United States Senator. This stirs the FBI and Department of Justice into intense action. The reaction worries the Mafia dons that hired the Butcher's Boy. He may be caught and implicate them, so the order goes out to kill him. While he eludes hit men trying to eliminate him, he also becomes more visible to a Department of Justice analyst, Elizabeth Waring. Soon, she is involved in the hunt while the Butcher's Boy goes to war against the Mafia dons. The story alternates between the shadowy Butcher's Boy and Elizabeth Waring. Their paths get steadily closer, and you want to tell her to back off - she is out of her league, but she unknowingly descends into the lair of the Butcher's Boy. The story should give thriller fans a good jolt. It is well-worth reading.

I don't know how I missed knowing about Perry, since he's been cranking them out for a quarter-century, but somehow I did. I saw a recommendation for _Death Benefits,_ enjoyed that one, and went hunting for his earlier work. This is his first and it won an Edgar. The title character, never given a personal name, is a "specialist," a highly professional hit man, who began learning his trade in early childhood from Eddie "The Butcher." He's now one of the best and he works mostly for various mafia families. This job involves the murder of a member of a union local, and then the assassination of a senior U.S. Senator who has begun investigating in certain tax areas the mob doesn't want pried into. When our protagonist goes to Las Vegas to pick up his payment, however, he seems to have suddenly become a liability to his employers, who try to remove him from the scene. Big mistake. Taking out a professional, you had better get it right the first time -- and they don't. Pretty soon, mob soldiers, capos, and their underlings begin dropping like flies. Meanwhile, Elizabeth Waring, a smart young crime analyst working for the Justice Department, gets called in on the union hit as her first field assignment and develops her own theories about what's happening. The interesting thing in this sly and subtly plotted narrative is how often decisions are made on all sides based on erroneous information or misinterpretation of evidence. The characterization is excellent and the pace is frenetic, even though the protagonist is never anything but calm and collected. Finally, the small irony in the last two pages of the book is delicious.

Hit man suddenly having to avoid being taken out by his employers.

I stumbled across this book as I randomly looked for a new (to me) author. I put off reading it for awhile until I was in the mood for something on the darker side. I am surprised by how much I liked this book. Really not sure why. Something in the way Thomas Perry writes I guess. I am fairly certain I need therapy of some kind because I couldn't stop myself from rooting for him - meaning: not hoping for the worst for "him". (he does have teeny-tiny moments where he showed very, very, very brief moments of some flashes of not being completely and utterly devoid of humanity or maybe I just was trying to justify my moments of rooting for him because he obviously is evily unwell). I did like his MacGyver-ness. Elizabeth was a total disappointment- I think the synopsis totally oversold/misrepresented her. I will now juggle Thomas Perry and Michael Connelly.

As you read this book, you have to keep reminding yourself that this is the first novel by Perry. It is an excellent debut novel.

Looking at the new books, at the library, I saw Thomas Perry's latest novel, Silence. I wasn't sure if I wanted to dedicate time to get it read and returned by the two week limit, so I went in search of some of his earlier works. I decided on The Butcher's Boy. And it was a great read.

He (the killer is always referred to as "he" throughout the novel) is very good. And extremely careful. His jobs always go through middlemen, so he doesn't know who hired him or why. He doesn't want to know. But he is very effective. A union officer is blown up in California. A senior Senator dies in Colorado. Nothing to link either victims or the people that wanted them eliminated. When the killer arrives in Las Vegas, a few days early, strange things start happening and it isn't long before he discovers that there is a contract out on him. But who and why? The killer finds himself running from not only his ex-employers but also a very smart and dedicated Department of Justice analyst.

I found this novel riveting. Told mainly from the point-of-view of the killer, you find yourself hoping that he makes it out alive. Even though he is ruthless. And the Department of Justice analyst, Elizabeth Waring, is one of the best female characters in fiction. She is smart, tenacious, dedicated. She feels that there is a link between the union official and the senator, but her bosses aren't about to go on "feelings." I looked forward to continuing the novel, spending as much free time as I could reading. For a debut novel, Perry includes plenty of twists and turns, believable dialog and characters, and an excellent plot.

