The Gamester

by Rafael Sabatini

Already a successful banker, John Law was set to go far. Yet his Scottish homeland was full of pitfalls and when he killed 'Beau Wilson' in a dual, his future seemed doomed. But Law escapes from Newgate and his death sentence, fleeing to France where he lives a life of adventure and excitement, turning his banking skills to the gambling tables.

Genres: Adventure, Classics, Historical Fiction

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1949

About the author

Rafael Sabatini (1875 - 1950) was an Italian/British writer of novels of romance and adventure. At a young age, Rafael was exposed to many languages. By the time he was seventeen, he was the master of five languages. He quickly added a sixth language - English - to his linguistic collection. After a brief stint in the business world, Sabatini went to work as a writer. He wrote short stories in the 1890s, and his first novel came out in 1902. Sabatini was a prolific writer; he produced a new book approximately every year. He consciously chose to write in his adopted language, because, he said, "all the best stories are written in English. " In all, he produced thirty one novels, eight short story collections, six nonfiction books, numerous uncollected short stories, and a play. He is best known for his world-wide bestsellers: The Sea Hawk (1915), Scaramouche (1921), Captain Blood (1922) and Bellarion the Fortunate (1926). Other famous works by Sabatini are The Lion's Skin (1911), The Strolling Saint (1913) and The Snare (1917).

Reviews

[A.J. Granger · Rating 3 out of 5]

Though written in the later part of his career, in fact "The Gamester" was the last novel Sabatini saw published, it still has some tradiational Sabatini elements, though there is no sword fighting (that i can recall). However, the fault I found in this book is the lack of interference John Law faces. Yes, there is a bad guy but he comes and goes often doing very little damage.

Now that is not to say this is a bad book. The economical and political background is phenomenal in accuracy and depth yet does not come across as boring. I recommend anyone interested in economics to read this book soley for that reason.

I will say that the ending goes against all traditional sabatini endings and so it was a new element that sabatini pulls off in an eloquent and satisfying manner.

[Pandora · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one takes up the world of banking and stocks. While not as thrilling as Sabtini's typical swashbucklers still, RS manages to create a good story with twists and turns. His purple prose is up to his usual standards. The hero John Law is a bit too dense about love. The ending however is a great payoff. A good chioce for fans of Sabatini and certainly beter than The Shame of Motely or The Marquis of Carbas.

One other note is that although John Law has a family life including children the family life is overshadow by the public life. The children don't even have names.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my favorite Sabatini books. If you like good books you should consider reading this one. This dude gets in trouble and turns to gambling.