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The Killing Fields of East New York: The First Subprime Mortgage Scandal, a White-Collar Crime Spree, and the Collapse of an American Neighborhood
In this groundbreaking work of investigative journalism and true crime, Stacy Horn sheds light on how the subprime mortgage scandal of the 1970s and a long history of white-collar crime slowly devastated East New York, a Brooklyn neighborhood that would come to be known as the Killing Fields. On a warm summer evening in 1991, seventeen-year-old Julia Parker was murdered in the Brooklyn neighborhood of East New York. An area known for an exorbitant level of violence and crime, East New York had come to be known as the Killing Fields. In the six months after Julia Parker’s death, 62 more people were murdered in the same area. In the early 1990s, murder rates in the neighborhood climbed to the highest in NYPD history. East New York was dying. But how did this once thriving, diverse, family neighborhood fall into such ruin? The answer can be found two decades earlier. In response to redlining and discriminatory housing practices, the Johnson administration passed the Housing and Urban Development Act in 1968. The Federal Housing Authority aimed to use this piece of legislation to help low-income families of color finally achieve homeownership. But they could never have predicted how banks, lenders, realtors, and corrupt FHA officials themselves would use the newly passed law to make victims of the very people they were trying to help, and the devastation they would leave in their wake. A compulsively readable hybrid of true crime and investigative journalism, The Killing Fields of East New York reveals how white-collar crime reduced a prospering neighborhood to abandoned buildings and empty lots. Following the dual threads of the hunt for the network of criminals behind the first subprime mortgage scandal and the ensuing downfall of East New York, Stacy Horn weaves a compelling narrative of government failure, a desperate community, and ultimately the largest series of mortgage fraud prosecutions in American history. The Killing Fields of East New York deftly demonstrates how different types of crime are profoundly entangled, and how the crimes committed in nice suits and corner offices are just as destructive as those committed on the street.
352 pages, Hardcover
First published January 28, 2025
74 people are currently reading
11.8k people want to read
About the author
Stacy Horn
7Ìýbooks197ÌýfollowersI've just finished up my seventh non-fiction book, the Killing Fields of East New York, followed by a very long subtitle. First I thought I was telling the story of why a particular neighborhood in Brooklyn had the highest number of unsolved murders in New York. Then I realized I was also telling the story of white collar crime and how it is more destructive than street crime. In the end, I saw that the core of the story went even deeper and was far more terrible.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
March 6, 2025
This one hurt, people. Stacy Horn's The Killing Fields of East New York is a great book which is unfortunately destroyed by a single storytelling choice. Sometimes, linear is the way to go. Allow me to explain!
Horn tells the story of the Federal Housing Authority scandal of the 1970s and also how these white collar crimes led to the complete collapse of East New York. Of these two narratives, the FHA scandal is much more engrossing and readable by itself. The East New York collapse is not as effective for the reason I'll dive into now.
Each chapter alternates between the FHA scandal and the fall of East New York. This causes so many problems that it's almost hard to quantify. First, these two stories are not separated by decades. In the early part of the book, the two stories almost overlap completely. Not only do you get yanked from one story, but you have to reacquaint yourself with the story-line every single chapter. This means Horn has to repeat information frequently especially when the same character is in back to back chapters. For instance, a character is introduced as a brand new lawyer in the district attorney's office, but then in the next chapter he is a judge because of the time jump, and then in the very NEXT chapter he is a seasoned lawyer in the DA's office.
This story telling device also ruins the impact of the crimes in East New York. I want to be clear, Horn knows how to write. However, every time I started being invested in people and the community as a whole, I was ripped back to the FHA scandal. It made the violent crime chapters feel rushed and underdone.
There is a really good book somewhere in this. I am almost tempted to reread it and just do it chronologically. I know most people won't do that so I'd have to say this one is probably a pass.
(This book was provided as an advance copy by Netgalley and Zando Books.)
