2 comments about Blackjack Dealing and Supervision.

1. Excellent book for experienced and novice dealers. Explains all of the procedures for dealing and supervising blackjack in a casino.



2. It explains the concept of black jack in a simpler form rather than manuals given by a specific casino. Although some of the procedures are different, the book helps you to become a better dealer and player. He makes learning the process easy. If you're attempting to enter a black jack class in the near future, you can get a heads up on the options that most casinos provide to the players. He also provides you with practice tests and an evaluation sheet that could be helpful with your auditions. It's worth buying for a reasonable price.

2 comments about Power Blackjack.

1. I have bought several publishings from this company. Each publishing is a endless circle of telling you to buy another one of there publishings. They offer a 100% garuntee and dont honor it. If you email them they might respond once and tell you that your refund was submitted to your credit card and it is your credit card companies fault you have not got your refund. Dont be scammed like me and many others. Never purchase any publishings by Martin J. Silverthorne.



2. I bought this book because I was satisfied with another book from Silverthorne Publishing, "Super Craps" by Sam Goldsmith.
   
   This book is easy to read (even thought is gets kind of long in some places), I read it in about 4 nights, 1 hour a night, and started working the system on my PS2 and with a four deck shoe at the kitchen table on the 5th day. When we (wife and I) followed the Power Blackjack System at a $200 buy in we consistantly won $100 plus together. I did lose $25 one day but she made $145. When I tried $4000 buy in I won $1000 in 15 minutes.
   
   The book is real good, no card counting, covers other interesting items about casinos, pit bosses, record keeping, great betting rules and helps explain how to safe bet when closing out the session. It's an easy system to pick up even for people just looking to play casually. (There's a section on that too.)

2 comments about Quick Guide to Winning Blackjack, 2nd Edition: 30 Minutes to Beating the House.

1. like most blackjack books, its filled with basic info. but its a pretty decent book for someone who wants to learn the basic strategy, the rules and a little psychology advice when playing. for 10 bucks, its a decent enough pile of information, its a quick read and tells you what you need to know to play well. avery keeps trying to advertise his counting systems a little too much though. million dollar blackjack costs twice as much and has 100 times more info... and covers counting systems without shelling out an extra 100 bucks



2. Avery Cardoza does an excellent job of explaining the rules of the game and making Basic Strategy clear to the novice. His writing style makes the reader feel as though he's listening to a good friend. I would highly reccomend this book for the beginner-and if you want to learn how to count cards get Fred Renzeys' Blackjack Bluebook II. These two books combined will turn you into a very serious player!

1 comments about NWQ Blackjack.

1. Bryan delivers a great book with easy to understand strategies that still work. With practice, the money spent on this book will be priceless compared to what a skilled player can make at the casinos.

5 comments about John Patrick's Advanced Blackjack.

1. Boy, is this Patrick guy bad. In fact, he is quite well-known now for his bad blackjack advice. The problem is, he writes in a style that sounds convincing and "common sense".

   People, you cannot use "common sense" in blackjack. Some of Patrick's plays are just plain wrong. These plays cannot be judged right or wrong because you happen to win some hands by playing that way. There are HUGE variances in blackjack, and any play or money management system can win in the short term. The only way to know if a play is correct, in terms of probability and long term winning percentage, is by mathematical proof or large computer simulations. Otherwise, you're just wishing it to be true. There's a very good reason casinos make billions of dollars every year. Patrick's book does 2 things
   1) makes him money
   2) ensures that the casinos stay in business so he can make more money selling more blackjack books.

   Is everything in this book wrong? No, most of it is right. But why buy a book like this when there are many more that get it ALL right? Read Wong, or Schlesinger, or Griffin, or Uston, or other proven authors. It really doesn't matter how easy this book is to read if it gives bad plays. And it doesn't matter that you went into the casino and won using Patrick's methods, because in this game your experience is too short to count as valid and meaningful in terms of probability. If you don't understand that, there's no hope for you anyway.

   Can you explain why you are more likely to get a blackjack with 1 deck than 6? Do you understand why preferential shuffling can hurt you? Do you understand why you should hit your 16 against the dealer's 7, even though you will probably lose the hand? If you understand all that, then you sure don't need this book. If you don't, then go find another book that explains the REAL fundamentals of blackjack. Anyone can win at blackjack - even total idiots - in the short term. Only a few actually play the game with a mathematical advantage though.




