Subjects:  1. 1886-1934    2. 20th century    3. Biography    4. Biography & Autobiography    5. Biography / Autobiography    6. Biography/Autobiography    7. Criminals & Outlaws    8. Europe - France    9. France    10. History    11. Modern - 20th Century    12. Political    13. Political corruption    14. Stavisky, Serge Alexandre,    15. Swindlers and swindling   

Reviews (2)

great storytelling
...when you are looking at the cover of this book by this veteran comix artist you may wonder whether he has gone out of his famous and remarkable style and beacme more mainstream. Well, rest assured, he did not. This fine volume of Jackson historical revisionism is every bit as good as his prior famousworks, e.g. "Comanche Moon" and others. This time again it is Texas, but Texas of Reconstruction era, one period of our history that has not been fully explained and is usually taught very one-sided at the universities at al. Here, Mr. Jackson attempts and is successful in giving us a point of view that the conquered Confederate Texas might have held. Since these were times of sudden change and brutality, thus there is violence, more violence, rivalry, racial prejudice, social strife, medeival-like vendetta cycles, poverty - all told with astonishing and refreshing detail and precision of this veteran underground comix artist. Necessarily, this one is a very controversial angle of the Reconstruction era, the subject and theme being loaded with racial and social prejudices and hatred that Hardin and his kind might have had and it seems that they in fact had. This is not for the politically correct folks, but rather for those who seek to find out some reasonable explanation and to gain deeper foundation in order to gain the feel of what might have been like during those hard times in Texas. Finally, Mr. Jackson tells his story while maintaing the most amazing attention to every possible historical detail( as every personality, their guns, clothes and other period material culture items and pieces are acurately portrayed albeit drawn in his unique graphic style). One may ask what more is to ask about this work that is both the finest graphic storytelling and a fine example of reasonable yet passionate historical scholarship.

The Good (cover), The Bad (text), & The Ugly (artwork)
Intriguing, romantic cover that captures the Westerner's imagination. Too bad the cover artist didn't write & illustrate this book (really a comic book as "graphic novel" would be a complimentaryexaggeration). Text is apologist history, weak on facts, thick on excusesfor Hardin's murderous tendencies. Hardin doesn't get to his infamousgunfighting career until page 86, so "Lost Cause" doesn't evenwork as a traditional Western romp. Artwork inside is crude featuringstiff, exaggerated characters that make "Pokemon" look likeRembrandt."Lost Cause" doesn't work as history orentertainment.If you are interested in Hardin, check out Leon Metz's orRichard Marohn's bios or even Hardin's autobiography.As for "LostCause," save your money--the cover is the best part & you'vealready seen that. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1853-1895    2. 19th century    3. Biography    4. Biography & Autobiography    5. Biography/Autobiography    6. Comic books, strips, etc    7. Criminals & Outlaws    8. Fiction - General    9. General    10. Graphic Novels    11. Hardin, John Wesley,    12. Historical - General    13. History    14. Outlaws    15. Reconstruction (U.S. history, 1865-1877)    16. Texas    17. Texas - Local History    18. Vendetta    19. Hardin, John Wesley   

Reviews (22)

