Happy Friday, Friends. Today’s guest is award-winning Author Tom Farrell, who also shares the honor of being nominated Rocky Mountain Fiction Writer’s Independent Writer of the Year. Tom knows gambling; he knows the law. What better way to bring these issues together than a thriller- mystery series? Please welcome Tom Farrell. ~ Donnell
A smart and fast-paced crime drama that will leave readers wanting more from this author. Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
WagerEasy
Author Tom Farrell
In my newly released novel, WagerEasy, Eddie O’Connell discovers that the man killed in signature mob style is his old friend from the racetrack, Jimmy Golding. Eddie and his Uncle Mike, a former homicide detective, search for the killer and are drawn into the underworld of sports betting.
In May, 2018, the Supreme Court’s ruling allowed each state to decide if sports betting could be legalized. The novel takes place in November, 2018, when the issue of sports betting has become a hot topic in Chicago.
Eddie’s investigation leads him to an undercover job at WagerEasy, a Euro sports betting conglomerate, which employed Jimmy Golding at its Chicago office. WagerEasy is working to get a ringside seat in the soon-to-be lucrative Illinois sports betting market.
A Character Who Surprised Me
Eddie’s co-worker, Tara Reilly, is concerned about a recent merger between WagerEasy and another company, and rumors of upcoming layoffs. In order to survive the layoffs, she and Eddie make a bargain: Eddie will help her with the gambling part of the job and she will advise him on the office politics at WagerEasy.
It surprised me how Tara’s role grew from this point. Office politics has become a pervasive force in our lives so it becomes a motivating factor for Eddie and Tara. Eddie needs the WagerEasy job to continue his investigation into Golding’s murder and Tara, who supports her mother, needs the income.
To increase their value to WagerEasy and avoid the layoffs, Tara encourages Eddie to make some bold moves. These moves include meeting with Travis Sloan, the head of a gambling ring out of Dallas, who is networking a number of illegal bookies to band together and lobby state legislators against sports betting legalization.
WagerEasy needs to “capture” the high rollers in the vicinity currently being served by illegal bookies. A deal with Travis Sloan would therefore give WagerEasy the edge over the competition and a direct link to the high rollers.
Which Character Taught Me The Most?
Eddie has decided to work as a part-time investigator. Until this point in the series, Eddie has been satisfied to work at his uncle’s bar, O’Connell’s Tavern, as a bartender and manager. Through his work as a part-time investigator, Eddie obtains an undercover job at WagerEasy.
To prepare for this job, Eddie meets with the bar’s regular bookie and Wager Series character, Oscar Colasso. Oscar has been an illegal bookie for years and has many contacts in the underworld. At first, Oscar denies that the legalization of sports betting will change anything. He offers credit to his customers, something companies like WagerEasy will not do. But when Oscar hears that Eddie will be going to work at WagerEasy, he begins to open up about all his concerns. There are many factors. Everything is moving too fast and he’s worried. WagerEasy is like Walmart and he’s just a small fish. It might be time to make a deal with somebody like Sloan or quit the business.
Oscar was definitely a fun character to write about and one of my favorite male characters in WagerEasy.
A Character That Came Easy For Me
To start up his PI business, Eddie needs an established client who can provide references. Uncle Mike’s old partner in homicide, Liz, refers Eddie to her childhood friend, the formidable Chicago criminal attorney Helen St. Clair. Before St. Clair will hire Eddie to work on one of her cases, she questions him about working for the dark side – defending criminals.
Eddie and his Uncle Mike find killers. As a former homicide detective, Uncle Mike still works his unsolved cold cases. Eddie has adopted many of his uncle’s values. But Eddie is also a flawed character. He has anger issues and a gambling problem. He’s been in trouble with the law.
St. Clair wants to know which side of the fence Eddie is really on. These ethical issues can be difficult to sort out for investigators and for an attorney. Since I practiced law for thirty-three years before retiring to write full time, I found the St. Clair character relatively easy to write. She’s out to protect her client, but at the same time, is a loyal friend to Liz, and wants to help Eddie. She has a busy practice and needs to make quick decisions based on experience and instinct while navigating the court system. She is one of my favorite female characters in WagerEasy.
