Murder Books

I find many of the reviews "right on".

However, many comments are off-base, and as His Cousin, I find inappropriate. Ask, and you may find Truth!

"No disrespect..." ..."but"... there is that word again... don't listen to what I just said, just what I am about to say...

Amazing how the critics, nearly a Century later, have criticisms that sting, but couldn't find the gumption to face Him... or me!

Let's get it on!

Simply put, William Roughead was and is the greatest true crime writer of them all. Combining unusually supple storytelling talents with an inimitable, pawky sense of humor, he remains the best prose stylist chronicling human depravity since, well, the compilers of the King James Bible. A Scot by birth, Roughead became a Writer to the Signet at the turn of the last century, a privileged position which allowed him to attend and write up the great murder trials of his day and his favorites from Great Britain's colorfully criminous past. Almost all of his works are shamefully out of print but are well worth searching out in used book stores: both his own popular accounts and his contributions to the more formally edited "Notable British Trials" series. Henry James was one of his many besotted fans, and even the briefest sample of his work makes it obvious why true crime buffs consider him the Master. "Classic Crimes" (which includes chapters on Deacon Brodie, Burke and Hare, Madeleine Smith, Dr. Pritchard and other irresistible villains) is the best collection of his work, and I would be remiss if I did not own that my introduction to his peerless work came via Toni Morrison, who confessed her own idolatrous admiration in the New York Times Book Review some two decades ago. If you like Roughead, you'll never be able to get enough. As Luc Sante writers in his perceptive introduction to this latest reprint, Roughead repeatedly creates narratives which contain "in full that collision of placid, well-furnished pedantry with savage howling atavism" that was the keynote of his fascination with evil--and Roughead did believe in evil--people. More of his genius is avalable on display in "Twelve Scots Trials," available from Amazon. co.uk. As Roughead so eloquently put it: "Murder has a magic of its own, its peculair alchemy. Touched by that crimson wand, things base and sordid, things ugly and of ill report, are transformed into matters wondrous, weird and tragical. Dull streets become fraught with mystery, commonplace dwellings assume sinister aspects, everyone concerned, howsoever plain and ordinary, is invested with a new value and importance as the red light fall upon each."

William Roughead's accounts of great crimes from eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Scotland and England are about the most delicious mind candy I can think of; I opened this new edition from NYRB and almost couldn't put it down. While his vocabulary and style at times go a bit overboard in terms of their purpleness, he still presents very readable and exciting accounts of some incredible crimes which still haunt the popular imagination today (such as his account of the West Port murders of Burke and Hare, the body snatchers).

Re-issuing Roughead's work is really a feather in NYRB's cap, and yet I can't help wishing they had taken more pains with this edition. (Because of this, I felt I could not really offer it the five stars it otherwise would've deserved.) The introduction by Luc Sante is interesting, but not without errors: he notes that all of the crimes excepting those of Burke and Hare "are discoveries [on the part of Roughead]"; yet Roughead himself admits that Deacon Brodie's case has been dramatized many times, and inspired Stevenson's "Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde." Madeleine Smith's trial inspired a film, "Madeleine," directed by David Lean in the 1950s. Similarly, no editor seems to have taken the time to annotate some of Roughead's more bizarre (or anachronistic, or peculiarly Scottish) terms: "douce" is used repeatedly for "sweet", and "lands" (apparently a term for the highrise towers in Edinburgh) recurs often too, yet there's nary a word of explanation. This lack of editorial interference is not welcome, especially since Roughead often refers repeatedly to other writings of his which his original audience would have recognized but which remain obscure to a contemporary reader.

Still, this book is a real treasure--and, as with all NYRB books, it comes on beautiful paper and with a gorgeous cover.

Simply put, William Roughead was and is the greatest true crime writer of them all. Combining a supple prose style with an inimitable, pawky sense of humor, he remains the best prose stylist chronicling human depravity since, well, the authors of the King James Bible. A Scot by birth, Roughead became a Writer to the Signet, a privileged position which allowed him to attend and write up the great murder trials of his era (1870-1952). His works are shamefully out of print and are well worth searching out in used book stores: both his commercial collections and his contributions to the "Notable British Trials" series. Henry James was one of his many devoted fans and even the briefest sample of his prose makes it obvious why true-crime buffs consider him the master. "Classic Crimes"(which includes chapters on Deacon Brodie, Burke and Hare, Madeleine Smith, Dr. Pritchard, William Palmer, etc.) is the best collection of his work in print and I would be remiss if I did not mention that I owe my introduction to this peerless writer to Toni Morrison, who confessed her own idolatrous admiration in a New York Times Book Review piece more than 20 years ago. If you like his stuff you'll never be able to get enough of it. (Also worth securing are the works of Roughead's friend, the American Edmund Pearson, whose "Studies in Murder" was reprinted last last by the Ohio State University Press.) As Roughead so eloquently put it: "Murder has a magic of its own, its peculiar alchemy. Touched by that crimson wand, things base and sordid, things ugly and of ill report, are transformed into matters wondrous, weird and tragical. Dull streets become fraught with mystery, commonplace dwellings assume sinister aspects, everyone concerned, howsoever plain and ordinary, is invested with a new value and importance as the red light falls upon each."