After Goodfellas
The glamorous side of the mafia life is portrayed in movies life "Goodfellas".Yet little is said about the background characters that are affected by the mafia life.Henry Hill, the main character of the movie Goodfellas, had a wife and two children.This is the story of Gregg and Gina Hill, Henry Hill's two children.It is a disturbing look at the effects of mob life on a family.
HOLY [...] THIS IS A GOOD BOOK TO READ!!
Amazing read! If you absolutely loved Goodfellas or the book Wiseguy...you will not put this book down! I didn't - I read it straight through! It will make you see Henry Hill in a new light. How his son ever became a lawyer is beyond me?? These kids had one F'd up childhood and not before Henry went away - but after!! Henry has screws loose - seriously - or at least did in witness protection. This is a very sad account of the kids lives told by them themselves! I dont want to give everything away but there are some crazy stories in this book, such as crazy Henry giving trolley tours in an old beat up trolly in the ghetto in Cincinnati, Ohio, WHILE HE SHOULD BE HIDING OUT BEING GOOD IN WITNESS PROTECTION. Or the time he ran off with some hag and got married while he was married to his wife still, will make you fall out your chair laughing with the way his son tells it. Its not really funny but his son tells it funny.I wish this book were just written by him.....he is really comical but this book isn't but his son is amusing and he just has a way with telling a story. This book is a great addition to Wiseguy and Goodfellas. You will love it I assure you. There is a million stories that make you for sure know Henry Hill is a nutjob or at least was at that time in his life.
The other side of the story
"On the Run" is the other side of the Henry Hill story and his family as narrated by his son and daughter. When I first saw the movie "Good Fellas", I thought Henry Hill was the "good guy" (relatively speaking) out of the gang of Lucchese crime thugs. However, after reading "On the Run", it is obvious that Henry Hill was a low-life criminal and drug addict who didn't care how much his family had to pay for his life of crime. This book also demonstrates that the witness protection program is a constant life on the run. Maybe Hill's family would've had an easier time had he not made it more difficult for the Feds to protect the family. But Henry Hill's ego, drug addiction and criminal mindset would not allow that. I feel sorry for his family and the scars that they have to live with still. All in all, "On the Run" is a riveting account of a family's struggle to survive the imminent dangers of a life tied to the mob. For sure, this is not the "Sopranos". ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography / Autobiography    2. Childhood Memoir    3. Children of criminals    4. Criminals & Outlaws    5. Drug dealers    6. Family relationships    7. Family violence    8. General    9. Hill, Gina    10. Hill, Gregg    11. Law Enforcement    12. Organized Crime    13. Psychological aspects    14. True Crime    15. United States    16. Fiction / General   

Reviews (15)

Tweed - The Boss of it All !
This is a great look at Boss Tweed, Tammany, Graft and everything else that was going on in the 1800's.I was happily surprised to see who Tweed really was.Comparing the book to the movie "Gangs of New York", Tweed did not give off the impression of being a very important man; Bill the Butcher stole that role.But after reading this book, you get a true inside account of who wasreally "pulling the strings" in NYC.Tweed was the cream of the crop in his world, and he had his hands in everything (a thief way before his time).Whether illegal or not - you have to admire his accomplishments.In a way, he was like the bad guy in a movie that you didn't want to see fall at the end, but he did.This book was very satisfying and I am now looking into some of Ackerman's other books as well.

good stuff on "Peace Democrats" vs. Lincoln
Mr. Ackerman presents interesting descriptions of the "Peace Democrats" -- the so-called Copperheads -- many of whom lived in the New York area, and were enemies of Boss Tweed: Samuel Tilden (who received a majority of the popular vote in 1876, but lost the presidential election to the Republican Hayes), Horatio Seymour (the NY governor who declared the Emancipation Proclamation unconstitutional), Fernando Wood (the NY mayor who proposed in 1861 that the city secede from the Union!), and George McClellan (the retired general who ran against Lincoln as the war raged on, winning only three of the participating 25 states -- the president edging him in New York state by a single percentage point).
Not just a Bio of Tweed- a historical acct. of late 1800s NY City
This is a wonderful look not only at Tweed himself, but a vivid account of the political machine controlling Manhattan in the late 1800s. We get a great look at Boss Tweed and his own life, as well as a vivid and colorful look at the many other personalities surrounding him. Governor Samuel Tilden,Mayor Oakey Hall, and Sheriff Jimmy O'Brien are a few of the cronies we are introduced to, as well as the infamous "boss" William M. Tweed.
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Subjects:  1. Biography & Autobiography    2. Biography / Autobiography    3. Biography/Autobiography    4. Criminals & Outlaws    5. Political    6. Biography & Autobiography / Political   

Reviews (25)

Giving law enforcement a black eye
Incredible. Here we have a retired FBI agent writing about a thug who he claims is the best godfather ever. He writes so admiringly about Tony Accardo that I really believe he wanted to give Joe Batters a foot massage, back rub and ticker-tape parade. I had to put the book down before I puked. True, the writer covers a lot of ground in his homage to this killer-thug and parasite, but it's all wasted by his glorification of a criminal.

