Book Review – “Silent Wager”

Caption: “Silent Wager” by Anita Bunkley, c.2006, Kensington, 352 pages.By Terri Schlichenmeyer It’s been said that gamblers are the most superstitious folks of all. High rollers blow on the die before they toss them across the felt. Some blackjack players won’t touch their chips, for fear of bad luck. Those who play lots of slots have “favorite” machines. Even Bingo players follow rituals for winning. Do these things actually help? Maybe. Probably not. But that doesn’t stop gamblers from going through the lucky motions, just like it didn’t stop Max Granville from trying to save his beloved restaurant. In the new novel “Silent Wager” by Anita Bunkley, Max’s gamble didn’t quite pay off. For generations, the pink building had withstood everything that Houston weather had thrown at it, but Camille Granville knew that Vendora, as the mansion-turned-supper-club was called, wouldn’t be able to hold up against the deluge that was pouring from the skies that late summer. When the rains finally stopped and the floodwaters receded, Vendora was in ruins but Camille and Max vowed that it would come back, better than ever. Vendora had been in the family for a long time, and someday, it would belong to Jaiden, Max and Camille’s daughter. It was a family legacy. It was also now a financial burden. Max had allowed the flood insurance to lapse, and Vendora needed thousands of dollars in repairs before it would be back to its former glory. Max and Camille were nearly flat broke. Would the Granvilles need to close their beloved supper club permanently? Davis Kepler was always looking for the Next Big Thing, and when he saw a chance to work with his childhood buddy, Reet Collins, he jumped at it. Now, Reet is double-crossing Davis, and Davis has had enough. Thinking that it’s time he start his own business – and seeing opportunity – Davis approaches Max Granville with an idea: Davis will bail Max out of debt. In exchange, Davis gets 60% ownership of Vendora. Reluctantly, Max makes a deal with a devil named Davis. Max knows that Camille has been under a lot of stress, so, to surprise her, he buys tickets on a star-studded luxury cruise. Yep, life for the Granvilles is about to get better. Vendora is recovering, Jaiden is off to a good college, and Max feels like he hit the jackpot. He never gambled that a silent wager that would put Vendora – and Camille – in big trouble. Lucky is the reader who ends up with “Silent Wager” in her hands, because author Anita Bunkley has written a book with places that are so realistic, I halfway expected to find Vendora in a Houston phone book, and people whose lives I was so caught up in that I kept forgetting that this is a novel. Camille is a wonderfully strong woman who knows where she’s been and sees where she’s going and I thoroughly enjoyed the hours I spent in her company. Toss some money in the kitty and pick up a copy of “Silent Wager”. Do I think you’ll like it? You can bet on it.