This is a truly enjoyable read of murders and a recounting of the trials associated with them.-Roughead is an inimitable Scottish stylist and, as Luc Sante points out in the introduction, his "musical" use of abstruse Scottishisms is a joy in and of itself to read.

The only thing in literature to which one can really compare it is Sherlock Holmes-Sir Arthur Conan Doyle makes an appearance in one of these cases, btw.-I don't mean to do Roughead a disservice in this comparison-Certainly, these are as true to the actual facts as Roughead could make them (and he goes to great lengths to do so), and several of the cases remain unsolved or "Not Proven"-a verdict in Scots law with which you shall become all too familiar if you read this book. - But, the same Victorian atmospherics are present as in Doyle, the Victorian moralisms, the eerie descriptions, the bumbling Dogberries of police constables. It's actually refreshing to know that these things existed just as Doyle wrote of them....except these cases are REAL!

Of course, there's the question the contemplative reader asks himself from time to time as to why he is interested in the macabre and the details thereof.-An interesting question.-I know not the answer.-But we all are, it would seem, to one ghoulish extent or the other.

5 Macabre, Scottish Stars!

I truly hope that someone with Devlin's fortitude and willingness to do what needs to be done would be able to complete the job without becoming a murderer and a thief. I would think that someone with an FBI agent's integrity would not depict a fellow agent in such poor light. I certainly hope that in real life we can expect better.

Paul Lindsay has created a great character in Mike Devlin. The plot is intricate and Paul Lindsay brings it all together at the end. No skimming through this read.

A FBI veteran-turn-writer guy writing about two FBI characters, Devlin (main character), and Shanhan (supporting character), together with the plot, the investigation, the ridiculous bureucracy, made Mr. Lindsay a yearning writer I would always keep looking for his new book publishing news. Both books are good,funny,and meanwhile, very deep!!

Now and again - if you are lucky - you stumble across an author who is really good. Author Lindsay is a terrific writer of the action/mystery/detective genre. His books about Devlin of the FBI are all very special. You can't go wrong reading them and I can't praise them enough. See for yourself!

Paul Lindsay's 3 books are some of the best mysteries that I have ever read. I put him up there with James Patterson, Mary Willis Walker and Patricia Cornwell. I couldn't put his books down!

From the very beginning I couldn't put this book down. I survived in Corporate America for 25 years, and this novel brought back haunting memories. The characters are vivid, the story thrilling............A MUST READ!!

Wow, by the end of the first page your hooked!! An incredible story that each and everyone of us can relate to no matter what stage of our adult life we're in! From the sleaze and beauty of a small town and it's people to the turmoil of corporate america and the stuggle to find your palce in this mess. You'll get to know the good, bad, and ugly in those of us that have stuggeled to find where we belong. With the help of some spiritual gudiance we manage to make it through. A must read for all!

"A Consequence of Greed" is a fictional novel based in rural TX that weaves a mystery around a hearty bunch of southern characters (or "caricatures") in a sleazy corporate environment. Despite the fact that chapter datelines set the story in the early 1980's, the author has captured the essence of today's corporate politics and greed. Whether intentional or not, half the fun of reading this book is how accurately it portrays the difficulties and frustrations of a newcomer charged with changing the status quo or simply trying to do the right thing for a business. It's an intriguing "whodunit" with a supernatural twist, but this book goes beyond a good mystery to unravel. It's a must read for anyone who has ever been bitten by corporate politics or works for an unscrupulous boss . . . or even conducted "bidness" in Texas.

I once read that a good author writes about what he knows. I have spent a considerable amount of time in the town where this story takes place. This author weaves a fantastic tale of fantasy with a rivoting fictional episode set in this town. I frequently had to stop reading and search my memory in order to separate fact from fiction. I could not put the book down! His depiction of the nature, attitudes, function and disposition of the townspeople are all on the mark. His picture of corporate function and internal politics we have all seen. A great read!

Reviewed by Richard R. Blake for Reader Views (08/06)

In this amazing story Jack Eadon has captured the core of today's corporate world. Eadon involves the reader in the politics, turmoil, and greed of corporate America. He reveals the baseness and beauty of a small central Texas town. This is done through the development of colorful characters and a detailed description of the environment and culture of the area.

Corporate trouble shooter, Marcus Ramsay is assigned to a division of Allied Foods, based in Chicago. The Coyote Chili plant in Corsicana, Texas, has not been keeping up with population trends per capita and the operating income has been declining over the last 10 years since Earl Hickman became president after the death of James Post, founder of the company.

Ramsey is faced with the challenge of turning the operation around to produce a solution to these problems. Within a few months of his arrival, in Corsicana, the spirit of James Post enters into Ramsey. Questions surrounding the death of James Post come to light.

