It's #7 in The Myron Bolitar series.

and a few others that I'm picking up and putting down.

I remember it being on TV when I was a kid, but didn't realize it was a book. It was very good. I particularly enjoyed the early parts set in Malaysia.

But ATLA was extra special. I love the movie too! Enjoy!

A very noirish novel, set in a university town, which is probably New Haven where I live. There is irony, despair and black humor in the author's strongest suit, character development. Strangely, I found a kind of kinship of his writing with John Cheever, who also sought an almost redemptive (religiously) tone, throughout the book.
I am not finished with it yet but so far it holds me with fascination with the characters and its "what's next?" touch.

Author Stone himself has a history of alcoholism and drugs, plus emphesyma from nicotine (he is 75) and had a horrible childhood. He is writing out about his tortures, I think, in much of this novel. The despair is pretty soaked in with this book and it makes me fear for the mental state of the author. But in the meantime he has delivered a real accomplishment in novel making.

Loving it.

And had to take a break. The main character was just beginning to annoy me. I'll get back to it later.

I'm getting tired of the whole Las Vegas scene too.

Just barely.

But then back in New York, some years later I think, and this guy is pretty much a crook. Look, I know he had a hard-ish life, what with his weird father and dead mother, but the old guy took him in and taught him well, and living with the rich folks didn't hurt all that much, and while he was essentially on his own in Las Vegas, he seemed generally okay. But then to see him back in NY essentially running cons on his customers, well, it was just irritating.

By Ian Fleming

I never read the novels.

I'm finding it kinda disturbing. The antisemitism, other predudices. And I'm not sure yet if the misogyny of Bond is just the character or the authors view of the world.

The writing is effective in taking me along a full and well described spy thriller ride. But I don't think I'll read more of these novels.

I went through the first five, actually, last year, mostly on audio, and I doubt I'll read more. Of those five, one, _Moonraker_, had what I thought was a solid female counterbalance to Bond.

Other than that one, the sexism and racism is endemic: I understand they were written at a particular point in time in a particular culture and that attitudes come with the territory. But while I might go along for something that seemed important to read or know, the entertainment value didn't balance the icky feeling of "why am I doing this?"

In case you didn't see this last week, the British Medical Journal published in its Christmas edition a study of Bond's drinking and the likely consequences.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/12/12/health/james-bond-alcohol/

I think Mr Fleming could've written something I would enjoy.

I like to read Jack London and there too you run into racism and sexism, somehow though even though both are in part just reflections of the time and culture of the authors it's something I can get through with most (not all ) of London's work. The Bond novels though don't seem worth it as you say.