All Out Magic - Steve Shufton
$45.00 (US), Outside US ($50)
https://www.shufton.com/Magic/All_Out_Ma......gic.html
(to be released April 15, 2024 Tax Day!)

The Hype:

Where it all begins:

After handing her a regular, mixed pack of playing cards, she will deal them one at a time, face-up, and stop whenever she wants...

Where it all leads:
The card she stops on matches your prediction!

Inexplicable Mental Magic!

All Out Magic is a book of hands-off mental card magic you will use!

You will find 42 pages with killer material, complete with some handy props to get the job done.

A deck is examined and mixed. She deals the cards face-up, and stops whenever she wants. A second deck is immediately ribbon-spread. A single card is seen to have an "X" on its edge. It matches the card she freely dealt to!

The performer never touches the deck!

Just you, and two regular decks.

THAT'S ALL!

Or a single face-up card is in the spread. It matches her card!

There is truly a SINGLE face-up card.

IT COULDN'T BE MORE FAIR!

It could be a premonition in an envelope on the table, or in your wallet, or in a participant's hands or pocket the entire time!

Instant reset!

*** AS A BONUS ***

My favorite, the Birthday Card Trick, is fully explained! It can feel so personal to your participant, the experience becomes emotional!

Use this effect for any anniversary - creating an unforgettable moment:

A small, examinable twelve-page booklet lists a different card for each day. She will be shocked when she looks up her own "birthday card," and it is the only one that matches the card she randomly dealt to!

Unique method!

A trick requiring a skill you may already have, it will inspire you to push your mental magic further!

Stunning mental magic.

Ideas to use for a lifetime.

Perform close up, walk-around, groups or one-on-one.

Prepare yourself for a ride into profoundly strong, powerful and entertaining

magic you will use!


My Take:

Many years ago, I attended a one day magic convention in Peabody, Massachusetts. Afterwards a few of us adjourned to Eddie Gardner’s Diamond Magic. David Hill, a young magician from Rhode Island, showed me a trick he just bought called X-Ray and told me how good it was supposed to be. Of course, I had to buy one too but unfortunately David got the last copy so I had to order mine. It was well worth the wait. An absolutely killer effect and it introduced me to Steve’s work This was so good I floored a former president of the Psychic Entertainers’ Association with it. Since then I have reviewed several books by Ben Harris, all of which were edited by Steve.

So, when Steve asked me to review his latest release, it didn’t take me long to say “YES”. If I see Steve’s name associated with a product, that’s a guarantee that it will be excellent. And, of course, this release is. And, as an added convincer, the Forward was written by Mark Elsdon, a master mentalist.

Like a lot of magicians, I am cheap. At least that is what my wife calls it. I prefer to think of it as cost conscious. So in order for me to print out a booklet of 42 pages, it has to be something special. I not only printed this out, I even bought a binder so I could add this to my library. However this is not something that you will have to deal with. You receive the booklet nicely printed in the package. Since mine was pre-release, I worked from a pdf (which still was worth the ink)

I absolutely love the first item in the book, “X” Marks the Spot. I am sure all of you have done a trick with multiple outs, with a max of 3 or 4 outs. (A contestant on a recent Penn and Teller show tried to fool them using multiple out and no, it didn’t fool them) Steve has come out with a beautiful way to have 8 outs, significantly making the effect that much more deceptive. He does offer some valuable advice that can boost the out up to 20 virtually guaranteeing that you will have a hit. It takes two decks and requires a little set up time. However, nothing complicated to make and this is an easy killer trick to perform. The volunteer deals the cards face up seeing that each is different and stops whenever he wants. You then show that the matching card in another deck is the only one with a mark on it. This is so powerful and simple I am amazed this is the first time I have seen it used. Plus, he teaches you the Cyclic Force which you will be able to use in countless other routines.

Inexplicable has been released previously. However the previous release came with a specially designed envelope instead of the sheath you get now. In my opinion, the sheath makes the routine much more effective. A version using cards with animals was also released.(Animal Instinct, still available on Steve's site) he spectator deals through a packet of cards and the one he stops on matches a card sitting on the table inside of a sleeve. You receive the sleeve and and 4 specially printed gaff cards which allow the magic to happen. Only one card is required for the routine so you actually have four different endings making it repeatable. You are also given a template you can use to make another sleeve if the one you receive wears out or you would prefer a different color. The Cyclic Force makes another appearance here. Of these two routines, Inexplicable would be my choice.

The Reversed Card. I am sure you are familiar with the Invisible Deck. Steve has come up with a whole new way to approach this plot. You already have the special cards you need although you will have to make a trip to the magic store. Once again your spectator deals down, stopping whenever it feels right. A second deck is spread and the card dealt to is face up in the other deck, the only card face up.

