John Lee Brook

2012-11-23T14:39:00.000-08:00

John Lee Brook is the author of the bestselling Blood In, Blood Out: The Violent Empire of the Aryan Brotherhood, published by Headpress of the U.K. Headpress has just signed JLB to write a book about Santa Muerte and the Mexican drug cartels. So it seemed fitting to ask him some questions.

What is your idea of perfect happiness?

Sitting with a beautiful woman on a California beach, on a warm sunny day, near the end of August.

What is your greatest fear?

Having no one to love and no one who loves me.

Which historical figure do you most identify with?

Scipio Africanus at the Battle of Zama.

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?

Impatience.

What is the trait you most deplore in others?

Intolerance. I simply can't tolerate people who are intolerant of others.

What is your greatest extravagance?

Books. I'll spend my last dollar on a good book.

On what occasion do you lie?

Only when being interviewed for magazines or newspapers or online outlets.

What do you dislike most about your appearance?

Generally speaking, my looks. I always wanted to be drop-dead handsome.

Which words or phrases do you most overuse?

The words actually and typical, along with three or four choice swear words.

What is your greatest regret?

Being divorced by my first wife.

What or who is the greatest love of your life?

I've had three great loves so far. It would be cavalier of me to assign prominence to any of them.

When and where were you happiest?

I sincerely hope that moment is still to come and lies somewhere in my future.

Which talent would you most like to have?

To play the piano.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

I'd prefer to be more interesting, kind of like that guy in the ads on television - the most interesting man in the world.

If you could change one thing about your family, what would it be?

Remove the 'asshole' component from our genetic material.

If you could choose what to come back as, what would it be?

An archangel. It would be lovely to have wings and have God himself whisper in your ear.

What is your most treasured possession?

My loved ones.

What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?

Being unlovable.

Where would you like to live?

Where I do now, splitting my time between Montana and San Francisco.

What is your favorite occupation?

Formula One race car driver: driving cars unbelievably fast in the morning, then chasing temptresses across continents in the evening. Sounds wonderful.

What is the quality you most like in a woman?

Compassion.

What is the quality you most like in a man?

Compassion.

What do you most value in your friends?

The ability to carry on an interesting and honest conversation.

Who are your favorite writers?

Don Winslow, Jack Vance, Iain M. Banks, Stephen King, Alistair Maclean, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Robert E. Howard, and E.M. Cioran. Oh, and mustn't forget Lewis Sperry Chafer. As you can tell, I favor the so-called hacks. However, I've always loved e.e. cummings, too.

Who is your favorite hero of fiction?

Mulai Ahmed er Raisuli in The Wind and the Lion.

Who are your heroes in real life?

King David, Elijah and the Apostle John.

What is it that you most dislike?

Emotional abuse of other human beings.

How would you like to die?

If possible, I'd prefer to skip that phase. Riding up to heaven in a fiery chariot a la Elijah sounds much more fun.

What is your motto?

Fuck that shit.

View the original article on blogcritics.org

2012-11-23T14:36:00.000-08:00

Headpress, the U.K. publishing house based in London, recently signed true-crime author John Lee Brook to pen a tell-all book about Mexican cartels and occult figure Santa Muerte. It is rumored that Mr. Brook, the author of the bestselling Blood In Blood Out: The Violent Empire of the Aryan Brotherhood, has made personal contact with cartel members, who have agreed to relate the grisly details surrounding death worship. A recluse, Brock travels back and forth from Montana to San Francisco,

In Tony Scott's 2004 action film Man on Fire, a journalist explains: "It's Santa Muerte. Death worship. There's a curse on you." Santisma Muerte is the cult of Holy Death, a corruption (some would say perversion) of the cult of the Blessed Virgin in Mexican Catholicism. The movie offers a glance into a real-life facet of Mexican organized crime. Because of the underground nature of organized crime, it transcends the boundaries of conventional business and emerges as a distinct subculture.

The Santa Muerte cult is most properly described as a set of ritual practices offered on behalf a supernatural personification of death. The personification is female for two reasons: because the Spanish word for death, "muerte," is feminine and because this personification is a sort of counterpart to the Virgin of Guadalupe.

The cult appears to be closely associated with crime, criminals, and those whose lives are directly affected by crime. Criminals, especially the Mexican drug cartels, identify with Santa Muerte and call upon the saint for protection and power, even when committing crimes. They adorn themselves with her paraphernalia and render her the respect worth of a deity.

