Operation Underworld: How the Mafia and U.S. Government Teamed Up to Win World War II

by Matthew Black

The never-before-told true story of how mobster Charles “Lucky” Luciano—the U.S. Mafia boss who put the “organized” into organized crime—was recruited by U.S. Naval Intelligence to turn the tide of WWII.

In 1942, a rational fear was mounting that New York Harbor was vulnerable to sabotage. If the waterfront was infested with German and Italian agents then the U.S. Navy needed a recourse just as insidious to secure it.

Naval intelligence officer, Commander Charles Radcliffe Haffenden had the solution: recruit as his own spies, members of La Cosa Nostra. Pier to pier, no one terrified the longshoremen, stevedores, shopkeepers, and boat captains along the harbor better than the Mafia gangs of New York, who controlled the docks in Manhattan and Brooklyn. Haffenden was prepared to make a deal with the devil–the man who put “organized” into organized crime. Even from his cell in Dannemora State Prison, former Public Enemy #1, Charles “Lucky” Luciano still had tremendous power. Luciano was willing to wield it for Haffenden. But he wanted something in return—Luciano’s contacts in Italy to track the Nazis’ movements.

Operation Underworld is a tale of espionage and crime like no other, the unbelievable, first-ever account of the Allied war effort’s clandestine coalition between the Mafia and the U.S. Government to protect New York, vanquish the Nazis by taking the fight to the enemy in the 1943 U.S. invasion of Sicily. It was an ingenious strategy carried out by some of history’s most infamous, improbable, and unsung heroes on both sides of the law. It was a Faustian bargain that brought homefront enemies together but, as journalist and crime historian Matthew Black reveals, one that ultimately succeeded in helping the Allies win World War II.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, World War II, War, True Crime, Crime, American History

336 pages, Hardcover

First published December 27, 2022

Reviews

[Brendan (History Nerds United) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel badly for author Matthew Black because Operation Underworld sounds fantastic as a synopsis and he clearly knows how to write. Unfortunately, there just isn't enough interesting aspects of the story to keep it compelling.

A true story which follows how the U.S. Navy recruited the Mafia to help during World War II. Many of the names you expect to hear show up including Lucky Luciano. The navy is afraid of sabotage on the east coast and who knows it better than the wise guys running the docks?

Along the way, we learn more about everyone involved but ultimately, there is not a lot of drama to it. There is some inside baseball with the mob and a navy officer perhaps taking things too far. However, there is way too much smooth sailing for anything to reach the level of compelling.

Black's prose and choice of details is the bright spot of the book. He can't overcome the lack of action a story like this needs.

(This book was provided to me as an advance copy by Netgalley and Kensington Books.)

[Kat V · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this fun unknown story! It wasn’t action-packed but most nonfiction doesn’t fall in that category. I liked this and I feel like the story is a bit of a hidden gem. 4.1 stars

[Michael Burnam-Fink · Rating 4 out of 5]

Operation Underworld is dadly historical narrative non-fiction about one of the weirder alliances in a war full of weird alliances. In early 1942, as the United States entered the war and Nazi U-boats sank ships by the scores up and down the coast, security of the ports was a major concern. A naval reserve intelligence officer, Commander Charles Radcliffe Haffenden, with a unclear remit, limited resources, and immense personal daring, decided to do whatever it took to develop sources along the New York waterfront, and that meant the Mafia.

An immense amount of war material moved through the port of New York, and sabotage was the first major concern. The waterfront was intensely mobbed up, a network of territories and bosses all ruled by the iron code of silence the Mafia called omerta. Collaborating with the authorities was forbidden. Haffenden managed to convince a capo working out of a fish market, a beefy man by the name of "Socko" Lanza that it was his patriotic duty to help the Navy, and Lanza agreed, and also said that real cooperation required the approval of Charles 'Lucky' Luciano, the currently imprisoned head of the five families.

Haffenden sent word to Luciano, Luciano said yes out of a combination of patriotism and self-interest, and the partnership started up. It's military effects are mixed at best. Sabotage appears to be a largely overblown threat, with Nazi special agents bumbling their way into the hands of the FBI, and local radicals equally incompetent. Mafia-connected individuals provided intelligence for the landings in Sicily, as well as some on-the-ground help. Most key, supplies kept flowing through the ports without strikes or stoppages.

