Odds On

by John Lange, Michael Crichton

A robbery is attempted in an isolated hotel on Costa Brava. The robbery is planned with the help of a Critical Path Analysis computer program, but unforeseen events get in the way

Genres: Fiction, Thriller, Mystery, Crime, Mystery Thriller, Suspense, Adventure

215 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1966

About the author

John Lange™ is a pseudonym of author Michael Crichton. His pen name was selected as reference to his above-average height of 6' 9"(2.06 meters). Lange means "tall one" in German, Danish and Dutch.

Librarian's note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

Odds On was Chrichton's first published novel in 1966 and it does a good job of reflecting the spirit of the times. One of the amusing parts of this novel that, in retrospect seems silly, is the author's use of Critical Path Analysis and computers to plot the hotel robbery. Back then, however, not everyone had a computer on their desktop and computers had a more James Bondian aspect to them.

The Costa Brava is the northeastern coast of Spain stretching north from Barcelona to the French border. A large number of tourist hotels were built on this coast in resorts such as Blanes, Tossa de Mar, and Lloret de Mar. Zero Cool also took place in this region.

The beginning of the book is a little confusing to the reader as the author switches back and forth between a number of different characters, including three conspirators, Jencks, Miguel, and Bryan, a mismatched sort of engaged sort of not couple, and an elderly woman with a shofar en route from Tangiers. Eventually, the three conspirators and the other interesting folks all meet at a large hotel, the Hotel Reina, on a small island connected to the mainland by a single bridge. Based on his computer program, Jencks figures out the odds of success of robbing the hotel, their escape, and the fencing of the loot.

Most of the books is focused on the conspirators meeting at the hotel and planning their escapade. Their plan is not just to rob the hotel safe, but to also rob the guests and to have a decent chance of success at that, they must mingle and get to know the other guests and who is worth robbing. There are, of course, some who they get to know better than others and some of their mingling is very risqué. The sexual liaisons between the various conspirators and the bikini clad ( or often unclad) women they meet around the pool, in the bar, or at the reception desk are set forth in detail.

There are colorful characters in the hotel, including the elderly woman who travels to Spain in a shofared Lincoln Continental with a brick of marijuana in her brassiere, her nymphotic niece whose dalliances with so many are causing the hotel manager to worry about the hotel's reputation, and the mismatched girlfriend who keeps stringing along the boy she brought with her while displaying her charms for all who care to notice. The book flows quite well and, even though there is quite a long build up until the actual action, nothing about the hotel or its inhabitants or the goings on there are dull.

[Kyriakos Sorokkou]

Michael Crichton is my most well read author with 20 books just behind Stephen King who's on first place with 25.

Michael Crichton is the author of more than 30 books with Jurassic Park, The Lost World, Timeline and more recently Dragon Teeth among his most well known.
He is also the creator of the ER series and Westworld, as well as the action film Twister.

While a Medical Student at Harvard he needed money for his accommodation and personal expenses so he decided to gain some money by writing fast paced crime novels under the pseudonym John Lange, to protect his doctor persona.

He wrote 8 of these books of which I read only the last one published (Binary).

So last May I decided to buy all the seven remaining John Lange books reissued by Hard Case Crime editions with hardboiled/pulp fiction style covers.

November 4th 2018 marked 10 years since his sad passing in 2008 so I decided on that day to start my Crichton project where I will read all his books in publication order, one per month.
15 first reads + 19 re-reads something that translates into 34 months. It's quite a long journey but it's the journey not the destination that's important, right?

So, this was my 20th Crichton, his 1st novel, a novel where we see some signs of what Crichton would became later on.
A promising start by a 24 year old author but that's all.
It was cheesy, it had some plot holes, lots of sex, and not a lot of action or plot.
But it was a good start and I know that Michael Crichton will improve with every book he writes.

What comes next is Scratch One in December.

Rating: 6/10

[Glen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun heist book, where a computer expert (back in the days of punch cards) devises the perfect way to rob a hotel. He assembles a squad, each of whom enters a romantic entanglement.

Then, things go wrong from the start!

Pretty good. Not one of Crichton's best, but you can see the potential.