The forthcoming book is eagerly anticipated by true-crime aficionados around the world. And sources indicate the movie rights to the book have already been optioned, with a screenplay in progress, though there is no confirmation.

View the original article on blogcritics.org

2011-07-21T08:34:00.001-07:00

Search Engine Submission - AddMe

2nd U.S. Printing

2011-07-13T10:14:00.000-07:00

Good news! The publisher -- Headpress of the U.K. -- has authorized a second printing of Blood In Blood Out in the U.S. In effect, the U.S. distributor is sold out of the book. Hubba, hubba!

Whew! Finally, It's Here.

2011-06-07T12:27:00.000-07:00

The book arrived at the U.S. distributor's warehouse yesterday. I was informed it takes a week or two for the book to percolate through to the bookstores, but that it will soon be there.

Hooray!!

U.S. Release Date

2011-05-31T11:34:00.000-07:00

The book is selling quite well in the U.K.: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/bestsellers/books/496778/ref=pd_zg_hrsr_b_3_4_last

Headpress, the publisher, which is based in the U.K., has decided to print the U.S. version of Blood In Blood Out in the U.S. According to the publisher, Blood In Blood Out will ship from the printer (in the U.S.) on June 6th. Which means the book should be available at bookstores and online shortly thereafter.

Can't wait! I'd like to have a copy myself. Ha, ha, ha.

It's Out!!

2011-05-24T08:41:00.000-07:00

Pleased to announce that Blood In Blood Out is officially OUT in Europe. And official release in the U.S. will follow within a few days, according to the publisher.

Where, Oh Where is My Book?

2011-05-22T11:01:00.000-07:00

Blood In Blood Out still has not arrived. Hopefully, it will arrive and be released this week. There are European vendors hawking the book for $150.

Enter the Danger Zone

2011-04-27T14:51:00.000-07:00

The publisher of Headpress told me the proof-copy of Blood In Blood Out had a printer's glitch, which has been sorted out. Blood In Blood Out will arrive on the doorstep of the U.S. distributor by May 18, 2011.
Pre-sales in Europe are going very well.

Release Date Update

2011-04-14T08:14:00.000-07:00

It appears that Blood In Blood Out will be released in Europe on April 21, 2011. The U.S. release will be a few weeks later -- around the middle of May.

April 21 Release Date

2011-03-27T07:15:00.000-07:00

Right now, it looks as if Blood In Blood Out will be released in Europe on April 21.
Once you receive your copy and read it, let me know what you think: johnleebrook@hotmail.com

Visit Crime Magazine

2011-02-23T06:52:00.000-08:00

If you're curious, and have a little time on your hands, take a stroll over to Crime Magazine, where you can read the Introduction to Blood In, Blood Out, which has received over 30,000 hits. Just think, if those 30,000 people would each buy a copy of the book, I'd have a bestseller.

Link: http://crimemagazine.com/blood-blood-out-violent-empire-aryan-brotherhood

Another Update on Blood In Blood Out

2011-02-09T06:40:00.000-08:00

April 21, 2011 has been established as the release date of Blood In Blood Out. Pre-sales of the book are going well in Europe.

And get this: the publisher has altered the cover of the book, adding 'blood' and changing the tint of the background color.

Release Date Update

2011-02-03T06:57:00.000-08:00

The release date of Blood In Blood Out has been moved back once again. The publisher is now forecasting February 23, 2011.

Publication Date

2011-01-25T08:42:00.000-08:00

The publisher -- Headpress -- of Blood In Blood Out has pushed the release date back to February 16, 2011. If you're disappointed, just imagine how I feel. However, all indicators point toward an outstanding book, when it finally does come out.

Top Ten Worst Gangs: MS-13

2011-01-19T13:21:00.000-08:00

Mara Salvatrucha makes all of the other gangs look like children at a Sunday School picnic. MS-13 is in fact the deadliest gang that anyone will ever come into contact with. The gang mainly consists of Guatemalans, Hondurans, Salvadorans, and other Central Americans and was started in the 1980s to protect immigrants from other big gangs. The gang has spread beyond Central America into Spain, U.S., Great Britain, Germany, and even Canada. MS-13 focuses on drug smuggling, black market gun sales, theft, contract killing, human trafficking, and assault, especially on law enforcement officers. In the U.S. alone, the gang has 10,000 members. MS-13 does not do remorse. Mara Salvatrucha hunts down and kills anyone who speaks to law enforcement about the gang. MS-13 is synonymous with extreme violence, especially against innocents. MS-13 torched a bus full of children and women. Twenty-eight women and children died in the flames.