Neither of the participants got what they wanted out of the deal. Haffenden wound up thrown under the bus by the Navy, since he had greatly exceeded his authority and blemished their reputation. Luciano used Operation Underworld meetings as a cover for setting up his gambling syndicate, and while his sentence was commuted, he was deported to Italy and never returned to New York.

In one of those weird historical twists, Operation Underworld would likely have been completely buried, except Luciano was obsessed with the idea that New York Governor Thomas Dewey (of "Dewey Defeats Truman" fame) owed him favors, and Dewey commissioned an extensive report to clear his name, which didn't really do much, but set down thousands of pages of primary sources. These sources have been declassified since the late 1970s, and there are other books, but Black has added a novelistic flair, which adds interest to what is otherwise a rather vague and bureaucratic story that happens to involve the Mafia, but also isn't quite history.

[Shirley McAllister · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mafia Spies

This book sounded interesting as I had never known that the Mafia helped our government during WWII. It was something new I learned and I like learning new historical facts.

The new captain had to figure out how to counteract the information being fed to the Italian's by spies in the U.S. He knew that many of the dockworkers were Italians. He set about finding those that could help during the war as they not only spoke Italian but knew others in Italy that they conversed with.

Even the main Mafia boss Lucky Luciano got in on the action although he wanted his own men to be sent to Italy to be spies.

It is the only time I have ever heard that the crime syndicate and the Government worked together for the best of the nation and to squash the Nazi's.

I enjoy historical books and this audio book was interesting. The narrator did a good job on the narration was very pleasant to listen to and very easy to understand.

Thanks to Matthew Black for writing the history of these events, to Jonathan Todd Ross for his great narration , to HIghBridge Audio for publishing it and to NetGalley for allowing me to listen to a copy for review.

[Don Evans · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very interesting bit of history that most people don’t know happened. The Navy collaborated with the Mafia to protect the New York harbor area from enemy attack and sabotage during the early part of WWII. A messy situation that neither party wanted to admit to. A successful partnership did indeed help the war effort here and in Italy despite the Navy’s attempts to cover up the relationship to prevent the tarnishing of their reputation.

[Mike Reinking · Rating 3 out of 5]

As much of a history of organized crime in America as it is a recollection of aid that they gave in defending the East Coast during WWII. Author tries his best to flesh things out but there’s not much there.

[Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall very well-researched and a fascinating premise. On occasion was irritated by some shortcomings in the author’s prose style, but the depth of study and investigation is impressive.

[Zane Blanton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun read, although not the best written thing I've ever read. Mainly nice if you're a Mafia movie fan because you get some of the real life background behind the godfather.

[Paul Pessolano · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was looking for more than this book gave. I was waiting for it to break out at anytime but it just didn’t happen. The idea was great but fail short of producing.

It mostly tells of the mobsters involved and the United States Navy involvement. It tells little of the action that these mobsters participated in or they’re involvement in the action. One good thing about the book is at the end the author gives the reader a comprehensive list of all the involved and how they ended up.
A good read but not the story one would expect

[Melissa Salsgiver · Rating 4 out of 5]

So interesting. always suspected but I never knew about this corroboration. So interesting to learn about the background, the people and the extent. Interested in WWII, Navy, Mafia, Sicily....read it.

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story that this book investigates and presents seems pretty interesting. However, the presentation of said story is bland due to an almost inexplicable absence of tension. I don’t know how that’s possible when facts about ships being sunk or thousands dying or mobsters doing what mobsters do are all woven into the story. I found myself shrugging my shoulders and saying, “Meh, I’m 242 pages in, and I really don’t care how it ends. I’ll Google it.”

This felt like a data-driven historical report. That might be your thing, and that’s totally great. But it’s not mine.

[Nette · Rating 5 out of 5]

History class has begun! Matthew Black brought us the most interesting lesson in World War II. Operation Underworld is filled with espionage and crime. Two men, leading different lives, standing at very different ends of right versus wrong, come together to put the country over everything they took an oath to honor. Yes, Commander Haffenden might have crossed certain boundaries and lines. Yes, Charles "Lucky" Luciano had his own interests to think about before working with the Navy. But they did. Their collaboration in the end produced what was needed, a win in WWII. What the Navy did afterward, the smear campaigns and denial of such work would have never come to light, if not for the Herlands investigation.
Matthew Black pieced together the accounts based off of the Herlands reports and a number of sources, all listed in the book. If there are further doubts or if the interest accumulates so much you need to dive deep into this amazing part of U.S. History.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

My thanks to both NetGalley and Kensington Books for an advanced copy of this history about the cooperation between organized crime and the American government against the Axis during World War II.

