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Murder, Inc.: The Story of the Syndicate
“Murder, Inc.” was the moniker of the Syndicate’s firing squad, a ruthless group of men guilty of professionally committing 1,000 murders. Murder, Inc. is the book that exposed the Syndicate to the eyes of the world. First published in 1951, it rose to the top of the best-seller list, but later fell out-of-print. Now, here is a new edition of the classic that tells all about the great gangsters of the late ’30s and ’40s: Frank Costello, Louis ”Lepke” Buchalter, Meyer Lansky, Lucky Luciano, Buggsy Siegel, Johnny Torrio, Willie Sutton, Joey Adonis, Dutch Schultz. Here are the stories of how Pittsburgh Phil and Buggsy Goldstein literally set Puggy Feinstein on fire; how and why Kid Twist Reles sang to the D.A. for twelve straight days, confessing dozens of murders; how the killers’ boss, Albert Anastasia, slipped through the arms of the law.From the highest levels of the U.S. government down to the lowest levels of street crime, the Syndicate infiltrated American life. Murder, Inc. tells how it was formally organized by the nation’s ranking mob lords at the end of Prohibition to control all crime, from gambling to crooked politics to labor extortion and murder. It describes the carefully built organization with its board of governors and its kangaroo court, and shows how this massive and powerful organization was finally broken.For it was only from the murderers themselves that the truth could be learned. And no man was more qualified to tell the whole story than Burton Turkus, the Brooklyn assistant D.A. who listened to the killers’ tales and who sent seven of them to the electric chair. Together with Sid Feder, a veteran journalist, they produced Murder, Inc., the definitive work on the most dangerous group of gangsters the law has ever known.
512 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1951
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
January 11, 2008
Although a little difficult to plow through, this is the best book on Murder, Inc. (1930s). Burton and Feder were the prosecutors and they knew the case better than anyone. They also stick solely to what they can prove and made few assumptions about the connections between the killers and other organized crime groups.
It is a must read for those interested in how organized crime operated in New York in the 1930s.
It is a must read for those interested in how organized crime operated in New York in the 1930s.
August 17, 2025
A fascinating but dated true-crime classic!
Burton Turkus’s Murder, Inc. is a cornerstone of organized crime history, written by the very prosecutor who helped bring down the Brooklyn mob’s infamous contract-killing arm. The book takes you straight into the gritty world of 1930s–40s gangland, with vivid details about Abe “Kid Twist” Reles, Louis “Lepke” Buchalter, and the many murders that shocked New York. As a firsthand account, it offers an authenticity that few other true crime books can match.
That said, readers should know this isn’t a slick, modern thriller. Taking into account that this book was originally published in 1951, the writing at times feels dense, dated, and repetitive, more like a case file than a fast-paced story. Also, an irritant of the more recent Kindle edition I read is that it suffers from many typos. Still, if you’re interested in Mafia history or want the original account that shaped the “Murder, Inc.” legend, this book is essential—even if not the easiest read
Burton Turkus’s Murder, Inc. is a cornerstone of organized crime history, written by the very prosecutor who helped bring down the Brooklyn mob’s infamous contract-killing arm. The book takes you straight into the gritty world of 1930s–40s gangland, with vivid details about Abe “Kid Twist” Reles, Louis “Lepke” Buchalter, and the many murders that shocked New York. As a firsthand account, it offers an authenticity that few other true crime books can match.
That said, readers should know this isn’t a slick, modern thriller. Taking into account that this book was originally published in 1951, the writing at times feels dense, dated, and repetitive, more like a case file than a fast-paced story. Also, an irritant of the more recent Kindle edition I read is that it suffers from many typos. Still, if you’re interested in Mafia history or want the original account that shaped the “Murder, Inc.” legend, this book is essential—even if not the easiest read
January 20, 2015
As I’ve mentioned previously, the final season of HBO’s stellar BOARDWALK EMPIRE set me out on my current path of reading a whole slew of true crime – not the kind of tabloid exposes that highlights the latest get-dead-quick tale of wayward husbands killing their dismissive wives but rather the true investigative history of gangland. I’d always known about how widespread the corrupting influences of America’s Prohibition really put the United States down the path toward legitimizing lives of crime, but what was missing for me was how these little fiefdoms grew into a national conglomeration of like-minded, nefarious individuals.
