Against the backdrop of a cold Minnesota winter, lottery players hold their collective breath at the thought of winning big on Christmas Day. The BlizzzardBall jackpot has run up to a red-hot $1.750 billion, the world’s richest prize. A bungled convenience store heist triggers a happenstance theft of the winning lottery tickets and trips up an insider’s scheme to rig the results.
Agent Kirchner, an old school cop, reluctantly teams up with a tech savvy analyst on an investigation that propels them into world of numerical probability, conspiratorial politics, international ticket scalpers, counterfeiters, disgruntled players, and illegal aliens looking to grab the brass ring.
Caught in the crosscurrents of those in deadly pursuit of the winning ticket, the investigators are buffeted by unsolved murders, a bomb blast, and the curious whereabouts of the winning lottery ticket- act of charity or criminal subterfuge?
Underlying the chaos is an insight to those who understand and leverage the human condition of want, the irrational hope for riches and the search for life’s short cuts – with the lottery being the perfect fix.
If you believe all lottery tickets have an equal opportunity of winning, this novel will infuriate you. If you want an inside look at the lottery, this novel will inform you. If you want a lightning-fast mystery ride with hairpin turns and colorful characters, this novel will intrigue you.
Praise and Reviews
“Kelly Sparks the imagination and renders characters that come alive on the page.”
★ — Villager St. Paul
“Compelling plot devices –adds spice to a page turner.”
★ — Albert Lea Tribune
“Captures the excitement of the huge run-up to a huge jackpot and the euphoria, confusion, and mystery in the aftermath.”
★ — Lottery Post