This is a marvelous ebook on mostly sleight-less card magic. The only skills you will need to bring to these effects are presentational. Pros will tell you the presentational aspect of a trick is more difficult to master than any sleight or move. That probably is true, however, these effects have been selected and re-worked so as to have built-in impact so that your presentation can even be as direct as simply stating exactly what you are doing. This is the most basic form of presentation, but it remains effective for those who do not have the creativity or inherent comedy to develop entertaining or funny presentations. The magic itself, in these routines, entertains. You need only direct the audience in what to watch for.

The ebook is divided into two sections followed by the appendices at the end. The first section deals with mental type self-working tricks. Some will require memory, but absolutely no manual dexterity. The second section contains tricks of a non-mental nature. These are transpositions, assemblies and locations, etc. and are all done without the need for difficult sleight-of-hand. These routines were worked out and then streamlined completely with the help of John Mendoza.

Also included is a “glossary” of terms including brief descriptions of moves that, hopefully, will serve as an incentive to whet your appetite to take the time to learn card sleights. While you will not need them for the routines in this ebook, there are numerous outstanding effects that cannot be accomplished without sleight-of-hand.

The final appendix shows a list of books that Rick Kercher, along with John Mendoza, consider to be the best in print on the subject of card magic.

• INTRODUCTION
• Chapter 1 SIMPLE SIMON
• Chapter 2 THE LIGHT STUFF
• Chapter 3 TWO PILES, NO WEIGHTING
• Chapter 4 ADDS UP TO MAGIC
  • 4.1 THE FOUR ACE COUNTDOWN
  • 4.2 HIGHLY UNLIKELY
  • 4.3 WHY IT WORKS
  • 4.4 ADDENDUM
• Chapter 5 A COINCIDENCE OF NUMBERS
• Chapter 6 THE BIG SWITCH
• Chapter 7 FOUR CARDS SHORT TO MYSTERY
  • 7.1 THINK SPELL
  • 7.2 SECOND THOUGHT
• Chapter 8 EVOLUTION OF AN EFFECT
  • 8.1 Principle of the 21st Card
  • 8.2 The Strange 20 Card Coincidence
• Chapter 9 CHEATING
• Chapter 10 TAKES A LICKING AND KEEPS ON TICKING
• Chapter 11 AUTOMATED ASSEMBLY LINE
  • 11.1 Vanish #1
  • 11.2 Vanish #2
  • 11.3 Vanish #3
  • 11.4 The Climax: The Queens Return
• Chapter 12 MYSTERY OF THE SEVEN SUSPECTS RE-VISITED
• Chapter 13 THE INSEPARABLE PAIR
• Chapter 14 NO-MOVE OPEN TRAVELLERS
  • 14.1 The First Transposition
  • 14.2 The Second Transposition
  • 14.3 The Last Transposition
• Chapter 15 THE R.W. FOUR CARD STUNNER
• Chapter 16 POOR MAN’S DARYL
• Chapter 17 BONUS: THE MYSTERIOUS 19 CARD TRICK
• Appendix A GLOSSARY
  • Bottom Deal
  • Break
  • Butt Shuffle
  • Charlier Pass
  • Crimp
  • Criss Cross Force
  • Culling
  • Deal and Duck
  • Deck Switch
  • Double Facers or Double Faced Cards
  • Double Lift and Double Turnover
  • Double Undercut
  • Down & Under
  • False Cut
  • Faro Shuffle
  • Fishing
  • Gemini Count
  • Gilbreath Principle
  • Injog
  • Invisible Pack
  • Klondike Shuffle
  • Magician’s Choice
  • Olram Subtlety
  • Outjog
  • Overhand Shuffle
  • Palming
  • Pass
  • Peeking Cards
  • Powder Fan
  • Pressure Fan
  • Reverse Faro
  • Ribbon Spread
  • Riffle Force
  • Riffle Shuffle
  • Rubaway Vanish
  • Slip Force
  • Tabled Cut
  • Tent Vanish
  • Thumb Count
  • Time Misdirection
  • Turnover Pass
  • Twenty-First Card Principle
  • Up and Down Shuffle
  • Upjog
  • Vernon’s Add-On Switch
• Appendix B DEALERS
• Appendix C RECOMMENDED READING
• CONCLUSION

1st edition 1984; digital edition 2020, PDF 94 pages, 96 illustrations.
word count: 30656 which is equivalent to 122 standard pages of text