MURDER, INC. has gone a lot way toward answering that question. And then some.
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last two paragraphs for my final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
I had heard of Abe Reles before. I’d read his name in any number of true crime narratives. His is a story that’s kinda/sorta been lost to the greater history of criminal activity I think for two reasons: (1) he committed the unthinkable so far as ganglords are concerned by ‘squealing’ or ‘playing the canary’ the way he did; and (2) the federal government itself – under the auspices of the Kefauver Commission in the early 50’s – tried to kinda/sorta reshape the historical legacy of any national syndicate perhaps in an attempt to (ahem) protect their own interests. History and governments have certainly committed greater offenses, but – for reasons too numerous to detail – it was important to contain what Reles’ ultimately knew … which is why his curious death remains a mystery to this date.
For the record, Brooklyn Assistant D.A. probably knew better than anyone other than Reles just what those secrets were as he was the man tasked with pulled back the veil, listening to the contract killer spill his guts for as long as he did. It’s his expansive recollection along with veteran journalist Sid Feder’s grasp of weaving a tale perhaps too fantastic to believe that makes MURDER, INC. revered (at least by me) as ‘the Old Testament’ of organized crime.
This is, at times, an exhaustive accounting of just how these various fledgling criminal organizations got their start and how they ‘changed with the times,’ adapting to local and national deterrents all with the hope of building a better organization. Turkus and Feder turn over every stone Reles points them to, and what they’ve done here is complete the kind of critical thinking that escapes federal groupthink: instead of homogenizing the Syndicate – as the feds eventually did – they dissect it through key people, places, and events for anyone willing to wade into the deep waters. In the end, they unquestionable show the death of the old world Mafia – along with the repeal of national Prohibition – made the times ripe for the emergence of a new form of ‘government within a government,’ all of it headed by shylocks, extortion artists, criminal dealmakers, and even hitmen.
Dare I say, you probably won’t look at American History quite the same after digesting so very much of MURDER, INC. It isn’t a pretty picture, and that’s probably because it involves so much of how the structure of the people’s government allowed precisely for organized crime to avoid prosecution much less detection for as long as it did. There are still folks today – let’s just call them politicians – who would have you believe this story isn’t quite true as it’s told, but that’s only because – much like the Kefauver Commission did as well as similar efforts before and after – they have a vested interest in having ‘the regular folks’ unaware of how the stewards entrusted to protect us missed or deliberately dropped the ball on this one. It’s a frightening story told by Reles, and for that he had to be silenced.
But was it murder that did the man in for good?
Or was it suicide?
You’ll have to decide for yourself after you’ve read it, though I suspect you’ll find the official conclusion hard to believe.
HIGHEST RECOMMENDATION POSSIBLE. As I’ve said above, MURDER, INC.: THE STORY OF THE SYNDICATE is akin to the ‘Old Testament’ of organized crime. There just simply isn’t a better investigation of the evolution of gangsterism as it changed from what it was at the dawn of the 20th Century through the early 40’s, or – if there is – I remain completely oblivious to it. Abe Reles was as tragic a man as he was renowned (as thugs and killers go), and Burton Turkus and Sid Feder’s book does an impressive job trying to expose Reles’ life without glamorizing it in the slightest. Excellent, excellent reading, perhaps as good as it gets.
MURDER, INC. has gone a lot way toward answering that question. And then some.
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last two paragraphs for my final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
I had heard of Abe Reles before. I’d read his name in any number of true crime narratives. His is a story that’s kinda/sorta been lost to the greater history of criminal activity I think for two reasons: (1) he committed the unthinkable so far as ganglords are concerned by ‘squealing’ or ‘playing the canary’ the way he did; and (2) the federal government itself – under the auspices of the Kefauver Commission in the early 50’s – tried to kinda/sorta reshape the historical legacy of any national syndicate perhaps in an attempt to (ahem) protect their own interests. History and governments have certainly committed greater offenses, but – for reasons too numerous to detail – it was important to contain what Reles’ ultimately knew … which is why his curious death remains a mystery to this date.
