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The Westies

Inside New York's Irish Mob

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The Westies

By: T. J. English
Narrated by: James Anderson Foster
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About this listen

It's men like Jimmy Coonan and Mickey Featherstone who gave Hell's Kitchen its name. In the mid-1970s, these two longtime friends take the reins of New York's Irish mob, using brute force to give it hitherto unthinkable power. Jimmy, a charismatic sociopath, is the leader. Mickey, whose memories of Vietnam torture him daily, is his enforcer. Together they make brutality their trademark, butchering bodies or hurling them out the window. Under their reign, Hell's Kitchen becomes a place where death literally rains from the sky. But when Mickey goes down for a murder he didn't commit, he suspects his friend has sold him out. He returns the favor, breaking the underworld's code of silence and testifying against his gang in open court.

From one of the writers behind NYPD Blue and Homicide: Life on the Street comes an incredible true story of what it means to survive in the world of organized crime, where murder is commonplace.

©2006 T. J. English (P)2017 Tantor Americas Crime Organized Crime Social Sciences True Crime United States Murder
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A stunningly-detailed recounting of the rise and fall of The Westies in New York's Hell's Kitchen from the '50s to 1980s.

The write has done his research in astonishingly details, as he is able to recount stories and events that would only be remembered by those who were in the situation at the time.

With a lot of supporting character, English helps you to identify each major player involved without getting too bogged down in explaining who has done what, while also keeping the narrative running.

The only downside is that he reveals the book (and Westies) climax in the first chapter, thereby colouring your view of the whole story. So skip the first chapter if you download this audiobook.

Skip the first chapter!!!

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first audio book absolutely loved it. Would highly recommend this for anyone who likes this genre

loved it

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slow start but then it kicks of with an increditable, well researched , well written and narrated tale of a criminal gang I had never heard of.

riveting

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Mickey Featherstones is such a respectable person a true gangster, This story was the best ive ever heard. the narrator didnt seem to bring out the best of the characters, and there are so many but he eventually seemed to himself understand them towards the middle of the story and it was great to hear. The book can be a bit jumpy going from one time frame to another which can be a bit confusing but im going to listen to this many times again. Westies ☘

incredulous

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In a book market on organized crime dominated by The Mafia, this book on the Irish Mob is a welcome entry. Very well researched book that reads like a novel. Narration is very good.

very interesting book on the Irish Mob

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