War makes for strange bedfellows. Diverse groups, one a strong tradition bound group, proud of it honor and tradition, and well the other a group of people who shake down people for small amounts of money, control unions for larger amounts of money, and kill people who get in their way, seek to stop them, or to seize control of more territory. For the United States Navy, in the early days of World War II when ships were sinking, rumors rampant, making a deal with organized crime against the Nazis made sense. However what this deal might lead to, or even what it accomplished would be a point of contention, one neither side wanted to brag about. Operation Underworld: How the Mafia and U. S. Government Teamed Up to Win World War II by Matthew Black is how these two groups came together, what they accomplished, and why this strange union is so rarely discussed. And of course who benefited more.

The days following the entry of the United States into the Second World War were not good for the United States. Ships were constantly being sunk by German U-Boats who operated with impunity of the coast, sinking ships during the day within sight of tourists on the beach, or at night as boats were silhouetted by the lights from the shore. The Germans considered the American coast the Happy Hunting Ground as ships didn't travel in convoy, lacked patrol boats, and Americans didn't want to turn off their lights, leaving ships easy to pick off. Survivors talked of being on U-Boats and seeing sliced bread, and full supplies, making the Navy, digging for excuses why the tonnage of lost ships was so high to think that a fifth column of Americans were helping the Germans. The Navy reached out to the people who knew the docks and the Italians who worked there, organized crime to see what they knew, and to place Navy investigators on ships and crews to ferret out spies. As even more ships were sunk, the Navy, one officer in particular decided they needed to deal with more powerful people in the mob. So efforts were made to reach out to Charlie "Lucky" Luciano, who was doing 30 years, but still controlled his gang with an iron hand. And a relationship was made.

A fascinating book about governments, fear and the willingness to break laws for the greater good. A program so successful and one that was considered so important the Navy did its best to destroy every record it could find, and made sure that officers who knew about it were scared into being court martialed into silence. Which makes sense as the relationship really seemed to come to nothing. Yes an officer was gifted a lot of lobsters, and thought that a fine career might await him after the war. And yes the mob did a good job of beating up people who wanted to go on strike for better wages. Neither side seemed to really profit from the deal. The book is very well written, with a lot of fascinating information, and a lot of atmosphere. I do have a problem with the bits of imagining what the characters were thinking, but the author goes into his reasons why in the afterword, and it makes sense. A very interesting history, and a different look at World War II.

Recommended for readers of both history and true crime. The era is described well, with lots of stories of mob actions and heroic actions from the men who served in Italy and Iwo Jima. For a fictional companion, readers who liked this might try Luciano's Luck by Jack Higgins, for an alternate history view of Lucky Luciano did during the invasion of Sicily.

[Stephen · Rating 3 out of 5]

In New York harbor, one of the largest and fastest passenger ships ever built lies on its side, a victim of fire. French-built, the United States seized the Normandie after France fell to Hitler and renamed it the Lafayette, intending it as a troopship to help recover Europe from tyranny. Now, those plans were as defunct as the French defense in spring 1940. How could such a great ship flounder so quickly? Spies, perhaps? With German u-boats patrolling off the eastern seaboard, it wasn’t implausible that agents were snuck on shore – and it was even more plausible that German or Italian immigrants sympathetic to their home countries might aid and abet from inside America! The docks were obviously low-hanging fruit, and they were largely controlled by the Italian-American mafia – would it be possible for Navy intelligence to enlist their aid? It wasn’t as if Mussolini was a friend to the Mafia, after all: he’d persecuted their counterparts in Sicily vigorously. As it happened, the leader of the Syndicate in America, Charles Luciano, was in prison for his prostitution racket – and ready to make a deal. Operation Underworld is a mostly interesting if flawed history of both the mob’s role in helping the Navy secure the New York waterfront, and the Army in preparing for an invasion of Sicily. Its chief merit lies in that its subject is largely unexplored by anyone else, but it suffers from repetition, informality, and taking legends as fact.

