Published 30th September 2020 by Sobriety Press.
From the cover of the book:
Would you gamble everything you possess to win more than you can imagine?Jewish gangster, Alex Cohen leaves jail to find salvation from the 1940s mob in the hotels of Las Vegas. When Bugsy Siegel invites him to take over sports betting in Nevada, Alex must figure out how to get back to the top table in New York without attracting the Feds' attention.
If he succeeds then he will regain his self respect, but if he fails then the last members of the national crime syndicate will cut him dead and he will be left a nobody or wind up a corpse. And after he bumps into his childhood sweetheart, he has a once in a lifetime opportunity to win her heart.
But Alex knows the criminal underworld has the habit of spilling over into his personal life and when Meyer Lansky asks him to murder Siegel, Alex must choose what is truly important to him.
The fourth book in the Alex Cohen series is an historical thriller novel, which rips open the Jewish
mob's involvement in the birth of modern Vegas.
Leopold Borstinski is an independent author whose past careers have included financial journalism, business management of financial software companies, consulting and product sales and marketing, as well as teaching.
The fourth book in the Alex Cohen series is an historical thriller novel, which rips open the Jewish
mob's involvement in the birth of modern Vegas.
Leopold Borstinski's shattering crime fiction deals a royal flush to each reader.
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Welcome to the fourth book in the Alex Cohen saga, Casino Chiseler!
If you want to catch up, then take a peek at my reviews for the previous three books - The Bowery Slugger, East Side Hustler and Midtown Huckster.
Alex is out of prison, after being caught up in the Feds' concerted efforts to take down some high profile mobsters on tax evasion charges. He is feeling a little abandoned by the syndicate, but soon comes to realise that he still has friends in high places - friends who continue to have need for his singular talents.
So, Alex finds himself heading west to Vegas, baby! Times they are a changing for Alex and his mobster friends and the betting game is where it's at now. Alex is given the job of taking over sports betting in Nevada, and he goes at it with his usual verve - wheeling, dealing (pardon the pun) and with his special brand of violence to get his syndicate buddies exactly what they want and ruffling some rather important feathers along the way.
Of course, Alex's personal life gets in the way of business, as always, friendships are put under enormous strain and there are some important decision for Alex to make if he really wants to get back in with his mob bosses. Romance-wise a name from the past puts in an appearance, but things get complicated and we see him heading in quite an unexpected direction at the end of the book, which promises interesting things to come. It was very pleasing to see some more interesting storylines for the females in the book too, which have been a bit lacking in the past - more than the usual bit parts for gangsters' molls. Hurray!
It was a refreshing change to find Alex on different ground in this fourth book, as it was nice to move away from the well trodden turf of New York and Chicago. This time, Leopold Borstinski gives us a fascinating glimpse of the early days of mob involvement in the growth of the gamblers' playgrounds in Nevada - not just the mobster machinations involved to get ahead of the competitors, but also the intriguing part played by Hollywood royalty in the establishment of Vegas as a glittering jewel in the gangsters' crown. There are familiar names from the gangster scene that still make an appearance (one at least in rather less glamorous circumstances than we normally picture them), and also those from stage and screen - some to be expected, such as George Raft and a young Sinatra, but also some rather more surprising ones which made me raise an eyebrow or two.
Casino Chiseler was an all round entertaining read, full of gangster noir and echoes of the best books and films in the genre . I thought this one was a bit more sophisticated than the previous three books in terms of plot, as it takes us into some less travelled mobster territory and gives a bit more depth to Alex's character, and this drives the story along nicely.
I am really looking forward to the next book in the Alex Cohen series, Cuban Heel, coming 2021!
Casino Chiseler is available to buy now from your favourite book retailer in paperback or ebook formats, or via the links below:
Thank you to Leopold Borstinski for gifting me a copy of this book in return for an honest review and to Emma Welton of Damp Pebbles Tours for inviting me to be part of this blog tour.
About the author:
There is nothing he likes better so he does as much nothing as he possibly can. He has travelled extensively in Europe and the US and has visited Asia on several occasions. Leopold holds a Philosophy degree and tries not to drop it too often.
He lives near London and is married with one wife, one child and no pets.
Social media links:
He lives near London and is married with one wife, one child and no pets.
Social media links:
Thanks so much x
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