Blood In Blood Out

2011-01-08T07:02:00.000-08:00

The release date for Blood In, Blood Out has been pushed back to January 26, 2011.

Top Ten Worst Gangs: Bloods

2011-01-08T07:00:00.000-08:00

The Bloods: a Los Angeles based gang. Rivals with the Crips, who sport the color blue, the Bloods flash red as their color. The gang started in 1972 and grew slowly by taking over territory that was controlled by other L.A. street gangs. Because the Bloods were so fearless, many of the gang members that they encountered decided to band together and join the Bloods. The gang is separated into “sets,” which have their own tactics, especially when it comes to recruiting. The Bloods’ sets utilize the unusual tactic of sending threats to people to join the gang. Bloods members often combine with other gangs in order to carry out criminal activity, especially drug trafficking.

Top Ten Worst Gangs: Crips

2011-01-05T09:55:00.000-08:00

The Crips came to life in 1969. Founded by a pair of 16-year-old kids, Stanley Williams and Raymond Washington. The two started the gang using the Black Panthers as their model. The gang started off small and initially was a loosely connected network of individual gangs. Since its origin, the gang has grown to be one of the largest as well as one of the most powerful gangs that exist in the U.S. Today, the gang is said to have over 300,000 gang members both inside and outside of jail. The Crips are known for wearing the color blue. The gang focuses on murder and robbery, as well as drug deals. The Crips' bitter rivals are the Bloods, as well as many different Hispanic street gangs. Violence is the basic tenet of the Crips. Sometimes brawls and fights explode within the gang, usually resulting in deaths of Crips' members. The Crips are now international in scope, boasting a strong membership in Canada.

Top Ten Worst Gangs: Texas Syndicate

2011-01-04T06:54:00.000-08:00

Texas Syndicate is a prison gang that was created in response to gangs like the Mexican Mafia and the Aryan Brotherhood. Because these gangs were preying on inmates, especially those in Texas, prisoners saw a need to have a rival gang to protect these Texas prisoners as a means for self-protection. The Texas Syndicate doesn’t allow any members that are outside of the Hispanic race. Caucasian members are verboten. The gang is made up generally of Mexican immigrant prisoners, not Mexicans who were born and raised in the U.S. In 2000, the gang was said to have about 1,000 members in jail, and about 830 outside of jail. Texas Syndicate is known for contract murder, gambling, prostitution, extortion, and drug trafficking. Many of the gang’s leaders are imprisoned due to drug charges.

Top Ten Worst Gangs: La Nuestra Familia

2011-01-03T10:10:00.000-08:00

La Nuestra Familia is a Mexican American prison gang that originated in Northern California. The gang has been around since 1968 and has always been a rival of the Mexican Mafia. Many speculate that the gang was created just to deliver a blow to their rival gang. The gang focuses not just on criminal activities, but also on preserving the Chicano culture, especially while living in a society that is dominated by so many different races. La Nuestra Familia is known to control intra-prison drug and sex trades. From inside the prison, ruling gang members call to those outside of the prison, where their orders are carried out. The gang is known to kill anyone, sometimes members of the gang. Members of La Nuestra Familia are recognized as serious criminals because the gang requires a two year time period to join. La Nuestra Familia requires that all gang members put the gang above family, money, drugs, and women. Women cannot join the gang but are sometimes used for running drugs

New Release Date Set

2011-01-02T10:15:00.000-08:00

The publisher of Blood In Blood Out has scheduled the release of the book for January 19, 2011.

Top Ten Worst Gangs: Bad, Badder, and Baddest

2011-01-02T06:44:00.000-08:00

The list is not in any particular order. Extreme violence is the default mode for each of these gangs. To say that one gang is 'more violent' or 'worse' than another gang is an exercise in futility.

Number 1:

The Aryan Brotherhood. Even though they are not one of the biggest prison gangs, the Aryan Brotherhood is known to have murdered many prisoners in jail. The gang only makes up about 1% of prison populations, but size doesn’t matter to the AB. In fact, this gang is known for at least 26% of the murders that occur in prisons around the U.S. The AB is split into two groups, usually those in federal prisons and other members that are located in some of the smaller state prisons, especially those in California. In order to join the Aryan Brotherhood, one has to kill or assault another prisoner. This is known as blood in, blood out. Any who try to leave the gang are generally assaulted or murdered by a member. The AB is known for organized crime, extortion, inmate prostitution, drug trafficking, and murder-for-hire.