A fantastic debut novel, one that will not disappoint.

An early 80s Edgar Award winner, this wonderful adventure pits Department of Justice prodigy Elizabeth Waring against The Butcher's Boy, the professional assassin who remains nameless throughout the book. He's good at his job. Two early murders, one of an influential U.S. Senator, put the Department of Justice and Elizabeth and her co-workers, sometimes in uneasy alliance with the FBI and local law enforcement, on the trail of an unknown murderer, maybe two since they aren't sure if the homicides are related or not. The factor tying them together turns out to be Fieldstone Growth Enterprises, ostensibly an investment company. Things end up going in unpredictable directions for both main characters, many caused by he role of a mafia-like organization that touches on all of this business and the lives of the murderer and Elizabeth. There are plenty of murders in the book, some first hand, some only discussed, but only peripherally gory in most cases. I found it disconcertingly easy to like the assassin, not the first bad guy of Perry's I liked (see Gordon in Metzger's Dog). I've read half a dozen or more of Perry's books. This is his first, and it's interesting to see in character Maureen a foreshadow of Jane Whitefield (try Vanishing Act), a character I enjoyed immensely in her several novels. This is one more sample of why I find Perry to be a most reliable story teller, entertaining and consistently good.

By now, I know that any James Swain book about Tony Valentine is going to be just terrific. I write about poker and Las Vegas. Swain is one of he best at capturing "the Meadows" at its weirdest. The plot's a long shot but that's no problem. In my new novel, Texas Poker Wisdom, I use some of the cheating slang that I stole from Tony Valentine. If this is your first of Swain's books in this series, you will want to read the others. This would make a great gift for anyone interested in gambling, Las Vegas, or just a great mystery read. I loved it. You will too.
Johnny HughesTexas Poker Wisdom

Only just recently heard of James Swain and his Tony Valentine books. Glad I did.

This story is a really good read. I liked it a lot.

Steady, engaging pace. Complicated enough story, but not so much as to tie itself in knots. A few leaps of faith here and there, but overall very believable and enjoyable.

The characters are likeable - even the villians.

Mr. Lucky is a fun read. If you are a gambler and a purist, you will spot some holes in the logic of this book, but you have to be pretty uptight to allow that to spoil your enjoyment. Having read all of the Tony Valentine books, I am happy to see that his son is finally starting to display some common sense. Not a lot, but some. This is a quick read, so put on your sneakers.

For pure reading entertainment, it's hard to beat anything in the Tony Valentine series by James Swain. The plot lines are simple and the supporting characters are often a little over the top. But, boy, does Swain ever make it work. In addition to a writing style that is thoroughly enjoyable, Swain's descriptions of various scams add a unique quality that takes an already wonderful story to the next level.

In Mr. Lucky, Tony and Mabel stand out as always. Tony has such a real quality to him, it's easy to forget that he's fictional. While all of the works in the series are highly entertaining, what makes Mr. Lucky even more complete is the development of Tony's son, Gerry, as a character. Gerry's contributions to the story have been building over the last couple of books, and with Mr. Lucky, he finally arrives as a quality main character.

Ricky Smith provides a worthy protagonist for Tony, all the while maintaining a surprising likeability. You want to see him go down, but not necessarily because of who he is or what he's done, but because we want and expect Tony to get to the bottom of things.

Well done, as always, Mr. Swain. I look forward to the next story in the series.

Swain's Tony Valentine's books are great summer reads, and although I have not read all of them, they are mostly enjoyable.

I like the gambling atmosphere of Casinos (though I hardly gamble myself), as well as learning about all the types of con games that exhist and these contribute to my enjoyment of Swain's works.