For the record, Brooklyn Assistant D.A. probably knew better than anyone other than Reles just what those secrets were as he was the man tasked with pulled back the veil, listening to the contract killer spill his guts for as long as he did. It’s his expansive recollection along with veteran journalist Sid Feder’s grasp of weaving a tale perhaps too fantastic to believe that makes MURDER, INC. revered (at least by me) as ‘the Old Testament’ of organized crime.
This is, at times, an exhaustive accounting of just how these various fledgling criminal organizations got their start and how they ‘changed with the times,’ adapting to local and national deterrents all with the hope of building a better organization. Turkus and Feder turn over every stone Reles points them to, and what they’ve done here is complete the kind of critical thinking that escapes federal groupthink: instead of homogenizing the Syndicate – as the feds eventually did – they dissect it through key people, places, and events for anyone willing to wade into the deep waters. In the end, they unquestionable show the death of the old world Mafia – along with the repeal of national Prohibition – made the times ripe for the emergence of a new form of ‘government within a government,’ all of it headed by shylocks, extortion artists, criminal dealmakers, and even hitmen.
Dare I say, you probably won’t look at American History quite the same after digesting so very much of MURDER, INC. It isn’t a pretty picture, and that’s probably because it involves so much of how the structure of the people’s government allowed precisely for organized crime to avoid prosecution much less detection for as long as it did. There are still folks today – let’s just call them politicians – who would have you believe this story isn’t quite true as it’s told, but that’s only because – much like the Kefauver Commission did as well as similar efforts before and after – they have a vested interest in having ‘the regular folks’ unaware of how the stewards entrusted to protect us missed or deliberately dropped the ball on this one. It’s a frightening story told by Reles, and for that he had to be silenced.
But was it murder that did the man in for good?
Or was it suicide?
You’ll have to decide for yourself after you’ve read it, though I suspect you’ll find the official conclusion hard to believe.
HIGHEST RECOMMENDATION POSSIBLE. As I’ve said above, MURDER, INC.: THE STORY OF THE SYNDICATE is akin to the ‘Old Testament’ of organized crime. There just simply isn’t a better investigation of the evolution of gangsterism as it changed from what it was at the dawn of the 20th Century through the early 40’s, or – if there is – I remain completely oblivious to it. Abe Reles was as tragic a man as he was renowned (as thugs and killers go), and Burton Turkus and Sid Feder’s book does an impressive job trying to expose Reles’ life without glamorizing it in the slightest. Excellent, excellent reading, perhaps as good as it gets.
August 13, 2019
Back in the 1940s, Burton Turkus was a prosecutor so talented at taking down organized crime figures that his foes gave him the name “Mr. Arsenic”. After some high – profile court cases, he collaborated with the journalist Sid Feder to write Murder Inc.: The Story Of the Syndicate. The result was this history book that has become somewhat of a classic in the annals of American lowlife literature.
When the big bosses of the national mob began their War of Extermination, a campaign of assassination to rid the world of anybody who had inside dirt on their activities, a professional hitman named Abe “Kid Twist” Reles turned himself in to the police and began to tell all he knew. It was a desperate measure to prevent himself from being rubbed out, thinking he could take down the mob before they took him down instead. The canary began to sing, as they say, and Reles’ narrative acts as a framework for the entire book. Details are given about Lucky Luciano’s purge of Mafia and the rise of his Unione Siciliano. Then he, along with such organized crime bosses as Frank Costello, Buggsy Siegel, Happy Maione, Albert Anastasia and others formed a governing board called The Syndicate. The council had no leaders; it was a multi-ethnic fraternity of equals who agreed to coordinate their efforts to rule the American underworld from coast to coast. Murder Inc. became the faction of professional killers that carried out hits for The Syndicate.
