Homo Criminalis

<b><i>'Glittering... the author’s obvious enthusiasm for the subject is matched by impressive erudition' The Spectator<br><br>'The readable, scary, fun beach read of new crime literature' Financial Times</i><br><br>When does a bandit become a monarch? When does a gang become a government? And is organised crime at the heart of every modern state?</b><br><br>On a thrilling whistle-stop tour of how the world's criminal underbelly has shaped state-making, capitalism, globalisation and all forms of so-called legitimate power, <i>Homo Criminalis</i> shows the emergence of modern society through the evolution of the underworld and its crimes. From Chinese banditry and eighteenth-century English tea smuggling to today's cocaine submarines and the high-tech crimes of tomorrow, this book shows us how the world's dark underbelly shapes us, no matter how we try to outpace it.<br><br>Entertaining, engaging and packed full of fascinating stories, <i>Homo Criminalis</i> is a book for those who want to see our grand story of progress through the surprising and subversive new lens of organised crime.