The author will throw in a lot of his knowlege of cheating, and why gambling is a loosing proposition, so reading one of these books acutally lets me feel like I've had some casino fun, without losing any money!

Mr. Lucky is one of the best of his books I have read for a couple of reasons. The first is the relationship between Tony Valentine and his son. In this story the son begins to come around and make better choices in his life, so the reader gets to root for him, but also get taken through the drama of his struggles.

Another reason for my claiming this is one of Swain's best is that I did not have to suspend belief to a ridiculous degree. One has to do this in any modern day mystery - granted - but I did not have to read about "little people" (aka midgets) hiding in speakers playing music for musicians who were faking it on stage, or about eukalale playing monkeys that can read your mind and play the song you are thinking of. No, this story was quite believable in comparison and that is a huge plus!

I thought this book would be more how to be "smooth" and "cool", but it more about getting your life on track, with a few tips on "coolness". It did motivate me though and I have been a much better house keeper since reading this book.

If you want to improve your lifestyle, you need this book.
If you want self-improvement, you need this book.
If you want to gain a happier life, you need this book.

The book is a step-by-step guildline to improve your LIFE. It is practical and easy to follow. It really works.

Thanks Mr. Kyriazi, you wrote a great book.

You'd expect this to be a joke, but Kyriazi takes his Bond very seriously. This is an amazing book, one that gets you excited just thinking of all the possibilities that the techniques could open up for you. Highly recommended!

Kyrazi's Bond seminar book offers a lot of good, practical advice that, upon first glance, seems like a no-brainer. But just the fact that one has purchased this book shows that he or she is motivated to improve his or her lifestyle, and the advice offered in this title becomes more realistic and attainable than it was before with that first step.
Although the text is not the great American novel by any stretch of the imagination, and I would go so far as to say that it is poorly written as far as books are concerned, this is not the point of the book; nor is it the point of the book to turn someone into James Bond or even to get someone to accomplish all of the things suggested therein (you have to be able to pick and choose things that are relevant to your life, personally, as we are all unique individuals). The book is, however, meant to help someone achieve his or her maximum potential as a unique human being, and this is what Paul Kyriazi does extremely well in the book. I have seen immediate results, and I haven't looked back since. The only place to go is up.

I hadn't expected a curious thing that happened while reading "The Complete James Bond Lifestyle Seminar" book: I was already doing a lot of what I found there. But I'm in my early 40's and I've been watching and rewatching the Bond films for most of my conscious life (I'm currently rereading all of the novels and just finished Andrew Lycett's wonderful bio of Ian Fleming), so it stands to reason that something had to rub off.

But if you're in your 20's or 30's, I'm sure you'll pick up a lot of very helpful tips about the style of your new cool life. The author doesn't limit his seminar to 007 but also includes very cool and swingin' insights from Bond's American cousins--Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack.

I have to disagree with the author on page 217. He writes, "I've never seen Bond running out the door yelling, 'I'm late. I'll never make it.'" The section is called "Be Early." Good advice. And it's true that we've never seen Bond rush out late...but that doesn't mean he's always on time either. In THUNDERBALL, M chides him in front of the other double-O's with, "Now that we're all here!" And how many films have shown a flustered Moneypenny trying to track him down?
He might be late once in a while...he just doesn't get excited about it, even if the world hangs in the balance.

But that's a quibble, along with typos and the first half of the book mentioning "Blowfeld" instead of "Blofeld" (it's corrected in the second half).

So with tongue firmly planted in cheek and open to improving your coolness, you'll have a good time reading through this seminar for tips. I did.

This is my 2nd Tony Valentine book. Like the other, this one is loads of fun and sucks you in and keeps you turning the pages. Not going to stimulate any new neuron growth, but will keep you happily distracted and entertained for a few hours.

Story starts out from a pretty simple premise, but new layers/complications keep getting added until you've got yourself a full-blown terrorist threat. The events are a bit of a reach, but close enough that it doesn't lose you.