Some noteworthy stories are told; While the crimes described were committed all across America, most of the stories take place in Brooklyn since that was the base of operations for both Turkus and The Syndicate. Dutch Schultz goes rogue and decides to murder an attorney who is determined to prosecute the mob. The Syndicate realizes this would draw unwanted attention to themselves so they gun down Schultz to save the hated lawyer. Buggsy Siegel gets shot while sitting by a window. Reles invites a man to his mother’s house and then, with the assistance of Pittsburgh Phil, they strangle and stab him to death with an ice pick while the old lady sleeps in her bedroom. They celebrate by dining on lobster in a fine restaurant immediately afterwards. Louis “Lepke” Buchalter infiltrates the clothing manufacturers and trucking unions and benefits financially as he gets different members to fight each other while strongarming the factory bosses as well.
These stories read like fairy tales of evil but the sadistic, vicious, and brutal murders are what really stand out overall. The depiction of the court trials are also interesting, maybe more so because Turkus was there in the courtroom, prosecuting the criminals and sending most of them to be fried like eggs in Sing Sing’s electric chair.
The writing varies in quality from time to time. Mostly it is straight and starkly brutal with few frills or stray details. Occasionally the wording slips into a New Yorkese tough guy patois that spices up the bleak narrative a bit. The timeline jumps all over the place and a wide range of people are introduced to the story who have nothing to distinguish them other than the crimes they engage in. Most of the writing is clear and direct but the passages about Lepke’s involvement in the labor unions gets muddled at times. Turkus gives a dark and gritty portrait of a particularly somber time in America’s history. The glamour of Hollywood gangsters is not here; Murder Inc. is a street-level , gut wrenching view of thug life and membership in the most cruel of secret societies.
Turkus finally tells how Kid Twist Reles died a mysterious death and Albert Anastasia escaped prosecution. Then a direct line is drawn connecting The Syndicate with some politicians, most significantly New York City mayor William O’Dwyer who may have had a hand in getting some gangsters set free.
Murder Inc. may not be one of the most complete or accurate histories of organized crime in America. It certainly is one of the most interesting ones though, if anything, because it never pulls any punches. The mob members are creepy, the violence is terrible, and the vengeance of the law is sweet.
https://grimhistory.blogspot.com/
When the big bosses of the national mob began their War of Extermination, a campaign of assassination to rid the world of anybody who had inside dirt on their activities, a professional hitman named Abe “Kid Twist” Reles turned himself in to the police and began to tell all he knew. It was a desperate measure to prevent himself from being rubbed out, thinking he could take down the mob before they took him down instead. The canary began to sing, as they say, and Reles’ narrative acts as a framework for the entire book. Details are given about Lucky Luciano’s purge of Mafia and the rise of his Unione Siciliano. Then he, along with such organized crime bosses as Frank Costello, Buggsy Siegel, Happy Maione, Albert Anastasia and others formed a governing board called The Syndicate. The council had no leaders; it was a multi-ethnic fraternity of equals who agreed to coordinate their efforts to rule the American underworld from coast to coast. Murder Inc. became the faction of professional killers that carried out hits for The Syndicate.
Some noteworthy stories are told; While the crimes described were committed all across America, most of the stories take place in Brooklyn since that was the base of operations for both Turkus and The Syndicate. Dutch Schultz goes rogue and decides to murder an attorney who is determined to prosecute the mob. The Syndicate realizes this would draw unwanted attention to themselves so they gun down Schultz to save the hated lawyer. Buggsy Siegel gets shot while sitting by a window. Reles invites a man to his mother’s house and then, with the assistance of Pittsburgh Phil, they strangle and stab him to death with an ice pick while the old lady sleeps in her bedroom. They celebrate by dining on lobster in a fine restaurant immediately afterwards. Louis “Lepke” Buchalter infiltrates the clothing manufacturers and trucking unions and benefits financially as he gets different members to fight each other while strongarming the factory bosses as well.
