Published November 2020 by Sobriety Press. Previously published as separate editions - see below for details.
From the cover of the book:
Three decades in the life of Jewish gangster, Alex Cohen, as he arrives in the US and forges a life for himself and his family using the blood, sweat and tears of those who stand in his way.This digital box set contains the first three books in the saga of Alex Cohen's life.
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The Alex Cohen series is one I have been following from the start. I have now read the first four books - the last one, Casino Chiseler, in November last year - and I am looking forward with relish to book Five, Cuban Heel, which is coming very soon.
If you like a gangster tale, especially one that takes you on a saga through the changing times, then this is a great series to get stuck into.
To help you get a flavour of the series, I have given the blurbs from each book and reproduced my reviews of the first three books, which are included in this boxed set, for your reading pleasure. Enjoy!
Book One: The Bowery Slugger. First published September 2019.
When Alex Cohen arrives in 1915 America, he seizes the land of opportunity with both hands and grabs it by the throat. But success breeds distrust and Alex must choose between controlling his gang and keeping his friend alive.
What would you do if the person you trusted most is setting you up to die at your enemies' hands?
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The Bowery Slugger introduces us to the seedy side of the Jewish Ghetto of New York, at a time when war is waging across Europe.
Removed from the constant threat of violence that Alex and his family have left behind in the Ukraine, their minds turn to ways in which they can make America their new home. How do you support yourself when you step foot in a new country when practically all you have is the clothes you stand up in? It soon becomes clear that this is not going to be easy, especially when you cannot even speak the language.
Leopold Borstinski cleverly transports us to the heart of the Bowery, New York, where Jewish immigrants have made their home. You can almost feel yourself on the same streets as Alex, as he searches for a way to bring some money home for his family - the noise, the hustle and bustle, and the sound of Yiddish voices all around.
Removed from the constant threat of violence that Alex and his family have left behind in the Ukraine, their minds turn to ways in which they can make America their new home. How do you support yourself when you step foot in a new country when practically all you have is the clothes you stand up in? It soon becomes clear that this is not going to be easy, especially when you cannot even speak the language.
Leopold Borstinski cleverly transports us to the heart of the Bowery, New York, where Jewish immigrants have made their home. You can almost feel yourself on the same streets as Alex, as he searches for a way to bring some money home for his family - the noise, the hustle and bustle, and the sound of Yiddish voices all around.
It is almost too easy for Alex to find himself on the wrong side of the law, drawn by the pull of an easy buck in the land where the streets are said to be paved with gold. He soon makes a name for himself with the local Jewish gangs as someone trustworthy and good with his fists, earning himself both the nickname "Slugger" and promotion within the criminal fraternity. But Alex's choices are complicated by the fact that he has fallen in love with innocent fellow immigrant Rebecca, and she wants no part of the life he is now embroiled in. How can he balance the pull of easy money against that of true love?
This book has such an evocative feel for the struggle of immigrants first arriving in New York at the beginning of the 20th Century (think Mario Puzo's The Godfather, when Vito Corleone arrives in America with his family). What makes this book so unusual to read is that this time our new companions are Jewish, rather than Italian. I found this really interesting, as I have read a lot about the early Irish, Black and Italian gangs in New York, but very little about the gangs established by the Jewish settlers to the city. It was fascinating to read about the involvement of the Jewish gangs with the Union movement and the early days of their collaboration with the Italian mob, and the contrast of the new settlers to their second generation compatriots was very cleverly done.
It is true to say that the characters are a little stereotypical - for example, we have the troubled poor boy making a name for himself; the best friend who contemplates betrayal; the beautiful, innocent maiden with dreams, who catches the eye of our boy; and "the tart with a heart" who falls for our lovelorn boy and offers him comfort, but this did spoil my overall enjoyment of the story. I really became caught up in Alex's life and was very keen to find out where his choices would lead him.
The story builds nicely and the closing pages of this first volume in Alex Cohen's story are very exciting. I am looking forward to seeing where the story goes in the second instalment, as our writer seems to be taking Alex down a very different path at the end of the book.
