Everything's a racket for Jeffty Kittridge, ex-wannabe scriptwriter living on the skids in LA: the two-bit cons he pulls to try and make ends meet, the way he convinces himself he's not drinking, how he tries to persuade the local shark that he can pay back that 15K. Trouble is, he's not very good at it: he's seen jail twice, he's got those early-morning DTs, and he's just received a payment-due reminder of broken fingers. In fact, Jeffty is what some might call a big-time loser, and he's getting bigger all the time.
But then he stumbles across Mona, the street-smart, homeless girl whose exquisite looks inspire lust, love - and the ultimate scam. Mona is Jeffty's dream come true, his one-way ticket out of there, his future. Could Lady Luck have dealt him a decent hand at last?