Marcus and his secretary, Daisy, pry into the intriguing incidents surrounding Hickman's 10 year history as president of the company. They uncover questions regarding the baffling death of James Post. They discover evidence that implicate some of the locals in a conspiracy to murder James Post.

The unscrupulous conduct of Earl Hickman, his wife, Sheila, and Coyote broker, Frank Benedict give another dimension to the sinister evil surrounding an ongoing conflict that builds a crescendo of suspense.

Eadon has done his research on the locale of this rural town in central Texas. He has a background in corporate experience and is well qualified to "spin this yarn" of corporate and personal greed, manipulation, and revenge.

Eadon demonstrates a masterful skill for character development and plot movement. He uses a remarkable cast of characters to create suspense in this mysterious, complex novel. This is a great read for mystery lovers and for those who enjoy stories of corporate intrigue.

I was spellbound from the prologue right through to the unexpected dramatic conclusion.

Quentin Reynolds's COURTROOM is actually a book I've read when I was still a teenager. That book was misplaced and got lost, but the image of Atty. Leibowitz and his exploits that Mr. Reynolds brought to life thru his dazzling book remained in my memory. Now I am in my 30s and having reread the book thru the order delivered by Amazon, all the characters in the book, probably all dead, came alive again, as fresh as when I read about them more than a decade ago. This is one hell of a book, not to be missed. Kewlest of the kewl!

Reynolds did a fine job with this biography of Liebowitz, noted criminal defense attorney of the "gangster era" and later Kings County, New York, trial judge. "Courtroom" should be required reading for prospective trial lawyers.

Expertly written, the book probes deeply into many of Liebowitz's courtroom experiences, analyzing his instincts, his attention to detail and his techniques, without ever becoming bogged-down or dull. We learn how the master selected jurors and then reached out to them with his courtroom manner and compelling arguments. We watch as his determined cross examination turns up the slightest flaw in a prosecution witness's testimony and as he uses that flaw to shred the witness's credibility.

Reynolds spends considerable time on the historic Scottsboro Boys case and deals with Liebowitz's defense of Vincent "Mad Dog" Coll, Al Capone, Bruno Richard Hauptmann (Lindbergh baby case), and others. Chicago Outfit boss Al Capone, Murder Inc. leader Louis "Lepke" Buchalter, Owen Madden and Dutch Schultz make brief appearances in the narrative.

The author also uses his work to deal with some of the major criminology and law enforcement issues of Liebowitz's era. These include anthropological criminology (Liebowitz opposed the theory that violent criminals were evolutionary throwbacks) and police brutality.

Shortcomings in the work include the lack of an index and the absence of photographs. Those interested in American Mafia history could be let down by the short attention given to Liebowitz's prominent mob boss clients.

On the issue of April 1958 "Selection from the Reader's Digest" published a very important article (condensed from "THIS WEEK") by the well-known JUDGE SAMUEL LEIBOWITZ of the Brooklyn's Court of Assizes, whose title was (on the Italian edition) « Why has Italy the lowest rate of juvenile criminology ». I am trying to trace the original article in English, either that from "Selection from the Reader's Digest" or the original one from "THIS WEEK". Can you help me in some way? Said article concerns the American youth, the American family, and the American way of living, as compared to other nations'. You'll be very interested yourself for sure!

This book was written more than fifty years ago, and the events has at least seventy years, but even at this time almost everybody think and act like seventy years ago, so if this book were written by other writer and say that is happening now you would believe it. The big problem of the book is that all those cases were for real, the people don't think if they are wrong, they want to judge the people just for their color , race or religion, is that OK with you?
The book is a little bit heavy in some parts, but is always in the story and never goes out just to fill pages, Excellent book.

By the way, in the packages of Camel cigarettes is indeed a man, the feet of the man are in the hind ones of the camel, the man is in an obscene position.

I read this as a schoolkid in India 30 years back and was entranced by his passionate defense of his clients. Even now the thrill of reading about Justice Leibowitz and the famous trials he participated in makes the Dershowitzs of the world like lilliputians. Like the Beatles it will remain timeless.

This book "Cover-up of a Royal Murder;Hundreds of Errors in the Paget Report" by John Morgan, covers very adequately all the events leading up to and including the crash of the Mercedes that Princess Diana and Dodi Al Fayed were involved in on August 30,1997. In this book, Morgan also contributes much to the later investigation of the said events by exposing the inadequate conclusions arrived at in the Paget Report, as well as the obvious sifting of evidence by ignoring certain witness statements while accepting others,as well as the assignment of certain characteristics to witnesses,without qualifying their reason for doing this;the handling of contradiciive statements in the interrogation of witnesses;the conflicting testimony of those involved in the handling of tissue and fluid specimens from the bodies of Diana and Dodi Al Fayed;the reluctance of French authorities to respond appropriately to the investigation;etc.
Mr.Morgan has a clear and excellent, very readable writing style. His putting together of the actions and interactions that took place in the Alma Tunnel in the minutes prior to, during, and immediately after the crash, are very dramatic and well organized.