This book is completely plot driven and a great story it is too - gritty and violent, it will keep you turning the pages until the thrilling climax!
This book has such an evocative feel for the struggle of immigrants first arriving in New York at the beginning of the 20th Century (think Mario Puzo's The Godfather, when Vito Corleone arrives in America with his family). What makes this book so unusual to read is that this time our new companions are Jewish, rather than Italian. I found this really interesting, as I have read a lot about the early Irish, Black and Italian gangs in New York, but very little about the gangs established by the Jewish settlers to the city. It was fascinating to read about the involvement of the Jewish gangs with the Union movement and the early days of their collaboration with the Italian mob, and the contrast of the new settlers to their second generation compatriots was very cleverly done.
It is true to say that the characters are a little stereotypical - for example, we have the troubled poor boy making a name for himself; the best friend who contemplates betrayal; the beautiful, innocent maiden with dreams, who catches the eye of our boy; and "the tart with a heart" who falls for our lovelorn boy and offers him comfort, but this did spoil my overall enjoyment of the story. I really became caught up in Alex's life and was very keen to find out where his choices would lead him.
The story builds nicely and the closing pages of this first volume in Alex Cohen's story are very exciting. I am looking forward to seeing where the story goes in the second instalment, as our writer seems to be taking Alex down a very different path at the end of the book.
This book is completely plot driven and a great story it is too - gritty and violent, it will keep you turning the pages until the thrilling climax!
Book Two: East Side Hustler. First published March 2020.
Alex returns from the Great War almost destroyed by the horrors he has experienced. When he is plucked from certain death by an old friend, he commits to making so much money he'll never know that agony again.
But the route to the top is filled with danger and every time he helps one of his powerful friends like Al Capone, he acquires more enemies who want to see him dead. The turmoil caused by the death of organised crime financier, Arnold Rothstein means Alex must once more fight for his life.
How far would you go to seize the American dream? And could you protect your family along the way from the fellas who want to see you dead?
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This second book, takes us right back to the criminal heart of the Lower East Side, where Alex is on his downers and trying to recover from his war-time experiences, without the support of his blood family, who believe that he died on the battlefield.
However, it is not long before we find Alex back in the bosom of his criminal "family". and this is where the fun starts - especially once Prohibition gets a grip on the liquor and gaming enterprises that have now become Alex's forte.
East Side Hustler takes us on a very different journey to The Bowery Slugger, although it is, in fact, a much more familiar gangster scenario this time around. The world that Leopold Borstinski describes in these pages has much less to do with the cultural make-up of the gangs involved, but is rather more of a text-book lesson in the booze running, speakeasy life and territory battles that went on during the Prohibition years. For the most part, this inevitably makes the action a bit cliched, and it is easy to see where things are headed, although there is a nice little twist of a nod towards Alex's past sins that I was not expecting. I should add that it is best not to get your hopes up for fully-formed female characters here, where the female roles are primarily those of moll or mother..
What I found most enjoyable about this book is the way Leopold Borstinski manages to drop in some of the very big players of the mobster heyday, and I mean some very big names indeed. We are treated to meetings with the likes of Lucky Luciano, Bugsy Siegel, and even the dizzy heights of Alphonse Capone himself, which really made me smile (lots of the also-rans also make an appearance here, so I recommend some googling of names if you have not come across them before).
There is a lot to enjoy in this book, albeit with not many surprises plot-wise, and the male characters are a lot of fun. You can tell the author has worked really hard to create that authentic grown-up gangster noir feel here, and he has pulled it off with some savoir faire, so well done Mr Borstinski, I can tell you are warming to your subject.
I, for one, am looking forward to seeing where Alex's adventures take him next in his forthcoming outing, Midtown Huckster.
Book Three: Midtown Huckster. First published July 2020.
Alex runs Murder Inc for Lucky Luciano. After the death of Prohibition he must find a new way to make money, just as the cops are baying at his heels.
