by Robert Lacey
First published 1993
Meyer Lansky starts as a scrappy kid running with Lucky Luciano and Bugsy Siegel on New York's Lower East Side. The three boys forge bonds that will reshape organized crime in America. Lansky discovers his gift for numbers and strategy while his friends prefer violence and flash. He forms lucrative partnerships with Frank Costello and other powerful figures as prohibition creates vast opportunities. Lansky expands beyond the mainland, establishing casino operations in Havana that generate enormous profits. The book traces his transformation from street tough to financial mastermind of the underworld. Lacey shows how Lansky navigated the complex relationships and deadly rivalries that defined his era. At its heart, this is the story of an immigrant's son who built an empire through cunning and calculation.
Genres: american-fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, crime, biographical-fiction
Vibes: dark, emotional, fast-paced, gritty, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, rags-to-riches, rise-and-fall
Setting: Cuba, Havana, New York, United States
Period: Prohibition Era
Hardcover · Random House Value Publishing
Content warnings: violence