Naturally, Tony saves the day with an ending that's a bit over the top. But the rest of the story is pretty grounded and plausible. And the characters are vividly sketched, with many of them, including Tony, being quite likeable and empathetic.

And, of course, there are any number of subplots going on all the while - Tony's son, new baby, solving various cheating schemes (usually in, like, 5 seconds which streches credibility a bit - especially the one where his assistant figures out a cheating scheme over the phone by reading a textbook). But anyway, the subplots all tie in somehow and help to keep things moving quickly without getting too convoluted.

So, very solid effort and I recommend this as a perfect beach read, long flight, etc.

Retired cop turned casino consultant Tony Valentine is back in Vegas on a job, and searching for his screw-up son Gerry, when he spies a woman bearing a strong resemblance to his deceased wife getting ready to jump off her balcony. Tony races away from a meeting with three high-buck casino bosses and to the aid of Lucy Price, who's feeling suicidal after her $25,000 winnings are stolen. Of course, this is all just part of a bigger scam happening at the Acropolis Casino next door, an old-style Vegas joint complete with statues of its owner's ex-wives out front. Nick Nicocropolis and Valentine go back, so Valentine readily agrees to help catch the scammers, who are led once again by the legendary Frank Fontaine, who Valentine has tangled with before.

Much more is at stake, however, when Gerry Valentine teams up with a couple guys from card counting school who are up to no good. Ripping off casinos is only a part of the evil schemes his new companions are up to, and soon Gerry is in so deep he has no one but the old man to turn to.

While not as much fun as Swain's last effort, and relying a bit heavily on a cast of warmed-over characters from his first novel, this is nonetheless another entertaining tale in the Tony Valentine saga. We get a few more peeks into the characters, but I could have used a tad more, since Valentine's last novel was so good.

This entry in James Swain's Tony Valentine series is stuffed with character, action, plot, a subplot, Oedipal conflicts, and as an extra added bonus, tips on gambling scams.

Valentine, the retired Atlantic City cop turned gambling consultant to casinos, is one of the great new heroes in the thriller genre.

The dialog's crispy, you'll care for the characters, you'll forget lunch, you'll forget dinner.

One click it now!

Loaded Dice was very entertaining. During the five days that Tony Valentine(the protagonist)spends in Las Vegas, he discovers a scheme that cheats a casino, is accused of murder, has a short romance with an addicted gambler, saves his son, and gets involved with terrorists. Tony did all the work and I relaxed. This is a very easy read and there is lots of interesting information about methods of cheating at games. I recommend this book.

I read Sucker Bet by James Swain as well and I must say he brings good stuff that can be great. However, ending is such a "Hollywood" formula that I cannot give 4 or 5 stars.

As with other book by James Swain, he starts off great so he will suck you in but at the end, it fizzles.... and disappoints.

If you have nothing else on your reading list, pick it up and read it but don't expect an original ending.

if you love stories about gambling or love gambling in general this should interest you.

This book had the potential to be very good - the story was interesting, the backdrop was the Internet Boom and Vegas, and the main characters were fairly original. However, as a result of the puff piece writing, this turned out to be one of the worst "memoirs" (if you can even call it that) I have ever read.

The major problem with this book is that it just skims over the real interesting parts of the story. For example, these two guys purchase the Golden Nugget, which is inherently interesting. Unfortunately, the author spends no more than 4 pages discussing exactly how the multi-million dollar deal went down. It was like giving a Cliff Notes version of the critical part to this story.

In addition, Fussman feels the need to remind the reader of the great friendship the two main characters have no less than 200 times during the course of the book. Ok, we get it. They are good friends. The problem is that Fussman barely spends time discussing the real fights they have (as any partnership does) and the most time discussing one fight is about when one of the guys dates Jamie Pressly.

Finally, the name dropping in this book is beyond absurd. Again, we get it - we know these guys know celebrities but the constant references to "we were having dinner with Tony Bennett and....." is annoying.