2. This is the first John Patrick book I have read and I think his system is great. I have read other books on blackjack and they make sense as well but they make it far too complicated to actually remember while you are sitting at a BJ table. Do you honestly think you can keep 3 or 4 different counts at a table? Not a chance! Yes, the more complicated systems claim that they are more accurate but how much more accurate can you get if you can't be perfect at what you are doing? In fact, you will be far less proficient than a regular perfect basic strategy player who isn't using a system or counting. He touches on the fact that some of us are more aggressive and some are less aggressive and he has different betting styles for each of these type of people.

   I highly recommend his book, practice his system (because you won't remember everything right off the bat and you will see that not nothing is 'EASY', even his system requires a lot of practice).

   The other thing I wanted to mention is about the mathematical aspect of BJ. John doesn't relay on mathematics but instead points out that any game you play, you will encounter a trend or streak. No matter how you look at it, it happens. You flip a coin and the odds are 50-50 that you will get heads or tails but does this mean you will always get heads, then tails, then heads, etc. NO! You might get 5 heads in a row, then all tails. These are the same type of streaks that occur in BJ and other casino games. John makes us capitalize on these streaks and it works! He answers all my questions in the book.




3. For all the people that gave this book a negative review, they definitely did not get his style of writing. Not once does he ever mention playing hunches which one reader wrote. Also, he never mentions "playing with the casinos money" as someone else wrote. Once you win that money it's your money. The casino doesn't say they're playing with your money when they win.

   I have been winning consistently for many years using John Patrick's methods. I have become an emotionless robot when I play. Every move I make is pre-determined (no hunches) and every bet I make is pre-determined. It may not be as much fun playing the game, but the three hour ride home is great knowing how much more money is in my pocket.

   He is the only author to say you don't always have to split Aces and Eights. I have read the other reviewers talking about computers and statistics. My degree in finance has me familiar with both, but it was only John Patrick's common sense explanations that stopped me from getting burnt anymore playing those hands. How many times have you split these hands only to get killed? But, it was the thing that you were "supposed to do". He makes you look at why you should be making moves in a logical sense, not because the computer said that you should and that's the way it has been handed down.

   In conclusion, I can only say that this book has totally changed the way I look at blackjack and has definitely made me a winner, sometimes in less than twenty minutes. If you are open to new methods and want to win consistently, then read this book. If you are closed minded, need computer print-outs and statistics, or just don't feel that you will ever have the dicipline to be a winner, then don't read this book.




4. You people that flame J Patrick don't get it. He's the FIRST to admit that he's deviating from mathematics. His premise is NOT about making you rich. and it is certainly not about mathematics. after YOU play 2 million hands of blackjack and report back how effective splitting 8's Vs 10 is, I will do it. If you play one hand of blackjack per minute 24 hours a day you'll get to the 2 millionth hand in about 4 years. Since I hit the tables about once a month- I'll just go ahead and play for short term gains. I'll hit the 8-8 Vs 10 and lose one bet instead of two and just move on to the next hand. I'll make this claim and stand by it until one of you mathematicians can provide solid evidence against it: "If you study patrick's blackjack books and do NOT deviate what-so-ever you WILL consistently come out ahead, or break even, or incur a small loss. you will never come up broke and demoralized." and THAT is the REAL premise behind patrick's writings. He's writing to the guys who have no money- but insist on going to the casino every so often. he's writing to the roofers, painters, cops, fireman and plumbers of northern NJ who insist on driving 3 hours to AC with a few hundred in their pocket whose wives would shoot them if they found out. ...



5. This book is obviously bad advice. General principles of probability are thrown out the window. I'm 90% sure that Patrick is employed by casino companies.
   
   He does show his readers a standard basic strategy chart, but then decides that part of it is wrong, and even explains that his reasoning is NOT backed up by computer analysis, but his own observation.
   
   For example, he deviates from a well-established play, doubling down on eleven versus a dealer's two: "I don't like laying out extra money, getting only one card and having that dealer pull to a two." That's ridiculous. The player would almost never WANT a second card in that situation, and would be in such a position of strength that laying out twice the bet is well worth the risk. Have no doubt Patrick knows this.
   
   In my card counting experience, bad players are of course superstitious, and they tend to play scared and thus conservatively. His table modifications feed right into a bad player's fears. All of which pad the casino's bottom line.

