Fallen Angel: The Unlikely Rise of Walter Stadnick and the Canadian Hells Angels

by Jerry Langton

Walter Stadnick is not an imposing man. At five-foot-four, his face and arms scarred by fire in a motorcycle accident, he would not spring to mind as a leader of Canada's most notorious biker gang, the Hells Angels. yet through sheer guts and determination, intelligence and luck, this Hamilton-born youth who had the nickname of "Nurget" rose in the Hells Angels ranks to become national president. Not only did he lead the Angels through the violent war with their rivals the rock machine in Montreal in the Nineties, Stadnick saw opportunity to grow the Hells Angels into a national criminal gang. he was a visionary--and a highly successful one.

Bikers are not known for their fondness for rival gangs. Stadnick and the Angels fought and defeated rival gangs, or used power of persuasion to patch them over. As Stadnick's influence spread, law enforcement took notice of the growing presence of the Angels in Ontario, Manitoba and British Columbia. However, Stadnick's success did not come without a price. Arrested and charged with 13 counts of first-degree murder, stadnick beat the murder charges but was convicted of gangsterism and is currently serving time.

Fallen Angel details one man's improbable rise to power in one of the world's most violent organizations, while shedding light on how this enigmatic and dangerous biker gang operated and why it remains so powerful.

Genres: Crime, Nonfiction, True Crime, Biography

296 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

Reviews

[Crissy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting read on the Hells Angels.
I liked the descriptions of Hamilton, most of which were from the 80s to early 2000s so it was interesting to see how much the city has changed an developed since then!

[Denna Oman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read this book a few times great read!!!

[Brian · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another of those "you should read this" books given to me after a conversation. The writer can write a lead line and that's about it. Tedious litany of previously hashed over stuff. And much of it not about the guy in the title.

[M.J. Mandoki · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is not well written. The author is a journalist who has no experience in book writing. The good thing is that he admits to it! On the other hand, the book is filled with excellent information on outlaw bikers in Canada. It is a fascinating read!

[Jeff R. · Rating 1 out of 5]

Trash! When it comes to his understanding of outlaw motorcycle clubs and his expertise, Jerry Langton needs to stick to solely discussing Canadian MC's and he has no understanding of how the clubs operate on an international scope or even in America. Unless you're a Canadian who is interested in Canadian motorcycle clubs, which even though they may have some of the same names operate totally different than American outlaw motorcycle club culture, don't waste your time on this garbage. I actually threw mine in the garbage when I was finished with it.

[Linda]

It was slow read

Some interesting facts .Had trouble reading bounced around too much.Was surprised at the amount of bombings.and money paid to informants.

[Kevin Clement · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good all around book about Canada's Hells Angels and MC culture.

[Lorenzo Sivilotti · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sloppily written, but entertaining enough as pulpy true crime.
6/10

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read. Disturbing description of some crimes.

[Ad · Rating 4 out of 5]

this romance of riding a motorbike on the open road with a bunch of freedom loving brothers is demystified in this account. Hells Angels are the lords of the underworld and a violent world it is. Everything is so cutthroat and evil in their world. It is quite interesting to learn the way the organization runs, the codes they live by, and what certain things mean. what initially attracted me to them was the alienation and distaste for laws and how they run by there own set of rules. but after reading this in no way would i care to live in that world of constant brutality and having to think about getting murderer each time i go anywhere. Everyone is out to get each other in the end just for the almighty dollar or to gain lesser sentences. almost no one escapes trouble in the end..one really interesting point is finding out how the bikers became to be after world war 2 this is really cool part of the story.

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is a very complete profile of the characters involved in the Quebec biker wars of the early 90s. However, the character profiles almost come at a fault as there is such a big supporting cast that we lose track of who's who between cops, Rockers, and Hells Angels. Plus, there are long lapses where we lose all sense of what our Fallen Angel, Walter Stadnick, is doing, or role is in the narrative.

[Michelle Winters · Rating 3 out of 5]

so far so good, but depending on how many books you've read on the subject, you may not find the content as surprising as if this is the first you've read on the topic....yeah that kind of held true til the end.