He adequately points out the flagrant negligence of the Paget report in so far as giving accurate evidence of their conclusions;the possible tampering with, of evidence, and dogmatic conclusions that are baseless in the face of obvious evidence to the contrary;the fact that Paget focuses on what witnesses did not see, rather than what they actually claimed to see(ie, evidence of the white Fiat Uno is described by several witnesses as being a central part of the collision and yet is discounted by Paget even after finding paint from the Fiat on the Mercedes);the altering of witness accounts as to locations,times,descriptions given;failure to adequately address the accusations of assassination("Franz Klein...told him that John Macnamara had said to him that he suspected murder rather than an accident...."-Pg 451 of "Cover-Up"),claims of threats against the bodyguards;the refusal of NSA/CIA to allow Paget access to their files on Diana;etc.

Mr.Morgan shows through a very thorough investigation of the facts, as compared with the Paget report, how the report is riddled with errors, dogmatic statements, third person summaries, failure to connect in a timely and factual manner, events and circumstances that led up to the crash, as well as failure on the part of the Paget report to adequately record testimonies of the persons and witnesses involved in these events, including crucial evidence of there being possible intent to deliberately distract the Mercedes driver and cause the crash;the questionable actions and statements of the physician who stopped to render aid;the destruction of photographs taken after the crash showing that Diana was alive and responding to caregivers;etc.

Mr Morgan exposes the generalization and speculations of the Paget report for the lack of evidence to prove their conclusions;ie, the altering of certain witnesses' testimonies in order to change the meaning;lack of specifics regarding pertinent details;inadequate timelines related to events leading up to and including the crash;acceptance of certain witnesses testimony without sufficient evidence to support their testimony, which did not agree with other witnesses;changing of testimonies of key witnesses;autopsy errors(ie,"there is no biological analysis of the liver, pancreas or other viscera [of Henri Paul] - yet Henri was accused of being an alcoholic"). According to this investigative report, the same incompetent person did the post mortem examination on Diana, and she was(for some unknown reason) embalmed before turning her body over to the family-"rendering any toxicology and pregnancy test pointless."

It is very obvious, from the evidence presented by John Morgan in "Cover-Up," that Henri Paul was not legally intoxicated, in fact not even to the point of it being detectable by those around him who knew what to look for(ie, the bodyguards) The evidence Mr.Morgan gives shows that without a doubt, the original pathologist was either incompetent, or very careless in the tests that she ran on the body of Henri Paul, which is why later tests were subsequently necessary.

These failures of the studies done by the pathologists may explain why so many of them resigned from the case, as noted in "Cover-Up."
The ineffective use of surveliance cameras at key points, and the failure of Paget to interview key persons involved in monitoring such equipment;failure to partition off the area of the crash for investigation; failure to provide for adequate lighting to support the investigation, along with the mishandling of information that resulted from the use of inadequate lighting in both cases;the premature cleanup of the said area before completion of the investigation by proper authorities is detailed in "Cover-Up."

The fact that pedestrians saw high tech cameras being used within a very short time after the crash and were witnesses to what actually happened, were being sent out of the tunnel by these cameramen and their assistants. According to John Morgan,these photos were never seen by the public or the police.
Mr Morgan compares the two cars the Mercedes 600 with the inferior S280 that was substituted and in which Dodi Al Fayed and Princess Diana were riding on the night of the crash, and shows how the Paget Report failed to follow through on evidence of pre-crash tampering with the latter vehicle, and compares the position of certain vehicles in and around the Mercedes in which Dodi and Diana were riding, in the final moments just before the fatal crash.

The evidence of error in the Paget Report is glaring. It is obvious that much of what happened in the Alma Tunnel prior to and following the crash, was not adequately followed up on in that investigation. "Cover-Up" mentions that much of the evidence given by pedestrians is not even mentioned in the report, neither is the fact that one of the motorcycles cut across in front of the Mercedes at one point just before the crash, flashing a blinding light into the face of the driver of the Mercedes, according to some witnesses, as recorded in "Cover-Up."

There is also indication according to "Cover-Up," that OPCI was aware of factors involved in the fatal crash, that were not revealed or addressed in their report;ie,interrogation of the drivers of other vehicles not associated with the Paparazzi(ie, the white Fiat Uno & the large black motorcycle);why no attempt was made to track down these vehicles;the mysterious death of the owner of the white Fiat Uno(James Andanson) in 2000, and his former association with Dodi Al Fayed and Diana;witness reports of strange behavior of the drivers and passengers of the said vehicles;why some witnesses claimed they saw a flashing light just prior to the crash;lack of proper witness interrogation by authorities at the scene, and changing of certain witness testimony in later interviews;photos taken before, during, and after the crash are missing and were never followed up on;the obvious negligence in giving emergency care to Diana is thoroughly covered by Mr.Morgan in a detailed report, showing that it took almost two hours to get her to a hospital that was only a few minutes away.
"Cover-Up" shows in detail that the post crash investigation was not thorough and that the evidence was obliterated before the proper authorities could complete their investigation.