Horn tells the story of the Federal Housing Authority scandal of the 1970s and also how these white collar crimes led to the complete collapse of East New York. Of these two narratives, the FHA scandal is much more engrossing and readable by itself. The East New York collapse is not as effective for the reason I'll dive into now.
Each chapter alternates between the FHA scandal and the fall of East New York. This causes so many problems that it's almost hard to quantify. First, these two stories are not separated by decades. In the early part of the book, the two stories almost overlap completely. Not only do you get yanked from one story, but you have to reacquaint yourself with the story-line every single chapter. This means Horn has to repeat information frequently especially when the same character is in back to back chapters. For instance, a character is introduced as a brand new lawyer in the district attorney's office, but then in the next chapter he is a judge because of the time jump, and then in the very NEXT chapter he is a seasoned lawyer in the DA's office.
This story telling device also ruins the impact of the crimes in East New York. I want to be clear, Horn knows how to write. However, every time I started being invested in people and the community as a whole, I was ripped back to the FHA scandal. It made the violent crime chapters feel rushed and underdone.
There is a really good book somewhere in this. I am almost tempted to reread it and just do it chronologically. I know most people won't do that so I'd have to say this one is probably a pass.
(This book was provided as an advance copy by Netgalley and Zando Books.)
August 14, 2024
I received a free copy of, The Killing Fields of East New York, by Stacy Horn, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. So many senseless murders, and crime in East New York, so many crooked people too. This book was eye opening for me to see what those poor people went through. This is such a great read on how horrible people can be when they become greedy.
October 1, 2024
The Killing Fields of East New York is a deep dive into the unraveling of a troubled neighborhood in Brooklyn, N.Y., with a wide-ranging look at how a once thriving area deteriorated. The author uses the murder of a 17 year old girl as a thread that ties the book together as she lays out a pattern of corruption, violent crime and mortgage fraud as the common themes that caused the ultimate downfall of East New York. Culled from a variety of sources, this is an interesting look at a systematic breakdown of social norms that most of us take for granted, and how a perfect storm of criminality and neglect, from the government, to financial institutions to the police all played a role in the neighborhood’s demise. The book does have a scattered feel to it, as the author jumps back and forth from one subject to another, as well as time frames, and that’s a bit disconcerting to the reader, as just as you’re getting immersed in one thread, the book jumps to another topic. Overall, a good look at a shameful series of events. I received an ARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
February 12, 2025
My great grandparents owned a home in East New York and my grandmother and her nine siblings all subsequently lived there with their families. My father's family, too, all lived in East New York in close proximity to each other. I had family members on many of the streets mentioned in the book; my dad was born at home on Sheffield Avenue, which became the city's most murderous street. We moved away shortly before the neighborhood "became destroyed", although we lived in an apartment and would not have been involved in the real estate scandals.
My adult relatives would reminisce about the "good old days" and talk about the old neighborhood, and my early memories suggest a well-kept and safe environment. For a time even after we moved away, we would go back to shop or visit friends and family, although eventually everyone we knew was forced to move.
Often, I have wondered exactly what happened in East New York which caused such an immediate and drastic change, Ms. Horn has presented a thoroughly researched investigation into these misguided and mismanaged events that created this monster town. I am chagrinned that my parents and extended family are gone and cannot appreciate this investigation as it would have provided a great deal of nostalgia and discussion for them.
My adult relatives would reminisce about the "good old days" and talk about the old neighborhood, and my early memories suggest a well-kept and safe environment. For a time even after we moved away, we would go back to shop or visit friends and family, although eventually everyone we knew was forced to move.
Often, I have wondered exactly what happened in East New York which caused such an immediate and drastic change, Ms. Horn has presented a thoroughly researched investigation into these misguided and mismanaged events that created this monster town. I am chagrinned that my parents and extended family are gone and cannot appreciate this investigation as it would have provided a great deal of nostalgia and discussion for them.
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February 24, 2025I’m not going to lie, I finished this book while waiting to be admitted to L&D and had a baby the next day so I don’t remember a lot of it. I think I liked it though.
