There’s something chillingly familiar about the anonymous texts, containing a tantalising promise, that kick-off the action in The Gambler. The digital age has taught us all to be alert to phishing scams but as AI becomes more dominant, and our personal data is harvested to direct an ever-targeted stream of content towards us, the looming prospect of an unforeseen, calamitous attack on our privacy and our bank accounts feels more real and more dangerous.
With The Gambler, J. P. Pomare has written a crime novel that taps into this fear. This is Pomare’s second book featuring P. I. Vince Reid, and his second book set in the US. Pomare has built a reputation for telling chilling stories set in Australia or New Zealand, but the action that unfolds demands this story take place in the heated political and social circumstances of the US.
The story opens with a shooting death at a political rally. A young woman is killed, seemingly at random, by a middle-aged mother named Barb. People say Barb “snapped”, but it’s impossible for law enforcement to discover what she was thinking because an apparent hero at the rally shoots Barb, then vanishes.
The police wrap the case up quickly, but the victim’s family want answers. Enter Private Investigator Vince Reid. Reid is not a cop or detective. He relies on his skill and instincts. Has a few contacts who can help him out, but he doesn’t have a forensics lab on hand. He can’t call for back-up. It’s all instinct and grit.
With the flutter of a faded American flag, Pomare transports us into the American heartland, specifically Paris, Illinois, where Reid is meeting Nick, an old family friend who wants him to investigate the shooting. Nick is an ex-PI. He drives a beautiful black Buick and has a trove of spy gear that he gladly passes on to Reid to help him crack the case. It will be easy, Nick promises.
Pomare offers us different perspectives to fill in the story, as Reid delves into the clues.
The apparent hero, Jason, knew the victim, Kate. She was a political staffer. He is a white hat hacker, who always carries a gun, even to a café breakfast.
We also meet Barb and Ted in the months before the shooting. Covid has left them feeling cheated and Barb finds herself seeing her own concerns and disappointment reflected in some of the conspiracy theories online. When she receives a mysterious text message offering a sports tip, she is curious, but unmoved. Until more and more arrive, and all of them are correct.
She and Ted had always enjoyed a little gambling, so when the mysterious ‘Enigmas’ offer sure-thing tips, they can’t resist dipping into their savings.
There are links to a nearby Amish community that provide a fascinating counter-point to the villainy of the Enigmas, which reside in the online realm.
As Reid closes in, the danger ramps up, injecting some action into the climactic pages of the mystery.
Reid is a likable PI. Competent and sensitive, he’s easy to root for. The puzzle is interesting and speaks to the world we live in. A good test of a crime thriller series is whether you can pick up any book from the sequence and enjoy it without having read the other books. The Gambler certainly stands alone, however Pomare has built for Reid an interesting backstory that makes you want to follow the character on his next case.
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