THE BLACK HAND

The Black Hand was a crime wave that took early 20th century New York City to its knees. It was terrifying mostly because it was an idea, not a person or group. Ideas take root, or in this case, they seed fear and terror. From fear and terror comes anarchy, a total breakdown in order that can turn society upside down. At a time when it seemed like no onewas brave or smart enough to fight back, one man stood out. The gripping true story of the origins of the mafia in America—and the brilliant Italian-born detective who gave his life to stop it.

They called Joseph Petrosino "the Italian Sherlock Holmes". He started his career by taking on the first Italian crime families, tracking them in elaborate disguises and infiltrating their ranks. Immensely strong, he fought them in the streets of Little Italy and had the scars to prove it. It was said that every mobster in New York knew Petrosino on sight and that to be seen in his presence was a death warrant. This is one of the great untold immigrant stories.

When The Black Hand struck, New Yorkers turned to Petrosino to protect the city. Elite Upper East Siders feared the crime wave would move uptown and then spread nationally. In battling the scourge, Petrosino, along with his now forgotten ally in the fight, the pioneering reformer Arthur Hale Woods, altered the course of American life in ways that are instantly recognizable today.

THE BLACK HAND uses never-before-seen archival material and Petrosino's own letters to draw the first full-length portraitof a controversial genius and amoment in time when crime paid. Unfolding a story rich with resonance in our own era, The Black Hand is fast-paced narrative history at its very best.