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James Peterson at T.H.E HIP MAGAZINE‘s Book Review
This book was about so many things that the world seems to have forgotten about since the passing of the millennium. It’s about real life, humanity, being human, virtues, values and the need to become an individual of great value as opposed to just achieving success by any means necessary…to say the least about this awesome true crime series.
It’s quite surprising that this book though very vast, had only one character that happened to be portrayed as different individuals as he played different roles in his everyday life.
I liked this book because it brought back the reality of true crime and even life in an ever so subtle and sincere form. It was something completely different to what I expected it to be. The physical book itself does nothing to give the title away. Up until now I am still yet to discover where the ’journey’ is heading but I was still very satisfied after reading it and content to wait for the next in the series. The book brings together so many things; crime, modern society and everyday life, night life, spirituality, success and the struggle, a bit of humour, a bit of tragedy, a bit of suspense and mystery, a bit of everything.
One would feel as if the story was being told to him by the author verbally, almost fearing what one would hear next or stumble upon as opposed to just feeling like one was digging into old archives of the London underworld for the usual and I must say, now old and played out body bags, murderers and jewel thieves and the like. It was a whole new approach to True Crime that really left me feeling refreshed after reading it.
If you would like to experience true crime in a way you’ve never done before or you would just like to read something new and refreshing and different from everything you’ve ever read before, you might want to read this one.
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Book excerpt below.
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CHAPTER 10 NIGHTMARE ON MARE STREET
Mare Street, London, birth place of The Bastard. The eye opener, trough of all peaks that is assuming there were any real peaks before he relocated. The perfect hide out for such a stand out professional, harbouring some of the street’s finest; this would become his breeding ground. Everyday, a new lesson would be learned while creeping through the back streets of the back streets late at night amongst the filthiest of the filth- prostitutes, dealers, addicts, gangsters, hustlers, a bastard’s paradise. There were places where the police wouldn’t go through unless they really had to. Though never accepted as a true rebel, he never needed to be accepted, he never really needed anyone. Anyone who was to play a part would be treated as a paid professional, and paid. He would always come through as the untouchable, unstoppable though with a humble outer shell because he was 'invincible'. Through the rainy of all rainy days he would still travel through in the dark not even concealing any treasure as if testing his 'invisibility' and when faced with danger, he would always just look into the future as usual as if beaming himself into it. He would stare in the eyes of any potential opposition man or beast and everything would be fine, apparently. He would claim that his battles in fact took place in a parallel reality, his world, where he would always be victorious. He would emerge unscarred when he travelled to wherever it was he went.
Many would say he was weak but who cared? Surely not him, he was young, played dumb and stayed on that rum which would of course take its toll.
Why would anyone ever have to play dumb especially in the streets? The bastard would occasionally wander into forbidden territory, other peoples paths- ‘other worlds', in pursuit of his own fortune, since he would only know what he learned, nobody would tell or advice him where to go or what not to do, in fact there were no advisers, hence he would pose as the sheep, rather than the wolf to avoid scrutiny from the shepherds-the authorities, or other wolves.
At some point he would forget the little he knew about himself, the only thing to live for was the pelf, no credit cards or bank loans, and street credit would only get you through the streets and if possible keep you IN them. Of course, there would be a wave of depression waiting at every corner, the down fall would always be close by but never immediately in front or behind- all around, surrounding as did the demons and the now familiar stench of the 'bastard balm', for the calm until calm turned the enemy, holding back even his spirit and killing his passion. |
