Chasing the Ace

Book excerpt: Friendship and fraud is a dangerous mix Joel Fitch has watched every twist-happy movie there is about con men, and he thinks he knows it all. After nineteen years of being a sucker, Joel’s going to take everything he’s learned from the screen and finally get his. He’s going to be a master con artist. Richard Mordecai is a real-life swindler. But unlike Joel, he knows the truth about con men. At the end of a long career of lies and betrayal, Richard is tired and jaded. He’s ready to retire. Until he meets Joel. They form an uneasy partnership and Joel soon finds himself thrust into a world of bottom dealers, fraudsters and ace chasers that’s unlike any movie he’s ever seen. And when the pair accidentally scam the wrong mark, they have to draw on every last trick and piece of cunning they can to get themselves free and walk away with the money … and hopefully their dignity. ‘A deliciously devious debut. It will fool you, and you will love it.’ Lawrence Leung