Award-winning narrator of more than 100 audiobooks, Tom Lennon, presents the first-person account of Michael Hardy, Bugsy Siegel's godson, as he devolves into a fearless gangster-all to win his mother's approval, in THE LAST JEWISH GANGSTER trilogy by David Larson. Volumes One-The Early Years-and Two-The Middle Years-are out now. Look For Volume Three-The Later Years-in 2023! Read the reviews on the author's website thelastjewishgangster.com … [Read more...]
WildBlue Press 2022 Year in Review: Part 1 of 2
22 New Books Released 14 Nonfiction Titles 8 Fiction Titles That's right; 22 new books in 2022! Each year we put out gripping, celebrated true crime titles and this year was no different. Two authors asked readers to make up their own minds about potential governmental coverups. Suzanne Buchanan started us off in March with THE CURSE OF THE TURTLE: The True Story Of Thailand's "Backpacker Murders"-bringing to light the brutal … [Read more...]
South Brooklyn in the 1980s: The Importance of Setting in True Crime Book Development
Setting is a critical element to a writer when considering taking on a non-fiction book project. That's why, when I received a call from famous NYPD Detective Thomas Dades offering to introduce me to a former 13th Avenue Colombo gangster interested in a book project, I jumped at the opportunity. Of course, Carmine Imbriale was a complex, remarkable, even relatable character. Not only was Carmine once deeply involved in organized crime in … [Read more...]
Craig McGuire’s True Crime CARMINE AND THE 13TH AVENUE BOYS on Audiobook, Narrated by Johnny Heller
A rare street-level look at what life was really like in the South Brooklyn mob in the 1980s, as the rackets descended into a bloody civil war. How much did Carmine Imbriale know about the South Brooklyn rackets? Following two decades as a street-level operative on 13th Avenue in one of the most violent crews in the Colombo Crime Family, his cooperation set in motion a sequence of events that help end a bloody Mafia civil war and put more than 40 … [Read more...]
THE LAST JEWISH GANGSTER: The Middle Years
Volume Two | The Middle Years The Last Jewish Gangster, The Middle Years, starts in 1968 with Michael Hardy entering the world's most dangerous prison in Mexico after taking the rap for his mother's counterfeiting scheme, trusting she'll love him this time. He's set to do twelve years for the crime. To survive, he works for a gay drug lord as his gringo pistolero, and kills three times. After he gets out, Hardy returns to Brooklyn, tries to go … [Read more...]
THE LAST JEWISH GANGSTER
Volume One The Early Years In 1944 Brooklyn, newborn Michael J. Hardy is rejected by his mother so she can run with gangster Bugsy Siegel, Hardy's godfather. Shirley Rook rose to the top of the criminal ranks. As the Queen of New York City crime, she laundered Mob money, ran the city's largest bookmaking operation, and handed payouts to dirty cops, politicians, and judges. To win his mother's love and respect, Hardy became a fearless gangster. … [Read more...]
CARMINE AND THE 13th AVENUE BOYS
Carmine was an armed-robber, credit-card fraudster, shylock, and, in the midst of a bloody South Brooklyn gang war, a survivor. These are his stories. This is the true story of Carmine Imbriale - a gambler, a brawler, a bandit, a bookie, an enforcer. For two decades, Imbriale was a street-level operative in one of the most violent crews in the Colombo Family, and he endeared himself to some of the major figures of organized crime while … [Read more...]
Read Deeper Into Your Favorite True Crime Shows/Movies
True crime is all the rage with dozens of books, podcasts, and shows and movies focused on various cases. The true crime community is always buzzing about the latest "must-watch" shows and movies especially, but they know that the shows and movies don't cover it all. The most voracious true crime fans seek out other points of view and other accounts to get ALL the details. For those most dedicated fans, we put together a list of true crime … [Read more...]
Richie Salerno
In my young days back on the streets in Brooklyn, I never thought I could be a writer. My mind was always fixed on how to make a buck. Writing was for the guys in the news, and as for books, well, let’s just say I never had a thing for books. Now, playing horses and shooting craps, that was my game. The Made Men in the neighborhood never had to push me to it. Once I got horses up my nose there was no stopping me. Back then, the years I spent … [Read more...]
Richie Salerno Discusses Disrespect: “The Real Virus Eating Society”
So what makes me the big expert on Disrespect as a topic of conversation? Answer: the same thing that makes you one. It’s just like “Madge” told us on those old TV ads for Dawn liquid detergent: You’re soaking in it. You’re soaking in it and I’m soaking in it, and when we look at social media, we realize the whole world is soaking in it. It hit the actual world like a Tsunami not long after we all went online for the first time. Now we live in … [Read more...]