In all, the overall story is interesting but a story this good deserved to be told by a much better author.

A testimony to friendship in an exciting journey. Fast, furious, electric.
As the reading progresses one feels as part of the adventure. A very easy and fun reading. What a treat!
Can't wait for the next one.
Marne

Truly one of the most remarkable success stories in the fascinating, ever evolving history of Las Vegas. Tom Breitling and Tim Poster rank among the elite of the mavericks who molded and shaped Las Vegas, such as Benny Binion and Sam Boyd. Much like Boyd and Binion, Breitling and Poster started their dramatic and profitable rise on little more than a wing and prayer, not to mention a few "floated" checks.

Bucking the odds of the corporate casino mentality and invoking a strategy of "Old Vegas", Tim and Tom not only made a fortune, but managed to remain best friends and great guys. Tim and Tom's relationship has remained steadfast and strong throughout their whirlwind ride giving great insight into their character. Tom's introspect and honesty about his friendship with Tim and his early family life adds an insightful, touching side to this remarkable story.

The most amazing thing is the whole story is absolutely, undeniably 100% true! No B.S.! No embellishment and no filler! Imagine having the time of your life with your best friend, while making hundreds of millions of dollars in the process!

"Double or Nothing" is a must read for anyone contemplating a new business venture with a friend or just looking for an entertaining true story about two guys who worked their butts off and made a ton of money. I would highly recommend this book to anyone with a passion for life, friends and business; it also doesn't hurt to have a sense of humor.

Having actually been there for the Las Vegas Reservation Systems and Travelscape parts of the story, it was interesting to read about some of the business deals that were going on at the time. While there was some new stuff that I didn't realize in there, there was also a fair bit left out. It is a very quick read, by the way. Lots of short chapters.

Zoey Dean is back in her fifth installment in the A- List Series. In this novel the A-listers go to Las Vegas as their end of the year senior trip, instead of Washington D.C. There everyone is having a fun time. Cammie and Adam are going good, Anna tries to reach Ben, but he never answers his phone. Sam is obsessing over Eduardo and Dee is going crazy of judaism and Ruby Hummingbird, Sam's stepsister. In Las Vegas everyone goes to a hypnosist show, where some of them reveal some deep secrets, which are later forgiven, and their vacation ends short when Dee is taken to a physciatric hospital after going crazy over Ruby and Poppy. While leaving Anna see's Ben and they both stay at the hotel. Zoey Dean's fifth was great. In fact this series has been really fun and interesting and I would definitely recommend it.

I gave this book 5 stars because the storyline was great and the characters were very interesting. Every chapter that I read was leading up to the main reason of the story and that is what I like in reading a book. I wouldn't like to read about the present time and then the next page be a flashback. That is just too confusing.
The characters were very interesting. The character I liked most was Anna because she was most down-to-earth person than any other character in my opinion. The author did a very good job with this book.
-Rasheenah

I gave this book 5 stars because the storyline was great and the characters were very interesting. Every chapter that I read was leading up to the main reason of the story and that is what I like in reading a book. I wouldn't like to read about the present time and then the next page be a flashback. That is just too confusing.
The characters were very interesting. The character I liked most was Anna because she was most down-to-earth person than any other character in my opinion. The author did a very good job with this book.
-Rasheenah

I this book is pretty good because it's different than some of the different ones in the series. I like the fact that Anna is going to Las Vegas even though she wouldn't normaly choose to go there. For some reason I don't feel that Cammie really deserves Adam and in she is so mean about Anna. I don't like her but she makes the story more interesting.