5 comments about Blackjack's Hidden Secrets II.

1. I love Blackjack, but I hate trying to learn how to count cards. Besides if I got any good at counting cards, the Casinos would just throw me out anyway. These 2 books introduced me a new, simple, system that so far has been successful. It took a day or two to master, but after that, I have been a winner more times than a loser.

   Most importantly, I learned how to know when to quit for the day and actually leave with my winnings. An easy read and easy to understand. Book II helped me know how to get some of the amazing freebies the Casinos lavish on players.




2. Mr. Pappadopoulos' first book allowed me to enjoy Black Jack as a table experience. It gave me the confidence I needed and some extra spending money.

   This book broadens the experience to include the whole casino and take advantage of its perks ("comps" in casino jargon).

   Definitely worth much, much more than the cost of the book.

   His easy writing style make his insights and experiences easy to grasp and internalize.




3. Ever since I first stepped into a casino, I always thought it would be useful to find a book or a guide that would provide an inside peek into the hidden and understated apsects of the casino world. George Pappadopoulos has written such a book. And in one pleasant read, anyone interested in really playing the casino game will find themselves winning - at all levels- very quickly.



4. By using george's philosophy,I not only have made a lot of extra money for myself,but I am amazed by what I can get out of the casino for free.Most times they come to me and ask me if I need anything.I get free cigarettes,drinks,rooms,shows,money to spend in gift shop,etc.The system is wonderful,everyone should try it,it works.



5. The Hidden Secrets must have been left out of my copy of the book.

5 comments about Get the Edge at Blackjack (Scoblete, Frank. Get-the-Edge Guide.).

1. As a serious, if recreational, gambler, I really have to commend the writer on the best blackjack book of the modern era.

   Modern blackjack doesn't really bear much resemblance to the game talked about in most blackjack books. Casinos don't use single-decks any more, and they know a great deal about card counting, which is the only way of getting an edge most books cover. "Get The Edge" is very, very different. Despite a readable, almost populist style, May has some really incredible ideas.
   For example, did you ever consider that the order you throw the cards back to the dealer in could influence your post-shuffle advantage? Sound like sorcery? Maybe, but the method is substantiated with rigorous proof and explanation. These methods are'nt just the subject of pure theory and computer simulation, with many of them May shows you how they work by getting you to try them out with just a deck of cards and a kitchen table.

   Where other authors don't even mention the existence of devices like the card shuffling machines commonly used nowadays May not only talks about them but uses the casinos tricks against them. Think you can't beat a continuous shuffling machine? Well, its not easy, but it is possible and May shows you how with reference to real-world casino coups and his incredible perception.

   The really bad thing about this book is that May just goes too far with what he is prepared to reveal. Some of us who knew about, for example, card-steering, would prefer he'd left that one out. I made a killing with that trick over the years and publishing it can only make things more difficult for players.

   Nonetheless the majority of the book is ground-breaking and innovative, in a way no blackjack book has been since the publication of Thorp's "Beat The Dealer".




2. This book was recommended to me by a friend. Before reading the book I had never gambled before. That was soon to change. The book is incredably readable and even funny. The recounting of his stories concerning the "Act" had me in stitches, imagining him tipping chips all over the place. On a serious note the information is powerful stuff arming you with knowledge to earn yourself quite a tidy sum, if you stick to the rules. Marketing guys often have slogans like "This book will make you rich." It has never been more true than with this book. It is a gold mine. Thanks to John May I have earnt myself a tidy sum and shall continue to do so. Well done John May.



3. One of the best current books on the blackjack market today! I also recommend, Gregorian Strategy for multiple deck blackjack.



4. This book has some very basic discussion on card counting and hardly helpful. It discusses some "advanced techniques" such as "Card Steering", "Shadow Play" etc which requires a very weak dealer, a professional blackjack team, lots of bankroll and a casino without surveillance. Most of these "advantage play methods" are not author's own idea and these sounded more like gambling myths than facts. Do yourself a favor - Do not buy this book !



5. This is a entertaining and interesting manual of "how-to" methods to win money in casinos at blackjack. The range of subject material is quite impressive. Many ideas are a revelation-the author seems to have developed a method of winning by observing the pick-up and discard order of card sequences, for example, something I've never read about anywhere. Although I'm not a serious blackjack player-from what I can tell these ideas do seem to check out at the tables. If I was dumped in the middle of Las Vegas and told to make a fortune or die trying, then this is the one book I would take with me.
   
