Mafia Hits, Misses, Wars, and Prosecutions

The Rise and Decline of the Mob in America

By: Jeffrey Sussman

Narrated by: Matt Fletcher-Macdonald

Bloomsbury presents Mafia Hits, Misses, Wars, and Prosecutions: The Rise and Decline of the Mob in America by Jeffrey Sussman, read by Matt Fletcher-Macdonald.

Though there are many books about organized crime, this is the only book that focuses on how the mob adapted to the murders of its bosses, failed hits, internecine wars, and to prosecutions and continued to thrive throughout the United States for the better part of the 20th century.

Mafia Hits, Misses, Wars, and Prosecutions is about pivotal events that changed the way the Italian American Mafia has done business since its establishment in the United States. This book covers the murders and wars that ended the careers of Mafia bosses from the Five Families and the prosecutors who built successful political careers following noteworthy mob convictions for ambitious prosecutors like Thomas Dewey, Robert F. Kennedy, and Rudolph Giuliani.

Throughout the book, Sussman covers the notorious murders and wars the mob engaged in from the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre to the Castellamarese War, even the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, and shows how with each event the mob learned and changed to continue its reign of terror however it could.

©2026 Jeffrey Sussman (P)2026 Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

Critic reviews

A lively romp through the highest profile gangland hits and milestones and their fallout on the American rackets. Some of these underworld maneuvers were strategic, while others stemmed from opportunism, personality clashes, and turf struggles. A worthwhile compendium for those of us who like to keep up with mob lore. (Eric Dezenhall, author of Wiseguys and the White House)

From Gotti to Gambino, a highly absorbing catalog of mafia murder and mischief. (Michael Cannell, author of Blood and the Badge: The Mafia, Two Killer Cops, and a Scandal that Shocked the Nation)