COVER-UP OF A ROYAL MURDER :
Hundereds Of Errors in the PAGET REPORT
by John Morgan,
is a MUST READ.

Anyone who cares about corruption, abuse of power at the top and the lies surrounding the timely and conveninet deaths of Diana and Dodi and how it was all covered-up in an attempt to pass it off as JUST AN ACCIDENT , for nearly 11 years, will not be able to put down this book.

This book is an eye-opener into what is happening to a Great nation as it gives in to abuse of power and corruption at the top where even the Police is called in to cover-up crime and withhold evidence from Courts of justice and inquiries.

This is a MUST read for every person who is concerned about world corruption and abuse of power which leads to the destruction of innocent people and those who are trying to help them ,such as Diana the Princess of Wales.

John Morgan's book is a book, which once started cannot be put down as it is excellent from start to finish, easy to understand and follow and serves a very valid purpose as a moral eye-opener and a global awareness alarm.

John Morgan's book astounded me, a must read book. I found the book enthralling and I could not put it down, as I could not wait to see what else was wrong with the report.
The author is also outstanding in the way he has found the evidence that to me proves Diana was murdered and not killed accidentally. It is obvious to me that the Paget Report has mishandled the report with missing evidence and false so-called evidence. To think, the present inquiry uses the Paget Report, what a fallacy.
The author has found so much evidence that is not in or has been changed in
the report. I have to wonder how the report was concocted at such great cost.
I just hope that this book brings to light some of the evidence the
author has found and is taken into account.

I found John Morgan's book totally gripping. It is a must read book for anyone seeking the truth of Princess Diana's death. John Morgan has written much about mistakes and crucial evidence in the Paget Report. It opens ones eyes to think that this report is being used in the enquiry into Diana's death. It is a fallacy. The author has made it clear that her death was not accidental, but a conspiracy to murder.
A good deal of information was left out of the Paget Report. For example, some witnesses were not interviewed or investigated or if they were, their information was not included. The treatment of Diana's injuries and the time it took to get her to a hospital is another issue. If she had had appropriate treatment she could have lived. That obviously wasn't wanted. Also evidence at the scene of the crime was removed before the experts arrived. This is an amazing book and one I will read again.
It has given me an interest too into the enquiry being held now in England. If it is based on the Paget Report, it will be a grave miscarriage of justice.

John Morgan's book contains compelling evidence of the death of Princess
Diana not being accidental as reported. It is brilliantly written, and a
huge amount of research must have been put into this book.

Reading 'Cover-up of a Royal Murder' convinced me beyond doubt that Diana
was the victim of sinister and deliberate series of acts of conspiracy
that caused her death. As I read the book, I was astounded at
the volume of evidence pointing to criminal involvement rather then an
accident.

As the author shows the Paget Report certainly has many holes and incorrect evidence in it, and yet it has been produced for the enquiry being held. The thought of the enquiry being conducted using the Paget report doesn't make any sense at all, so I hope this is taken into account in the British enquiry.

This book is an expose' into the Nugan Hand international bank and it's connections to the CIA.
Jonathan Kwitny is a top-notch investigative journalist and he doesn't disappoint with "The Crimes of Patriots".

Among the topics in the book:
The origin of the "French Connection".

Fraudulent enterprises such as Ocean Shores.

The CIA's involvement in the overthrow of Australian Prime Minister Whitlam.

A shared office building and secretary used by both Nugan Hand and the D.E.A.

The work C.I.A. agents did for Muammar Qaddafi.

Mr. Kwitny cites the work of Alfred McCoy on the "the Golden Triangle" and international heroin trade.
He also covers money laundering operations, particularly for drug traffickers. Nugan Hand had to ba a C.I.A. asset!
The author has frequent footnotes documenting the sources for specific information.

The cast of characters includes some famous intelligence operatives, high ranking military officers, con artists, Air America pilots, and just about any other type of people you would expect in a best seller spy novel. But "The Crimes of Patriots" is nonfiction and very well done at that!

This book ties in nicely with Bo Gritz,
Stan Montieth, Rodney Stich, Fletch
Prouty and Tom Valentine works on the
same type subject matter. Also check
out Terry Redd's Compromised which
gores both Clinton and the Bush, the
Presidencila Elder. Highly recommended.

As an Australian I was both surprised and gratified that an American journalist should want to trace the extraordinary history of the Nugan Hand Bank's Australian operations. This great document decribes the most cut-throat, heroin dealing, crime syndicate ever to have sullied our shores, and all under the covert auspices of the C.I.A. Kwitny's research is exhaustive and his even handed way of presenting his findings is exemplary of fine journalism. The implications hatched in this veritable can of worms will have net-sleuths busy for years tracing the myriad references to the numerous associates of Nugan Hand who vanished into the night only to surface again in the Irangate scandal. Essential reading for anyone trying to come to terms with the scourge of heroin, the world arms trade and those members of the U.S.'s covert agencies that spread misery in their own and other countries...Read it if you dare!

