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James Swain
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Take Down (Billy Cunningham, 1) Paperback – February 10, 2015

by James Swain (Author)
4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 4,153 ratings
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Whoever says crime doesn’t pay isn’t doing it right.

There are hundreds of casinos in Las Vegas, and Billy Cunningham knows how to rip off every one. His scams are a thing of beauty―so perfectly orchestrated that onlookers believe he and his crew are winning fair and square. In a town where bosses will kill to protect their profits, Billy can’t afford to make mistakes, but even the best-laid plans can go wrong…

Desperate to keep his team out of jail, Billy agrees to help stop a legendary family of thieves from taking down a casino. But he has no intention of breaking the cheater’s code: never rat out your own kind. He’s running his own con on the casino’s psycho owner and his vicious, violent wife. Throw in a murderous drug dealer, a vengeful gaming agent, and the girl Billy’s never forgotten, and this scam artist is playing for sky-high stakes: a cool eight million, and the chance to live long enough to spend it.

Previous page
  1. Book 1 of 3
    The Billy Cunningham Series
  2. Print length
    419 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publication date
    February 10, 2015
  5. Dimensions
    5.5 x 1 x 8.25 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    147782202X
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1477822029
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“No one in the world does this stuff better than Jim Swain. No one knows it better or writes it better. Satisfaction guaranteed.” ―Lee Child

“James Swain is one of my favorites. His books never fail to entertain, teach, and surprise. Take Down is his best yet, with his knowledge and experience dripping off of every page, and a character like Billy Cunningham to lead the way. Great stuff.” ―Michael Connelly

“Nobody knows the dazzling reality of cons and capers in Las Vegas better than James Swain, from the luminous illusions of casinos to the dark side of buried bodies in the desert night. Take Down is a unique portrait of this universe.” ―John Langley, executive producer and creator of COPS

About the Author

James Swain is the nationally bestselling author of seventeen mystery novels. His books have been named Publishers Weekly and Kirkus Reviews Best Mystery Books of the Year, and he has received three Barry Award nominations and a Florida Book Award for fiction. In 2006, he was awarded France’s prestigious Prix Calibre .38 for Best American Crime Writing. Born in Huntington, New York, he graduated from New York University and worked as a magazine editor and screenwriter before moving to Florida to run a successful advertising firm. When he isn’t writing, he enjoys researching casino scams and cons, a subject on which he’s considered an expert.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Thomas & Mercer (February 10, 2015)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 419 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 147782202X
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1477822029
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.05 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 1 x 8.25 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 4,153 ratings

About the authors

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Previous page
  1. James Swain

    James Swain

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    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    James Swain is the author of twenty national bestselling novels and has worked as a magazine editor, screenwriter, and novelist. His books have been translated into twelve foreign languages and chosen as Mysteries of the Year by Publisher's Weekly and Kirkus Reviews. Swain has received a Florida Book award for fiction and the prestigious Prix Calibre .38 for Best American Crime Writing. When he isn't writing, he enjoys performing close-up magic.

    See more on the author's page
  2. Jim Swain

    Jim Swain

    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    James Swain is the nationally bestselling author of seventeen mystery novels. His books have been named Publishers Weekly and Kirkus Reviews Best Mystery Books of the Year, and he has received three Barry Award nominations and a Florida Book Award for fiction. In 2006, he was awarded France’s prestigious Prix Calibre .38 for Best American Crime Writing. Born in Huntington, New York, he graduated from New York University and worked as a magazine editor and screenwriter before moving to Florida to run a successful advertising firm. When he isn’t writing, he enjoys researching casino scams and cons, a subject on which he’s considered an expert.

    See more on the author's page
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Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
4.2 out of 5
4,153 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

SMR
5.0 out of 5 stars NOT YOUR FATHER'S CAPER BOOK!
Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2016
Verified Purchase
I am usually not a fan of caper books, but something about the back-cover copy of TAKE DOWN caused me to buy and read this “first-for-me” James Swain crime book.

This is not your father’s caper story, not by a long shot. Sure, as in the case of all good caper books, the plot is intricate and the characters are quirky, but TAKE DOWN offers what any well-written crime novel and caper book should offer – and much more.

The story is terrific, entirely believable, and captivating. It passed my best test for a great plot: Knowing how rotten I would feel the next day, I still read the book until too late in the evening for too many evenings, and never regretted how tired I was the next day.

The characters were so well crafted I felt I knew them although this book was my first experience with them. I found myself cheering for Billy all through the book and always surprised by the decisions he made because they often differed from what I would have predicted. Yet his decisions, after the fact, always seemed right and entirely natural to me.

