Douglas Stewart - An Exceptional Thriller Centered on the Casino World

Douglas Stewart was born in Scotland but raised in England. Like John Grisham, he is a lawyer and writer. He has lived and worked in London, Las Vegas, Cyprus, and the Isle of Man. "Deadly Hush," soon to be published, is his sixteenth book and the third in the Ratso series. "Deadline Vegas" draws on his time living there. "Undercurrent" was a WH Smith Paperback of the Week. An earlier book topped the charts for 24 weeks, as did a Compendium to which he contributed. Whether fiction or non-fiction, his books reflect his legal background and his love of interesting locations, whether distant or closer to home.

Please give us a short introduction to what Deadline Vegas is about.

Dex is no gambler. Already recovering from a family tragedy, he is thrown into an unfamiliar world when his sister then dies horribly. She has been trying to expose a huge casino group of cheating at roulette. At once, he is challenging a ruthless operator in Vegas and London. His frantic and dangerous investigation exposes the hard underbelly with no holds barred. In a fight to the death, there can be only one winner.

What inspired you to write a story centered on the casino world?

Although a Brit, I have lived and worked in Las Vegas and learned so much from there and from my London contacts that the plot was a no-brainer.

Tell us more about Dex. He is portrayed as a determined and relentless character. What were some of the challenges you faced in developing his character arc throughout the book?

Dex is a widower at a young age following a family tragedy. He is already recovering from a breakdown when he promises never to rest if his sister dies. He is unsuited to the role thrust upon him but that makes his courage and determination truly poignant and meaningful. I enjoyed creating Dex as someone who hated gambling now having to learn about the way casinos and gamblers operate. His obsession was the obvious trait when he no longer had anything to lose in life – except his own.

The story takes readers from London to Las Vegas, exploring different settings and cultures. How did you approach the research process for accurately depicting these locations?

I have lived in and worked and written about both London and Las Vegas for over thirty years. I love them both and know them well. I also researched the book in Panama because I expect to keep locations very much alive as “characters”.

Casinos often serve as a backdrop for intrigue and suspense in literature. What aspects of the casino world did you find most intriguing to incorporate into the narrative?

Following a big-name casino running out of positive cash-flow and going into Chapter 11 (true), it prompted the theme of what desperate owners might do to save a struggling operation from going belly-up.

The book contains some twists and turns. Did you plan it all out before you started writing, or did some of it just "happen" along the way?

I always know my ending. That was advice given to me by a best-selling Brit author, Gavin Lyall, when I was starting out. As he told me, if you know the ending you will always get there. What happens in the middle are the zig-zag variables. I love them!

The themes of loyalty, betrayal, and justice are prevalent in "Deadline Vegas." How do they drive the characters' motivations and actions?

As a lawyer (like John Grisham), the law is in my blood. Deadline Vegas is far removed from my legal world but Dex is a character with a strong moral compass – but he learns that when billions are at stake, he has to play and fight dirty.The casino owners are two very different characters and one has a guilty secret.

Dex's determination to seek justice for his sister is a central theme in the book. How do you think his character evolves as the story progresses, and what message do you hope readers take away from his journey?

Dex’s moral compass makes him determined to seek vengeance for his sister’s death but when fighting a casino group with everything to lose, he realises that playing by the rules is no answer. Readers will, I hope, feel uplifted by the risks and courage that this unwell man has to accept to obtain vengeance by destroying a major Lss Vegas casino. It is nothing less than a blind obsession – blind to the murderous risks.

Readers say this book was a thrilling ride. How did you manage to create a sense of suspense throughout the narrative?

A plot with someone like Dex “the little man” taking on a massive casino group, following what happened to his sister, created endless opportunities for drama and suspense. Every page leads the reader to one new challenge after another.

What was your greatest challenge when writing this story?

None! It was a joy to write based on my in-depth research.

When starting on a new book, what is the first thing you do?

I think of the theme followed by the ending and then develop at least two strong characters to provide conflict.

What are you working on right now?

In March, my 16th book called Deadly Hush will be published. This is the third in the series involing an international London detective called Todd “Ratso” Holtom. I am close to finishing the fourth in this series which readers just love. There will be more to come!

Where can our readers discover more of your work or interact with you?

My website is: https://www.douglasstewartbooks.com/

My email is: [email protected]

My newsletter link is: https://www.douglasstewartbooks.com/freehp/

My Facebook Page is: https://www.facebook.com/douglasstewartauthor

I love hearing from my readers.