Roemer Strikes Out
I find it amusing that every gangster biographer wants to elevate his subject to the level of being the most important figure ever in the history or organized crime. But one would expect a certain level of objectivity from a former FBI agent, even one who self-promoted himself for years as Chicago's number one Mob-buster. Roemer's admiration for adversary Tony "Joe Batters" Accardo is understandable in a way. Clearly one of the most untouchable mobsters of all time (though it is not true that he never spent a night in jail), Accardo's seventy year criminal career with no standing convictions shows he was no dumb hood. All the same, Roemer goes out of his way to inject Accardo into everything that ever happened in Chicago. His account of the Prohibition years is so far off the mark it's hilarious. He has Tony Accardo saving Capone from Hymie Weiss in the Hawthorne attack, which contemporary accounts credit to Frank Rio. He places Tony in New York with Jack McGurn, Anselmi and Scalise, and "a guy named Rio Burke" as the hitters of Frankie Yale in that city's first Tommygun killing. Strange, as I met the late Rio Burke and SHE never once mentioned handling a machine gun though she was a friend of Al Capone. Tony, McGurn, Anselmi and Scalise and "possibly Fred Burke" (in whose Michigan hideout the machine guns were found) are claimed to have been the St. Valentine's Day Massacre gunmen, on the basis of some bugged conversations Roemer claims to have heard years later and vaguely alludes to. More credible suspects, such as Gus Winkeler, who later ran Moran's former North Side territory for Capone and was highly publicized in the early Thirties, and Raymond "Crane-Neck" Nugent, who was once arrested at Capone's Miami estate, are dismissed as insignificant nobodies on the bare fringe of the Capone mob. Roemer goes on to have Accardo accompany Capone to the famous Atlantic City Mob convention, again at the expense of number one bodyguard Frank Rio, and conveniently oversteps the Philadelphia arrest and conviction of Capone and RIO by moving the meeting ahead one year to 1930. I find it amazing that a guy like Roemer could spend all that time investigating the Chicago Mob and display such little knowledge of its early years. No wonder the FBI took so long in catching up with organized crime! Roemer should have either stuck with the Fifties/Sixties time-frame he knew firsthand or else done some competent research on the pre-World War II era. As for the claim that Accardo had "more brains before breakfast than Al Capone had all day," well, like I said earlier, Tony's successful life in crime is impressive, and owes much to his low-key style but one doesn't need to distort history to emphasize this. And, when it all comes down to it, Capone was the guy who built the Chicago Mob and the guy who brought Accardo up through the ranks as well. Successful as he was, Tony was only following in Al's footsteps like so many others.

THE GANGSTER WHO MADE IT
Finally there is a book about the man that was the driving force behind the Chicago Outfit.While Sam Giancana has the fame and if often credited as being the Outfit's boss in the 60's, little is there any mention of the man who put him there.This is a great overall book with plenty of history on the man who the law couldn't lay a hand on.If ever there was a "successful gangster" it was Accardo, and this book explains why.This is also a great book to famialize yourself with Chicago's major organized players from Al Capone down to Joe "The Clown" Lombardo. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Chicago    3. Criminals    4. General    5. History    6. Illinois    7. Mafia    8. Nonfiction - True Crime / Espionage    9. Organized Crime    10. Sociology    11. Accardo, Anthony J    12. Biography & Autobiography / General   

Reviews (3)

Tremendous

amazing story, cannot put this book down!
This book is one of the besst stories I have read recently. 15 to life starts right out w/ an exciting beginning and keeps you hooked the whole time. Anthony Papa's story will shock you. Every law and sociology class should be required to read this book. Buy it and support the cause.