When I’d run across Operation Underworld mentions in previous books, the information available was so slight as to leave the impression that Mafia soldiers themselves were actively working dock security for the Navy. The truth is a bit different: the Mafia effectively controlled the docks through control of the unions through which the docks operated, and the union leadership was only happy to help Navy Intelligence by creating Union memberships and jobs for government agents. This started off slow, at first, but allowed the g-men to create a network of patriotic fishermen and dockworkers who pledged to keep their eyes and ears open for anything hinky. One man did catch some men (later proved German agents) changing clothes on a peace, but ultimately the Navy deep-sixed their concern that German subs were being resupplied by parties in North America. Instead, the subs were being resupplied at sea by “milk cow” subs – though that doesn’t explain the presence of consumer goods sold only in the US aboard some German subs. Because many mafiosi like Luciano had contacts in Italy, they were also able to produce information that might be helpful to planning an invasion of Sicily and southern Italy.

As far as the unique content goes, it’s interesting enough — and I say that as someone who has interests in both the Mafia and WW2, so those who don’t may be less impressed. The author frequently revisits the backstory of Luciano, Lansky, etc, telling the story of their rise to power. This could be criticized as unnecessary bloat, but it did punctuate a stream of legal meetings and phone calls with occasional excitement like assassinations. Unfortunately, that adds its own problems: Black repeats legends like “The Night of the Sicilian Vespers” like they were facts. This, combined with his all-too-frequent and constantly repeated use of nicknames gives the book an unprofessional and sometimes sensationalistic air. Although I enjoyed this for its unique content, given how much of the text is accounts of meetings — meetings between lawyers and feds, meetings between lawyers and mafiosi, between mafiosi and mafiosi, etc — it took me longer than expected to get through.

[Ben Savage · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75. A surprising contender for Pandemic Written books.

I will be honest, all I initially knew about this fascinating subject was a line from a Marvel movie - " In World War 2, the Navy made a deal with gangsters to protect the waterfront. Troubled times produce strange allies."
And I felt that in this book. It details the true and real life fashions of that unholy alliance. Let's have the US Navy work with La Cosa Notra, or " The Mafia" to prevent sabotage of the piers and docks and working class folks who toil there.

It reads like an adventure novel, with several key events- German Sabatouers on the beach in Long Island, breaking into a neutral consulate in New York, the dramatic storming of Sicily in Italy. The book really underscores how emmeshed recent immigrants were to one particular town in their region, and the conflicting pulls they had on their loyalties. So to, do we see how Lucky Luciano effectively Americanized the Mafia process, with a surprisingly democratic process.

Now comes the let down. There is a lot of flat characterization, small amounts of repeating and no real judgment on the participants. I guess that there is a time and a place for that and it is a history book, but this seems to relate extra judicial killings with the same passion as nascent counter intelligence work and domestic life. I know that the author was just presenting the facts, but his summation sometimes appears to be " Hey this gangster was bad and this Navy Commander who partnered with him was bad, but not equally as bad, but they are both dead now".

Definetly a good read!

[Rick Walton · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well written and very well documented account of the desperate measures taken by a naval officer and his hand picked team to defend the port of New York against the terror posed by an attack on our shores by the Nazis at a time when winning the war was anything but assured. Discovering that the ports are under control of the Mafia, they were able to tap into this crooked, yet patriotic, network to gain intelligence and protect the city. Although the lines between criminal activity and essential spy craft were sometimes blurred, the motivation of the naval leaders was to use whatever means available to perform a necessary service no matter how distasteful. As the allies used some of this intelligence to plan and execute the successful invasion of Italy, eventually leading to an Allied victory, the desperate methods used were too embarrassing to be made public resulting in a massive coverup.

