85 Grams: The Story of Art Williams - Drug Czar

by Daryl Ashby

Why some individuals function well within society for the better part of their lives only to morph into a polar opposite without forewarning may forever remain a mystery. Arthur James Williams has been viewed as such a man. His path in life was predictable over four decades only to transform into one of Canada's most notorious drug lords. Highly regarded for his actions during the Second World War, he later handcrafted the Williams' Long Bow, a work of art sought after by the leaders in competitive archery; but something tweaked his psyche during this time causing his view of bureaucracy and its administrators to take a combative shift. Art Williams navigated for years beneath the judicial radar while hand selecting a crew that formed a criminal empire to take full advantage of synthetic drugs unrecognized within current legislation. The thirst for a chemical high along the North American west coast only wetted his appetite to meet the need. The thought of incarceration never daunted his aggressive approach as he considered himself superior to the best legal minds. This is the first time the story has been told in full with no supposition or literary liberty as each player from both sides of the law contributed their personal experience to expose a real life game of chess.

Genres: Nonfiction

256 pages, Paperback

Published May 2, 2018

Reviews

[Peter Lukasch · Rating 5 out of 5]

I grew up in Ladysmith / Saltair area in the 60s & 70s and remember some of the newspaper stories, also familiar with some of the names & characters. A great historical read, very well researched and unembellished. It was a good unbiased account of what transpired at the time.

[Lee S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Art Williams

As someone who grew up in Ladysmith in the 60's and early 70s .Later hearing some of the stories about Art Williams it is interesting to hear the whole story as we know it. It is a well written book which I very much enjoyed.

[Nick Newell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Daryl Ashby does a great job peeling back the layers of deception and revealing the workings and mind of the modern day drug lord , Art Williams .
85 Grams is well written and fast paced , Ashby takes the reader along for a ride with the RCMP to uncover the secret drug labs scattered around southern Vancouver Island.
A must read for anyone who enjoys true crime stories - lots of twists and turns to the climatic end - very much along the lines of “Breaking Bad”

[Ashley Torchia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting book. I thought it was cool because I grew up and live on VAN Island and you never really think about stuff like this happening here.

[Darrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a local vancouver resident..thought the story was amazing...sticking it to the man..👍

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

super interesting story made nearly unfollowable by the writing style and delivery of information

[Edmond Gagnon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Being a retired police officer who spent five years in narcotics, some of that time working with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, I found this book interesting and somewhat comical at times. The story takes place a few years before I was a Narc, but the good guys vs the bad guys scenario played out in the plot rang so very true to me.
Granted, most of the drug dealers I had contact with where nowhere near as smart and cunning as Art Williams, the Mounties main target. I was blown away at the lengths he went to stay under the radar, yet taunt the police at the same time. It was like he was always one step ahead of them.
The story contains personal accounts from various people who knew Art Williams before he 'disappeared' under mysterious circumstances.
I don't want to give away the whole story but can easily recommend this book as and entertaining read.

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

I lived in the Yellow Point area and knew some of the people involved, some of them reasonably well. Mostly I knew them after he had already gone on his farewell flight. I was told some of these stories about Art but not always the same version as occurs in the book. Not everyone I knew talked about him. Art and these events definitely provided "local colour".

This is a very interesting read which I passed along to an RCMP buddy. The writing is good but it could be better.

[Daryl Ashby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent account of the man who introduced MDA - The Love Drug to the west coast of North America.
He managed to evade conviction for close to ten years as he dodged every effort the authorities made to entangle his cartel in a web worthy of conviction.
Just when they felt he was headed for the iron hotel he vanished never to be seen again.
Well researched and well written.

[Iona Turner · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is extremely badly written and could use the services of a good (or even half decent) editor. But the story itself is very interesting and covers a chapter of Vancouver Island that I knew nothing about.