July 25, 2024
This is a chaotic book. It took me about a quarter of the book to realize that the author was going back and forth between the FHA scandal and the people/buildings in East New York every other chapter.
The chapters about East New York was spectacular. I loved them, I felt like I knew the places and the people. It was a hard read with all of the brutal murders, the abandoned buildings and even a serial killer.
The chapters about the FHA scandal....I needed to have a flow sheet, a flow graph and a cast of characters to try to keep things/people straight. It was so dense, I still have no idea what the FHA scandal was about.
Then near the end of the book, the sentences were handed out and I was like, who is this guy? Was this guy mentioned before?
Overall the author did a poor job of connecting the FHA scandal to the destruction of the neighborhood of East New York. She brought up the Broken Windows theory and then dismisses it, so she can't tie the abandoned buildings to the heightened crime wave.
Further, all of a sudden there is a HUGE decrease in murders in the 1990s. The FHA scandal was over and it was before the subprime mortgage crisis of the 2008's. So what caused the decrease in murders? The author does not mention it.
For this to be a great book, there needs to be a full explanation of how the FHA scandal worked. Further, the author should focus on a handful of the main actors, describe their roles within the scam/scandal and then follow them through the court procedures.
Overall, a book that left me bewildered.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for this honest review.
The chapters about East New York was spectacular. I loved them, I felt like I knew the places and the people. It was a hard read with all of the brutal murders, the abandoned buildings and even a serial killer.
The chapters about the FHA scandal....I needed to have a flow sheet, a flow graph and a cast of characters to try to keep things/people straight. It was so dense, I still have no idea what the FHA scandal was about.
Then near the end of the book, the sentences were handed out and I was like, who is this guy? Was this guy mentioned before?
Overall the author did a poor job of connecting the FHA scandal to the destruction of the neighborhood of East New York. She brought up the Broken Windows theory and then dismisses it, so she can't tie the abandoned buildings to the heightened crime wave.
Further, all of a sudden there is a HUGE decrease in murders in the 1990s. The FHA scandal was over and it was before the subprime mortgage crisis of the 2008's. So what caused the decrease in murders? The author does not mention it.
For this to be a great book, there needs to be a full explanation of how the FHA scandal worked. Further, the author should focus on a handful of the main actors, describe their roles within the scam/scandal and then follow them through the court procedures.
Overall, a book that left me bewildered.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for this honest review.
December 28, 2024
All of us know about the 2007-08 subprime mortgage scandal that rocked the economy, but I would guess few know about a very similar event in the 1970s; one that changed the landscape of East New York for good.
This is an expertly researched book by Stacy Horn that follows two timelines, one for the mortgage crime and criminal justice process to indict and convict the bad actors involved and another that spans 1970s-2023 in East New York, describing the living conditions, murders, drug rings, lack of government help and ultimate community support. The dual timelines are a bit hard to track at the beginning, where they run very close together, but they show their necessity as the stories in each progress.
I found this read to be very interesting, especially the parts that went into the investigation into the white-collar crimes. It was depressing to read about the state of East New York knowing that the government was doing all they could to pull funds out of there, but it was also encouraging to see just how strong the community in East New York was as they refused to give up on their neighborhood. The takeaways from this book back up a lot of my views on the power of greed and how lenient this country is against white collar crimes. Highly recommend reading the full interview with Stacy Horn, Anthony Accetta and Jack Blum at the end of the book as they discuss more present day issues related to white collar crimes.
*Thank you to NetGalley for exchanging an e-ARC of this book for an unbiased review!
This is an expertly researched book by Stacy Horn that follows two timelines, one for the mortgage crime and criminal justice process to indict and convict the bad actors involved and another that spans 1970s-2023 in East New York, describing the living conditions, murders, drug rings, lack of government help and ultimate community support. The dual timelines are a bit hard to track at the beginning, where they run very close together, but they show their necessity as the stories in each progress.