Overall, an amazing story with lots of recognizable racketeers from the last century and many unknown names of patriotic naval officers who, without any better resources, used available, albeit criminal resources, to get the job done. the author uses many resources to document this unusual story and, becoming familiar with the many personalities, is able to fill in the gaps. At times the narrative bogs down with too much detail for a casual reader, but if you power through these sections you will find yourself aware of a very interesting chapter of military history.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this book in a Goodreads Giveaway. I originally became aware of Operation Underworld when reading Dan Fesperman's novel The Letter Writer, and I was very glad to win a copy of a nonfiction book about the same topic. Operation Underworld was a US Naval operation in which the US Navy used the criminals that controlled the New York City docks and coastline to prevent sabotage and the infiltration of German spies into the US. This book is a fascinating book about the operation, headed by Commander Charles Radcliffe Haffenden, who was more interested in finding solutions to problems than following strict naval protocols and rules to achieve those solutions. The book is also a fascinating look at organized crime in the US during and after World War II. Matthew Black describes the genre of the book "narrative nonfiction," meaning that he has taken some liberties in recreating conversations and events for which no physical records exist. After the war, the US Navy burned most of the records connected to Operation Underworld, because they felt the Navy would be embarrassed at having used criminals as informants during the war. Black and other historians have had to rely primarily on the Herlands Report and a few other sources for information. The book did have a few proofreading and grammatical errors.

[Namrata Wong · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book purports to the mafia's significant assistance to the US win WWII. I didn't see much evidence of this. All the mafia stories were fascinating to me, but I couldn't give it more than 3 stars as the premise was just not supported. The author drew in real-life characters, but at the end of the day, the Germans weren't using spies in US shipping boats on in ports, which was the genesis of this whole operation. It was mentioned that a lot of information was passed onto the navy, but the author never really explained what that was. There was once incident where the "black Hitler" was found easily using mob connections. And then in the invasion of Sicily, the troops used mafia connections to gain some intel and protection while on land. But that was really it. I felt that yes, the mafia was linked to the navy, but it was more to give the navy, or Heffenden mainly, control of the ports and to squash any strikes or anything like that.

Great book if you want to read more back stories of famous mafioso we've all heard about, not so great if you want to see how they really helped in WWII.

[Suman Sharma · Rating 3 out of 5]

A dull read. A detailed account of little known involvement of the US navy with the New York mafia. The initial premise for this recruitment of NY dockworkers was that fisherboats were supplying info/ supplies of oil/ bread to the German uboats which were destroying trans atlantic shipments. However that was refuted halfway through whenit was discovered bigger uboats were doing so.
It was interesting to learn at the outset that it was the sinking of a French ship in the Hudson river The Normandie that triggered the events described.
Also interesting was the account of fourGermans who landed at Long Island, & the promtness with which they were dealt.
Another interesting story was how the Navy tried to coverup their involvement with the Mafia.
The invasion of Sicily & Iwo Jima was interesting.
But it was hard keeping track of the many characters- crimins & lawyers that played a role.Also fascinating was the description of the power struggle amongst the Mafia leaders.
3.5 for content
4 for research

[Gregg Lines · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting read, but like a few other reviews have said, the limited information available to the author contributes to a slower pace and seemingly directionless end.

Like many other studies on WWII, this book offers a glance into a very specific segment of the population and how the war affected them. I thought it was interesting to see how mafia in Italy and the US were having to adapt to the changing political tides.

Through this secretive partnership, the navy was able to better understand enemy operations in the United States and to begin to counter sabotage and other spy efforts.

From a human drama perspective, it was interesting to see how the participants involved all has slightly different motives and desired outcomes.

It was a good read. I was hyped up because of the long wait on Libby. It was good, but again, I think had some more of the original sources survived it would be more robust. The author talks about the destruction of records in the book.

[Lucia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed this book.

I had doubts about this book because:

1: I love history but organized crime is not an area of study I gravitate towards
2: I had doubts about how much can be written about an operation like this, considering that it should be a secret

But, Matthew Black delivered a very compelling story. The work and creativity of Commander Haffenden has gone unrecognized for too long, as well as the contributions of Luciano and his family. Sure, most people involved were altruistic, but if you subscribe to the theory that humans can't be purely altruistic, this will add fuel to the fire. Luciano and team eventually became in it for favors. Haffenden was in it for the glory.

That said, the presentation of this story was compelling. And Black's end note about his conjectures behind his presentation was sound.

If you love to learn about efforts on the home front during WWII and/or the Mafia, this is a great book for you.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

​I really enjoyed Operation Underworld, especially how it weaves together different threads of history. The fact that almost the entire story takes place in New York City was a nice touch, creating a rich tapestry of mafia history, World War II history, and the history of the city itself.