This book was hot hot hot! The most popular A-listers at BHH are going on a trip to Sin City instead of that boring trip to Washington-Parker, Sam, Cammie, Adam, Dee and of course Ana. The six of them check in at Las Vegas' finest Palms Hotel. Cammie decides all the girls should have a catty fashion contest, but when Cammie herself doesnt come appropiately dressed things get a little wild...
Poor Parker is low on cash and is willing to do anything to get some cash fast, but what happens when his gambling reaches a dead end? On the other hand, Anna is running low on love. She seems lost and cant stop thinking about Ben, so she leaves him a voicemail inviting him to Sin City. But what happens when Cyn and Scott show up? Scott is looking amazingly hot and Cyn is unsure about their relationship, will Anna make a move?
And to top off the cake they all go to a hypnotist for fun.But is it all fun and games when they are forced to share their deepest secrets on stage??Cammie confesses something about Adam, Adam confesses something about Cammie, and Anna confesses something about Scott! Sam just lays back with her mouth wide open as she hears these deep revealing secrets. And what happens when they decide to watch the tape? Will all end well? Will there be new hook-ups or break-ups??
And the frosting on top of this cake is that who else but Ben shows up at the Palms just before they're about to leave. Fortunetly, Anna spots him and stops the limo. Unfortunetly, although they express their feelings for each other and cant wait to ravish each other, Ben has a secret- he has a girlfriend waiting for him to come back to her at Princeton. Will this newly revealed secret affect the magic between Ben and Anna?
**READ THE BOOK TO FIND OUT!!!!**

We tried this book for our small club, and have thoroughly enjoyed it. Well written...good character development...a good story.

This is an engrossing story within a story. You will be kept wondering and wanting to have all of your questions answered so that you will NOT want to stop reading until you finish! A really different story...not predictable, as many plots are. I want to read more from this author!

There are at least two stories here. One is that of Hannah Troy Bass, who came to New Mexico in the 1890s and left a series of journals which, as edited by her daughter Claudia ("Bassie"), became famous as an authentic record of frontier life. The other is the present-day tale of the now-elderly Bassie returning to New Mexico with her thirty-something granddaughter Meg to supervise some archaeological excavations around her mother's old home. For a long time, the older story is more interesting than the modern one; Hannah's voice speaks from the page with an immediacy that makes Meg pale by comparison. It is clear that a lot of research has gone into this, and the reader is caught up in historical events as in the trivia of daily life.

About halfway through the book, there is a gear change and the modern story takes center stage. But the transition is poorly handled, many of the revelations are predictable, and the genre shifts uncomfortably between historical novel, romance, mystery story, and -- perhaps most interesting -- a study of the bonds and tensions within families. These may be too many balls for the author to juggle. I found myself getting interested in Meg and her feelings only to end in frustration, and the final sections of Hannah's journal make for very unpleasant reading that no amount of plot resolution can make palatable.

One can understand the recent popularity of books that confront present-day characters with records from a past age.* The device expands the scope and implications of the novel, allowing the author to write about people whose lives have something in common with those of the readers, without reducing the whole action to a humdrum level. It also addresses one of the prime functions of the modern novel, which is to make sense of the present existence in relation to the past. But it is also a difficult structure to bring off, without making one narrative seem constructed merely as a prop for the other one, or allowing the more vivid of the two to eclipse the paler. The danger can be reduced by strong characters and meticulous research, but good history always trumps merely competent fiction.

*Some examples, almost at random: John Darnton's THE DARWIN CONSPIRACY, Umberto Eco's THE MYSTERIOUS FLAME OF QUEEN LOANA, Janathan Safran Foer's EVERYTHING IS ILLUMINATED, Dara Horn's THE WORLD TO COME, Nicole Krauss' THE HISTORY OF LOVE, and Jennifer Vanderbes's EASTER ISLAND (probably the closest parallel to THE NIGHT JOURNAL).