I found this read to be very interesting, especially the parts that went into the investigation into the white-collar crimes. It was depressing to read about the state of East New York knowing that the government was doing all they could to pull funds out of there, but it was also encouraging to see just how strong the community in East New York was as they refused to give up on their neighborhood. The takeaways from this book back up a lot of my views on the power of greed and how lenient this country is against white collar crimes. Highly recommend reading the full interview with Stacy Horn, Anthony Accetta and Jack Blum at the end of the book as they discuss more present day issues related to white collar crimes.
*Thank you to NetGalley for exchanging an e-ARC of this book for an unbiased review!
January 23, 2025
The Killing Fields of East New York offers a gritty, in-depth exploration of a neighborhood ravaged by violence and crime, but unfortunately, it feels a bit more sensational than insightful. While the author's thorough research is evident, the book's heavy focus on brutality and despair can be overwhelming at times.
I went into this expecting a deeper look at the neighborhood and the lives of the people who lived there. That may be on me. Horn’s vivid descriptions of crime and poverty paint a bleak picture of East New York, but in doing so, the residents often feel more like symbols of suffering than fully realized individuals.
That said, the book does touch on important social issues like blockbusting, redlining, and the Fair Housing Act, which provide some context to the economic and social forces shaping the neighborhood. However, it feels as though Horn found a collection of murders and sought to connect them without fully integrating the historical and social context in a meaningful way. I found myself frustrated at times, as the author’s lens feels too narrow, unable to offer a fuller understanding of what East New York’s residents experienced beyond tragedy.
If you're a true crime enthusiast looking for a foray into urbanism, this book could serve as an introduction. It offers a powerful—if grim—snapshot of a difficult time in East New York’s history. But for those seeking a more rounded perspective or a focus on how the neighborhood might evolve, the book’s somewhat narrow focus may leave you wanting.
I went into this expecting a deeper look at the neighborhood and the lives of the people who lived there. That may be on me. Horn’s vivid descriptions of crime and poverty paint a bleak picture of East New York, but in doing so, the residents often feel more like symbols of suffering than fully realized individuals.
That said, the book does touch on important social issues like blockbusting, redlining, and the Fair Housing Act, which provide some context to the economic and social forces shaping the neighborhood. However, it feels as though Horn found a collection of murders and sought to connect them without fully integrating the historical and social context in a meaningful way. I found myself frustrated at times, as the author’s lens feels too narrow, unable to offer a fuller understanding of what East New York’s residents experienced beyond tragedy.
If you're a true crime enthusiast looking for a foray into urbanism, this book could serve as an introduction. It offers a powerful—if grim—snapshot of a difficult time in East New York’s history. But for those seeking a more rounded perspective or a focus on how the neighborhood might evolve, the book’s somewhat narrow focus may leave you wanting.
February 12, 2025
Excellently researched and thorough, Stacy Horn's "The Killing Fields of East New York..." is a gripping, raw account of a half a century's practice of white collar crime devastating a huge, poverty-stricken neighborhood even as common street crime decayed (still decays?) the same families and services that were supposed to help save that very neighborhood. The dichotomy between law enforcement's relentless pursuit of flagrant, constant street crimes vs. the futile efforts of law enforcement to curb or control the insidious abuse of government agencies (originally set up to bring some help to the real estate crisis in East New York) is nothing short of mind-blowingly frustrating. Well-intentioned scrutiny has led, time and time again, to unimaginable graft, corruption, cheating and broken dreams. While drugs, violence and murder were consistently pursued (with dubious success) and the residents suffered the heartbreaking results, decent housing and equitable services went consistently downhill in a spiral of devastation, ruin and unspeakable greed. People died; lives were ruined and, all along, banks and agencies thrived in a parasitic existence with the community. All sad; all true. We need to do better.
March 28, 2025
I received an advance copy of this book. Thank you.
