Havana Nocturne

How the Mob Owned Cuba...and Then Lost It to the Revolution

De: T. J. English

Narrado por: Mel Foster

In Havana Nocturne, T. J. English offers a riveting, multifaceted true tale of organized crime, political corruption, roaring nightlife, revolution, and international conflict that interweaves the dual stories of the mob in Havana and the event that would overshadow it: the Cuban Revolution.

Bringing together long-buried historical information and English's own research in Havana - including interviews with the era's key survivors - Havana Nocturne takes listeners back to Cuba in the years when it was a veritable devil's playground for mob leaders Meyer Lansky and Charles "Lucky" Luciano. Thanks to strong ties with the island's brutal dictator, President Batista, the mob soon owned the biggest luxury hotels and casinos and launched an unprecedented tourist boom.

But their dreams collided with those of Fidel Castro, Che Guevara, and others who would lead the country's disenfranchised to overthrow their corrupt government and its foreign partners - an epic cultural battle that English captures in all its sexy, decadent, ugly glory.

©2008 T. J. English (P)2008 Tantor

Reseñas de la Crítica

"English's engaging narrative reads with the gripping quality of fiction: the dark underworld of Havana comes to life....Highly recommended." ( Library Journal)
"Crime writer English...unfolds a story whose main outline will be familiar to any fan of The Godfather: Part II, but whose twists and turns no screenplay could keep up with." ( Kirkus Reviews)

Business Trouble In Paradise

Before this book I had, of course, heard that the Mob once had ties to Cuba, but I never realized the extent of that involvement. I found this historical account to be very engaging and, at times, even quite exciting. The most interesting element is the business acumen exercised by the mob bosses who ran the casinos in Cuba as lucrative profit making ventures; staying within the local laws and customs. Their skills, garnered through years of illegal operations in the United States, served them well in dealing with the warlords of the Cuban dictatorship. Had it not been for the revolution of Fidel Castro the mob may have built a Caribbean empire; a sovereign underworld nation.

Mel Foster’s narration is quite dramatic and many of the people are given accents that help to keep the figures straight.

Interesting story, VERY DETAILED!

Very detailed information, at times far too detailed. Some of the tangents are a little too distant from the story line.
The narration is a little too slow. But that's rectified by playing the book at x1.25 speed.

Excellent guide to the mob in Cuba

Havana was last vegas east….until it wasn’t.
Good stuff on Lansky, Batista, and Castro.

Not for reactionaries

This is an excellent, well researched and very listenable audiobook. T.J. English's prose is crisp and engaging and is matched with solid narration. To those reviewers who complain that the work lacks detail or that English is an apologist for Castro, I would disagree completely. English doesn't shy away from Castro's shady beginnings with the gangsterismo movement, nor does English ever contend that the Cuba revolution was not imbued with the spirit of both Marx and Marti right from its inception. I found the author balanced in his presentation of historical detail, not left wing in the slightest.

This is a true crime novel about the mob in Cuba, not a historical monograph assessing the Castro regime, and as such it succeeds and entertains.

An Extremely Interesting and Compelling Read

Havana Nocturne is a must read for anyone interested in the 1950s mafia expansion into Cuba. As a great admirer of Meyer Lansky, this book provides valuable insight into his cunning business practices and how the "Little Man" successfully led the Havana Mob. I found myself looking forward to my morning and afternoon commutes just so I could check-in on Lansky and his cohorts.

This book would be an absolute 5-stars for me, but for the narration. It took me several hours to get used to Mel Foster's dry and seemingly monotone voice, which reminded me of the teacher in Ferris Bueller.

Nonetheless, I absolutely recommended this book and hope that all my credits are as well spent.

I liked this a lot.

I don't know much about pre-Castro Havana or the Cuban Revolution, but I thought this was a good introduction. The description of the gangsters and their relationships to the Batista regime were very detailed. It is clear that the author interviewed several people who were eye witnesses, including Meyer Lansky's driver. They seem to feel some nostalgia for the era. I imagine the depiction of the revolution will not please everyone since it is rather sympathetic but I thought it was very interesting. The narration was well-done.

Fascinating

Aficionados of organized-crime history will find familiar names and settings here, but with an exotic twist. The backgrounding on Cuban culture and politics was particularly satisfying for me.I knocked off one star from my rating because this treatment didn't rise to the level of truly riveting non-fiction. But listeners just acquainting themselves with true-life characters of the mob should find it more engaging.

The narrator was all right, but his lousy pronunciation of Spanish terms irritated me enough to reduce my rating by another star. Couldn't they get a bilingual narrator for a book so steeped in Spanish language?

Very Informative

I would recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in what the golden age of gaming was in Cuba.

GOOD HISTORICAL LOOK WELL WRITTEN

Although I had lived during the Cuban Revolution, I had only a vague understanding of its circumstances. I was unaware that organized crime was really running the economy of the island. I had heard that Meyer Lansky was the Jewish Treasurer of the mob but didn't know how much of his influence was centered on Cuba. I also was unaware of the rivalry between Havana and Las Vegas.

I found the book well researched and entertaining. It is too bad that Fidel Castro didn't take his fortunate opportunity to turn the island into a true democracy. Unfortunately he turned out to be little better than his predecessor, although he did get rid of the Mob influence. Havana, the Mob, gambling and sex are the main themes of the book.

loved it

I will admit that I'm a little embarrassed that I don't know much about u.s. and cuba relationship and this book provided a very interesting perspective that has stirred my interest and has prompted me to listen to more books concerning the history of Cuba and it's relationship to the U.S.