4 comments about The Druperman Tapes.

1. In Las Vegas normally just irascible grumpy Galaxy Hotel and Casino CEO Emmett Druperman has watched his temperament turn hot coal irate from minor irritants. Pickets were reducing the drop in leisurely casino players who detested stepping past the "ants" picketing his facility. The agent of his entertainer wants more money or he will cancel in spite of a half million ad campaign. His hemorrhoids on fire, Emmett receives a plain envelop addressed to him as the head of LVCA (Las Vegas Casino Association) containing videotapes and demanding $10 million or else from the casino owners.
   
   Realizing he has real trouble, Emmett hands everything over to his Vice President of Security Steve Forrester who takes the threat seriously. They think of possible strip con artists such as Dan Shiller and Jurgen Voss, but Steve cannot picture either doing what happened on the tape, the poisoning of a guest. Knowing that the culprit is most likely a casino insider, Steve needs to figure out who would be bold enough to risk murder as opposed to card game scams.
   
   THE DRUPERMAN TAPES is an enjoyable investigative tale that showcases Las Vegas glitz from the perspective of those who keep the casinos safe. The cast is powerful as all the key players seem genuine (hemorrhoids will do that) and a subplot involving a romance makes former cop Steve seem that much more real. Though the cat and mouse game never quite takes the audience over the edge, John Goodger hits black jack with his first hand.
   
   Harriet Klausner



2. Once I picked up The Druperman Tapes, I couldn't put it down. It is a captivating read with well developed characters. I found myself wondering about these people outside of the context of the story. Goodger introduced me to the dynamics of an industry centered around the compulsions of the gambler. Intelligent, action-packed, I thoroughly enjoyed Goodger's first novel and am looking forward to his next hitting the shelf.



3. This book is truly a "sleeper". The more you read, the more you get pulled into this Las Vegas web of intrigue. I truly could not put this book down, nor could my sister Jane in Toronto who recommended it to me.
   Good work, John Goodger. I hope you continue to write.
   Susanne



4. At the risk of going against the grain here - I missed the magic in this one. On the plus side, the plot line is an interesting one - i.e., the method used to extort money from Las Vegas casinos - and the author has a keen understanding of the workings and history of said place. Unfortunately the story itself doesn't flow and the characters, (as well as their development), were to me flat, wooden and very predictable. All of it reminding me of `70's TV show. Can't recommend this one.

No comments about FBI fights the bandwidth brigands: the latest chapter in the history of extortion now means doing battle with evil "Bots." In the 21st century, they come ... RISK) : An article from: Risk & Insurance.

No comments about The Efficiency Handbook : The Levelheaded and Aggressive Control of Personal Excess, Blind Confusion, and Emotional Extortion.

No comments about I Predict a Riot: Murder, Extortion & Carrot Cake (Unabridged).

2 comments about Five Star Expressions - The Shocking Miss Shaw (Five Star Expressions).

1. In 1885 Washington DC, a distraught Melanie Shaw informs her beloved stepdaughter Sierra that someone is trying to blackmail her with her past ruining her second husband, a US Senator. Not wanting to disturb her father who is working to keep his country from violating a treaty with the Indians, Sierra decides to travel to England in order to ferret out the source of the extortion. Both Shaw females wonder if Melanie's first husband, declared dead from a ship accident, actually survived.

   In London, the wealthy Sierra announces that she plans to go home married to a title. Spymaster Fitz Kent refuses to accept Sierra's seemingly guileless answer as he feels she is too beautiful and rich to marry just a title. He begins trailing her rationalizing that he needs to learn what her agenda really is though deep in his gut he knows he is attracted to the American. While they fall in love she needs his skills just to stay one step ahead of a dangerous blackmailer.

   THE SHOCKING MISS SHAW is similar to many of the recent bookstore invasion of wealthy Americans and English aristocrats falling in love. However, the investigation into who is the blackmailer adds mystery elements that freshen up the story line. Though Sierra seems a bit too foolhardy and brave, she and Fitz make for quite a couple starring in an irresistible Victorian romantic suspense novel.

   Harriet Klausner




2. No matter what style you prefer, this beautifully written story will draw you in. Excellent character development, hero is sexy and bold, heroine is feminine and yet thinks for herself. The mystery is well done and holds your attention. Any of Ms. Wittich's books are a joy to read. Her most recent, Family Matters, is the best yet .... each book is better than the one before. Enjoy!
   An addicted reader: Jeanie

No comments about The Strange Nation of Rafael Mendes.

No comments about Blackmail: Publicity and secrecy in everyday life.

No comments about Protests aren't extortion.(Editorials)(RICO law used against anti-abortion groups)(Editorial): An article from: The Register-Guard (Eugene, OR).

5 comments about Confessions of an Economic Hitman (Unabridged).

1. This book lets us know a very important piece of truth about how the world works, in particular how the us works to gain control of other countries. Compulsary for any conscient individual in today's world.



2. A must read book if you ask me! It is well written and you cannot stop reading it until it is finished. Even if only half of the stories are true, I think it opens your eyes to how rich countries (in this case the US) prey on poor nations across the world.



3. I found the book to be interesting from the standpoint of one man's perspective on two decades of US empire building. I have no doubt he believes what he writes and Americans will surely be reviewing with more than a passing glance the foreign policy decisions, past and present.
   
   I can appreciate this author's guilt by his role in "empire building" but he continually dedicates small portions of the books to self reflecting judgment and, more of less, implicates his upbringing, NSA profiling and a myriad of other BS excuses for why he continued to do what he did. Tell the story but please don't defend yourself to me.



4. I enjoyed the way the author tied details of modern history to the events of his life. Very thought provoking. I think it is striking the way the individuals who critique it for a lack of statistics provide none of their own.



5. I cracked this book open with the hopes of getting an insider's view of how corporate manipulation of international loans works. Unfortunately, Perkins reveals little except his takeaway from the experience. The overall feeling of the book was not that he wants to educate us on the machine and how it works but rather issue a mea culpa. It's long on feelings and short on detail. I was looking for something more well researched and detailed like "Blackwater" by Scahill which gives a deep account on how corporate players make money from war and the US government. Unfortunately, Perkins was only able to vaguely confirm what I know to be true, leaving me searching the book racks for someone who can explain the nitty gritty to me. I don't recommend it if you want to answer the "hows" of this really big and complex issue.

No comments about Extortion: Webster's Quotations, Facts and Phrases.