The Trees is an epic novel told in Godfather fashion about a handful of childhood friends who make it out of the slums of Brooklyn and reunite as young adults during the years of mob-controlled Las Vegas. Lawrence "Mongoose" Cohen starts running numbers for local bosses while in high school, and eventually manages the gambling activities at the Desert Winds Hotel and Casino in Vegas. There he reunites with Eunice-a teenage heartthrob-who's now a showgirl known as "Venus." She initially ignores him but softens after he's almost killed in a car bombing. Haunted by Venus's former involvement with underboss Tommy Di Meglio, Mongoose deals with Tommy, "makes his bones" against his would-be assassin, and becomes a "made man" as Las Vegas transforms into a legitimate entertainment mecca ready to do business with Macao in the new millennium.

Other: Stan Weisleder