Number 2:

The Mexican Mafia (La eMe) is a gang that has its strongholds in many prisons throughout the U.S. The gang was started in the 1950s in Tracy California. La eMe is well known for its drug trafficking, extortion, and murder. Closely knit with the Aryan Brotherhood, La eMe has made many contracts with ally gangs in order to kill other gang members from rivals. The gang doesn’t have many rules for its members: no exposing the gang, no homosexual acts, and no cowardice. Mexican Mafia gang members also cannot practice the Christian religion. Once your join the Mexican Mafia and are released from jail, members are expected to send some of their earnings to those lead gang members who are still in jail. The gang isn’t known to kill random civilians.

Number 3:

The Mungiki (Kenyan Mafia). This gang isn’t one that you’ll find in the U.S. The Mungiki is mostly found in poor parts of Kenya, especially Nairobi, which is one of Kenya’s largest cities. The gang was formed during the 1980s and has since grown, but not much. The gang is known to work in “cells,” each of them consisting of about 50 members that get involved with racketeering. The Mungiki despise Christianity as well as any type of Westernization. The gang advocates beheading, and mutilation. As many as 50 people have been killed because of clashes with the Mungiki, two of these people being Kenyan police offers who were beheaded. The gang is said to have some ties in the U.S., but this has never been concretely proven.

Prospective Book

2010-12-31T14:50:00.000-08:00

John Lee Brook is considering a book about the Bloods. Preliminary research -- to ascertain the viability of such a project -- will begin shortly.

West Coast Bloods: The Bloods gang was formed during the 1970s in the Compton area of California. According to NDIC reporting, Silver Scott is credited with forming the Piru Street gang and Benson Owens established the Westide Pirus. Both groups aligned with several neighborhood gangs in an attempt to unite against the Crips. The group subsequently became known as the West Coast Bloods.

East Coast Bloods: The United Blood Nation (UBN) gang was founded by two African-American males (Omar Portee and Leonard Mackenzie) while inmates at Rikers Island Prison, New York in 1993. The gang was initially formed to protect African-American inmates from the threat posed by Netas and Latin Kings gangs who dominated the prison.

Membership: According to a 2004 NDIC report, Bloods membership was estimated between 15,000 and 20,000. According to NAGIA’s 2005 National Gang Threat Assessment, UBN membership is estimated at 5,000 in New York City and 7,000 nationwide.

Location: Bloods gangs are located in the Southwest (Los Angeles, in particular), West Central, Pacific and, to a lesser extent, the Great Lakes and Southeast regions. The United Blood Nation is heavily concentrated throughout New York City and their presence has expanded to other locations along the East Coast, Mid Atlantic, and Southeast regions.

Aryan Brotherhood & Nazi Low Riders

2010-12-30T13:25:00.000-08:00

ARYAN BROTHERHOOD

The Aryan Brotherhood was founded by white outlaw bikers in 1964 at the San Quentin state prison. The prison gang was created as a way to protect white inmates from predatory black inmates, but its cause transformed into revenue when the gang began gaining power. The gang’s founding fathers were Irish-American bikers and adopted the 3 leaf clover as its official symbol. The highly organized prison gang is one of the most violent white supremacist groups in the nation and is accountable for over 100 bloody murders throughout its existence. Aryan Brotherhood leaders have been the recent target of the FBI, DEA and ATF who are trying to dismantle the ruthless gang. The AB was added on the police hit list after a series of brutal murders and assaults on law enforcement officials. The Aryan Brotherhood is one of the largest prison gangs in the nation and has branches in California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Missouri, Arkansas, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Georgia,, Kansas Ohio and Colorado.

NAZI LOWRIDERS (NLR)

The Nazi Lowriders or NLR is white supremacist gang that originally formed in Costa Mesa, California in 1978. The neo Nazi street gang spread into the California Youth Authority and then into prison. The Aryan Brotherhood “adopted” and reorganized the NLR in the mid 1980’s, using it as a holding tank of potential recruits for the AB.

Symbols: A skeleton eagle grasping a swastika, NLR, Hitler.
Nickname: The Ride.
Ranking structure: Seniors and juniors.
Territory: Costa Mesa, Long Beach, Inland Empire, San Bernardino, Fontana, Riverside, and Corona.
Alliances: Vagos Motorcycle gang, Insane White Boys, La Mirada Punks, Independent Skins and Orange County Skins.
Members: 5,000.
Racial make up: White and Hispanic.