[Lyubov · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fast food екшънче за внимателно подготвян обир на скъп хотел на испанското крайбрежие.
Подариха ми я и даже се чудех дали да я чета изобщо, но тя се оказа такова класическо клише, че чак ми беше приятна :)

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was Crichtons first published novel written while he was attending medical school which is a double accomplishment lol.

It's a heist book so you see a little of A Great Train Robbery being foreshadowed and it involves a computer program that helps plot the whole Oceans 11 type scheme.

It's not the greatest , not even close but it's done by a 24 year old first time author so it was actually pretty great when you read it with that in mind. Lots of pulp , lots of sexy women but not alot of actual substance. MC fans will like it , others won't give it more than 3 stars.

10.10.25- RE-READ- Oceans 11 mixed with Oceans 8. Very Fun quick heist /crime novel. Jenks runs a program ( Critical Path Analysis) and comes up with a near perfect (88% probablility) heist where him and his two invited partners plan to steal jewels, money and travelers checks from thehotel safe and various rooms while hiding the money , making it appear they are leaving and blowing up the bridge...and hiding in plain sight. Unfortunately for them, there is another team with similiar ideas.

Surprisingly lots of sex in this novel. You dont see that from MC at all.

[Tiffani · Rating 2 out of 5]

The basic plot of Odds On is pretty simple: Three criminals plan to rob the Reina, a luxury resort hotel in Spain. To ensure their success they have had every aspect of the crime plotted out and simulated on a computer. There is talk of punch cards to give you an idea when this book was written. Of course, nothing goes quite as planned.

Odds On was published by Hard Case Crime, an imprint that specializes in publishing new and republishing old hard-boiled crime fiction. I have always loved old-fashioned dimestore novels. In fact I kind of prefer romance novels and certain mystery and crime novels in mass market paperback size and will go out of my way to get them in that format. It just feels right. Hard Case Crime has done a great job recreating the look and feel of those old-fashioned novels. This is most notably demonstrated in the cover art. In keeping with the old-fashioned dimestore novels from the 40s, 50s, and 60s each novel has a lurid cover, usually involving a woman in a provocative pose. The artwork is pretty amazing and is yet another reason why I prefer physical books, or tree books, to ebooks.

As for this specific tree book, it was okay. it started off slow and sped up toward the end. At first this reminded me of Oceans 11. There is a crazy scheme with a bunch of moving parts, so many characters I had trouble keeping them straight, set against a wealthy backdrop. Ultimately this was not as fun as Oceans 11 but then Oceans 11 might not be as much to read as it was to watch.

[Josh · Rating 4 out of 5]

ODDS ON is a fast moving heist novel centered around 3 guys looking for a large score at a luxury resort. Elements of Michael Crichton’s tech-fi are glimpsed here with the heist planned using a computer to determine the probability for success measured against a number of variables. The human factor not withstanding (unknown elements that can’t be factored into the equation), the stakes looked low to garner a high payoff. What ensues is a fun and colorful pulp mixing a free spirited resort mentality, freewheeling men and women, and a plan cooked to perfection.

[Ben Wilder]

This is my review of this book imported from my blog at http://thoughtsonthrillers.com/though...

Though the name John Lange might not be familiar to many, rest assured that you have probably read at least one of his books. For Odds On is actually Michael Crichton's first EVER published novel. When Michael Crichton first started writing he was in Med School and a good portion of his grades were based on what his teachers thought of him. He was worried that if they knew he was writing books, they would think less of him and his grades would suffer, so he first wrote under pen names, one of them being John Lange. There are two things you should be aware of before reading this book. One is the price. Being that it has been out of print for awhile it is quite expensive. The cheapest you can expect to find it for is approximately $86, and even then it may not be in perfect condition. The second is the sex scenes. About a third of the book is soft core sex. Despite that this book is a decent read. While not up to snuff with his later novels, even here we see the beginnings of traits that would become classic Crichton. The introducing of new technology to readers, as well as unexpected twists in the story line can be seen. But I digress, In this book three men plan to rob a hotel on the Spain's Costa Brava. To pull off this crime they use an computer (nothing new in this day and age but keep in mind this was published back in 1966) to help plan the crime. Even this early in his career we can see hints of scientific and philosophical depth to come later. For example, early on Steve Jencks, the main crook/character says "The computer doesn't have any ideas. It only evaluates my own..." this shows that computers can NOT think for themselves. Which is something that early science fiction confused people about. Finally, the book shows that even in the computer age that the best laid plans of mice and men can still go awry, and Roberts Burns words have never proved so true.

