DUTCH MALLORY — Pit boss in charge of the targeted game, blackjack table A-26, had drawn the short straw...He heard them before he saw them...And the thugs before him were near the top of the list of what he hated most.

MARCEL — "Hey...who you calling hombre?" An evil person whose mouth is as twisted as his determination—both of which being considerably ahead of his intelligence.

BOB ANDERSON — CEO and President of the Sultan who must finesse Marcel and his Swords to buy time for his staff to set up a defense before the Swords try something else.

TEX — A craps hustler, plying her cons casino to casino looking for a mark, using all of her assets to take full advantage of any gambler interested in a bit of fun, whether on the tables or the bed matters not to her; just snatch the money and run.

BENNIE THE BEE — A likeable poor soul who is convinced that his dog Max has the ability to see the next card that is to be dealt and is able to transmit such advance knowledge to Bennie.

ALICE ANN SINGLETON (a.k.a. GLORIA) — A schoolteacher turned hooker. Quite content to leave the tables to the gamblers and lead the gamblers to any room.

SMILEY SMEDLY — A professional blackjack player who wins by changing his bet while following the flow of the game at the same time he refers to a chart he created when he analyzed 100 books on the game. A chart he calls BJ Consensus—100. (To learn more, click here.)

ROBYN ROYCE REYNOLDS and his gambling partner SCOTT — Friends whose fortunes, in many ways, are shared.

DR. ROBERT DUPRE — A loser voyeur psychologist getting in deeper and deeper as he takes less interest in his patients than in the tables at the Sultan.

THE OLD LADY — A widowed bus person making her monthly—when she is lucky, more often—trek to the Sultan to play the slots.

* * *

Additionally, there is a full complement of interesting, supporting characters responsible for advancing the plot. All come together to climax the day the Swords stage a vicious, full attack on the casino.

Do any of these people ring a bell for you? If you’ve played in a casino, you no doubt will recognize one or two. Perhaps they remind you of a friend. If so, both you and that friend will enjoy reading about one another. And The Sultan will make a perfect gift.