These stories read like fairy tales of evil but the sadistic, vicious, and brutal murders are what really stand out overall. The depiction of the court trials are also interesting, maybe more so because Turkus was there in the courtroom, prosecuting the criminals and sending most of them to be fried like eggs in Sing Sing’s electric chair.
The writing varies in quality from time to time. Mostly it is straight and starkly brutal with few frills or stray details. Occasionally the wording slips into a New Yorkese tough guy patois that spices up the bleak narrative a bit. The timeline jumps all over the place and a wide range of people are introduced to the story who have nothing to distinguish them other than the crimes they engage in. Most of the writing is clear and direct but the passages about Lepke’s involvement in the labor unions gets muddled at times. Turkus gives a dark and gritty portrait of a particularly somber time in America’s history. The glamour of Hollywood gangsters is not here; Murder Inc. is a street-level , gut wrenching view of thug life and membership in the most cruel of secret societies.
Turkus finally tells how Kid Twist Reles died a mysterious death and Albert Anastasia escaped prosecution. Then a direct line is drawn connecting The Syndicate with some politicians, most significantly New York City mayor William O’Dwyer who may have had a hand in getting some gangsters set free.
Murder Inc. may not be one of the most complete or accurate histories of organized crime in America. It certainly is one of the most interesting ones though, if anything, because it never pulls any punches. The mob members are creepy, the violence is terrible, and the vengeance of the law is sweet.
https://grimhistory.blogspot.com/
September 12, 2015
This is an old book written in the 50’s by the Assistant Brooklyn D.A who sent many members of Murder Inc to the Electric Chair. Many of the contentions he puts forth in the book have sense been proven untrue, he talks many times about how the Mafia I dead replaced by the Syndicate. But the inside stories of Murder Inc, he talked with and debriefed the famous canary Abe Kid Twist Reles, make the book worth reading.
February 11, 2025
Great insight about the world and intricacies of Murder Inc. the worlds deadliest hit man group.
Read
June 26, 2013One of the most important true crime books on the origins of The Syndicate. A new edition of the 1951 book by Burton B Turkus and Sid Feder that had sold more than 1,000,000 copies by the 1970's. This new edition contains mug shots, crime scene photos and maps.
February 7, 2011
The first book I read on Murder, Inc. If this is a subject you're interested in, it's a must.
Read
July 2, 2022Very outdated by today's standards
This is very obvious a outdated book. The computer is today keeping track of what the author was talking about in the last few pages. This is a good book to show just how far law enforcement has come since this book was written. What I had to laugh at is the denial of the mafia. I would suggest a book called "Five Families". It is very good and shows what and how the mob has operated in the past 50 years. They even stopped the production of The Godfather because the word " mafia" was used in the script. The word was taken out and the movie was completed.
This is very obvious a outdated book. The computer is today keeping track of what the author was talking about in the last few pages. This is a good book to show just how far law enforcement has come since this book was written. What I had to laugh at is the denial of the mafia. I would suggest a book called "Five Families". It is very good and shows what and how the mob has operated in the past 50 years. They even stopped the production of The Godfather because the word " mafia" was used in the script. The word was taken out and the movie was completed.
August 9, 2025
Ho letto questo libro in italiano, e non capisco perchè si ha fatto questa traduzione, pochi anni dopo essere rilasciato in America. L’elenco di casi e malviventi americani, raccontato per il Pm che li ha messo in galera e, a volte, nella sedia elettrica, è preciso, sebbene ci sono tante conti che risolvere con nemici che a volte sembra un memoriali di danni. Diviene un po’ annoiante, caso dopo caso, assassini dopo assassini.
Ho comprato ciò per 3 euro, valeva 300 lira quando è uscito. Comunque, un racconto storico che non fa male, ma non serve a niente in italiano secondo me.
Ho comprato ciò per 3 euro, valeva 300 lira quando è uscito. Comunque, un racconto storico che non fa male, ma non serve a niente in italiano secondo me.