Justice Gone Wrong - Fighting the Rockefeller Drug Laws

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Subjects:  1. Artists, Architects, Photographers    2. Biography    3. Biography & Autobiography    4. Biography / Autobiography    5. Biography/Autobiography    6. Criminal provisions    7. Criminals & Outlaws    8. Drug couriers    9. Drugs of abuse    10. Law and legislation    11. New York    12. New York (State)    13. Prisoners as artists    14. Biography: general    15. True crime   

Reviews (4)

A Great Biography of A Terrible Man
I'm mainly writing this review because I wanted to counter some of the negative things that have been said about "All-American Monster." If Stickney has come across to some reviewers asbiased, there's a reason for that and that is that all the available evidence pointed to McVeigh's guilt! He later even admitted as much himself, showing no remorse for the children that he killed, calling them, as I recall, "collateral damage." But Stickney's greatest accomplishment here is in fleshing out just how an American war veteran with no truly distinguishing characteristics pulled off the single worst case of domestic terrorism in U.S. history. It's the same thing that has been said about the Nazis, that whole banality of evil thing. McVeigh was a total loser who decided to let his boredom and hatred lead him down a road that caused the destruction of innocent lives. As Stickney has deftly chronicled here, he was no different than any other work-a-day stiff living in any corner of this country--except that he decided to lash out at a perceived enemy (the "government"), that was in reality made up of people just trying to make a life for themselves, thereby gaining himself notoriety and priming the country for the greater human toll of 9/11. This book is a must-read for anyone who wants to plumb the roots of evil.

american made monster
Although this book is does not take a sympathetic approach to McVeigh's story, it becomes pretty apparent how McVeigh may have been lead astray.He was abandoned by his mother, had an emotionally detatched father, etc.Shows both sides of this tragedy.The tragedy of the bombing and the trajedy of McVeigh's disenchantment with America; especially after he was treated like a human guinea pig by the army.Very interesting book, I couldn't put it down.

an unauthorized bio
I got this because I wanted some insight into how the story all came about and definitely more information.I got it here.A lot of questions were answered here,so if you want insight and revelation into what happened and why this book is a good place to start.I liked it because it was so informative.I considered that a book should have a certain amount of information to be able to be fair and the writer is fair to all sides. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography / Autobiography    3. Biography/Autobiography    4. Crimes Against The State    5. Criminals & Outlaws    6. Criminology    7. McVeigh, Timothy    8. Oklahoma City Federal Building    9. Oklahoma City Federal Building Bombing, Oklahoma City, Okla., 1995    10. Right-wing extremists    11. Social Science    12. Terrorism    13. United States    14. Biography: general    15. Modern fiction   

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography/Autobiography    3. Case studies    4. Chicago    5. Daughters    6. Fathers and daughters    7. Giancana, Antoinette    8. Illinois    9. Mafia    10. Organized Crime    11. United States   

Reviews (40)

A true story of the Early Transition from Socialism
As an economist who has often worked on the transition from socialism, I found this book to be the best single source of what really went on---OK, that's partly because the book is hilarious and has one of the best book covers of all time.But Rubinstein should have won a Pulitzer prize for managing to capture what was going on behind the scenes on the socio-economic front in the early years of the transition in such an entertaining way.Let's hope Atilus escapes and there's a sequel.