Additional Series Characters
Eddie’s flaws have given him insider knowledge of the illegal gambling world. Uncle Mike’s contacts with the mob’s gambling boss and his contacts with homicide detectives working the murder also provide Eddie with insight into two worlds. As Eddie and Uncle Mike work together to resolve the case, they are able to cross boundaries a homicide detective could not cross. It encourages others to follow their lead to bring killers to justice.
An accountant named Irving Turnquist works for a major accounting firm and has joined Eddie and Uncle Mike. He and his firm “follow the money” and are able to provide clues.
Uncle Mike’s former partner, Liz Zelinski, is the homicide detective assigned to the case of Jimmy Golding. Due to pressure from the feds and from within the scandal-ridden police department, she’s unable to allow Eddie and Uncle Mike to openly work the case with her. However, Eddie suspects that Liz is providing Uncle Mike with information on the side. Eddie realizes the reason he’s left in the dark, is to protect him.
The regulars at O’Connell’s Tavern are like family for Eddie. He’s grown up there and now manages the bar. It isn’t easy for him to break away and set up his own PI business. But he needs the extra income to pay his past due gambling debt. The gambling has also led to stormy relationships in Eddie’s personal life.
Maybe the agreement he’s made with Tara, his coworker at WagerEasy, will turn into something more serious. Eddie is trying to change.
The Wager Series and Wager Tough
The prequel to WagerEasy is Wager Tough and will be available soon. In Wager Tough, when a mob-connected bookie is murdered, Eddie goes undercover to take over the bookie’s operation and find the killer. The novel is set in 2014, well before any legalization of sports betting.
It is also Eddie’s first solo job, although he’s in constant contact with Uncle Mike back in Chicago. Eddie is forced to rub shoulders with those in the mob, including Vic DiNatale. DiNatale doesn’t like outsiders and he doesn’t like Eddie or Uncle Mike. DiNatale is moving up the criminal ladder and is in line for the top spot held by Rosario Burrascano. As Eddie gains additional experience with each investigation, it seems inevitable that he and DiNatale will clash.
WagerEasy and Wager Tough provide bookends of the sports betting experience in the United States during the past ten years – illegal bookies and now the cusp of legalization. Sports betting is big business, a reason for the popularity of sports and an integral part of life in America.
About the Book:
In November, 2018, with legalization of sports betting on the horizon, WagerEasy, a Euro sports betting conglomerate, has set up shop in the Chicago market looking for shortcuts. Eddie’s old friend, an employee of WagerEasy, has been murdered. The sports gambling market is on a knife’s edge: the illegal black market bookies backed by the mob against the well-funded foreign invader. Eddie and his uncle, retired police detective Mike O’Connell with the right contacts, sets up a meeting with a Chicago gambling boss suspected of ordering the murder. The Chicago gambling boss claims he’s being framed by WagerEasy, the new threat in town.
About the Author:
Tom! Thank you for being my guest today. I just purchased WagerEasy in book form, even though I read on my Kindle. I know my husband will love this as well. Congrats on your starred review from Kirkus. Wishing you every success! You’ve certainly earned it.
A really timely plot, Tom. Anywhere there’s money’s involved, there’s crime. I’m intrigued by what Eddie stumbles into during the course of his investigation. Heading over to check out your book 🙂
Thanks, Donnell. I think your husband will enjoy the insights into the shady world of gambling in Chicago.
And thank you, Kylie. Thanks for checking out my book. Yes, everyone in the book is chasing after the pot of gold at the end of the new and legal sports betting rainbow.
Hi, sorry about my last post. It showed me as anonymous!
Tom
HI Donnell I read Tom’s book a few weeks ago and it was really enjoyable. An interesting web of betting, law, crime and the changing world of mega companies. Lots of fun George
Thanks, George. I’m glad you enjoyed the book!