Now for some real gold. Shufton’s Birthday Card Trick. Steve has kept this close to the vest for many years and he has finally decided to share it. For years, I have used Paul Gordon’s Diary trick and loved it so had to see what was different with Steve’s. This is the one trick in the book that does require a “special skill”. If you have this skill, you will have a new best trick. If you don’t, this could inspire you to take the time to learn the technique. (Like Unshuffled by Paul Gertner inspired a lot of faro shuffle practicing). The birthday booklet needed is not included in the package but you are given directions to making them. If you don’t feel like the arts and crafts bit, Steve will custom make you a set.

Although this is the most complex routine in the set, your work will definitely make it worthwhile. Steve has made a name for himself with well thought out and different methods. I won’t kid you and say that you will be able to do this on the same day the mailman delivers it. You won’t. This will take a good amount of work so your success will depend on just how dedicated you are to your art.

There are only four routines in the book but each one is a reputation maker. I have been following Steve a long time and everything I have seen him put out has convinced me that the man is a genius. You will love the thinking on this and I hope it inspires you to pick up X-Ray, which requires no special cards and is easy to set up. I, for one, am anxious to see what this man will turn out next.

Buy it. Enjoy it. And Devastate your crowd (including magicians who will have no idea what has just hit them.) Highly, highly recommended.

Greetings, and thanks for the great review, Mr. Canady. The release is on April 15th. Anyone who orders before then will get a signed copy.
Regards to all-
-Steve

Great to see Steve back in action! I love Steve's thinking and creativity and hope that he has more to release in the near future!

Baffling Bob - so great to hear from you! It's been a while...

I do have a couple more things I'll try to release over the year... more news to come...

Only ten days until the launch of All Out Magic! Thanks to all my friends for the pre-orders - I know it's a risky business, but I have a hunch you'll all be happy. I'm looking forward to comments and reviews! I'll do my best to stop in to answer any questions. I'm always available at steve@shufton.com.

Away we go!

-Steve

I'm back soon. That's because a review just came out that you might value. I don't know if you are familiar with the detailed reviews of Jeff Stone, but he is well known for his integrity regarding all things magical. There is both a written review and a video review. See what you think:

https://mylovelyassistant.com/36065

Best to you all-

-Steve

Ning Cai, The Magic Babe, just put out a review of All Out Magic. Thought y'all might want to take a look.

https://www.ningthing.com/review-all-out......shufton/

A review just came out Yesterday in the wonderful magazine, Vanish. The review is by Nick Lewin - long time hero of magicians far and wide, including me. You can find a link to his review on my site by clicking here: https://www.shufton.com/Magic/All_Out_Ma......gic.html

From Genii Magazine (with permission from Richard Kaufman):

All Out Magic
Steve Shufton $45

Effects in the realm of hands-off magic tend to be either really good or painfully convoluted. Thankfully, Steve Shufton’s All Out Magic features a series of effects that are all really good.

In a booklet that fits more the category of a detailed set of lecture notes than a full-fledged magic book, Shufton offers a 42-page collection of solid, workable routines that provides a higher bang-for-your-buck ratio than many a fancier hardbound tome.
It’s a card system based in a classic principle with which most studied card magicians will find familiar. Shufton has taken said principle and refined it with 3000-grit sandpaper to create devastatingly deceptive and fair-seeming routines that genuinely happen in the spectators’ hands. Start to finish, each of the full pieces and partial premises is quickly workable with minimal technical skill involved. That’s not to say that they won’t require some effort and a learning curve of some psychology and boldness, but it’s nothing outside the grasp of the moderately accomplished performer.

The primary technique involved in all of these pieces can immediately be applied to one’s already existing card routines that feature predictions, and will fit in well for various situations where cards need to be forced in an incredibly fair-seeming manner.

While the first couple of routines use normal, potentially borrowed cards, a few rely on gimmicked cards of various sorts. The author includes a small packet of the harder-to-find gimmicks and a simple, elegant paper card sleeve—an envelope/tunnel of sorts—that he uses in a few very clever ways.

Shufton leads off with his adaptation of an Ed Marlo piece that he calls “X Marks the Spot,” a two-deck prediction trick in which the card that is freely dealt-to matches one that is marked with an X in the other deck. Despite the clunkiness of two decks (that the author proactively acknowledges), it’s a strong effect that effectively whets the reader’s appetite for the rest of the material. Once one learns the basic premise of the method and its nuances, it’s hard to not wander off in imagination to contemplate the many other uses for the same technique. The author moves on to describe a refined, less risky version of the same method called the Cyclical Force. While the original technique he describes is hardly prone to failure, it does take a bit of confidence and control to pull off— something that will only come with practice and performance of said technique. The Cyclical Force allows for a fully hands-off and completely sure-fire duplication of the same perceived effect: the spectator deals through and freely stops at a playing card that ultimately matches … whatever we want it to. The only possible drawback is that the Cyclical Force ultimately only uses a smaller packet of cards rather than the full deck. It decidedly has its place and uses.

