Books with title Black Hand

“Gripping . . . A valuable recounting of a lurid and little-known episode in American history.” — Washington Post Beginning in the summer of 1903, an insidious crime wave stirred New York City, then the entire country, into panic. The children of Italian immigrants were being kidnapped and dozens of innocent victims gunned down. Bombs tore apart tenement buildings. Judges, senators, Rockefellers, and society matrons were threatened with gruesome deaths. The perpetrators’ only calling card: the symbol of a black hand. Standing between the American public and the Black Hand’s lawlessness was Joseph Petrosino. Dubbed “the Italian Sherlock Holmes,” he was a dogged and ingenious detective and master of disguise. As the crimes grew ever more bizarre, Petrosino and his all-Italian police squad raced to capture members of the secret criminal society before the nation’s anti-immigrant tremors exploded into catastrophe. The Black Hand is a fast-paced story of mystery, terror, sacrifice, and honor in turn-of-the-century America, from a master of narrative nonfiction. “Taut, brisk, and very cinematic.” — Newsday

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. Film rights optioned by Paramount Studios, starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Beginning in the summer of 1903, an insidious crime wave filled New York City, and then the entire country, with fear. The children of Italian immigrants were kidnapped, and dozens of innocent victims were gunned down. Bombs tore apart tenement buildings. Judges, senators, Rockefellers, and society matrons were threatened with gruesome deaths. The perpetrators seemed both omnipresent and invisible. Their only calling card: the symbol of a black hand. The crimes whipped up the slavering tabloid press and heated ethnic tensions to the boiling point. Standing between the American public and the Black Hand's lawlessness was Joseph Petrosino. Dubbed the "Italian Sherlock Holmes", he was a famously dogged and ingenious detective and a master of disguise. As the crimes grew ever more bizarre and the Black Hand's activities spread far beyond New York's borders, Petrosino and the all-Italian police squad he assembled raced to capture members of the secret criminal society before the country's anti-immigrant tremors exploded into catastrophe. Petrosino's quest to root out the source of the Black Hand's power would take him all the way to Sicily - but at a terrible cost. Unfolding a story rich with resonance in our own era, The Black Hand is fast-paced narrative history at its very best.

While nearly everyone else at Heath High is preparing for prom and graduation, Grace Shelley is coming to terms with the end of her relationship with Robert, the angel who saved her soul, her life, and then broke her heart. It's not easy, especially when she can't escape his thoughts.But Grace has other things to worry about. Like her friend Stacy's cancer, and her best friend Graham's ex-girlfriend, whose attacks on Grace and her friends only seem to escalate with each passing day. And then there's Samael, the Archangel of Death, whose own death after his last attack on Grace had been revealed to be nothing but a lie.When Samael tries once again to finish what he started, Grace finds herself having to rely on Robert for help, something that forces the both of them to confront the lies that exist between them. But, as Samael closes in on not only Grace, but also on the people she cares about, she learns a secret that forces her to make a decision that changes not only her, but the very world she lives in.

While nearly everyone else at Heath High is preparing for prom and graduation, Grace Shelley is coming to terms with the end of her relationship with Robert, the angel who saved her soul, her life, and then broke her heart. It's not easy, especially when she can't escape his thoughts. But Grace has other things to worry about. Like her friend Stacy's cancer, and her best friend Graham's ex-girlfriend, whose attacks on Grace and her friends only seem to escalate with each passing day. And then there's Samael, the Archangel of Death, whose own death after his last attack on Grace had been revealed to be nothing but a lie. When Samael tries once again to finish what he started, Grace finds herself having to rely on Robert for help, something that forces the both of them to confront the lies that exist between them. But, as Samael closes in on not only Grace, but also on the people she cares about, she learns a secret that forces her to make a decision that changes not only her, but the very world she lives in.

BLACK HAIL, clever, gritty, funny thriller for young adults and adults alike.When Leo’s half-brother, Karl, turns up from one of his disappearances into the frozen north, he brings back more than his usual sheepish grin. He has finally found the fabled Katarinium – an anomalous physical element his family have been hunting down for over a hundred years. Unfortunately, Karl’s discovery has not gone unnoticed. Katarinium may have the potential to benefit planet Earth, or destroy it. But scientific discoveries are not just about knowledge, they’re also about money and power. Somehow, Karl has to get the Katarinium to a safe haven. And, like it or not, Leo too is going to be involved. Thrust suddenly outwards into an awareness of the greater world beyond his small university hometown, Leo is also thrust inwards into the murky world of his own family history. Who was his father, and just how much does his mother know about what is going on? Leo would rather not know. But as history collides with the present, he finds he has no choice. There comes a point, he realises, when you have to stop acting like a boy.

The American Civil War had been raging for over a year when Paul Weitzel decides to do his patriotic duty and join the Union Army. Soon he discovers the reality of the work he has signed up to perform, and begins to doubt his courage. Paul gets a chance to test that courage on a hot July afternoon at place called Gettysburg.This is the story of friendships, duty, hardships, honor, and courage set during a turning point in American history. It is told with vivid detail and insight into the lifestyles and thoughts of a generation long gone.

One of Kenya's most notable woman novelists, the author here tells a story for young children. A group of neighbourhood children catch a thief and a smuggler, help a street child to return to school, and are on the verge of trouble as they trail a mystery man. The man one day demands to know why they are following him. They are the Black Hand Gang, having fun and adventure.