The Westies: Inside New York's Irish Mob

(Paperback)

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Description

First UK publication for this true crime classic about New York's notorious Irish mobsters. Even among the Mob, the Westies were feared. Out of a partnership between two sadistic thugs - James Coonan and Mickey Featherstone - the gang dominated the decaying slice of New York City's West Side known as Hell's Kitchen in the 1970s and '80s. Excelling in extortion, numbers running, loansharking and drug-peddling, they became the most notorious gang in the history of organized crime. The then prosecutor Rudolf Giuliani called them 'the most savage organisation in the long history of New York street gangs'. Upping the ante on brutality and depravity, their speciality when it came to punishment and killings was dismemberment. Their reign lasted almost twenty - their end would come as their own violent natures got the best of them and precipitated a downfall as infamous as their rise. This revised and updated edition, brings the story of the Westies up to date with 'where are they now' snapshots of the men - and women - of the Westies.

Reviews

A fast-moving tale of criminal corruption in which, for a change, the good guys win... English pulls no punches * LA DAILY NEWS *
Sterling social history... the author's skillful reporting makes the most of his subject * NEW YORKER *
Will shock even the most hardened readers * PLAYBOY *
First-rate, dramatic and compelling * NEW YORK NEWSDAY *
A fascinating look into an Irish-American criminal enterprise that may not have rivalled the Mafia in sophistication, but certainly surpassed them in terror * WALL STREET JOURNAL *

Author Bio

T.J. English is a noted journalist and screenwriter, and is the author of three other books- Old Bones and Shallow Graves, Born To Kill and just published, The Havan Mob. He has written for numerous publications, including Esquire and Playboy, while his screenwriting credits include work on NYPD Blue and Homicide. The Westies was his first book, became a US bestseller and launched its author's career as an expert on the multi-ethnic nature of organised crime in America. He lives in New York City.