The next couple of pieces in the book make use of the various included gimmicked cards, sometimes with a second deck and otherwise with the included card sleeve. As with the earlier material, Shufton has refined the use of these cards with such intent as to make their tricky nature undetectable. I have an admittedly higher than expected regret in not having witnessed a performance of the “Reversed Card” effect before reading it; the piece would have fooled this reviewer badly. Perhaps a paraphrased description will taunt you with a bit of that feeling: a boxed deck sits on the table. The spectator takes a second, genuinely normal deck and deals fairly and slowly until they feel like stopping. The stopped-at card is turned over, and the boxed deck is fairly removed without any sleights visible or otherwise, and spread face down. The one reversed card matches the spectator’s selection. Objectively, and without hyperbole: WTF!?

Shufton closes out the book with an extremely strong, clean, and well-constructed “Birthday Card Trick.” While the plot of “the selected playing card matches the spectator’s birthday” has been well-visited (Simon Aronson, Michael Close, and Barrie Richardson come to mind), Shufton makes for arguably one of the most powerful and impossible to deconstruct methods. It is the proverbial piece that’s worth the price of the book. But then, all of the material helps to add to the reader’s understanding and appreciation of the technique. There is no filler,

All Out Magic
is just that. All Out Magic

• Steve Shufton • 8.5” x 11” • comb bound • 42 pages • Available from the author at www.shufton.com • $45

I sent a copy to the Magic Circle of London. They sent me back an AIMC. I plan to stop by there in July, and hope to perform, at least, my favorite trick in this book. That will be a stop on my way to FISM. Hope to see some of you there!

Rolando Santos, once the president of the I.B.M. and now one of the key writers for the Linking Ring just reviewed All Out Magic. I couldn't be more thrilled! On page 105, of the February 2025 issue, Mr. Santos had this to say:

All Out Magic
Steve Shufton. Available from Your Favorite Dealer,
www.shufton.com, or steve@shufton.com. Spiralbound, 41 pages, with gaff cards. $45.

I have been looking forward to Steve Shufton’s release of what I consider to be some of his best mentalism performance effects for several years now. I have admired his innovative perspective on presenting magic in previous reviews of his effects and performance pieces. Shufton pays extraordinary attention to detail across all aspects of an effect’s construction. The result is an engaging, entertaining, and ultimately memorable magical experience.

All Out Magic is a decades-long evolution of some of his finest performance pieces. Shufton has transformed well-known card premises into a series of no-sleight miracles that mostly happen in the spectator’s hands.

All twelve effects in All Out Magic are based on what Shufton calls the “All Out principle.” This ingenious concept involves using cards selected from a standard deck held by the spectator and a single
prediction that remains in plain sight on the table throughout the performance. No cards are switched out, and the performer never
goes near the prediction on the table. As a result, the spectator has no way to reverse engineer a solution. This clever approach ensures that the magic feels real and mystifies audiences.

In “X Marks the Spot,” a boxed deck of cards is placed on the table, and the spectator is told that one card has an edge marked with an X. The spectator uses a second shuffled deck, which the performer never touches. The spectator deals cards onto the table and stops anywhere they want. The boxed deck is then ribbon-spread on the
table, revealing a card marked with an X on the edge, matching the spectator’s selected card.

Some effects in All Out Magic use gaffed cards or a special envelope for predictions. These come with the book. Shufton explains how to use a regular wallet and a Himber Wallet. He even adapts the principles to use tarot cards, adding an extra layer of intrigue and impossibility to the effects.

One must-try effect is Shufton’s signature, never-before-released Birthday Card effect. It is a true reputation maker. I won’t tip the effect or method, but this will separate you from other magicians and mentalists competing for your market share.

As I wrote about his work in other reviews, Shufton doesn’t just teach you several great tricks. He breaks down the thinking, psychology, and audience management techniques and force subtleties that you can use to take your performances to a whole new level of mind-blowing. Learn more than just a few new tricks: learn to make your magic brilliant. All Out Magic has been worth the wait.

Highly recommended. -Rolando Santos

Wouldn't this post make more sense in the book section.

Hi motown-

Great point, except that it also comes with props, so it's a bit of a toss-up. It's either some props provided with lots of instructions (there are plenty of killer tricks in there) or the other way around. I had a chance to perform at an IBM convention last week, and once I do the Birthday Card Trick, I have to close because it is too strong to follow it with anything else!

https://www.shufton.com/Magic/All_Out_Ma......gic.html

Thanks for your comment!

-Steve

Makes sense

Props and great tricks in a book. I'll be at FISM in July. In August, I hope to have my next release.