Books like Rat Bastards by John "red" Shea
John "Red" Shea, 40, was a key enforcer in the South Boston Irish mob led by James "Whitey" Bulger. Beginning with delivery truck robberies at thirteen, Shea progressed through drug dealing, loan‑sharking, and money laundering, eventually running a multimillion‑dollar narcotics operation for Bulger. After serving a twelve‑year federal sentence for drug trafficking, Shea provides an unprecedented first‑hand account of mob life, a rare true crime narrative from an insider who never became a informant.
First publish date: January 9, 2007
Genre: Biography & Autobiography/Autobiography
Authors: John "red" Shea
★
★
★
★
★
4.0 (1 community ratings)
How are these books recommended?
The books recommended for Rat Bastards by John "red" Shea are shaped by reader interaction. Votes on how closely books relate, user ratings, and community comments all help refine these recommendations and highlight books readers genuinely find similar in theme, ideas, and overall reading experience.
Have you read any of these books?
Your votes, ratings, and comments help improve recommendations and make it easier
for other readers to discover books they’ll enjoy.
Books similar to Rat Bastards (21 similar books)
A retired cop and an obsessive killer collide in a high‑stakes hunt where every move could save thousands.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
When Libby Day’s family is brutally murdered, she blames her older brother Ben, who is imprisoned for life. Twenty‑four years later, a coaxing group suggests Ben’s innocence and forces Libby to revisit the night’s trauma and unravel the truth.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Four friends from New York’s West Side endure brutality in reform school, later turn to crime, and eventually seek vengeance against those who abused them, culminating in a courtroom confrontation that challenges their fate.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Toby, injured and haunted, flees to his ancestral home where a buried skull and a newfound mystery force him to confront a past he thought he understood.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Paddy Whacked traces nearly two centuries of Irish American gangsterism from early New York street fights to modern mob legends, detailing the rise of figures like Mike McDonald, Big Bill Dwyer, Mickey Featherstone, and Whitey Bulger.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Unveiling the Shadows of Organized Crime: The Life of Clyde Smaldone
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Roberto Escobar‑Gaviria, brother and chief accountant of Pablo Escobar, recounts the inner workings of the Medellín Cartel, its vast wealth, brutal violence, and his own survival after a bombing during imprisonment.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Gaspipe tells the full story of Anthony "Gaspipe" Casso, the former Lucchese family boss whose life of crime—drug trafficking, racketeering, and alliances with Russian mobsters—ended in federal prison after he became an informant.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Former Boston gangster narrates his partnership with FBI informant James "Whitey" Bulger, the ensuing murders, false accusations, and ultimate cooperation with the authorities, revealing the brutal truth of organized crime in South Boston.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Mike Dash unravels the rise of Italian organized crime in America, focusing on the pioneering Mafia figure Giuseppe Morello, "The Clutch Hand," and his network in early 20th‑century New York.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Michael Patrick MacDonald’s memoir unpacks life in Southie, Boston’s white‑poverty enclave, detailing family loss, community silence, and the area's tough social fabric.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
A mysterious assassin known as the Rat Catcher who has vanished for decades returns in the Witness Protection Program, leading to a hunt for his identity.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
In Public Enemies, bestselling author Bryan Burrough strips away the thick layer of myths put out by J. Edgar Hoovers FBI to tell the full storyfor the first timeof the most spectacular crime wave in American history, the two-year battle between the young Hoover and the assortment of criminals who became national icons: John Dillinger, Machine Gun Kelly, Bonnie and Clyde, Baby Face Nelson, Pretty Boy Floyd, and the Barkers. In an epic feat of storytelling and drawing on a remarkable amount of newly available material on all the major figures involved, Burrough reveals a web of interconnections within the vast American underworld and demonstrates how Hoovers G-men overcame their early fumbles to secure the FBIs rise to power.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Bill Mason, one of America’s most prolific jewel thieves, chronicles his 30‑year career of high‑profile heists, brushes with the Mafia, and brief imprisonments, revealing the hidden details of his daring operations.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Kenny Gallo’s gripping memoir traces his rise from a crime‑savvy youth in California to a feared gangster, porn mogul, and undercover FBI agent, exposing the intertwining worlds of the mob, cocaine trade, and adult entertainment.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
In his memoir, Albert DeMeo reveals the conflicted life of growing up as the son of the notorious Gambino Mafia killer Roy DeMeo, detailing the hidden legacy of organized crime in New York.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Eric Konigsberg’s gripping family history unfolds the lurid rise of his notorious ‘Uncle Heshy,’ the legendary Mafia enforcer who spent decades on the run.
Similar?
✓ Yes
0
✗ No
0
Some Other Similar Books
American Skin: A Mastodon Novel by Don WinslowKingdom of the Blind by Scott Turow
The Connection by Jack Ketchum
Have a similar book in mind? Let others know!
Please login to submit books!