24/7 by Susan DiPlacido Reviewed by D. J. Herda, President American Society of Authors and Writers

When I first stumbled across the work of novice author Susan DiPlacido, she was an up-and-coming wannabe who had just been accepted as a client by The Swetky Agency.  With her second published novel (Zumaya Publications, $17 Paperback), she shows that she has arrived.  She is receiving top reviews from fans and industry insiders alike, and she deserves them.

The book, 24/7, shows a hard-edged, brassy sort of humor, although the story is far from lighthearted.  Marina Martino is a female card counter in Las Vegas--a woman who loves men and loves relationships and loves even more walking away from them the victor.  She falls hard-over-heels for a casino blackjack dealer.  But, as the love and the action heat up, it's clear that only one of them is a masterful player.  What's not so clear is which one.

There's a guy a couple seats down who's all alone.  I do my stupid routine to catch his eye.  Light a smoke, flip the cigarette across my fingers, backflip it the other way and then take a hit.  Repeat.  Flip, backflip, smoke.  It's the same as my chip shuffling and flipping tricks.  If anyone realized how much practice it took to learn it, they'd know just how dorky it is.  Since they don't, it actually looks really cool.  And it gets even cooler when they try to do it and either burn the shit out of their fingers and/or send a cascade of glowing embers all over the place...

He sends me a drink.  I accept it with a smile, and the guy gets up and closes the gap of empty seats between us.  Before I can say thanks, Vince says to the guy, "Just so you know, she's gonna cost you a lot more than one drink, buddy."

Oh, Madone.  Here we go.  I roll my eyes at Vince, but he just grins at the guy, who's looking puzzled.

Besides checking in at nearly 450 pages of lightning-fast action and witty/charming/street-smart dialogue, the book offers a fascinating insider's look at Sin City, a Vegas few people ever get to know or see on their own.  While Marina turns out to be a bright, savvy young woman with a talent for Blackjack and a greater one for counting cards, trying to avoid getting tossed out of one casino after another as the pit bosses catch on, she exhibits a fatal flaw: a love-hate relationship with men.  Or, at least, with the right kinds of men.  From the book's cover:

In time, of course, Marina reaches a decision.  But, in the end, it's quite possible that she'll never know if it was the right one.  Then again, perhaps that's not the worst thing in the world--not knowing whether or not you've made the right decision.  After all, in the end, as Marina says, "It's always the hope that kills you."

Susan DiPlacido's 24/7 is a fast-paced romp through a fantasyland masquerading as real life.  For some people, it is real life, and for me, DiPlacido brought it to light absolutely perfectly.  Five stars, please, and I'll hold on 17.