[Rene · Rating 5 out of 5]

These "John Lange" novels is where Crichton developed his cinematic style. I enjoyed the earlier Hard Case Crime releases of "Zero Cool" and "Grave Descend". Great Caper novel, down to the unexpected resolution. No spoilers from me, Just read all of them.

[Charley Rains · Rating 4 out of 5]

kind of a shocker! Sex, drugs, and espionage.

[hotsake (André Troesch) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I went into this expecting a low-rent James Bond/Ocean's 11 adventure; instead, I was treated to a low-rent Sidney Sheldon/Harold Robbins story.

[Adrian · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 / 5

[Greg · Rating 1 out of 5]

COUNTDOWN: Mid-20th Century North American Crime
BOOK 245 (of 250)
It's hard to believe this very famous author eventually wrote some very good books.
HOOK=3 stars: A man is smuggling dynamite across the border of France. Will he make it? And why is he doing it? Good enough to keep reading.
PACE=1: Lots of talking about sex, endless and repetitive seductions. Tough to slog through this, but it's by Micheal Crichton. If it had been any other author, I would have closed the book early on.
PLOT=1: Stupid. Three men decide to rob the rooms of a hotel in a single afternoon. Wouldn't a maid or a guest suspect something? Oh, and get this: each floor has just two types of keys for all rooms on a floor. And the thieves have no way of knowing if someone is in the room anyway. And...oh...never mind.
PEOPLE =1: "Jencks wondered if the man [sitting next to him on a plane] were queer, but when Brady straightened and sat back in his own seat, he knew better." Well, that makes Jencks rather stupid. In what world does sitting back in your own seat after leaning toward someone for a conversation with someone identify sexual preferences? You'd have to be dimwitted and very homophobic to think that way. Things get worse: "It would have been an angelic face were it not for the lips and eyebrows, which indicated to Annette the girl was a bitch, and probably a sex tease." WTF? If you're going to dig down deep into book vaults then claim they've been edited a bit, then do so! Because lines like this are just really bad.
PLACE=1: Le Perthus (France), London, Cambridge, Cannes (France), Gerona (Spain), Costa Brava (Spain). But it all could have happened in, say, Dallas as Crichton has obviously never been to any of these places and gives us nothing. If you're gonna set a scene in Cannes, you'd better describe the French Riviera and have a reason for your characters being there.
SUMMARY: My average rating is 1.4 stars, or 1 star here on goodreads. The real crime here is that this was actually pulled out of some musty basement and republished. True, it's a very young Crichton. He wrote 8 early crime novels under a pseudonym...smart move.

[Richard Moss · Rating 1 out of 5]

More than half a century ago, a young medical student had his first novels published under the name John Lange.

That man would go on to become the multi-million selling author of Jurassic Park, Westworld, Congo and other novels - but of course under his real name of Michael Crichton.

That early work was forgotten until revived and republished shortly before Crichton's death in 2008.

But if Odds On is anything to go by, it would have been kinder to leave them firmly in the past.

First, it's horribly dated. Its sexual politics are loathsome. He can't describe any woman without lecherously lingering on every curve of her body. One of the female characters is described as a "nympho" who is tortured for information by a man denying her sex (I'm not kidding!)

And then there's the plot. It's a heist supposedly designed to be almost fail-proof by a computer. But this is a 1960s computer, which had a fraction of the processing power of the average smartphone.

It's frankly laughable, makes almost no sense and is immaterial to the overall plot, which involves a raid on a luxury hotel.

It is also peppered with badly-written soft porn sex encounters between the characters. It's clear the young Crichton had decided that to get published this sort of novel needs some sex every forty pages or so to make people forget the risible plot and cardboard cut-out characters. The encounters are unintentionally comedic.

In his defence, Crichton is not setting out to write a literary masterpiece here. This is disposable fare, probably designed to help finance his studies.

But there is a reason why it took decades for it to resurface. It's dreadful, and is best avoided.

