Las Vegas can be a strange city for writers.

Its decadent allure and brilliant debauchery has inspired authors to pen such works as Hunter S. Thompson's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, among others.

What do we get, however, when someone combines all the brilliance and sleaze of Las Vegas with the richest, no-limit poker tournament in the world? Toss in some murder, drugs, lots of sex, and betrayal and convey them all through the eyes of an author teeming with the knowledge, guilt and adrenaline that only playing high stakes poker can impart.

The result is Positively Fifth Street: Murderers, Cheetahs and Binion's World Series of Poker, by James McManus.

The premise is this: McManus is a noted author, poet and literary professor at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, a devoted husband, family man and father of four.

This is "Good Jim," who is sent by Harper's magazine in 2000 to cover the progress of women in professional poker and the recent murder of former World Series of Poker host and Horseshoe Casino heir Ted Binion.

Upon arrival in Sin City his alter ego "Bad Jim," a 40-something man/child with a penchant for stiff drinks, fast women and, of course, poker, convinces "Good Jim" to use the $4,000 advance Harper's afforded him to win his way into the $10,000 buy-in main event.

What follows is a chronicle of McManus' thrilling ride to the event's final table and a nearly $250,000 prize.

The author fills out his novel with his own accounts of Ted Binion's murder by his sultry stripper girlfriend Sandra Murphy and her lover Rick Tabish, both of whom will be granted an appeal to the Nevada Supreme Court in the next year.

Among other interesting Las Vegas nuances, McManus introduces his reader to Vegas legends like Horseshoe Casino and World Series of Poker founder Benny Binion, who started his storied casino with funding from mob giant Meyer Lansky.

While familiarizing readers with the ins and outs of no-limit Texas hold 'em, McManus introduces his reader to world-class players like T.J. Cloutier, Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, the 2000 world champion, and predicts the rise of youngsters like current top ranked Daniel Negreanu.

McManus also writes in great detail about the relationship he developed with the surviving Binions, including Ted's estranged sister Becky, who McManus sat next to when the guilty verdict was handed down to her brother's killers.

McManus demonstrates unparalleled skill in relating the pulse pounding high's and low's of major tournament poker.

No matter your level of poker skill or interest, McManus crafts a book that is honest and thrilling, including a glossary of poker terms for those with little or no poker knowledge.

A lifelong poker fan and student, McManus paints a brilliant picture of facing his poker heroes like Cloutier -- from whose book McManus learned to hone his own poker skill -- at the final table.

This non-fiction book is loaded with history. The history of Las Vegas, poker, gambling and, most importantly, of the Binion family and the Horseshoe Casino, the last family owned casino in America.

McManus effectively gained an inside track into the private lives of the Binion family and the true grueling, fast paced experience of playing a major tournament from his first-hand experience, which is something no other writer up to that point was able to bring us.

With the recent wild rise of poker's popularity, especially The World Series of Poker, McManus' account gains more relevance with each year.

For the poker enthusiast, reading this book will feel like flopping a royal flush. For the novice, well, I just hope you don't fold this winning hand before its finished.