
International award-winning Australian magician Joel Howlett was a very close friend to the late Jim McKeague. Jim was not only a magician but also a magic historian and author of The Best 200 Tricks With A Svengali Deck.
Joel has taken the time to describe three of the routines ('Jack And His Dog', 'Ten Card Poker' and 'The Three Card Trick') that he and Jim worked on together. Joel has also attempted to include some of the advice and tips Jim lovingly shared with him. The result was this PDF book.
PLEASE NOTE - The ebook is aimed at the intermediate magician as some of the more basic card moves are not described in detail.
1st edition...

6 beautiful effects that are stronger than The Hulk!
When I was a kid, I purchased magic books from the 1800s by Prof. Hoffman, Herrmann, Jean Robert-Houdin, and a host of other magicians who I've never heard of before ... these books were old, with very yellowed, brittle pages, with artwork that was quite intricate and very Victorian.
But what stood out most to me, were how many times these books would mention performing in, or retiring to "the drawing room" ... this term really intrigued me.
These stellar effects within, will "spark" those magical times in your lives that have lasted us for so many years.
Effects: ...

If you want to do more than just poker deals, consider adding this fascinating routine of bridge table magic to your act. This title has been long out of print, and now it's back and better than ever for a new generation of audiences and performers.
After a game of bridge, your audience is already in a card mood. That's the perfect time to introduce this compelling routine where one miracle flows seamlessly into the next.
From the introduction by Howard P. Albright
From the audience viewpoint, an entertaining series of skillful demonstrations; but from the magician's angle, an ingenious application of...

Paul Rosini was one of the all-time 20th Century greats of the magic world, with numerous contributions in print and a reputation that few have approached. His skill and charm guaranteed him a permanent niche in the pantheon of card magic.
In this exclusive manuscript, Ian Baxter offers up his handling of three Rosini favourites - The Peek Trick, Follow Your Card and Change In Hand. Once again Baxter turns his thoughts towards a touch of streamlining and simplifying, utilising the most basic of sleights to achieve the self-same effects that Rosini presented.
This trio is a game-changer...

The very first issue of "Aether" featured an exploration of Gregg's "Ink Flight" effect. The concept is stunning: a spectator's signature travels across space to appear on a selected card. This all-new version enables you to accomplish this miracle with sleight of hand and simpler props (with credits to Ed Brown). Required are:
Hand-lettered text with illustrations by Gregg Webb.
1st edition 2021, PDF 5 pages.

Just Absurd is an incredible effect halfway between an ACAAN and an impossible location. The magician shuffles the deck. The spectator cuts one third of the deck, he remembers the bottom card, and loses his packet somewhere into the middle of the deck. At the end the spectator himself will be able to find the position of the chosen card. Everything under impossible conditions, it will be the spectator who will find his own card.
The principle is diabolical, really impressive. Absolutely a fooler. Includes an in-depth explanation.
1st edition 2021, video 17 min 53 s.

The three routines described in the PDF are:
JASPER, THE MYSTICAL SNAKE: A cute effect involving a bunch of cards with different colored circles and a card showing a picture of Jasper, the mystical snake. The card having Jasper's picture on it is initialed on both front and back by the spectator and the circle cards are also thoroughly mixed by him. The spectator after mixing the different colored circle cards selects 2 of them and Jasper is able to reveal the chosen colors but in a dramatic manner. As a climax, all the other cards having other varying colored circles on them turn blank....

Doug MacGeorge presents a fast-paced packet trick based on "Dr. Daley's Last Trick." A packet of four Jokers are cleanly shown - they suddenly transform into four Queens of Hearts before your spectators' eyes. This highly visual trick uses sleight of hand and ordinary playing cards.
1st edition 2021, PDF 3 pages.

A great book of card tricks, written by magic technician and noted theologian Warren Wiersbe. The accent is on simplicity, quick results, minimum of skill, and audience appeal. Forward by Ed Marlo.
1st edition 1944, 18 pages; PDF 22 pages.

This effect is one of the most powerful ones that I still perform. A truly exceptional prediction. The magician is able to predict how many cards the spectator has in his pocket a long time before the routine starts.
This is what happens:
The magician places 3 predictions on the table long before the routine begins. The predictions are always in view. The spectator shuffles the deck of cards and freely cuts the deck, he remembers the card he cut to and puts a portion of the deck in his pocket. The magician cannot absolutely know how many cards the spectator has put in his pocket. Despite...

'Mexican Joe' refers to a specially crimped card or deck, one that is crimped at diagonal corners in opposite directions.
The first person to publish anything on this crimp was Victor Farelli when he published Farelli's Card Magic. Several years passed before another mention is made. This time it was explained in Dai Vernon's More Inner Secrets of Card Magic. Racherbaumer collects a number of routines and ideas with this crimp. In so doing he weaves his way through some interesting nooks and crannies of card magic history.

