British secret agent Collin Callahan infiltrated a secret poker tournament to find out who was behind it and what they were offering as a prize. He was not expecting to find Oliver Elliot, a math genius turned surfer bum, and he certainly did not think he could fall for someone like him so quickly. But when other players start turning up dead, Collin and Oliver both realize something sinister is going on. And it turns out finding out who is sponsoring the tournament might create more problems that it solves. ( )

“Opposites might attract, but that would only last up to the point where they attacked and killed each other.” Collin Callahan, British secret agent

Secrets, intrigue, and danger abound in this thriller about a high-stakes international poker game where attracting the wrong people’s attention will get you killed. ‘Seven-Card Stud’ is an action-packed battle for supremacy based on psychological cleverness, the ability to outwit your opponent, and the willingness to do whatever it takes to win. And to top it all off, nobody even knows what the prize is! Collin and Oliver are men scarred by their families’ disdain for their sexual orientation and both have learned to fend for themselves, not relying on anyone other than their own wits – which are considerable. They seem like complete opposites and would have probably passed like ships in the night had they not been forced to pool their resources just to stay alive. This novel turned out to be an intense page-turner that had me at the edge of my seat throughout the developments on multiple fronts, and right up until the final resolution.

Collin works for Wildcards Inc. and is a British intelligence analyst turned field agent because of his ability to do math in his head. The British government wants to find out who is behind the most secret and high-stakes international poker game in history, and assigns Wildcard Inc. to the job. Collin is a typical stiff-upper-lip secret agent in the image of James Bond – except for the fact he is gay and not a playboy. He has no idea what hit him when he attempts to save Oliver’s life only to find out the man is perfectly capable of taking care of himself. Mostly.

Oliver is an American, a former professional gambler who has been banned from most of the world’s casinos because he always wins due to his mathematical prowess. He has gone off the radar, mostly to escape his incredibly powerful father and his never-ending attempts to get Oliver to work for the family business. Oliver enjoys his freedom as a surfer and beach bum, but when he receives an invitation to a secret poker game and is told his entry fee of one million dollars has already been paid, he can’t resist. Running into Collin is not at all what he counted on, but the overly-controlled and very talented opponent has his interest in more than one way.

Both men quickly realize they need to stick together if they want to find out who is killing the players and why. But then the stakes go up when their lives are threatened, and cooperation is no longer a choice. Seeing them working together in and out of bed was a thrilling experience for me, and by the time the author was done with all the twists and turns, revelations, and super suspenseful developments, I felt thoroughly entertained.

If you like high-stakes games and the gamblers who excel at beating their opponents by any means at their disposal, if a closeted secret agent and an out-and-proud pseudo-beach-bum pairing up to work together sounds interesting, and if you’re looking for a suspenseful, action-packed psychological thriller that includes murder and intrigue galore, then you will probably like this novel as much as I do. I think this deserves to be a movie!


NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews. ( )