As I said, this was the first Swain book I’ve read. I’ve ordered five more. Eventually I will read all he’s published. And, as a crime writer myself, I will reread TAKE DOWN to see how Mr. Swain achieved so well the effects he did so I can learn from him.
5 people found this helpful
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Chris
4.0 out of 5 stars Get taken in
Reviewed in the United States on March 2, 2015
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A good fast read. Great characters and a fun bouncy plot even if not always plausible. I'm sure it will check out for consistency, just hard to believe that the main character could figure this all out on the fly. Lots going on. That said, I did not read this because I wanted it to be totally believable, but rather for some entertainment. That I got. I will read more by James Swain
One person found this helpful
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steve olson
5.0 out of 5 stars I love finding a new author
Reviewed in the United States on March 7, 2024
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AndIm gonna be reading more James Swain. Am thinking that if he doesn’t wanna write any more he could be grifter, like the ones he writes about.
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Jon Finch
3.0 out of 5 stars I felt the story was fun and it had interesting premise
Reviewed in the United States on June 10, 2016
Verified Purchase
I felt the story was fun and it had interesting premise, in that it followed the life of a cheat in hollywood. The prose was fair, but there was too much implausibility in the story and for that reason it became uneven. Sometimes it felt like the author was forcing bits and pieces into place. It would lose that smoothness you expect from an author, so you would be following a portion of the story and then something would happen and you'd roll your eyes and say 'really'? It was hard to get too engaged in this book because of that. So all in all it wasn't a bad read but not an author I'm rushing out to get his other works for right away.
2 people found this helpful
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Mike Winslow
4.0 out of 5 stars Find out about the cheater's life
Reviewed in the United States on April 19, 2015
Verified Purchase
The thing I like about this book is that it describes the world of cheaters in Las Vegas and other gambling places. I never knew much about this world. Although I did read the book about the MIT students who cheated. This was more expansive. This unknown world--at least to me--kept me entranced. The characters seemed to love primarily the thrill and daring of the cheat and secondarily the money which kept their lifestyle in place. The cheaters have to outwit the casino security and the gaming commission, who are the main character's antagonists. The main character is Billy. He is smart and daring and has a team who is devoted to him. In fact they idolize him. He takes care of them and they are loyal to him and take care of him. They are his family. Other relationships are short-lived. Billy, believe or not, went to MIT for one year but left--read the book to find out why. This is definitely a book worth reading if you want to find out about the cheater's life.
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Stanley
5.0 out of 5 stars A New Twist
Reviewed in the United States on March 31, 2015
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I always enjoyed Jim's Tony Valentine series with the ex-detective now casino consultant figuring out the latest casino scam and foiling the plot in mid-stream. "Take Down" provides us with an entirely new protagonist, coming from the dark side of casino cheating. In order to save his own life, Billy Cunningham is forced to use his mastery of casino cheating to solve an anticipated rip-off of one of the newest casino's on the strip. A casino with its own seamy ownership and pathological management. Cunningham is a brash, arrogant cheater who kind of grows on you as you learn more about what brought him to this way of life and actually has you cheering for him as he faces his darkest moments. The cast of characters are entertaining and the story line fast pace, all while bringing the big money, politics, corruption, broken dreams and crime that the underbelly of Las Vegas fosters.
The always added learning experience in reading Swain's novels is the insight gained into how casino cheating schemes actually work, at what casinos do to thwart those efforts. It was a fast paced, entertaining and informative book that I highly recommend. Based upon the finish, I don't think we've seen the last of Billy Cunningham.
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One Old Dog
4.0 out of 5 stars It’s a fun and enjoyable read.
Reviewed in the United States on January 25, 2020
Verified Purchase
Take Down was an entertaining read. I don’t know how much of the casino cheating is authentic, but, it still was a good read. It’s a quick read and I enjoyed the book. Read the book for what it is and I think you will enjoy it too.
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Top reviews from other countries

M. WHITNALL
5.0 out of 5 stars fantastic insight into scams and Vegas subterfuge
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 30, 2022
Verified Purchase
Great read l can’t wait to read the rest of the series , gives you a fantastic insight into the dirty side of Vegas casinos and the chapters that try to rip them off - if you love the oceans 11 style of story where the ‘ bad guys ‘ get away with the money you’ll love this - 5 stars
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Janelle Dennison
5.0 out of 5 stars Great characters, fast read
Reviewed in Canada on May 20, 2016
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A bad guy and his crew that its hard not to root for. Lots of info about Vegas that makes you look at the city in a new light.
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ms susan i agnew
1.0 out of 5 stars One Star
Reviewed in Australia on March 25, 2015
Verified Purchase
Very ordinary
2 people found this helpful
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MichaelG
4.0 out of 5 stars More fantasy than fiction but lots of fun
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 28, 2018
Verified Purchase
Don’t bother if you like your stories to maintain logic. Little of thsi one stands up to close scrutiny; there being more than a few holes in it. Just about every significant character is either good or bad. Our hero is just too good to be true on several levels. A small guy with a nice face is never going to have every woman trying to bed him, except in his dreams. Nevertheless it was intelligent, maintained a good pace and really kept my attention. As long as you don’t take it seriously I hope you have as much fun reading it as I did.
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LN
4.0 out of 5 stars Billy! Billy!
Reviewed in Canada on June 14, 2015
Verified Purchase
I thoroughly enjoyed this book! "Billy" is a quick-witted, very likeable not-so-bad guy who counts loyalty to and protection for his "crew: above all else. It was fun watching him juggle overlapping problems and setbacks while staying true to his character.

Mr. Swain, please give us more Billy Cunningham stories!
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