If the press was doing ots jobs, then Ronald Reagan would not have been able to appear in public during his Iran-Contra period without also being bombarded with cries of "What about Nugan Hand!"
The Nugan Hand scandal appears to be the biggest, dirtiest scandal to reach the upper levels of American government since Watergate. The suicide of Nugan and the flight of Hand occurred in Australia, but the scandal had all-American origins. If Australian authorities and reporter Jonathan Kwitny are right, then the coverup, which continues, involves at least the Defense and State departments, the CIA, the FBI, the Commerce Department and the National Security Council.
Such a coverup must reach at least into the president's Cabinet.
First a word about Kwitny, a reporter for The Wall Street Journal. No investigative reporter in America is more highly regarded by other reporters, dating back to his exposes of the corrupt Teamsters Union Central States pension fund in the early '70s.
Frank Nugan was an Australian shyster. Mike Hand is an American, an ex-Green Beret decorated for heroism in Vietnam, later a CIA spook. Starting in 1973, the men set up a bank and a number of other financial companies, eventually opening offices around the world, though East Asia was their happy hunting ground.
Nugan Hand Bank may have been set up to launder and over up CIA money transfers; the Caribbean banks that performed that service folded about the time Nugan Hand Bank was set up.
It is not proper to be too definite about Nugan Hand. Because of incompetence by Australian investigators, many of its records were spirited away after Frank Nugan's death in 1980. (Kwitny says, "For an American, used to FBI efficiency, it is hard to imagine cops so spineless that they let criminal suspects carry evidence away right under their noses, while waiting for permission to examine it." That was written before Oliver North's testimony in the Iran-Contra scandal. Americans would have less trouble imagining such a thing now. 2007 update: This review was published in 1988. Kwitny's naivety seems quaint in the 21st century.)
"This isn't a book for people who must have their mysteries solved," Kwitny warns. No, it is only a book for those who need to have their eyes opened.
It is possible to say definitely that Nugan Hand laundered money and moved cash between countries where it is illegal to export cash. Many of their clients were trying to hide money from tax collectors -- for Australians, Nugan Hand usually charged 22 percent for this service.
Nugan Hand also was definitely, though ineffectually, trying to work illegal arms deals, and it probably was involved in a large-scale opium/heroin scheme in Burma.
Certainly, most of its prominent employees were con men, brothel keepers, dope and money smugglers, disbarred lawyers and other sleazy types. Its other top employees and consultants were retired generals of the U.S. Army and admirals of the U.S. Navy and former officials of the CIA, including former director William Colby. What, Kwitny asks, were men like that doing in association with the most notorious whoremasters and heroin pushers in Sydney, Australia?
For one thing, they were encouraging Americans who had served under them in the armed forces to place all their cash with Nugan Hand. Some of these men worked in places like Saudi Arabia, where there are no banks.
The generals and admirals later claimed that they, too, were victims of Nugan and Hand, but documents prove that these high officers were still taking in cash after Nugan Hand was in bankruptcy. Where the cash went is a mystery. The depositors didn't get it back.
Working with fragmentary records, receivers guessed that Nugan Hand owed more than $50 million when it crashed in 1980. It was probably much more -- many of the people who placed their money with Nugan and Hand were in no position to make claims against the estate in bankruptcy.
Nugan and Hand and their employees lived high, but they couldn't have spent $50 million on themselves in four years (though they started in 1973, the cash didn't start to flow in torrents until 1977.) the receivers found assets of only about $2 million.
Someone looted Nugan Hand after Nugan's death. Who?
There is a Hawaii connection to all this. There was a Nugan Hand Hawaii Inc. At the very least, Nugan Hand illegally engaged in banking in the USA without being regulated as a bank. When pushed by Kwitny, various agents of the American government have said that Nugan Hand's crimes, if any, occurred on foreign soil. But this explanation will not explain why Nugan Hand has escaped inquiry for its banking irregularities here.
It gets worse, right up to cold-blooded murder.
But the greatest value of "The Crimes of Patriots" is not just its partial exposure of a nest of very nasty crooks. Kwitny links it to a continuing pattern of lawlessness in the name of American national security that centers in the CIA -- and taints Congress and the highest levels of the executive branch. "As the theory of perpetual covert action is exercised, our national security is perpetually in the hands of criminals," he writes.
This is not news to anyone who has studied the activities of America's spymasters. But that is a tiny fraction of the voters. (See also my review of George Crile's "Charlie Wilson's War.") The torpor of most citizens in the face of repeated revelations suggests that they think that eggs have to be broken to make a spy's omelets. It is the virtue of "The Crimes of Patriots" to demonstrate that this is not so. Others have said as much, but seldom has the message come from anyone with credentials as respectable as Kwitny's.