An older woman, Claudia Bass, has made her mother's journals famous by publishing them - Dr. Bass is a noted historian and scholar. And she is mean as a snake...Her granddaughter, Meg Mabry, and she are at odds mostly, maybe they are too alike and don't acknowledge that in each other - Meg has refused to read the famous journals. Maybe to irritate her grandmother, maybe not wanting to know more....
When people in New Mexico start digging to construct an addition to their building, Bassie, as Claudia is known by all, has a fit - that the hill they will unearth has the bones of her parents' dogs and she refuses to allow that to happen. She decides to go to New Mexico and fight them. In the end, Meg accompanies her.
So starts a journey of discovery. Childhood memories - innocent and trusting - but do they hold the truth?
The Night Journals - fact or whitewashed versions of reality?
The love of Hannah Bass (Bassie's mother), her husband Elliot, and their friendship with Vincente Morales interact with actual history - bringing in Mexican-American tensions, Indian relations, and even Teddy Roosevelt!
All intermix with the present and sometimes the past is better off as is, because what you remember and what is reality, may be radically different and would you be prepared to learn truths about adored relatives?
Lives parallel - Meg and Jim, Hannah, and her men...
An interesting novel - moving...slow at the start, but it builds up to and interesting read.
When I was a child, I was so struck by 2 books about journals I wrote in journals for years - AnneMarie Selenko's Desiree and Bram Stoker's Dracula - talk about polar opposites! But the strength of their words, got me to write my heart's feelings on paper, journal after journal.
Will The Night Journal influence some little girl to do the same?
A good read.

This novel reads like a second rate mass market dimestore romance. The journal references are unbelievably contrived, and the thin plot is padded with uneccessary and uninteresting copy. Where was the editor? I am an avid reader, but cannot imagine how this novel can appeal to anyone who enjoys reading well-crafted, provocative material. Although I am on page 292, I will probably abandon this book in favor of Cormac McCarthy's new book "The Road", that I purchased the same day. I am angry with myself for wasting as much time on it as I have already.

no-joke exploration of two terminally wounded souls whose demons find near-transcendent solace with each other

I think the film is better than the book. neither seem to me to be a love story. the film focuses more on Ben, perhaps because of the stunning performance by Cage. For me, the strength of the film is showing how alcohol drags people with it: Ben, the alcoholic (the scenes when he moves out of his flat - added in the film) are gut-wrenching) and we see that Sera needs him because he gives her someone to look after (even if that isnt what he wants). So much has been written about relationships where one partner tries to stop the alcoholic drinking. Sera doesnt because that is part of the bargain. interestingly, the film puts the rape scene just after Cage has moved out- showing the downward spiral she is lead into. It shows how her attempts to have a "nice" time are frustrated by the drink (the casino, the outing to the desert) beacuse what Ben really wants is to drink himself to death.
This is really a review of the film. It is stunning, and I am amazed that it is currently out of stock in the main distrubution outlest (though not amazon)
I have given the book 4 because it keeps a separate structure for both characters while the film links them almost from ther start. I would give the film a 5+

no-joke exploration of two terminally wounded souls whose demons find near-transcendent solace within each other

I've got my bio-ears on in Ohio.

If you have seen the movie "Leaving Las Vegas", forget it ever existed and pick up the book. As with many cinema hits, the book is much, much better than the movie script.

Sera is a contented hooker in Las Vegas. She has a nice place of her own, a job, and an independent life filled with a comfortable routine. With a past of degradation and a brutish, deceptive pimp in Los Angeles, Sera realizes her life is now normal and easy. She has long since come to terms with what she is and how she wants to live her life.

Ben is an alcoholic who embraces his disease. After living the normal life, even the high life, Ben has figured out what really matters; the here and now. For Ben, the here and now is becoming harder and harder to live inside the boundaries he has chosen. Now unemployed, he has become a clock-watcher, in tune with the timing of alcohol service in the state of California and dreaming of Las Vegas where the serving never stops. Ben does not try to fool himself or anyone else, he knows that his trip to Las Vegas will be his last one.