   What this book definitely isn't is another, basic strategy, count-cards and a few filler anecdotes book.

No comments about Blackjack and the Law.

5 comments about Blackjack: Take the Money and Run.

1. Having never played blackjack at a casino I found this book highly informative and reader friendly. The author is very specific in his presentation of statistical analysis of the game and presents a plausible method for winning this game. However, the authors insitance that one leave the casino when they reach a certain level of winnings is clearly a gamblers fallacy and leads me to question the accuracy of his stated statistics. The truth is that the statistics should never vary according to an individual player's win or loss streak. A 65% probability is a 65% probability. The author claims to feel better when he leaves a winner. How bizarre this seems for a man who claims to be a "professional" gambler.

   His proposition is that somehow taking a break from the game increases one's odds of winning. Nothing could be futher from statistical truth. If in fact as he states that card counting gives a player a 1-2% edge then logic dictates that playing continuosly is the way to maximiz one's profits.

   One must test his propositions in order to feel comfortable using these card counting strategies.




2. Fantastic book!. Since I've bought it, I have stepped away from a Casino, always as a winner. I am not a proffesional gambler, but I love to win some extra money when I visit a Casino. I am looking forward to buy the rest of Mr. Tamburin's books. He deserves it.



3. Tamburin gives you the three steps (The Play, The Betting & The Card Count) necessary to win. He also gives you the easier approach and the better, harder approach. Explanation of the true count calculation was harder than it should have been, but otherwise an excellent book. Has greatly improved my game. I now win more than I lose.



4. I bought this book on in an airport and enjoyed it. I got me interested in learning how to play blackjack correctly, so, in that sense, it was great. It's relatively clear and geared toward the beginner. The mathematical focus of some sections made the strategies more easy to understand. The problem with this book, however, is that it sometimes rejects the correct play. If you are ahead in the count, keep playing. Leaving the table, even when you're losing, basically amounts to wasting all the effort you put into counting. Also, streak betting is just plain superstition. If you can count, this information is more valuable than the tendancy for streaks to indicate a favorable count. Finally, If somebody at the table doesn't make the correct plays, you don't have to leave. It is just as likely to help as to hurt you. It was ok, but I'm sure there are better books than this.



5. In his article "Splitting Tens," Tamburin explains the down side of splitting 10s by stating that, with a 1 dollar original bet, "In 100 tries I expect to win two dollars 64% of the time and lose two dollars 36% of the time and thus be ahead $56 ($128-$72). This is a net expectation of 56 cents per hand." Let's look at this. If we win $2 64% of the time, and lose $2 36% of the time, this means that we will either win or lose $2 100% of the time. What if we push on both hands? Impossible by these odds. What if we win one hand and lose the other? Equally impossible. Win one, push the other? Lose one, push the other? You guessed it. Both impossible! The numbers don't add up.

3 comments about Winning Blackjack for the Serious Player.

1. If you want to give card counting a try in Atlantic City, you can play well enough to scare the casinos after reading this book (and practicing). Even if you don't want to count, the basic strategy charts make this book worth purchasing. If you play like most people I see in Atlantic City, it will pay for itself in your first 10 minutes at the table. I've never played in Vegas so I can only recommend it for the Atlantic City game.



2. For the beginning player, this book may not be a bad choice, because it contains charts for different rule variations of the game. Also, basic counting strategies. For the serious player I would recommend Lawrence Revere or Ken Usted. The strategies in this book wouldn't hurt a casual player though, who doesn't have time or desire to invest in learning a professional level system.



3. Ive purchased this book over a year ago and it has done wonders for my play at BlackJack.It's a simple system that makes sense for every logical move and straight to the point.And it works.My last trip out to Atlantic city at the Trump Taj Mahal I started with $200 at the beginning of the shoe.. Was me and the dealer one on one in a multiple deck game since there is a no midshoe entry rule at the Taj.Half hour later at the end of the shoe I walked away with $1,300 for a profit of $1,100.You dont need a complicated "professional" system to be one up on the game and casinos'.Anyone who wants to learn the game and not spend alot of money on "complicated professional systems" that are usualy not proven to be consistent winning strategies and want to learn a winning system should buy this book.I highly recommend buying and reading this book.