There is irony in this tale as Bill Browder was following in his grandfather’s footsteps in some ways but was also radically poles apart. Browder’s grandfather had stood for Presidential election in the USA on a Communist ticket. Bill Browder was drawn to business possibilities behind the Iron Curtain and…
The author of this, the best study of Vladimir Putin that I have read to date, is Catherine Belton, a Financial Times journalist that was based in Moscow. It is a comprehensive study of the rise of Putin and how he has cemented a Tsar-like power as head of the…
View More Review: Putin’s People – How the KGB took back Russia and then took on The West – by Catherine Belton
Vine Line is a new Wez G podcast featuring songs that I am regularly enjoying at home. It will be an eclectic accessible mix of pop, dance, rock and any other genre I can think to throw in there. Enjoy and please share and spread the love x Wez G…
View More Wez G – Vine Line – Episode 2
Darren Campbell is one of the fastest men in the world and has won Olympic Gold. I’m probably one of the slowest men in the world and know next to nothing about athletics. The Olympics though are unmissable, especially the mens’ sprints. Campbell achieved the zenith of his success in…
View More Review: Track Record by Darren Campbell with Trystan Bevan
The notoriety of the Kray twins, Ronnie and Reggie, is present in their legacy. These were the most infamous London gangsters to emerge during the 1960s. Their older brother, Charlie, used to try and keep his distance from Firm activities, yet he had a lot of insider knowledge of operations.…
View More Review: Doing The Business – The Final Confession of the Senior Kray brother by Colin Fry and Charlie Kray
I read this book really quickly- it was enticing and a good tale. Gypsy Jane is something of a crazy phenomenon who rocked the London underworld with some pretty brutal firsthand tales. It didn’t take much for the Gran to pay a visit to any dissidents and she’d be brandishing…
View More Review: Gypsy Jane – by Jane Lee with David Jarvis
This is the second of Ioan Grillo’s books that I have read and I found this volume equally as good as my first encounter with this talented British journalist. Gangster Warlords focuses on 4 separate crime gangs across the Americas. For each group we identify leaders, politics, often brutal and…
View More Review: Gangster Warlords – Drug Dollars, Killing Fields and the New Politics of Latin America – by Ioan GrilloThis Mexican author, Elmer Mendoza, is about as vibrant a writer of fiction that I have encountered since Hemingway. A truly unique flowing style that is amazing to digest. The hero of the book is policeman Edgar ‘Lefty’ Mendieta. He is a drunken womaniser and the tale weaves in his…
View More Review: Silver Bullets – by Élmer Mendoza
When you see the title ‘The Cartel’ you might immediately imagine a book about Colombian or Mexican drug lords. Yet, this book covers a 30 year history of a homegrown cartel, based in Liverpool. Back in the 1970s a pioneering Fred the Rat grouped together his criminal comrades and they…
View More Review: The Cartel – The Inside Story of Britain’s Biggest Drugs Gang – by Graham Johnson
Eddie Fewtrell, a pivotal figure in Birmingham’s nightclub scene, began his career in the 1950s, building a respected empire renowned for safety and entertainment. A tough yet principled businessman, he resisted crime attempts by notorious gangs. His venues attracted stars and fostered community ties, making a lasting impact on Birmingham’s nightlife history.
View More Review: King Of Clubs – The Eddie Fewtrell Story – by Eddie Fewtrell and Shirley ThompsonCharlie Richardson was an important figure in the London Underworld during the 1960s. The Krays often overshadow The Richardsons in terms of their notoriety as London gangsters but, as is clear from the revelations in this book, The Richardson family were certainly equally as important in the capital’s underworld. Whereas…
View More Review: The Last Gangster – My Final Confession – by Charlie Richardson
David Tomkins has led an interesting life, to say the least. Our swashbuckling protagonist begins his autobiography as a tough safe-cracker, self-trained in explosives. His early adventures lead him to prison life where he swaps tales and picks up skills, leading to further crimes. Moving away from his gangster life,…
View More Review: Dirty Combat – Secret Wars and Serious Misadventures – by David TomkinsA doctor conversing with one of his elderly patients in Japan, reveals this amazingly quaint story of a Yakuza gang leader. Set in the heart of Tokyo in the early twentieth century, our hero comes from an ordinary background and works his way into a veritable life in the underworld,…
View More Review: Confessions of a Yakuza – by Junichi Saga