Customer Reviews

You've Got Heat: The Vegas Card Counting Adventures of LV Pro

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I too have been following LVPro's adventures in the Blackjack Insider newsletter. When I heard that he was compiling a book of his trips, I just had to read it and see how it all started!

His approach to grinding out an advantage in BJ play against the casinos was written in a much more realistic style than other books I have read on the subject. I could relate to his goals, problems, highs and lows in his pursuit of the elusive bankroll.

His style of writing is easy to read as well as humorous. I thoroughly enjoyed the read and found many nuggets of knowledge that I can apply to my own pursuits.

I have followed Barfarkel's trip reports as posted on bj21.com for many months now. "You've Got Heat" is a compilation of the reports that blackjack fans have followed for several years on bj21.com and on Henry Tamburin's Blackjack Insider site.

"You've Got Heat" is not a how-to manual on card counting. It is, however, a very entertaining read about the author's journey into both the secretive world of the card counter and the hustle and bustle of Las Vegas.

Books such as "Bringing Down the House" would have one believe that card counters live a lavish existence and routinely throttle casinos for millions of dollars. "You've Got Heat" dispels this myth and shows that the card counter faces an enormous challenge. Barfarkel describes the emotional highs and lows of his grind against the casinos in a very straightforward fashion.

Las Vegas guidebooks and Travel Channel specials generally show only the glitz and the glamour of Sin City. "You've Got Heat" explores the various cultures and subcultures of Las Vegas from many angles, ranging from the ritzy shows at the Bellagio and other high-end Strip properties to the prostitutes, vagrants, and other unsavory characters at the city's numerous run-down casinos.

Anyone with an interest in either Las Vegas or blackjack will like Barfarkel's book. Frequent Vegas travelers can learn a great deal from Barfarkel's experiences. All aspiring card counters should read this book so that they may thoroughly understand the focus and discipline required for long-term success.

A wonderfully readable journey into the world of the modern-day advantage player, who won't make a bet in a casino unless he has the mathematical advantage. Barfarkel shows how anyone can follow in his footsteps to be able to get free Las Vegas vacations while winning money from the casinos using tried and true card-counting techniques.

Most books about blackjack or getting the edge in a casino are dry and full of charts and mathematical formulas. Not so with You've Got Heat. It's a compelling, honest and easy-to-read narrative about one man's evolution from a typical ignorant gambler into a feared card counter, who is forced to hide his skills from the casinos so they won't kick him out. The way he persevered and built up his gambling bankroll over many trips to Las Vegas makes it appear like anyone with the will to do so can follow his example. I thoroughly enjoyed this humorous and compellingly honest true story.

LV Pro is a card counter. He turns himself from a degenerate losing gambler into a degenerate winning card counter and shares all the details as he proceeds to build his bankroll trip after trip, beating the casinos at their own game of blackjack. Unlike the high-rolling whiz-kids on the MIT team in Bringing Down the House, LV Pro grits it out, starting on small teams, but deciding to make it on his own. What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas is the usual rule, but not this time. The good games, the interesting folks who count cards and pursue them, sex, drugs, and money...all find their way into this genuine account of one man's pursuit of the Vegas dream.

Read this book and venture forth into the real world of beating Las Vegas in a modest and yet enjoyable way.

The author openly and honestly describes his 4 year journey, in a way that makes it easy for almost anyone to follow.

Put on your seat belt and get ready to be entertained and educated at the same time as you will learn (despite yourself) how to beat the casinos simply and in a non-confrontational way.

Enjoy and learn . I know I did

nycpro

The ups and downs. The highs and lows. The good the bad and the ugly of LV advantage playing. Could not put it down.

Read it all in one sitting. I just couldn't put it down!

LV Pro (aka, Barfarkel) is simply FUN to read. Not only that, but he is extremely informative too. He is constantly coaching his readers on proper cover, bet spread, count and index play, etc. And the guy is also a winner because he doesn't give up when things get tough: he gives himself pep talks and reminds himself that the math works. He is also cautious enough to not blow his bankroll.

If I think a book is boring I dump it pretty quickly. His book hooked me and I kept reading and reading. The crazy characters, like the Grifter, that he hangs out with couldn't be created by a master fiction writer.

His mouth-watering descriptions of comped meals may have made me gain 50 lbs. and a cholesterol blockage from just reading.

Just noticed that he might have a sequel available by ebook download. Will be looking how to get it soon.