I found this book very interesting, and appalling. Stacy Horn did an amazing and thorough job of researching this book, in fact there are 30 pages of resources! New York was a rough place in the 70's and the conditions in East New York, were even worse and more desperate. Those in banking and lending saw prey and clawed to get every last little bit that they could without thinking twice. I loved reading about the people who were determined to expose the truth. I hated to read about the fear, the murders and the needless suffering of so many.
Like many others who have reviewed this book, I wish the book had been lineal, starting in the 60's lead to the current time. Not only would this have made it easier to keep track of the people involved, but I think it also would have highlighted, that despite progress, there is still a lot left to be done to help so many. Because of this, I felt the book was closer to 3.5 stars, but the research and importance of the subject made it 4 stars.
I found this book very interesting, and appalling. Stacy Horn did an amazing and thorough job of researching this book, in fact there are 30 pages of resources! New York was a rough place in the 70's and the conditions in East New York, were even worse and more desperate. Those in banking and lending saw prey and clawed to get every last little bit that they could without thinking twice. I loved reading about the people who were determined to expose the truth. I hated to read about the fear, the murders and the needless suffering of so many.
Like many others who have reviewed this book, I wish the book had been lineal, starting in the 60's lead to the current time. Not only would this have made it easier to keep track of the people involved, but I think it also would have highlighted, that despite progress, there is still a lot left to be done to help so many. Because of this, I felt the book was closer to 3.5 stars, but the research and importance of the subject made it 4 stars.
March 31, 2025
In the last section of this book (the conversation between author Stacy Horn, Jack Blum, and Anthony Accetta), Horn says "I'm trying to write this book in a way that anyone could read it and understand it."
Unfortunately, she missed her mark here. The book is thoroughly researched, however it is presented in a way that makes it very difficult for readers to follow. The book is written on two separate tracks: "The FHA Scandal" between 1969-1979 and "The Destruction of East New York" between 1966 and 2023. Chapters (each roughly 10 pages each) alternate back and forth between these two tracks. At the beginning of the book, the years are in-line, but as you get further along, readers are reading about East New York 10+ years after the FHA Scandal, then switch back to the FHA Scandal of the 1970s, and the stories no longer jive together.
The book would have been a lot easier to read and understand (the author's goal!) if the FHA Scandal chapters were consolidated to keep the FHA story going smoothly, instead of having these abrupt (every 10 or so pages) timeline switches.
Unfortunately, she missed her mark here. The book is thoroughly researched, however it is presented in a way that makes it very difficult for readers to follow. The book is written on two separate tracks: "The FHA Scandal" between 1969-1979 and "The Destruction of East New York" between 1966 and 2023. Chapters (each roughly 10 pages each) alternate back and forth between these two tracks. At the beginning of the book, the years are in-line, but as you get further along, readers are reading about East New York 10+ years after the FHA Scandal, then switch back to the FHA Scandal of the 1970s, and the stories no longer jive together.
The book would have been a lot easier to read and understand (the author's goal!) if the FHA Scandal chapters were consolidated to keep the FHA story going smoothly, instead of having these abrupt (every 10 or so pages) timeline switches.
January 5, 2025
This is a really astonishing book about corruption and crime in East New York going back to the 60’s. There is a cameo by Donald Trump - not surprising perhaps in a book about crime and corruption in NY� the stories about murders are shocking and the poor clear up rate adds to the whole feeling of despair.
Poor people committing crimes are locked up for years but white collar crime is barely punished. In fact in one case, a judge fails to jail a man who has swindled millions because he says ‘losing his good name at the Country Club is punishment enough�.
This is a real eye opener about how a district and its people can be destroyed by corrupt politicians and people turning away. But the murders are so heartbreaking because the victims rarely get justice.
This book deserves to be read widely so that people can understand why decent people are often underserved by the people charged to serve them.
I was given a copy of this book by NetGalley
Poor people committing crimes are locked up for years but white collar crime is barely punished. In fact in one case, a judge fails to jail a man who has swindled millions because he says ‘losing his good name at the Country Club is punishment enough�.