enjoyable, true adverture
The Ballad of the Whiskey Robber is the story of Attila Ambrus, the infamous bank robber of Budapest during the 1990s.The biography follows Ambrus from his childhood as an ethnic Hungarian in Romania to his escape to Hungary, through his years as an unpaid goaltender for a local professional hockey team while moonlighting as a fur pelt smuggler and eventual bank robber, to his eventual capture, escape from prison, and recapture.It was an interesting life, during an interesting time (the fall of Communism in Eastern Europe as it was replaced by corrupt, crony-capitalism), captured well by Julian Rubinstein.
Great book, but the facts aren't always true
I remember going to a hockey game and seeing Ambrus Attila play when I was a child. I'm Hungarian and grew up in Budapest and was very excited when I received this book as a present. But after reading only 20 pages I noticed that some of the facts weren't true (i.e. the checkered taxis aren't black&white - they are red&white - and that's just one of the smaller incorrect facts), and I think the author overexaggerates sometimes to be funny. The book is an interesting history lesson about the 1990s in Hungary, but don't believe evrything you read. Believe me, it wasn't that bad! I do remember the occasional (very few) car bombs and murders, but if you weren't in the mafia, you didn't have to worry. I was never scared. The government is always corrupt - isn't it in every country? :)
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Subjects:  1. Ambrus, Attila    2. Bank robberies    3. Biography    4. Biography & Autobiography    5. Biography / Autobiography    6. Biography/Autobiography    7. Criminals & Outlaws    8. General    9. Hungary    10. Infamous Crimes And Criminals    11. Post-communism    12. Sociology    13. Thieves    14. Crime & criminology    15. Current Events / Peace    16. Sociology, Social Studies   

Reviews (9)

On becoming a Sarah addict
On finishing her hilarious, gripping, poignant memoir, I immediately ordered all her movies from Amazon (and unlike the fortunes she spent on dozens of psychics, the cost of my bingeing will be, happily, or, rather, sadly, all too modest due to her too small filmography).Her descent into a near-insane addiction to psychics to help cope with a disastrous love life and moribund career is written, ironically, in a clear-eyed manner that affirms her fortunate return to mental health, happiness, and peace at book's end.The story of her harrowing journey and her lessons in the healing power of self-reliance, humor, and faith in life's infinite possibilitiess offers excellent therapy for anyone suffering from any addiction.

I see page turning everywhere....
I'm only half way through this book and I'm buying it for all of my friends and sending it across the country.The content of this story is so equally relatable and addicting at the same time that the book delivers in spades on what it's trying to tell us:The control you take over your own life is the only destiny that awaits you.I'm in my mid-thirties and can not count how many times I was in Sarah's place, looking for all of the answers to what was ahead of me in every other corner except for my own.To be able to laugh at this woman's story helped me realize I had to forgive myself for so many of my own attempts at handing over all of my personal power to anyone who would take it.I love this book!!!!!!!!!!!!

Love, Love, Love this book
What a great story Sarah Lassez has to tell!I couldn't put this book down.I wanted to see what happened next and the ending was just perfect!I can't wait to see Sarah on the "Big Screen" - hopefully soon!I look forward to whatever Sarah does next! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Acting    2. Acting & Auditioning    3. Actors    4. Biography    5. Biography & Autobiography    6. Biography / Autobiography    7. Biography/Autobiography    8. California    9. Criminals & Outlaws    10. Entertainment & Performing Arts - Actors & Actresses    11. Interpersonal Relations    12. Lassez, Sarah    13. Los Angeles    14. Personal Memoirs    15. Biography & Autobiography / Personal Memoirs   

Reviews (2)

A biography of of the West's most notorious outlaw gang
The lives of Jesse James and Cole Younger and their brothers are shrouded in myths created by Nineteenth Century journalists who celebrated their deeds and by themselves through the lies they told to cover their tracks and to excuse their crimes.Brant's book attempts to separate reality from legend, covering the James and Younger brothers from birth to death.Her book is not without sympathy for her subjects, but it is by no means an apologia for their manifold sins.Although Brant rightfully sees the origin of their criminal activities in Civil War guerilla warfare which carried over into the atmosphere of bitter reprisals following the war, she also chronicles their slide into simple greed and thrill-seeking.This volume is generous in its presentation of photographs of the outlaw gang, their associates, enemies, and victims, and of the places where they operated.