On the advice of a friend who knows one of the "Cast Of Characters" (a "Yank In The Bank"), I ordered a used copy of this long out of print book. What an eye opener. It's amazing what a group of "former" senior military officers and spooks can get up to when allowed to run amok overseas. You name it and they got away with it. Even though some of the principals are dead, nobody has been held accountable for the myriad of crimes that have occurred abroad. With the lack of support rendered by the U.S. government (especially the F.B.I.), it makes one wonder how "former" some of these players really were. It's also amazing how many of these same people reared their ugly heads years later during "Iran-Contra". Read the book and then decide for yourself.

...as a followup for Deadroll. It extends the previous book which seemed to end abruptly without proper ending. The writing style of Greg Moody is very natural, so the book reads very fast. So read the Dead Air and learn bomber's fate.

This review is long over due. I read Dead Air many months ago. I'm just now coming down from the exhilaration of another fine Moody murder mystery novel. Moody once again blends the two things he knows best...cycling and TV. He has written one of the finest and most exciting fight scenes I've ever read. If you think you know how this one ends....think again.

Greg Moody's books are a fun habit. If you have any interest whatsoever in professional cycling (and who doesn't after Lance Armstrong's feats) read Greg's books. You'll get an inside, albeit wild and crazy look at the peloton. You definitely should read the books in the order written (this is the fifth in the series), to understand the history of Will Ross, a washed-up bike racer who has years of European pro cycling under his belt, but always manages to get in one last ride, or one last season, in each of the books. In the latest, he is on staff at a Denver TV news station, and is sent to cover a ride through the Rockies. Mayhem predictably follows, and Will must try to clear his name, find and outwit a mad-bomber, get along with his mobster in-laws, and take yet another ride-of-his-life. Hang on to your cycling shorts!

Fans of Will Ross will not be disappointed with this much anticipated followup to Deadroll. My only problem is I read the book too fast. I guess I'll have to start over with book 1 and read the whole series. Long live Will Ross!

Dead Air is another challenging mystery by Greg Moody. I so enjoyed getting to know new characters as Moody peels away the layers of their personalities, but I was also glad to encounter familiar old characters from his previous novels. The book flows with glimpses into the insanity of the villain and the T.V. Station! Along with the prose are gritty descriptions of life on a bike. Reading a book by Greg Moody is like choosing between plain vanilla ice cream or a hot fudge sundae... he makes you work a little harder than a "canned formula" mystery, but the satisfaction is well worth the effort!!! This is a great read and should be added to your summer book list!

A hardboiled mystery with a wonderful main character. Sheriff Whitlow tries to solve a murder with only his ne'er-do-well son and an elderly jailer for help. Not only are the "bad guys" against him, but he also has political enemies and the press trying to gum up the works. A great story that will keep you guessing until the end!

Drop dead is a masterful blend of well-drawn characters and an intricate plot. Sheriff Walker Whitlow unravels this puzzling mystery with the help of his well-meaning but inept son Mope and his Undersheriff's knows-everything wife. This novel is a well-written, winning read and the opening salvo of a very promising career.

Dead Wrong is a gritty, no-holds-barred mystery set in a small town on the Ohio/W.Virginia border. The local sherriff, Walker Whitlow, must solve the gruesome murder of a young girl in order to maintain his position as leading lawman despite his political enemies' attempts to undermine his credibility every step of the way. The characters in this story are well cast and the plot is starkly believable. The book is difficult to put down. There is plenty of action and intrigue. I enjoyed this book immensely and would recommend it to anyone.

I know I've found a winner when I forget that I'm turning the pages of a book. Mr. Iles transported me into the world of his characters and I stayed there until I stumbled, stunned but satisfied, back out into the real world at the end of the novel. An ending, by the way, that even the most avid mystery reader will fail to predict. Excellent!

Sheriff Walker Whitlow knows he's found the murder of young Eileen Matthews, but lab tests seem to prove that the suspect isn't the killer. Now he must fend of devastating political attacks as he enlists the help of his good-for-nothing son, his elderly jailer, and the wife of his deputy to find the real murderer. Dead Wrong has everything a great mystery novel needs: a beautiful woman, a brutal murder, a lawman struggling to save his job, family and self-confidence, and one clear but problematic suspect. Author Robert Iles has a genuine talent to spin a story of mystery, murder and mayhem that grips the reader and just won't let go from first page to last!

Kate Gillespie, Homicide Inspector for the San Francisco PD, finds herself entwined in an apparent murder-suicide case involving an old school friend. The deeper Kate digs, the more involved the case becomes, leading Kate to question some basic truths from her past. This is the third Kate Gillespie book and a great addition to the series.

Robin Burcell has written another police procedural that is both interesting and even better, if that is possible, than her previous two bestsellers of Inspector Kate Gillispie. Kate and her new partner, Rocky, go on a chase for a double murder killer, and Kate discovers an old college friend was not the gody-two shoes she appeared to be. Kate is delightful as a woman who is guilty over some of the things she has to do as a police officer and a person. A thriller worthy of a good read at night. I recommend it highly.