This is a real eye opener about how a district and its people can be destroyed by corrupt politicians and people turning away. But the murders are so heartbreaking because the victims rarely get justice.
This book deserves to be read widely so that people can understand why decent people are often underserved by the people charged to serve them.
I was given a copy of this book by NetGalley
February 3, 2025
9h 56m
The interview with the author on ALL OF IT caught my attention as I was listening to the WNYC 's morning edition.
The Destruction of East New York
Chapter 1: 1966 � 1969
Chapter 2: 1969 - 1970
Chapter 3: 1970 � 1971
Chapter 4: 1972
Chapter 5: 1973 - 1974
Chapter 6: 1975 � 1976
Chapter 7: 1976 � 1977
Chapter 8: 1978 - 1979
Chapter 9: 1980 - 1981
Chapter 10: 1981
Chapter 11: 1982
Chapter 12: 1983 - 1985
Chapter 13: 1986
Chapter 14: 1987 - 1988
Chapter 15: 1989
Chapter 16: 1990 named The Killing Fields
Chapter 17: 1991
Chapter 18: 1991
Chapter 19: 1992
Chapter 20: 1993 - 1994
Chapter 21: 1995 - 1996
Chapter 22: 1996 - 2023
Notably Mentioned Books:
Cities Destroyed for Cash: The FHA Scandal at HUD Brian D. Boyer � 1st pub Jan 1, 1973
Race for Profit: How Banks and the Real Estate Industry Undermined Black Homeownership Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor - First published September 3, 2019
How East New York Became a Ghetto
Walter Thabit - First published August 1, 2003
The interview with the author on ALL OF IT caught my attention as I was listening to the WNYC 's morning edition.
The Destruction of East New York
Chapter 1: 1966 � 1969
Chapter 2: 1969 - 1970
Chapter 3: 1970 � 1971
Chapter 4: 1972
Chapter 5: 1973 - 1974
Chapter 6: 1975 � 1976
Chapter 7: 1976 � 1977
Chapter 8: 1978 - 1979
Chapter 9: 1980 - 1981
Chapter 10: 1981
Chapter 11: 1982
Chapter 12: 1983 - 1985
Chapter 13: 1986
Chapter 14: 1987 - 1988
Chapter 15: 1989
Chapter 16: 1990 named The Killing Fields
Chapter 17: 1991
Chapter 18: 1991
Chapter 19: 1992
Chapter 20: 1993 - 1994
Chapter 21: 1995 - 1996
Chapter 22: 1996 - 2023
Notably Mentioned Books:
Cities Destroyed for Cash: The FHA Scandal at HUD Brian D. Boyer � 1st pub Jan 1, 1973
Race for Profit: How Banks and the Real Estate Industry Undermined Black Homeownership Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor - First published September 3, 2019
How East New York Became a Ghetto
Walter Thabit - First published August 1, 2003
January 31, 2025
Accounts of violent crime fill our media, but, in this well-written, gripping account of the devastation in East New York and other NYC neighborhoods, Stacy Horn shows how white-collar crime is integral to the destruction. With meticulous research, she unveils the staggering impact of white-collar crime—how corporate greed, fraud, and corruption devastate entire communities in ways far more insidious than street-level violence. The book makes an undeniable case: while violent crime grabs headlines, financial crimes quietly destroy lives on a much larger scale, often with little accountability. Horn’s work is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the true forces shaping injustice in America.
January 31, 2025
I lived this investigation in 1972 as a lead FBI Agent, I saw the destruction in Brooklyn and Queens! I saw the victims lives destroyed by bad people! I saw buildings with windows and doors missing and replaced with metal for blocks! I saw communities ruined for a few to make a lot of money!
In 2004 -2009 as a federal prosecutor I investigated and prosecuted numerous mortgage fraud cases in South Florida and saw the same sad events , neighborhoods ruined by people and companies out to make a buck!
This book tells it like it is, and people need to read it and be educated or your neighborhood could be next!