[David Macpherson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Three seasoned crooks plan to rob a hotel off the coast of Spain. They use a computer to help calculate their chances. I like how Michael Crichton showed his computer fetish from his very first book. Nothing works as plan and the crooks meet cook chicks who fall for them like old timber. I finished the book but I thought for a bit to stop reading. There was nothing wrong with it, it was just slow and slightly boring. There was sex, sure, but it was still kind of boring.

[John Defrog: global citizen, local gadfly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Michael Crichton’s career as a novelist actually began as a side gig while studying medicine at Harvard. The novels – published under the pseudonym John Lange – were the kind of pulp thrillers that were in high demand in the mid-60s. This is the first one, in which three men team up to rob a luxury hotel in Spain. The edge: the leader, Jencks, has used a mainframe computer to calculate the chances of success, taking into account all variables – except for the three hot women they encounter at the resort. You see where this is going. Or … do you?

Inevitably it’s hard to read this without comparing it to Crichton’s more famous work, but it’s interesting that even in his early phase, Crichton was employing technology (and the limitations thereof) as a plot device. Also, Crichton already had a knack for easy prose that keeps the pages turning, and planting red herrings in the form of subplots with other hotel guests, even though it gets a little clunky from time to time. That said, it does take until the third act for things to really get moving.

Also, it hasn't aged well in terms of sex scenes and women characters, who are depicted either as ugly shrews or busty babes desperately in need of a real man to satisfy them. Crichton may have been writing to spec for the genre at the time, but there’s so much boob description that when the novel was optioned to Hollywood, it’s a wonder Russ Meyer didn’t show interest in it. On the other hand, the women here are generally smarter than the genre called for, so I guess there’s that. Anyway, it’s not terrible for a first novel, but I’m not sure I need to explore his John Lange years further.

[Amber · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good Crichton novel.

This book took a while to get started, lots of characters and places to keep organized. About a third of the way in, it took off.
A very unexpected ending, something I somewhat predicted, just not who or how. Still I am unsure of how it all happened.

Some of the characters were atrocious, especially the women that were only ever interested in, um, physical matters. It seemed like most characters lacked the usual depth, aside from the three main men.

For some reason it didn't feel like a Crichton novel. There was minimal science talk, but the writing style seemed different perhaps. Maybe it was the subject matter.

Overall a good read 🍌

[Cheryl · Rating 2 out of 5]

I agree with another reader that this book had the Ocean's 11 movie series vibe. The original movie with George Clooney, Brad Pitt, and Matt Damon and not the new one with the women.

This is a quick read. There isn't anything too complex about the storyline; other than the fact that there are a lot of characters introduced all at the same time. There was not too much breathing room to get familiar with all of the different characters. So you kind of have to muddle your way through until you can get them all straight.

The women seemed to be calling all of the shots. The men were along for the ride. Although by the end there was a bit of a twist.

[Kieran McAndrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

A meticulously planned heist is about to go down in an exclusive hotel in broad daylight. What could possibly go wrong?

There are elements of Crichton's plot devices here already in his first novel: computer modelling, hubris and dark humour when things begin to go wrong. However, the plot lacks some depth and the characters feel interchangeable. If it wasn't for the twist at the end, this would be a much less satisfying novel.

Oh gods yes, I almost managed to forget, there are two contenders for the "Bad Sex in Fiction" award.

[David V. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Started 1-30-24. Finished 2-2-24. Originally published in 1966 (using pseudonym John Lange) while Mr. Crichton was attending Harvard Med School. He wrote several books during those years to pay for school. He died in 2008. This book has been re-issued with a foreward by his wife Sherri.

It's like Mission Impossible but with the thieves as the heroes, and an ending with a major twist. The brains of the gang is a great believer in computers back in the day when they were as big as a house and used punch cards! His goal: "to carry out the first genuinely scientific crime in the history of mankind."

[Garrett Hamblin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book, which is an old fashion heist story with a twist. It's set in a super luxurious hotel off the coast of Spain during the late 50's. Just a fun read with plenty of action and a myriad of characters, mostly shady ones. The pacing is fast and satisfying. Very enjoyable!

[Walker · Rating 3 out of 5]

All in all if was a relatively good book, though slow in places and some jumping around that sometimes detracted from the continuity of the plot. Perhaps I was expecting more of a thriller or suspense novel than this turned out to be.