Ben and Sera meet by circumstance, Sera's old pimp arrives and tries to force her back into his lifestyle rather than hers. Ben feels the need for warm company as he falls down his spiral staircase of alcoholism. Both Ben and Sera know the outcome of their desperate relationship, and deal with it in different ways as the spiral becomes nothing more than a pinpoint.

Don't look for answers from Ben or Sera, they don't have any. This is a tale of degeneration and not redemption. There is no happy ending, and no real bursts of insight, just the erosion and eventual collapse of flesh that has lost its humanity.

The four chapters in the short book (189 pages) alternate between Sera and Ben. Sera's initial chapter I thought to be a tad presumptuous, the author attempting to bring about a dreamy, surrealistic view to his words that did not quite cut the grade with me. But by the following 'Ben' chapter, O'Brien's words and prose begin to make sense, and Ben tightens down what could have developed into a windless ramble of eccentric prose.

'Leaving Las Vegas' is a shockingly realistic portrayal of alcoholism, and the careless ennui that accompanies the blackouts and embarrassments. Charming at times, horrific at others, 'Leaving Las Vegas' is anything but boring or average.

Forget the movie, it wasn't worth the celluloid used to make it (plus Nicolas Cage and Elizabeth Shue were completely wrong for the parts of Ben and Sera), but pick up the book and totally immerse yourself in this sad and yet somehow sweet love affair. Enjoy!

This book opens your eyes to the realities of why your overweight. the best thing for weightloss.natural guilt free weightloss.

You can eat when your hungry and stop when you are satisfied and still not lose weight if you are eating mostly the wrong kinds of foods. It was only when I started eating right(lots of fruits and vegetables and whole grains)that I started losing weight!!! I also found that when I started eating the fruits and vegetables that I didn't crave the bad things (candy and chips)so much.

This book, and other anti-dieting books like it, make a lot of sense. I agree with everything the author says: consistent dieting does eventually cause weight gain in most people over a period of time. I'm living proof of this.

However, with all that said, I just couldn't follow the advice to eat only when hungry. In a sense, this advice became like another dieting "rule." If I ate for anything other than hunger, I'd feel as if I'd "broken the diet." Also, our society in some ways revolves around eating events: Going out to breakfast, lunch, or dinner; sitting down for dinner with the family; having a holiday meal. It was nearly impossible for me to avoid all that and eat only when hungry; I would feel like more of a freak saying "Oh, I'm not eating dinner with you tonight, honey. I'm not hungry."

Beyond that, I think that I've been totally ruined by my past dieting escapades. I really think it would take some intense treatment to rid me of the dieting mentality. This is why whenever I've tried this "eat-only-when-hungry" concept, I've ended up gaining and gaining. I think I become attracted to this type of book when I just can't stand another diet. But rather than using it as a diet cure, I tend to use it as something that gives me permission to go off dieting and eat whatever I want.

This is just me, though, and someone with a stronger will might have a different experience. Also, another part of me thinks that there are some perfectly normal thin people out there who actually do watch their weight. They don't obsess with it; they just watch it. So, in this sense, dieting is not the kiss of death for them.

Overall, this book can be inspiring (despite the car-salesman-like tone the author often uses), but I do not believe that it will work for everyone.

If you've been on a diet, I've probably tried it too. If you've done some cardio/yoga/pilates/weightlifting/hypnosis program to lose weight, I've probably tried that too. So I realize that if someone told you that you don't need to diet or exercise to lose weight, you'd probably freak out a little bit (just like I did).

But please Give this method a chance - it actually works! I've lost 8 lbs in 3 weeks. My boyfriend has lost 10 lbs. We're also using a book called The Overfed Head by Rob Stevens. The methodology is similar, and the two books complement each other well.

Seriously, stop dieting. Stop depriving yourself. Start losing weight. You'll feel so much better. It's not a gimmick. It's not a diet. It's real life.

It is really like a journal, more pages to write on than read. Lots of wisdom here, and not just on food and weight, but on living life and being happy, and doing what you want to do. He makes it all seem so simple!