"Many of Ballard's novels are set... in Las Vegas, and he always does a convincing job of portraying this fasinating, seldom utilized desert locale with its wide-open casinos, its moral ambiguity, and the uneasy alliance between gamblers and police."
"mˈɛnɪəv bˈælɑːɹdz nˈɑːvəlz ɑːɹ sˈɛt... ɪn lˌɑːs vˈeɪɡəs, ænd hiː ˈɔːlweɪz dˈʌz ɐ kənvˈɪnsɪŋ dʒˈɑːb ʌv poːɹtɹˈeɪɪŋ ðɪs fˈæsᵻnˌeɪɾɪŋ, sˈɛldəm jˈuːɾɪlˌaɪzd dˈɛzɚt loʊkˈæl wɪð ɪts wˈaɪdˈoʊpən kɐsˈiːnoʊz, ɪts mˈɔːɹəl ˌæmbɪɡjˈuːɪɾi, ænd ðɪ ʌnˈiːzi ɐlˈaɪəns bᵻtwˌiːn ɡˈæmblɚz ænd pəlˈiːs."