Chaos Prediction is an effect with great surprises and twists. For the spectator, it will be an impossible event because he shuffles the deck and he will do all the work. Despite the impossible premises, the magician's predictions will be infallible and the order is established above the chaos. A real great climax of emotions. Simple to do. All with a normal deck of cards.
Joseph B will explain the principle behind it and guide you step by step in its execution.
1st edition 2021, video 15 min 26 s.

This very first issue of "Aether" features an exploration of Gregg's "Ink Flight" effect. The concept is stunning: a spectator's signature travels across space to appear on a selected card.
The effect requires the following props:
1st edition 2021, PDF 4 pages.

John Racherbaumer's latest compendium Picnic Pocus, has certainly revived interest in that long-standing Ace revelation, Poker Player's Picnic. Published years back in The Royal Road to Card Magic, it is a routine most of us perform when starting out in card magic, but eventually, drop from our repertoire due to the odd counting method involved.
Ian Baxter's new approach to this classic has solved this problem, providing a clear rationale for the procedure and adding touches that considerably enhance the routine's effectiveness while still maintaining the sleight-free handling of the original. Clever thinking at work here! This new version is worthy...

We are proud to reintroduce this rare manuscript of Audley Walsh's gambling exposé, which also includes a number of the author's card effects that make a perfect ending to the lecture.
Contains the "meat" of his now-famous lecture, including a brief biography; how he developed and organized the lecture; gives an excellent summary on the origin and history of playing cards; plus six excellent, illustrated card effects and sleights to present:

This manuscript is about one trick that incorporates a seminal sorting procedure now given the name Belcho's Disbursive Deal. Over the years the trick eventually morphed into an organized compilation that shares the same identifiable title: "Poker Player's Picnic."
It begins with Vernon Lux, an enterprising amateur who founded the International Society of Junior Magician in 1931 and began a magazine called The Dragon in 1932. Therein Oscar Weigle had a column called "Themes and Schemes" where he explained a trick called "The Million to One Trick." (Later it was changed to "Belchou's Aces.") It's unclear...

This is a new "Oil and Water" routine in which the magic happens in a mysterious way because each movement of the magician is really very slow and clear.
All begins with 4 mixed pairs of cards, one red and one black, being shown and put on the table. Then the magician simply shows the first four cards on top, and all their suits become magically the same color.
Now the magician will alternate on the table, not only red and black suits but also face up and face down cards. When he squares the deck, just a few seconds later, again the cards mysteriously have separated themselves into red...

A treasured classic in anyone's language, "The Ambitious Card" absolutely runs rings around most other card effects. Of the versions in print, a few too many are on the difficult side, but not this one.
Ian Baxter has finally released his extraordinary version - a streamlined, baffling approach that he has used for decades. And the best part of this? It is, as you might guess, straightforward and undemanding. No more than basic card skills are required ... Hindu Shuffle, Overhand Shuffle, Double Lift, Bluff Pass, very little else. Guaranteed to please!
1st edition 2021, PDF 10 pages.

This is an entertaining, commercial trick bearing a mystery card plot, with the spectator playing the magician and a color-changing finale that packs a wallop.
The spectator shuffles and selects a card from a blue deck under test conditions. This is the prediction. The magician shuffles the red deck, chooses a card, and signs it. The signed card miraculously matches the prediction. As a kicker finish, the magician causes the signature to jump from the red card to the blue card.
1st edition 2021, PDF 11 pages.

From a borrowed and shuffled deck a spectator finds his own selection by summing three randomly selected cards.
David Jonathan has completely restructured and reworked an old math principle to make it very deceptive. He removed most of the spectator card counting sequences and thus turned a counting and procedure-heavy trick into a stunningly effective and hard-hitting card routine.
"What David has done with THREESUM is nothing short of incredible! Seriously, no smoke blowing here. How he managed to take an old principle in card magic, remove all the procedure and dress the diabolical...

A twist on the premonition plot with a multiple kicker finale.
Precise Premonition draws inspiration from Eddie Joseph's staple Premonition effect, but packs in many new magical moments that crescendo with an incredible firework finale. Best of all, it's super practical, very easy to perform, and consistently delivers incredible reactions.
The Effect:
A spectator is given a red deck to hold that contains your prediction. A blue deck is now shuffled and used to create both a playing card and a number. Let's say they settle on the number 10 and the Queen of Hearts. The spectator looks through the deck to retrieve...

All the court cards are found in a borrowed deck repeatedly and genuinely shuffled by the spectators. The performer first produces the Kings, then the Jacks, and lastly the Queens.
The deck is shuffled by a member of the audience. The cards are inserted in a trouser pocket. One at a time the Kings are produced. The spectator shuffles again the pack of cards. The performer puts it behind his back and produces the four Jacks. Again, the cards are genuinely shuffled by the spectator. After making the spectator check that his pocket is empty, the performer inserts the cards into it. Despite all...