[Wintry Monsters Press · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a heist story (think Oceans Eleven), and I am not drawn to those usually. I was often bored during this one, and it didn't help that I kept mixing up the characters because they were so easily interchangeable (except for the banana lady).

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Reina is an super-luxury hotel on the Spanish Riviera, making up for its isolated location with an array of five-star services: not just swimming pools and a bar but restaurants, salons, stores. As one character points out, it’s like an opulent cruise liner on land; it caters to the wealthiest tourists, and is slated to be the blueprint for numerous competitors. It’s located in the heart of Franco’s authoritarian Spain, an oppressive police-state. And three men plan on robbing it blind.

Miguel is a Latino-American smuggler, street-smart and able to acquire any object for a price. Bryan is a Brit working the gray side of the underworld, undertaking contract hits, thefts, and snatches for the government. And Jencks is the mastermind gambler; logical and precise, he’s come up with a daring plan to nab not just the payroll of the Reina, but the jewels and cash of its guests as well.

What they weren’t expecting was a bevy of beautiful women; Allan Brady, a notorious con-man with his own agenda; the mysterious Miss Shaw, the French-Algerian heavy fronting as her chauffeur, and the cargo of Moroccan drugs in her Lincoln Continental; or the dysfunctional couple Peter and Jenny, a college boy slavering after a girl who’ll sleep with anyone but him…

Odds On is a fascinating look at the start of Michael Crichton’s career; I see a lot more of the author he would become in this novel than I did in others he wrote under the John Lange pseudonym -- for example, Jancks' checking the validity of the heist via computer, then seeing this technological failsafe utterly foiled by random chance. The bottom line is that this is a very rough, very fast early novel by Crichton, with a few gaping plot holes and enough sex scenes to qualify as softcore porn. Odds On is a good beach read, great entertainment that’s just a bit air-headed and more than a little sex-starved. Readers shouldn’t go into it expecting some lost Crichton masterpiece, but a decent 1960s heist thriller. While I enjoyed it, Odds On felt thin and padded at times; take away some of the pointless meandering and the sex bits and you’d have a very short book indeed.

Full review found here.

[Jacob · Rating 3 out of 5]

Michael Crichton's first novel--published under the pen name John Lange, as to not interfere with his schooling/career--is a fun caper. There are hints of mystery here, and the general tone screams Agatha Christie, but mostly this is about the planning of a robbery. So it feels like a low-key Oceans Eleven, say, except with three crooks rather than eleven.

But unlike a Christie-type of novel, Crichton stuffs in a whole lot of hedonism. As most of the novel leads up to the actual heist, you might expect a lot of setup and planning and such, but no. Instead we get sex and drugs. The former is written kind of poorly, tbh. Sexual encounters has never been the strength of any Crichton book I've read, and as his first, these feel even more awkward. There's a giddiness to his descriptions that makes them feel cheap. Yet, on the other hand, his descriptions of getting high are handled about as well as I've ever seen in prose. Descriptions get swirly and stutter and lap over each other that make you feel as if your (sober) brain is getting that stoned haze. It's impressive.

While Odds On is certainly not a standout in Crichton's oeuvre, it's much more competent and interesting than I was expecting. The first third is a bit slow, but once that threshold is crossed, it becomes a quick page turner.

[Hugh Worsnop · Rating 3 out of 5]

Solid entry into the hard case crime series. Showing its age a little bit though.

[Jeff Crosby · Rating 1 out of 5]

From the brilliant Great Train Robbery to the pathetic Prey, I have found Michael Crichton to be a very uneven author. I thought the idea of a light weight heist from the paperback 1960s might be a fun romp. No. The plot is a twisted mess and over-sexed. Not recommended.

[Hazen Master · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very satisfying little caper. I didn't know what to expect and was pleased with the result. Very well paced. Hard to keep track of which characters were which on occasion. Quite provocative in parts.

[Allison · Rating 1 out of 5]

Hated it. Interesting to read the early works of a favorite writer but I don’t think this is one he would be proud of. The only role of the women was to be foils to the men. So many outdated tropes and thank God. Glad this slog is over.

[Saad · Rating 4 out of 5]

Michael crichton typical novel. What makes it special is that it was his first published novel back in 1966.