Excitement, adventure and human drama
Marley Brant is an excellent author, if you want to know the truth about Jesse James, his brother Frank, and their partners in crime you must read this fabulous biography. Brant sticks to this colorful history of theOutlaws in an enormously entertaining writing style. The James and Youngerboys are no longer just footmates in some dusty history books but stilllive in the minds. The real life adventures of these men were more amazingthan the fictional accounts that abounded even during their lifetimes.Their exploits in life made them immortal in death ! Marley Brantperseveres in trying to reconcile all the accrued information andmisinformation with the historical facts of the James-Younger saga. Thisbook will make you want to travel to Missouri to visit the area as it wasduring the civil war until1916. A must ! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1844-1916    2. 19th century    3. Criminals    4. Criminals & Outlaws    5. History    6. History - General History    7. History - U.S.    8. History: American    9. Infamous Crimes And Criminals    10. Outlaws    11. U.S. Local History - Western United States    12. United States - 19th Century    13. United States - 19th Century/Old West    14. West (U.S.)    15. Younger, Cole,    16. 1847-1882    17. BIOGRAPHY/AUTOBIOGRAPHY    18. James, Frank    19. James, Jesse    20. Modern fiction    21. Specific Groups - Criminals    22. Younger, Cole    23. Younger, James   

Reviews (2)

An inherently fascinating biography
Of Rats And Men: Oscar Goodman's Life From Mob Mouthpiece To Mayor Of Las Vegas is the inherently fascinating biography of Oscar Goodman, a man who deliberately became a pre-eminent defense attorney for alleged gangsters for 35 years. Accused but never proven of being more than a mouthpiece and defense attorney for organized crime, Oscar Goodman somehow managed to successfully defend his clients without becoming part of organized crime itself -- at least according to the voters of Las Vegas who eventually elected him as their mayor twice. Of Rats And Men is very highly recommended reading for anyone with an interest in the history of organized crime in America or who wish to avail themselves of a unique insight into the life and philosophy of an accomplished trial lawyer who specialized in defending members of established crime families.

More Insight from Smith � an eminent authority on the mob
The copious notes and eight pages of bibliography supporting John L. Smith's meticulously researched biographical look at Oscar Goodman, former mob attorney - presently the two-term mayor of Las Vegas, impressed me.Read more

Subjects:  1. 1939-    2. 20th century    3. Biography    4. Biography / Autobiography    5. Biography/Autobiography    6. Goodman, Oscar Baylin,    7. Government - Local    8. History    9. Las Vegas    10. Lawyers    11. Lawyers & Judges    12. Mayors    13. Nevada    14. Organized crime    15. Political    16. United States   

Reviews (9)

I like the book...McVicker's book pulled me in
Entertaining read.McVicker provides a good yarn. Larger then life characters and twists in a real life story.Top notch tale.

a manic joyride
The wild story of a conman who favors doctored resumes and red stretch pants as props to steal whatever he desires. He just can't outwit his sentimental heart.I read it in one sitting.

it's fluffy, sure, but a heist book is a heist book
There's no doubting that this book is compelling, both in idea and execution. The prisoner who keeps returning for the man he loves? The life history of both? Good stories of prison breaks? Hard to keep a heist lover down. A solid, fun read, perfect for passing the time with a good story.Read more

Subjects:  1. 1957-    2. Biography    3. Biography / Autobiography    4. Case studies    5. Criminals    6. Criminals & Outlaws    7. Escapes    8. General    9. Prisoners    10. Russell, Steven,    11. Social Science    12. Sociology    13. Sociology - General    14. Texas    15. Biography & Autobiography / General   

Reviews (32)

A latter day film noir protagonist on Wall Street
Reading this great book reminded me of the movie Night and the City. The central character Lou Pasciuto is very much in the mold of the famous noir protagonist in Night, "Harry Fabian." Always hustling, always scheming, but with a 21st century twist, and all true.

