David Baldacci’s “A Gambling Man” Is a 1950s Private Eye Thriller Full of Secrets and Corruption

In this episode 205, we visit with New Your Times bestselling author David Baldacci and discuss his recent book, “A Gambling Man,” an Aloysius Archer thriller.

The Associated Press calls David Baldacci “a master storyteller.” This is the next story in the Archer Thriller series, a follow-up to the Nero Award-winning thriller “One Good Deed.” Set in the1950s, the protagonist has been to war, to prison and wants to learn how to be a private investigator, so he hops a bus to Californian to learn from the best, a legendary private eye and former FBI agent named Willie Dash.

He lands the job and immediately finds himself in the thick of a potential scandal: a blackmail case involving a wealthy well-connected politician running for mayor that soon spins into something even more sinister. As bodies begin falling, Archer and Dash must infiltrate the world of brothels, gambling dens, drug operations, and long-hidden secrets, descending into the rotten bones of a corrupt town that is selling itself as the promised land—but might actually be the road to perdition, and Archer’s final resting place.

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About the Author:

David Baldacci is a global #1 bestselling author, and one of the world’s favorite storytellers. His books are published in over 45 languages and in more than 80 countries, with over 130 million worldwide sales. His works have been adapted for both feature film and television. David Baldacci is also the cofounder, along with his wife, of the Wish You Well Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting literacy efforts across America. Still a resident of his native Virginia, he invites you to visit him at DavidBaldacci.com and his foundation at www.WishYouWellFoundation.org.

About the Book

With the 1950s on the horizon, Archer is in dire need of a fresh start, so he hops on a bus and begins his journey out west to California. Along the way, Archer stops in Reno, where a stroke of fortune delivers him a wad of cash and an eye-popping bloodred 1939 Delahaye convertible—plus a companion for the final leg of the journey, an aspiring actress named Liberty Callahan who is planning to try her luck in Hollywood. But when the two arrive in Bay Town, California, Archer quickly discovers that the hordes of people who flocked there seeking fame and fortune landed in a false paradise that instead caters to their worst addictions and fears.

Archer’s first stop is a P.I. office where he is hoping to apprentice with a legendary private eye and former FBI agent named Willie Dash. He lands the job and immediately finds himself in the thick of a potential scandal: a blackmail case involving a wealthy, well-connected politician running for mayor that soon spins into something even more sinister. As bodies begin falling, Archer and Dash must infiltrate the world of brothels, gambling dens, drug operations, and long-hidden secrets, descending into the rotten bones of a corrupt town that is selling itself as the promised land—but might actually be the road to perdition, and Archer’s final resting place.

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