An enthralling history of Italian organised crime by the author of the international bestseller COSA NOSTRA.

The Sicilian mafia, or Cosa Nostra, is far from being Italy's only dangerous criminal fraternity. The south of the country hosts two other major mafias: the camorra, from Naples and its hinterland; and the 'ndrangheta, the mafia from the poor and isolated region of Calabria that has now risen to become the most powerful mob of all.

Each of these brotherhoods has its own methods, its own dark rituals, its own style of ferocity and corruption. Their early history is little known; indeed some of it has been entirely shrouded in myth and silence until now.

MAFIA BROTHERHOODS is a book of breathtaking ambition, charting the birth and rise of all three of Italy's mafias. It blends ground-breaking archival research, passionate narrative, and shrewd historical analysis to bring Italy's unique 'criminal ecosystem', and the three terrifying criminal brotherhoods that evolved within it, to life on the page.

The author of the bestselling COSA NOSTRA explores the previously underexposed mafias of Southern Italy.

About the Author

John Dickie is Professor of Italian Studies at University College London. Hodder & Stoughton published his Cosa Nostra: A History of the Sicilian Mafia in 2004, to ecstatic reviews. It became an international bestseller, with over 20 translations, and won the CWA Dagger Award for Non-fiction that year. Since then he has published Delizia!: The Epic History of the Italians and their Food (2007) - now a six-part TV series for HIstory Channel Italia and other networks worldwide. His most recent books are Mafia Brotherhoods (2011) and Mafia Republic: Italy's Criminal Curse (2013).

In 2005 the President of the Italian Republic appointed him a Commendatore dell'Ordine della Stella della Solidarieta Italiana.

Reviews
'Readable history'. * TLS *
REVIEWS FOR BLOOD BROTHERHOODS (THE HARDBACK EDITION): * . *
His narrative bowls along, powered by the sort of muscular prose one associates with great detective fiction. An exhilarating history. * Financial Times *
'Exciting and well-written, it plays out like a 19th-century Sopranos'. * Shortlist *
Both fine social history and hair-raising true crime, this account of the Italian underworld clans tells a grimly fascinating tale. * Independent *
Combines his trademark of scholarly documentation with a rattling good read. * Matthew Fort *
Chilling but essential reading if you want to understand the mindset of the darkest elements of Italian life. * RTE Guide *
By shining a light so powerfully into the darkest recesses of mafia mythology and history, Dickie's new book will certainly provide a concrete tool in the anti-mafia struggle to which many Italians and Calabrians in Australia and Italy are passionately committed. * Australian Literary Review *
'enthralling ... chillingly charts the birth and rise of all three of Italy's mafias'. * Dr John Guy *
Magisterial ... absorbing. * The Scotsman *
BLOOD BROTHERHOODS is almost certainly the most ambitious true-crime assignment ever. The result is a stunning success: a sprawling, powerful historical narrative that is the definitive story of Sicily's Mafia, the Camorra of Naples, and Calabria's 'Ndrangheta. * The Adelaide Advertiser *



Book Information
ISBN 9780340963944
Author John Dickie
Format Paperback
Page Count 464
Imprint Sceptre
Publisher Hodder & Stoughton
Weight(grams) 374g
Dimensions(mm) 198mm * 164mm * 31mm