Goodfellas meets Boiler Room
If you can imagine a book written that blended these two movies together, bada-bing, there's your book. There's your review.

very disturbing
It nevers ceases to amaze me that people could be so gullible as to send a check for a large sum of money because some guy with a great line of BS says he can make you rich and he represents an official sounding brokerage house.Wow.
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Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Biography & Autobiography    3. Biography / Autobiography    4. Biography/Autobiography    5. Business    6. Corporate & Business History - General    7. Crime And Criminals    8. Criminals & Outlaws    9. General    10. Investment Finance    11. New York    12. New York (State)    13. Securities fraud    14. Stockbrokers    15. Wall Street    16. Business & Economics / General    17. True crime   

Reviews (12)

great book
this book was awesome, found it in some back alley in phnom phen for 25 cents and couldnt put it down. you want howard to keep smuggling and escape all the time. you can't help rooting for this guy. well written, and a great story. very enjoyable.

Oxford-educated drug smuggler
This book takes the drug smuggling genre a step further.It's a thrilling read that not only wonderfully narrates his drug smuggling, but also is really well written.This was the first drug smuggling book I read and is definately the best!Enter the world of Howard Marks and you won't be able to put this book down!

Loved it!
One of best books I've read in a long time.I really couldn't put it down.Well written by a facsinating character.Everyone I have loaned it to have raved about it.I would highly recommend. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography & Autobiography    2. Biography / Autobiography    3. Biography/Autobiography    4. Criminals & Outlaws    5. Literary    6. Personal Memoirs    7. Biography: general    8. Literature: History & Criticism   

Editorial Review

Arthur Conan Doyle fictionalized him as the superhuman Professor Moriarty, and the popular press luridly chronicled his daring heists, though the police never managed to convict him of anything major until he was nearly 50. Forgotten since his 19th-century heyday, master thief Adam Worth (1844-1902) gets a contemporary dusting-off in this cheerfully cynical biography by a British journalist, who sees Worth's story as a case study in Victorian hypocrisy. The colorful New York and London underworlds are as meticulously described as Worth's surprisingly attractive personality. ... Read more

Reviews (22)

Not for fans of Confessions of A Jewel Thief
I picked this book up because it is heavily promoted by Amazon with Confessions of a Jewel Thief, Bill Mason's larger than life book about being a burglar.These books have nearly nothing in common other than fitting into the true crime genre.Macintyre misses the mark by getting bogged down in details and random facts (his research is impressive, yes) and forgetting to spin a compelling tale.There is too much material here with no cohesive narrative.Many other readers have hit it in the head by identifying the failings of Mason to focus solely on the topic of Worth and his exploits.

Terribly disappointing
If you meander through all these reviews, checking the lower-rated ones, you will get a fairly accurate view of this book. I have read hundreds of true crime books, and this ranks near the bottom. It is a fascinating topic. Or should be. But in the hands of this author, it is a tedious, irritating, blather. Let me explain.
Misleading Title
I agree with the reviewers saying this book missed its target.It seems like MacIntyre couldn't find sufficient material for a book about Adam Worth, but went ahead and wrote it anyway.My guess is that there's plenty of information about "The Duchess of Devonshire," and so MacIntyre used that to pad out his manuscript.Worth pulled off plenty of other capers, and I'd like to read about those.What I don't want to read is the author's unsubstantiated speculation about Worth's psyche.
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Subjects:  1. 19th century    2. Bank robberies    3. Biography    4. Biography & Autobiography    5. Biography / Autobiography    6. Biography/Autobiography    7. Criminals & Outlaws    8. England    9. Great Britain    10. Historical - General    11. History    12. Thieves    13. United States    14. Biography & Autobiography / Historical   

Reviews (4)