July 29, 2017
Written in 1951, before the average TV viewer was a mob cognoscento, Murder Inc. recounts the author's exploits in prosecuting some half-dozen of the syndicates ace killers. Not surprisingly, the book has an episodic, almost disjointed quality. While it offers a interesting if dated picture of organized crime in the 1930s and '40s, the lack of a cohesive plot might deter all but diehard crime buffs.
March 27, 2020
There are a lot of books about Murder Inc., but this was one is the best because it was written by
the man who was the District Attorney who interviewed many of the major players and prosecuted
many of the most infamous killers in Murder Inc.
Turkus' intimate knowledge of the cases makes this book the best on the subject.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/edit...#
February 25, 2019
This is a great book for those seeking a historical perspective on Murder Incorporated. It catalogues the rouges gallery of the largest murder-for-hire outfit in American history, and details the crimes committed.
November 30, 2021
I wanted to really like this book but the first third of it was incredibly boring and did not flow which made it difficult to read. This book also had a significant amount of typos in it that also made it difficult to read.
December 22, 2023
Obviously the book is 70 years old, but was otherwise just really dry, (despite hip terms like 'plug-ugly' being thrown about frequently) and ploddingly episodic. Also this edition is riddled with typos.
Maybe try reading it with the voice of Jack Webb?
Maybe try reading it with the voice of Jack Webb?
December 31, 2017
Suffers from poor editing
Great story but the read suffers from endless typos. With copy editing this book would receive the full five stars. As is its frustrating
Great story but the read suffers from endless typos. With copy editing this book would receive the full five stars. As is its frustrating
September 25, 2018
poorly written, lots of typos
Mr. Arsenic was a better prosecutor than author
Mr. Arsenic was a better prosecutor than author
August 8, 2020
Interesting subject but terrible writing.
February 17, 2021
3.5 stars.
April 3, 2018
Burton B. Turkus and Sid Feder’s Murder, Inc.: The Story Of The Syndicate is the story of the rise and fall of one of the most famous organized crime operations in the United States. The figures involve include well-known names such as Bugsy Siegal and Lucky Luciano, as well as more obscure but nonetheless important figures. The mob is aided and abetted by a number of people outside the underworld, including corrupt union officials and corrupt government officials. Turkus and Feder emphasize that the mob’s influence would not be possible without such corrupt officials.
This book is more interesting yet also more horrifying than almost any fictional work about this subject. As bizarre and graphic as this book can be at times, it is a worthwhile read for anyone interested in the subject of organized crime or history in general.
This book is more interesting yet also more horrifying than almost any fictional work about this subject. As bizarre and graphic as this book can be at times, it is a worthwhile read for anyone interested in the subject of organized crime or history in general.
July 31, 2010
I love this book! I first read it when I was a little kid (my father had it). It gives a pretty accurate picture of how "The Syndicate" was formed in the early 1930s and how it developed through the next decade or two. Pretty accurate as far as I know. It also frames this story around the events leading up to the conviction and execution of Lepke Buchalter - the only big time syndicate guy to go to the chair. So we also have the saga of Abe "Kid Twist" Reles turning states witness for reasons unknown and his eventual and "mysterious" demise while under protection of the NYC police force.
July 25, 2009
A factual account of the Mob, 1935-50, by the actual DA who sent some of the "plug-uglies" to the chair.
In places the book gets a little bogged down with the apparent need to spare no details of the trials, but for the most part it reads like a series of Damon Runyon stories.
In places the book gets a little bogged down with the apparent need to spare no details of the trials, but for the most part it reads like a series of Damon Runyon stories.
April 20, 2016
It's the "must read" of the topic, but some of Turkus' story has been proven false in the past 50-ish since it was written. Noirish in its writing, which can grow tiresome, but it was popular in the time, so...
October 18, 2008
A classic of the field. Totally unreliable but its where the legends became the facts.
July 7, 2015
Although this book had very good ratings and was about what to me is a very interesting subject, I found it to be very dry and somewhat boring.
February 19, 2023
Just incredible by the guy who was there. Read Trekscribbler's review.
January 28, 2008
Pulptacular true crime tale.
January 29, 2008
Bit boring.
October 11, 2010
I loved this book.
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews