Mafia: Inside the Dark Heart

Best and most accurate book on the mafia that I have read. And I’ve read a lot!

Great bit of research. Difficult at times to remember which villain is which, there are so many of them.

Great book loads of info into Italian crime

The author combines personal field work with existing and well-known comments on the Sicilian Mafia and arrives at sketching an impressive global history of the `Honorable Society', even integrating current events.He distinguishes three different periods in the reign and the downfall of `Il Sistema'.First period (19th century till the 1940s - Sicily)In the 19th century, a group of socially relevant people forces a break in the direct dependence of the peasants from the landowners. They become middlemen, asking protection money (pizzu) to keep the `social peace' intact and form an `Honorable Society', the Mafia.In the 1920s, the Secret Sect is banned by the fascists. But, it regains a strong position during and after WW II through its `Unholy Alliance' with the Vatican, the Christian Democrats and US intelligence in their fight against the communists.The influence of the rural Mafia in Sicily ends with the framing and the death of Salvatore Giuliano.Second Period (20th century - US - Italy)In the US, the Sicilian Mafia forms a criminal (not a social) organization whose financial strength is built on alcohol trafficking (the Prohibition period) and prostitution (firmly controlled by Lucky Luciano).With the return of Lucky Luciano in his `motherland' and his alliance with US intelligence, the Mafia could infiltrate and corrupt the Italian political system (Licio Gelli and the Masonic Lodge P2). Other revenue sources appear (kidnapping, drug trafficking).The enormous revenues are laundered through the Vatican Bank and the Banco Ambrosiano (Michele Sindona, the deaths of Pope John Paul I and God's banker Roberto Calvi).Third Period (US and Italy)In the US, the children of the Mafiosi earn respectability with legal businesses developed with the resources of their forbears.In Italy, `Il Sistema' and the Italian political order implodes with the fall of the Berlin Wall and communism. The reasons for the defeat are manifold: loss of markets (drugs), loss of political influence, the courage of Italian magistrates and the pentiti (`who knew this time that they would not be betrayed by the authorities to whom they had run.')However, a new man, Silvio Berlusconi, comes to the forefront. His financial clout is clouded in (also Mafia money?) mystery.A.G.D. Maran wrote a formidable thriller-like book about an important `evil' phenomenon in the history of mankind.Highly recommended.

Inaccurate, poorly researched and a complete waste of money. The author has some very basic mistakes in this book including poorly translated Sicillian. Readers beware, I agree with the first review: buy cosa nostra by John Dickie if you want an accurate, factual history of the Sicilian Mafia.

This book did not hold my interest and the author seemed to be talking more about the history and politics of Italy in the 80s rather than focus on the mafia itself. There are also times where the author goes off topic and talks about Iraq, 9/11 and terrorism (which he also incorrectly blames on Islam). I was greatly disappointed. I would definitely recommend another read for those interested in mafia books.

I found this book rather distasteful. The cover notes state that Maran discovered a family secret that ignited his interest in the mafia. I can only assume that he had an ancestor who was a mafioso priest, as the book is an apology for the church and the Mafia. His ludicrous belief that the 'first' mafia was a rather benevolent charity that helped out peasants is beyond belief, as is his assertion that the Vatican was an innocent victim in the banking scandals.The quote that sums up this poorly researched and histrionic pile of pap is 'The Mafia were an integral part of society, they were accepted, were admired and envied by many, and probably did no more harm than a corrupt English regional council---'A book which should newver have been published, and Maran should have stayed as a surgeon - we would all be happier.

I must agree with Keith Andreeti and A Crimi in that this is a very disappointing book.The style, for a supposedly non-fiction work, is bizarrely opinionated with many, many, unsubstantiated 'facts' casually thrown in, often with the thoughts or motives of the protagonists (often long dead) stated as if the author had been in conversation with them. The author's notes breezily refer to numerous sources for background information yet he appears to dismiss certain sources as (in his opinion) 'fantasy'. Where is the academic rigour shown by the likes of Claire Sterling (Octopus) or Alexander Stille (Excellent Cadavers)?The author's constant exclamation marks do not sit well with this subject matter and while I wouldn't normally criticise typos nor claim any particular expertise in translation from Italian/Sicilian to English, I found the italicised 'lungamare' (shouldn't that be lungomare?) particularly amateurish from either the allegedly Italophile author or his inept editor. Even worse were the uses of actual names that could easily be checked, but were written incorrectly time and again. Vincenzo Sinagra becomes Vincenzo Singara and Palermo's international airport, renamed Falcone e Borsellino in recent times, has evidently also had a change of location, now being located at Punta Raisa rather than Punta Raisi. Are these points petty? For a supposedly non-fiction account I don't believe they are - factual accuracy is surely all-important in building credibility.In summary, very litle credible new information but lots of 'what if' opinion from an author who appears to have done little more than read the same books as anybody else with more than a passing interest in Italian/Sicilian organised crime.

Thank you, exactly what i wanted!!

I bought this book as a Christmas gift to my Father in-law and he loves it.... Has barely put it down yet...

This is amateurishly-written, as though maybe it were a PhD thesis and they turned it into a book to capitalize on the interest in Mafia books. There are so many more books that are much, much better than this. Telling: The Author uses Exclamation Points Constantly, in places where a period would be better. Only buy this if you are desperate for Sicillian Mafia Content.