The Starlight Club 17

Stagecoach Treasure in Vegas

Fiction - Crime
218 Pages
Reviewed on 10/01/2023
Buy on Amazon

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    Book Review

Reviewed by Alex Ndirangu for Readers' Favorite

In 1868, a mining consortium hired Butterfield Stage Line and Wells Fargo stagecoach companies to carry large shipments of gold coins to Nevada. But someone leaked the information to rustlers in the area. The outlaws robbed both stage lines near Las Vegas, took the nail kegs containing the gold, and buried them in one of the horse stalls of a stagecoach stop. The bandits never made it back to the spot, so no one ever knew about the buried fortune until one hundred years later. After Sidney Smyth gets orders to assassinate Big Red Fortunato, he can only think of one man for the job, Nicky Bell. But things don't go as Smyth expected, and he is taken into Big Red's office for questioning. Red learns that a Mexican mob boss discovered an old map describing the treasure, and they want him dead to gain possession of his Las Vegas Nell's Silver Spur casino. Join Big Red as he sets out to meet a world-renowned drug czar, unravel the century-old mystery, and find a second, much bigger fortune in Joe Corso's The Starlight Club 17: Stagecoach Treasure in Vegas.

Over the years, I've read several historical fiction crime thrillers. However, The Starlight Club 17: Stagecoach Treasure in Vegas is my favorite because of the in-depth character exploration, the authentic and particularly dynamic dialogues, and the deft weaving of timeframes into one seamless tapestry. Joe Corso's talent for creating a realistic and engaging setting is another of the book's strong points. It starts with a catchy scene and builds to a relentless whirlwind that sucks you into the narrative with suspense, well-choreographed action, adventure, and intrigue while delivering the information in a steady drip feed. The author's ability to sum up months and months in a single engaging paragraph before settling on a flawlessly drawn-out, completely realized scene is undeniably impressive, and despite the book being the seventeenth installment, I was never lost or confused as it is standalone. If you are searching for a fast-paced, captivating story involving mobsters, ticking clocks, and the highest of stakes, this is your pick.