Vampirism and the Real Dracula
Although the book has several chapters about vampirism and Bram Stoker's Dracula, the remaining chapters about Vlad Tepes are very detailed and a good read. Vlad surely was one of the most cruel tyrants ever and his atrocities are described with much detail. Contemporaries wrote about the "untold abuses, sad murders and mutilations by the cruel tyrant Dracula" and the author discusses the sources and their reliability by their level of interest in blackening Vlad. According to Trow, many of Vlad Dracula's acts can be interpreted as efforts to enforce his own moral code upon his country and to strengthen and modernise the central government at the expense of the nobility, because they had repeatedly undermined the power of the Wallachia's rulers (and buried alive his elder brother).
This book could use better editing
I am no expert on Dracula but my historical sensibilities have been offended by several serious errors in the text. Here are just two examples: on pages 9-10 Mr. Trow writes: A welcome addition to community library collections
Expertly presented by crime writer and historian M. J. Trow, Vlad The Impaler: In Search Of The Real Dracula is an impressively researched, meticulously detailed, and superbly written study of the life of the ruthless historical figure whose memory and legend became the inspiration for the enduring legend of a blood-drinking, undead fiend. Yet there was a great deal more to this controversial prince (as vicious as he was), than what his legends say - he was, in historical fact, "more sinned against than sinning". Vlad had to contend with avenging the murders of his family, defending his nation-state from brutal enemies who took every pain to destroy his reputation, and who eventually became a defeated martyr, captured by the Hungarian King Corvinus. Vlad The Impaler is very highly recommended reading and a welcome addition to community library biography collections. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography & Autobiography    2. Biography / Autobiography    3. Biography/Autobiography    4. Criminals & Outlaws    5. Royalty    6. Biography & Autobiography / Royalty    7. Biography: general   

Reviews (2)

Good financial adventure tale
Ackerman manages to make the financial part of this scandal easily comprehensible. He also does a great job of sketching in the principals as living, breathing characters.
Great book.
I loved reading this account of the money game in old New York played by the masters Fisk and Gould. The story was gripping and the themes amazingly relevant to today. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Commodities    2. Criminals & Outlaws    3. Economic History    4. History    5. History - U.S.    6. History: American    7. Investment Finance    8. U.S. History - Late 19th Century (1877-1900)    9. United States - 19th Century    10. United States - General    11. History / United States / General   

Reviews (9)

a man of honor
This was a very good read as I enjoyed the information that this book made available.
A little dull at times and not a complete tell all
The book was a decent read but I found Bonanno to be quit repeatative at times.He goes on and on about the Sicilian way of life, and how American's more or less don't understand it.Furthermore he tiptoes around all violence that comes with being in the "Family" as he so eloquently puts it.I found it to be a little dry, not so "tell all", and in the end I find Mr. Bonanno using his Sicilian background and way of life as justification for being in organized crime.Although he himself would never admit that the "Family" he was apart of was organized crime, the crux of the book.He calls himself a "Man of Honor" yet he admitly cheats on his wife and lived a life ingrossed in organized crime, hypocritical to say the least.

Man of Honor provides history
Great historical piece although quite biased.Gives the reader good insight into the Sicilian philosophy of life and business.Excellent read if you have an historical interest in the mafia and organized crime. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography / Autobiography    2. Criminals & Outlaws    3. General    4. True Crime   

Reviews (30)

Education of a Felon
What justice James Frey (A Million Little Pieces) did for a drug addiction and rehabilation experience, Edward Bunker exceeds with his memoir of life in jail and as a criminal but with undulated truthfulness. His prose and descriptive talents make the reader wonder how Bunker could have maintained such a delicate artfulness through years of violence and rebellion. His diction and clear interesting reproductive detailing of events, as far back as early childhood and up to the heinous race wars within San Quentin penitentiary of his late teen years, manifest and validate his true genius and talent as a brilliant writer. B