I was supplied with a free pre release copy of this e-book. What follows is not a full review, but my initial thoughts. This is also posted in the Ebooks & downloads section.

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Mini review – Fresh & Chris P (PDF with 12 card effects and controls)

Bias rating – I don’t know Chris, but got this as a review copy (free). I have worked through all the effects (except where bottom dealing etc. is required!). I am a regular working part timer with probably intermediate card skills (cull, palms, dls, counts mainly, not big on gambling moves or flourishes).

PDF Quality – Well set out with clear instructions supported by decent photographs to assist with learning. The manuscript has obviously been proof read as the flow is logical and it is not awash with typos.

Comments on some of the contents:
BOND’S SEVENS – Twisting the aces with variety (my initial favourite)
APPREHENDED THRICE – Based on JBs caught 3 times (I really liked the idea of this, except the need for a table which prevents me from working it, so may tinker with the handling / explore the concept)

Type of material – This is quite obviously aimed at the worker, as it lacks a 75 phase oil & water! There is a broad range of direct, easy to follow plots, none of which should be longer than a couple of minutes / 3ish phases. Some items are un-gaffed FASDIU, some need a little set up or some stranger cards.

Quality of explanations – Generally, all the effects are taught reasonably clearly. Not all sleights are taught.

Skill level – Some effects are relatively simple (e.g. Bond’s 7s) and need only basic-ish sleights, however some effects use bottom deals, seconds, and similarly challenging (to me) sleights. If you are a beginner / self-working type of person, I can’t really recommend this. I would suggest that this would give the best value to intermediate to advanced card workers, or at least those that like a challenge in their material.
Note – Chris does give alternate (easier) handlings for some effects / moves.

Working environment – Some effects need / are best done with a table. Some can be done in the hands, strolling.

Initial thoughts – It is quite interesting that John Carey has written a very nice forward to this e-book. However, the material here does not always follow John’s apparent ethos of simplifying the work in an effect to make it as simple to perform as possible. I mean, c’mon, bottom and second deals..?! (I don’t do / use bottom or second deals). There are however, simple and effective, high impact effects such as Bond’s 7s, which I tried out for friends and family with very good results.

Further thoughts – At around the time I received this manuscript, I also picked up Tom Crosbie’s Recall, to see if it would inspire me to bring back memdeck work back into my working repertoire. Anyhow, during one of the effects, Tom uses a second deal, which got me thinking. If you use sleight of hand with cards, some of the most essential moves (imho) are the cull and palm. If you can cull and palm, you have an out for nearly any situation…
..Hang on a second, how useful could a convincing second deal be? As an alternative to a DL, a force, a control etc… After all, I spent a lot of time learning moves such as the cull, palms (including the DPS)..

So to actually get to the point, this has inspired me to consider putting in the time to learn the second deal (probably via a Jason England download).

In summary – What you get here is a broad selection of plots and effects for ‘real people’. Most (but not all) of the material will take either a skilled card worker or someone prepared to put in the work.
There is more simple (and still very effective) material about, but if you put the time in, or if you have the skills already, you will have some strong effects to add into your arsenal. Also, you could re-work some of the trickier pieces or use Chris's suggested alternate and easier handlings.

As for value, if you adopt just one or two of the effects (and they are not all knuckle busting) into your regular repertoire, I would suggest that £10 is money well spent.

Worth a look.

Charlie

Thanks for the review Charlie.

Here's John Carey's foreword from the eBook

"I first met Chris Piercy about 6 months ago at a day of magic in his home town of Weymouth.I was immediately taken with his warm, friendly manner and enthusiasm for close up magic. I have been lucky enough to see most of this collection performed and can honestly say you will find several strong and visual pieces that can be added to one's repertoire, with just a little bit of effort on your behalf.

Visual is the key word with Chris's work. Lots of strong visual moments occur in nearly all his effects. This makes this collection ideal for the strolling performer and they can be used in a variety of venues. Don't overlook the utility moves Chris supplies too. Lots of creative applications are possible with these.

That's enough from me. Go crack open a deck of cards and have fun. You won't be disappointed.

John Carey 20/3/13"

There are no pipe dreams in this book all the material has been roadtested to literally hundreds of spectators as it is all straight from my working repertoire.

Here's a full list of contents -
FOUR OF A KIND PRODUCTION - A simple yet flashy of producing an apparently freely selected four of a kind.

BOND'S SEVENS - The perfect follow-up to "four of a kind production" or perfect as a stand alone trick - this is an easily mastered but incredibly deceptive twisting the aces routine.

BLANK ASSEMBLY – Ace assembly with blank cards, super convincers in this trick leave laypeople blown away.

KNIFED IN THE FACE – With one hand a card is spun into the air and caught directly next to a spectator's selection - no breaks.

CATCH IT QUICK - A quick coincidence meets the above effect

VOODOO FIRETRAP – A Voodoo effect where damage is transferred from one card to another in the spectators hands.

IMAGINA-TORN – A blank card has the corner torn off and placed to one side. A card is selected from the deck and an image is drawn onto the rest of the blank card. The magician then transforms the torn card into the selection but not only that the corner from that was removed at the very start has also changed.

IMPRINT – A signed blank card transforms into a thought of card in a spectators hand.

HOTSHOT ACES – Four Ace production from a shuffled shuffled deck.

THE CRADLE CONTROL – Previously released card control, taught in this eBook for two of the routines.

POCKETED REVERSAL – Three Phase Two Cards to pocket routine.

THE KELLY OUTJOG CONTROL - A convincing control with no spread that hides the back of the card also.

MARKED CARDS – A stranger card routine under the guise of a marked card, which turns out to be true!

APPREHENDED THRICE – Based on James Brown's "Caught 3 times" with a kicker ending that will leave your spectators dumbfounded.

All of this for just £9.99 - this can be sent to me directly as a personal payment on Paypal the_hut_is_full@hotmail.com
The first 20 buyers will receive my eBook "One Step Further" as a bonus.

If you have any questions don't hesitate to contact me.

Regards,
Chris