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Cole Springer Mystery #1
Springer's Gambit: A Cole Springer Mystery
Aspen-- the American Riviera-- where the rich and the beautiful go to play. Quiet streets, breathtaking mountains, and one of the lowest crime rates in America. But that's about to change.
Real estate speculator Max Shapiro has been cleaning the San Francisco mob's money for three decades. Then the hammer drops-- he's dying of cancer and is on borrowed time. Resentful of the mob's hold and not wishing to die with an IV hose in his arm, Max tells the mob he isn't paying any more tribute, hoping they'll send someone to kill him. While vacationing in Aspen, however, Max gets a call from his doctor. Good news. Max isn't dying after all. But it's too late to call off the mob's killers. Max's only hope is the enigmatic Cole Springer-- an ex-Secret Service agent with a penchant for creative thinking-- broke and in danger of losing his Aspen nightclub. Shapiro needs a bodyguard and Springer needs money, so they cut a protection deal. Enter Gerry "Knucks" Nugent, a cerebral and deadly hit man in the midst of a midlife crisis who has been sent to kill Shapiro.
A mob boss dies in 'Frisco, there is a struggle for power, and an emergency cache of three million dollars ends up in the hands of Nicky Tortino, a merciless Bay Area crime lord. The shift in the underworld command sends shock waves rippling across the western United States, affecting even Shapiro and Nugent.
Meanwhile, Springer's active mind runs to larger themes than merely protecting Shapiro, and he begins to formulate a scheme to save Shapiro and get his hands on the three million. Springer's scam depends upon recruiting Nugent, and Nugent is widely feared-- even by his ruthless bosses on the West Coast.
Bay Area underboss Nicky Tortino travels to Aspen to get Shapiro to launder the three million, and also to have both Springer and Shapiro killed. The law closes in and Springer is running out of time and options. Beset on all sides, Springer designs an elaborate sting to extricate Shapiro and himself from the deadly web that has formed around them. But can he trust Nugent?
Real estate speculator Max Shapiro has been cleaning the San Francisco mob's money for three decades. Then the hammer drops-- he's dying of cancer and is on borrowed time. Resentful of the mob's hold and not wishing to die with an IV hose in his arm, Max tells the mob he isn't paying any more tribute, hoping they'll send someone to kill him. While vacationing in Aspen, however, Max gets a call from his doctor. Good news. Max isn't dying after all. But it's too late to call off the mob's killers. Max's only hope is the enigmatic Cole Springer-- an ex-Secret Service agent with a penchant for creative thinking-- broke and in danger of losing his Aspen nightclub. Shapiro needs a bodyguard and Springer needs money, so they cut a protection deal. Enter Gerry "Knucks" Nugent, a cerebral and deadly hit man in the midst of a midlife crisis who has been sent to kill Shapiro.
A mob boss dies in 'Frisco, there is a struggle for power, and an emergency cache of three million dollars ends up in the hands of Nicky Tortino, a merciless Bay Area crime lord. The shift in the underworld command sends shock waves rippling across the western United States, affecting even Shapiro and Nugent.
Meanwhile, Springer's active mind runs to larger themes than merely protecting Shapiro, and he begins to formulate a scheme to save Shapiro and get his hands on the three million. Springer's scam depends upon recruiting Nugent, and Nugent is widely feared-- even by his ruthless bosses on the West Coast.
Bay Area underboss Nicky Tortino travels to Aspen to get Shapiro to launder the three million, and also to have both Springer and Shapiro killed. The law closes in and Springer is running out of time and options. Beset on all sides, Springer designs an elaborate sting to extricate Shapiro and himself from the deadly web that has formed around them. But can he trust Nugent?
272 pages, Hardcover
First published October 18, 2001
About the author
W.L. Ripley
24 books24 followersWarren L. Ripley is the author of the critically acclaimed Wyatt Storme mystery series. He lives in Missouri.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
September 19, 2026
This book is an entertaining, action hero adventure. The hero is Cole Springer, a former secret service agent who was too easily boarded by bureaucratic leadership and regulations. This resulted in Cole wisecracking his way to dismissal from the secret service. He now owns and operates the Whiskey Basin Tavern in Aspen, Colorado. Plus, as an accomplished piano player, he often provides nightly entertainment at his tavern. This story begins with Max Shapiro, a member of an organized crime syndicate in San Francisco needing protection (bodyguard services). Max has been the chief money launderer for the San Francisco mob and he wants out. Max hears about Cole’s previous career work and seeks Cole’s help with protection from mob hitmen. Cole has recently encountered some financial problems, so he takes the job. The story is littered with fascinating characters, such as gangsters, hitmen, good cops and bad cops. Cole, who is a fearless wisecracking man about town, devises an elaborate scam to try and save his client’s life as well as enhance his own bank account. It reminds me of the movie The Sting as several people, not just gangsters, become victims of Cole’s Gambit. Great dialogue, fun times and action scenes make this book entertaining and a worthwhile read.
March 21, 2009
My favorite W.L. Ripley book (and don't tell him, but its the only one I would give 5 stars to). You should read it. You should buy it. You should email your hollywood friends and tell them to make a movie out of it.
September 10, 2009
Funny, fast. light read! Enjoyed the characters, the dialogue, the plot. Good stuff.
November 21, 2012
Good story, Colorado setting and engaging writing.
March 5, 2013
my dad's the author, so it's tough to be objective... but in my opinion, this is his best novel to date.
July 23, 2013
Good Elmore Leonard-esque novel focusing on incompetent cops and crooks, and a couple of guys that actually know what they're doing.
Recommended.
Recommended.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews