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The Gamblers

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The Gamblers

By: John Pearson
Narrated by: Christopher Oxford
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About this listen

 This is the inside story of the infamous Clermont Set: five friends who became the most stylish and exclusive gamblers in 1960s London. They included the Clermont Club's eccentric founder John Aspinall; Dominic Elwes, who was to betray the set's code of silence; the socialite owner of Annabel's, Mark Birley; flamboyant playboy James Goldsmith; and the infamous Lord "Lucky" Lucan. The charisma and wit of these dastardly but debonair millionaires made them invincible in their own eyes, but John Pearson shows how their code led to tragedy, and to one of the great unsolved mysteries of the 20th century: the disappearance of Lord Lucan.©2005 John Pearson (P)2006 Oakhill Publishing Ltd True Crime

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Critic reviews

"Like a galloping Mayfair noir thriller." ( The Sunday Times)
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The title says it all really, not truly about the events that surround Lucan's disappearance, more about the lives of the Clermont Set, the club where he and his chums gambled.

intriguing story, that does go through those still around for their take on the murder of nanny Sandra Rivett. It also gives brilliant insight to the other active interests of the time, in particular of course, John Aspinall, The Clermont's owner.

Brings a real atmosphere of the time. The narrator is pretty sharp and on point. I enjoy listening to this one over and over. The time and the area of London are big interests of mine.

different look at Lucan's backstory

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I only purchased this for the Lord Lucan element but was fascinated from start to finish.

Well researched, well written and excellent narration. The story of the Clermont set and the five main members had me gripped. Also a very good succinct account of the Lucan affair and some interesting analysis to boot.

Well worth a punt.

An exhilarating yarn!

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superb context around the Lucan story and the social climate that created the mystery.

worth listening to as it is a sensible approach to the story.

interesting context

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Quite an eye opener. An audible page turner. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Highly recommended. Must read.

Fascinating and expertly narrated

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This is a good old fashioned story about a group of men and the mostly unfortunate women who get tangled in their lives. it's a story of chance, luck and unimaginable entitlement. At the centre is a man, John Aspinall who is plainly deluded and imagines himself some kind of throwback God. His coterie of 'friends' come together to gamble and he happily fleeces them. One of them James Goldsmith is a lucky parasite who gathers wealth, women and children but who never quite becomes who he wants to be. Lord 'Lucky' Lucan is a most unlucky loser, wife beater and ultimately a murderer. Dominic Elwes has charm and wit but ends up ostracised by his tribe and commits suicide. Mark Birley seem to be the great survivor who detatches in time. Not lovable characters but a cracking listen. Great performance by the reader.

An old fashioned story of luck, greed and murder.

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If you think that aristocrats, the rich, or gamblers are interesting per se, in the same way that some people think that celebrities are interesting per se, then you just might like this book. I do not find such people interesting simply for what they are, and so I did not find this book interesting.
It is written like a history, not in the style of a novel, so it has none of the interest of good description, characterization, or thoughtfulness, that a novel might have.
The reader cannot be faulted. He reads excellently. But, unfortunately, because the content failed to hold my interest, I only found time to listen to about half of this book.
Some people might like it, but I am not one of them.

for admirers of aristos, the rich, and gamblers

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