Tag Archives: crime

Re-read: The Ethical Assassin

Posted on July 29, 2020 by

The Ethical Assassin © 2006 David Liss 336 pages A few weeks ago for TTT,  I mentioned David Liss as an author who made me smile, and happened to think  about the first novel I read by him, The Ethical … Continue reading →

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Harvard and the Unabomber

Posted on July 23, 2020 by

Harvard and the Unabomber: The Education of an American Terrorist Original title: A Mind for Murder © 2003 Alston Chase 352 pages Ted Kaczynski was hunted fruitlessly by the FBI for eighteen years, until finally being done in by his … Continue reading →

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American Terrorist

Posted on June 19, 2020 by

American Terrorist: Timothy McVeigh and the Oklahoma City Bombing ©  2001, 2015 Lou Michel & Dan Herberck 426 pages   During a recreation period one day, a prisoner in an adjoining cage poured his heart out to McVeigh, telling him … Continue reading →

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How to Run a Drug Cartel

Posted on June 11, 2020 by

Narconomics: How to Run a Drug Cartel © 2016 Tom Wainright 288 pages I only know of one rule for the drug business, and that via Scarface: never get high on your own supply.  And as Manny could tell you, … Continue reading →

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Smuggler Nation

Posted on June 4, 2020 by

Smuggler Nation: How Illicit Trade Made America © 2014 Peter Andreas 472 pages “What can a Governor do, without the assistance of the Governed? What can the Magistrates do, unless they are supported by their fellow Citizens? What can the … Continue reading →

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Terror, Extortion, Revenge, Murder and The Birth of the American Mafia

Posted on July 8, 2019 by

The First Family: Terror, Extortion, Revenge, Murder, and the Birth of the American Mafia © 2009 Mike Dash 416 pages Although Prohibition is generally blamed for the rapid growth of the Mafia,   First Family demonstrates that America’s  mob problem began … Continue reading →

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The Thinking Man’s Gangster

Posted on June 28, 2019 by

Meyer Lansky: The Thinking Man’s GangsterRevised and expanded reprint of Little Man: The Gangster Life of Meyer Lanksy 457 pages© 2019 Robert Lacey There’s no such thing as a lucky gambler. There’s only winners and losers, and the winners are the … Continue reading →

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American Detective

Posted on June 22, 2019 by

American Detective: Behind the Scenes of Famous Criminal Investigations© 2018  Thomas Reppetto312 pages I’ve been playing through L.A. Noire lately, and its use of real-life crime (the Black Dahlia case)  prompted me to look for anything written about it. American … Continue reading →

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Ghost in the Wires

Posted on February 9, 2019 by

Ghost in the Wires: My Adventures as the World’s Most Wanted Hacker© 2011 Kevin Mitnick, William Simon. Forward by The Woz.393 pages CYBERPUNK introduced me to the story of Kevin Mitnick, a teenage phone phreaker turned celebrity hacker,  who boasted that … Continue reading →

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Flying high in rockets and opiods

Posted on December 31, 2018 by

Well, folks, Christmas is over, and so is 2018 — almost.  Below are the final comments or reviews for 2018: Dreamland and Rocket Girls,   two very different histories. One is inspiring, the other….so very not. First up, Rocket Girls!  Call to … Continue reading →

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