In San Francisco, Homicide Detectives Kate Gillespie and Rocky Markowski investigate what appears is a murder suicide with two corpse inside a car. When Kate sees the female victim, she realizes she was her estranged best friend Eve Tremayne. Kate cut off her relationship with Eve because the latter was into kinky S&M.

Kate and Rocky explores Eve's residence where they find a sex room including adult toys and an album containing pictures of the deceased's clients. Kate sees a picture of her dead father and absconds with it. On the other hand she leaves behind inside the album the picture of her ex-spouse. As Rocky takes over the lead with another cop, Kate is relegated to providing support. The SFPD digs into a violent underworld filled with treachery, duplicity and selfish cover-ups by individuals who will not lose a minute of sleep if three cops must die.

Fans of police procedurals will want to read DEADLY LEGACY, an exciting tale starring a strong cast of characters. Kate is an ethical lead protagonist whose conscience reminds her that she tampered with evidence when she removed the photo. Though everyone insists that Eve was a highly ethical person, Kate knows first hand otherwise. Rocky provides a steady balance and an internal affairs cop adds a romantic angle. The who-done-it is complex as the so-called loving relatives of the victims do everything to avoid exposure. As she did with Every Move She Makes and Fatal Truth, Robin Burcell provides the audience with a strong mystery.

Harriet Klausner

If y'all have't read a Robin Burcell book, you are in for SUCH a treat! :D

All the characters ring true, and Kate Gillespie is the epitomy of a true heroine, the BEST of what we want cops to be. Plus she's way funny. Read all her books ASAP!

Pat, BIG fan of this fabulous author!

I enjoyed 'Every Move She Makes' and 'Fatal Truth' so much that I couldn't wait to read 'Deadly Legacy', but I wasn't certain that Burcell could maintain the same intensity in the plot and between the characters for this third outing. Happily, I was just as intrigued with the story and the relationships this time. Once I began reading I was unable to stop until the surprising conclusion.

This story begins with the murder/suicide of an unknown man and a young woman that San Francisco Homicide Inspector Kate Gillespie knew well once upon a time. As Kate and her new partner Rocky Markowsky investigate the deaths become more suspicious. Everyone has something to hide including Kate. Kate initially begs to be removed from this case to which she has so many unhappy associations. However, when she is asked to step aside she is unable to let go of her investigation despite the fact that someone is trying to make her stop permanently.

Burcell's characters are so well developed that you feel like you know them. They are also intelligent, dedicated, honest but flawed just enough that you really want to know them.

The on again off again relationship between Kate and Mike Torrance adds spice to the story, and I would like to see it progress further in the next installment. My only objection is that the book wasn't long enough.

I was introduced to the Clue series with this book, "Death By Candlelight." I still enjoy reading it. Mr. Boddy has invited his six best friends, Mr. Green, Colonel Mustard, Miss Scarlet, Professor Plum, Mrs. White, and Mrs. Peacock, to stay at his mansion for the weekend. Of course, with these murderous people as company, you don't know what you can expect! Some stories include "The White Elephant Murder," where a crime is committed over a marble elephant, "Boddy's Byte," where Mr. Boddy assigns his guests passwords for a computerized security system, "Creature Features," where the guests try to steal a watch hidden in their popcorn while they watch horror flicks, "Hats Off!," where the guests try on some historical hats, "In the Swim," where the guests try to save a drowning Mr. Boddy, and "Death By Candlelight," where murders a committed over a life insurance policy worth three million dollars. Is there anything more I should say?

I love the Clue series, and this is the best book there is out of the 17 I've read (I've never seen Footprints in the Fog, the 18th and final book). Virtually all the stories are interesting, and "Boddy's Byte", "Creature Features" and "The Fake Fruit Frolic" are wonderful. Long live Professer Plum!

I love the Clue series, and this is the best book there is out of the 17 I've read (I've never seen Footprints in the Fog, the 18th and final book). Virtually all the stories are interesting, and "Boddy's Byte", "Creature Features" and "The Fake Fruit Frolic" are wonderful. Long live Professer Plum!

This was a great book. I am very disapointed they stopped printing this series, & if anyone finds a place where they sell them on the internet please email me at emilyg5@juno.com.

Reginald Boddy, (Mr. Boddy), is one of the world's richest men. He has invited six guests, Mr. Green, Colonel Mustard, Miss Scarlet, Professor Plum, Mrs. White, and Mrs. Peacock over for the weekend. But these guests love to steal Mr. Boddy's things, not to mention murder. Chapters feature the stealing of a valuable white elephant, a missing collector coin, Mr. Boddy's missing gold watch, plus many more. Clue is an absolutely wonderful series, and I'll recommend them to anyone who will listen. READ THIS BOOK TODAY!!