When Luciano goes down for racketeering, Alex loses his protection and is arrested for tax evasion-he must decide between saving his skin and ratting out his friends. If he chooses prison time then his gang will fall apart and he will end up with nothing. If he squeals then he will have to flee the city he loves and the family he once adored.
What would you do in a world where nobody can be trusted and you have everything to lose?
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When we last met Alex, he had become a great success in organised crime circles, rubbing shoulders with some very big names, running booze during Prohibition, and heading up the Murder Inc. operation for Lucky Luciano. However, his marriage had fallen victim to the amount of time and attention he spent on his nefarious work undertakings, his penchant for "skirt", and the lies he told - not to mention the danger he put his family in.
The end of Prohibition marks a big change for Alex. Although he is still flavour of the month with his boss Luciano, and continuing to run a slick hit man operation, organised crime is going through some big changes. With the loss of income from illegal booze sales, crime bosses are now looking at drugs to fill the gap - namely heroin. Although reluctant, at first, to get on board with this new direction, Alex recognises that there is big money to be made, and he is soon up to the gills in the drug venture and reaping the substantial monetary rewards. His marriage is still on the rocks though, even though he seems less enamoured by the attention of other females as time goes by.
But this is also a time of uncomfortable attention from the Feds, buoyed as they are from their success in bringing down Capone, and they are now making trouble in New York that will soon make Alex's life very difficult, and this all adds gloriously to the seedy gangster scene.
I take my hat off to Leopold Borstinski at the way he has manged to find ever more interesting storylines for Alex Cohen as this series progresses. He really seems to have found his niche in the noir historical crime genre, and this adventure is absolutely packed with glorious mob detail that gives the reader a real feel for the era.
In this book, we are in the middle of the 1930s organised crime world and can fully experience the way New York crime lords are organising themselves along syndicate lines, with gangs working closer together and sanctioning each other's operations in a more corporate way - although this doesn't mean they always agree and are not trying to out manoeuvre each other all the time behind the scenes! We also get to see how and why drugs become a big focus for organised crime, which was really interesting.
This is also the era of Eliot Ness and company, with the Feds getting a taste of how they could bring down some of the big criminal fraternity, such as Al Capone and Lucky Luciano. Although everyone surely knows the name of Capone, and is aware of how he met his downfall, I found it fascinating the way Leopold Borstinski shows us how the the attention of the Feds was also focused on the gangs in New York, and that they also had success in making a dent in organised crime there too - gone were the days when you could payoff a few cops and judges, or threaten jurors and witnesses; this is the age of The Untouchables.
Interestingly, this also brings home how organised crime gangs were starting to think seriously about how they needed to create legitimate fronts for their operations that could provide a way to hide the sources of their ill-gotten gains and launder the huge amounts of money their were making.
Leopold Borstinski is really warming to his task in this episode of Alex's life. There is a tantalising feel of The Godfather and a touch of Goodfellas that makes it all very enjoyable - in fact, I think this is the best one yet - and I look forward to much more of this is Alex's next outing, Casino Chiseler.
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I hope that my reviews have given your a taste of these gangster noir books and will encourage you to take the plunge into the Alex Cohen Series - which will eventually number seven books in all. The characters are gritty and the stories compelling, and you will find yourself getting quite attached to Alex Cohen despite the fact that he is and out and out bad boy - and I am pleased to report that there is much more female involvement in the future books too, reflecting the changing times.
The Alex Cohen Boxed Set: Books 1-3 is available to buy now in paperback and e-book formats from your favourite book retailer, or via the links below:
Leopold Borstinski is an independent author whose past careers have included financial journalism, business management of financial software companies, consulting and product sales and marketing, as well as teaching.
There is nothing he likes better so he does as much nothing as he possibly can. He has travelled extensively in Europe and the US and has visited Asia on several occasions. Leopold holds a Philosophy degree and tries not to drop it too often.
He lives near London and is married with one wife, one child and no pets.
Thanks for being part of the blog tour xx
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