​The true story behind the Navy men was, in some ways, just as interesting as the history of the mobsters. While names like Lucky Luciano, Joe Adonis, and Meyer Lansky will always live in infamy, the book does a great job of highlighting the lesser-known figures and the morally complex situations they found themselves in.

​Overall, it's a fascinating look at a forgotten chapter of American history. While it might not have the narrative flow of a novel, its strength lies in the detailed and well-researched accounts of a truly unique wartime collaboration.

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book and its ramifications all began with the sinking of the Normandie in the harbor of New York.
Anything with research this extensive cannot be read in a day or two despite the fact that some records could not be verified because they were BURNED by government authorities!
There have been a number of fiction (Andrea Camilleri and Clive Cussler are the first to come to mind) and nonfiction books ((OSS by R. Harris Smith, for instance) with a few pages or even a chapter or two on this aspect of WW2 espionage in the past few years. But this is the first meticulously researched and documented book on the subject that I am aware of. Excellent!
I requested and received an EARC from Kensington Books/Citadel via NetGalley. Thank you!

[Laurie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fascinating, well-researched historical look into the connections between the Mafia and the US government that contributed vital information credited with helping to win World War II. It’s the story of Naval intelligence Commander Charles Radcliffe Haffenden who had the idea to recruit as his own spies, members of La Cosa Nostra. Haffenden was prepared to make a deal with the devil—former Public Enemy #1, Charles “Lucky” Luciano…Haffenden wanted something in return for concessions to Luciano—Luciano’s contacts in Italy to track the Nazis’ movements. This is a tale of intrigue, espionage, and crime that is very riveting, and provides insight into the backdrop of vital actions that were at play behind the scenes during WWII.

[Jennifer Chappell · Rating 3 out of 5]

very interesting, little known details from the war effort on the homefront. I didn't realize the problem of you both sinking, I didn't realize the cooperation of the mafia, or a lot of the details preparing for battle action in Italy and africa. there were a number of things I had to stop and research to understand better context of the organization of the mafia families and because there were so many individuals who participated in this story it was hard to keep them straight. I frequently referenced information on individual mob players to understand how controversial some of these interactions were. there was a lot more information that I was looking for and I wish there was a simplified version but it was interesting and I did learn things.

[Kristina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a story I never knew. It was enlightening about how the mafia became a part of the WW2 story and how Naval Intelligence was dismayed by it. Commander Haffenden was told to find a way to stop American ships from being blown up by German U-boats. This was stopping the shipping of all supplies to England in the early days of the war. And Commander Haffenden knew he had to go to the Magia for information since they basically ran the ports in New York City. This, begins working with Socks Lanza and Lucky Luciano.

It is kind of amazing the lengths they went and how the information helped them in the invasion of Sicily. very informative and a good one to read.

[Steven · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't know until reading this book that I don't really care for the narrative format in my history books. It never clicked for me. I'm also not sure if it fully committed to the narrative quality as it often would inject factual information. I think it tried to strike a balance that never really hit the mark.

The content is interesting but as other readers have pointed out, it is a bit thin. A lot of time is spent on things outside the scope of the actual operation. All in all it is worth reading if you find interest in the topic, but it likely won't be the best thing you've ever read.

[mary e toler]

Amazing revelations 😊

For WWII history buffs and those interested in the American Italian mafia , this is an extremely well researched and documented investigation and narrative of what was a very classified Naval Intelligence operation to utilize the patriotic allegiance of Italian American Mafioso to protect the port of NYC and ships
during the war and obtain valuable information concerning Allied invasion of Sicily and Southern Italy. It it told in story form that entertains and fascinates the reader.

[Mikaela Bamford · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 /5 - rounded down

Really intriguing topic. However, the book lacks some compelling aspects to keep the reader engaged the whole time. There are a lot of major players in this book - I started writing some of the names down while reading to keep myself organized.

The author's prose makes up for the stale bits in this book. It is well-written and informative.

I would only recommend this to people who are extreme history buffs - with a special interest in military history, and people who enjoy mafia books.

[Danny VanVleet · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fascinating read. Not only a section of WWII that I had no idea about, but also a very interesting look into the criminal underworld and the mafia and how far reaching they were. As always the epilogue of what happens to the major players is sad and our governments need to cover up things, and I have to say it didn't get quite as juicy as I thought it might from the book description. But even so - I greatly enjoyed reading it.