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A review by kalkie
The Ballad of a Small Player by Lawrence Osborne
2.0
This story follows the fortunes (and mis-fortunes) of "Lord" Doyle, small-time embezzler from the UK currently in hiding in Macau. He spends his life winning and losing at the baccarat punto blanco tables of the various casinos around peninsula, meeting up with similar ne'er do well friends, and borrowing and lending money to sustain their respective habits.
He crosses paths with a mysterious girl, Dao-Ming, who comes to his rescue when he's at his lowest ebb; and after "recovering" enters a period with the best luck he has ever experienced.
The story continues at a leisurely pace, and the characters are so middle-of-the-road, it's hard to feel strongly about them one way or the other. I certainly didn't find it engaging or unputdownable. It was an OK read, but unfortunately I felt it didn't live up to its hype.
He crosses paths with a mysterious girl, Dao-Ming, who comes to his rescue when he's at his lowest ebb; and after "recovering" enters a period with the best luck he has ever experienced.
The story continues at a leisurely pace, and the characters are so middle-of-the-road, it's hard to feel strongly about them one way or the other. I certainly didn't find it engaging or unputdownable. It was an OK read, but unfortunately I felt it didn't live up to its hype.