It’s a must read book!
In 2004 -2009 as a federal prosecutor I investigated and prosecuted numerous mortgage fraud cases in South Florida and saw the same sad events , neighborhoods ruined by people and companies out to make a buck!
This book tells it like it is, and people need to read it and be educated or your neighborhood could be next!
It’s a must read book!
February 3, 2025
Steinbeck got it wrong in the Grapes of Wrath: "It happens that every man in a bank hates what the bank does, and yet the bank does it. The bank is something more than men, I tell you. It's the monster. Men made it, but they can't control it." No, banks and brokers (financial and real-estate) and city officials knew just what levers to twist to turn racist scare tactics into a three-card-monte game of dispossession and lucrative debt. The author puzzles it out like she did her cold-case book several years ago, with the help of police detectives who already knew this landscape of ruin.
March 10, 2025
An example of excellent information but terrible organization. This is a very well researched book but the author tells two very detailed stories in alternating chapters. Each story has an extensive cast of characters and just when the reader is settling into a basic understanding of the chapter being read, the author switches tracks again. This book was painfully dense (500 plus pages) and detailed to read. It honestly would have been better done as two separate 250 page books or two hour long documentaries. It’s a shame because the information is valuable and interesting.
March 14, 2025
A masterful treatment of a noteworthy example of modern American corruption.
The author vividly describes a multi-decade plundering process in a working class New York
City neighborhood.
Many readers would take note of the book's title and conclude that the work would be an esoteric volume for specialists only. They would be wrong. Author Stacy Horn deftly avoids the obvious risk of overuse of jargon concerning a classically American way for opportunists to steal an amazing amount of money without firing a single shot.
The author vividly describes a multi-decade plundering process in a working class New York
City neighborhood.
Many readers would take note of the book's title and conclude that the work would be an esoteric volume for specialists only. They would be wrong. Author Stacy Horn deftly avoids the obvious risk of overuse of jargon concerning a classically American way for opportunists to steal an amazing amount of money without firing a single shot.
March 8, 2025
Even though this was written with an obvious left-leaning slant (the author was harder on Nixon & Co. than the murderers and the people running the mortgage scam), it was still a good read. This scandal took place a few years before my time on this planet started, so I knew nothing about it going into the book. The author did a good job breaking it down for the layperson. Good enough that you can easily understand what evil people these a-holes were. Man, people suck�
February 18, 2025
Well, that was depressing. You would like to think something was learned by the events of the 1970s but it's clear history just repeats itself over and over again.
It feels like it's getting exponentially worse and will continue to do so for at least the next few years as rather than learn from history in order to improve things, lessons are being taken as instructions.
It feels like it's getting exponentially worse and will continue to do so for at least the next few years as rather than learn from history in order to improve things, lessons are being taken as instructions.
March 6, 2025
Novel about historic crimes with some modern names... Romney and Trump. Well researched. Horn makes a great case that white collar mortgage fraud destroyed a neighborhood, resulting in the financial devastation of families and an area with high murder and drug use. The final chapter compares it to the 2009 subprime mortgage crisis.
August 4, 2024
The author takes a comprehensive look into how white-collar crime surrounding mortgages back in the 70s led to entire neighborhoods becoming crime ridden and ruined. It’s very informative and in depth. Sadly, it shows that similar crimes are still going on, and not even being prosecuted.
February 12, 2025
This was interesting and well researched. I knocked it down a star because I didn't love some the editing decisions that were made when putting everything together. I think it made the information a little harder to easily digest.
February 27, 2025
very interesting real estate true story in NYC
I cannot believe the larceny that goes unpunished in this country. Imagine thinking you bought a house and then moving in, you find a mess that should have been condemned. Our oligarchy is alive and thriving.
I cannot believe the larceny that goes unpunished in this country. Imagine thinking you bought a house and then moving in, you find a mess that should have been condemned. Our oligarchy is alive and thriving.
March 1, 2025
Fascinating topic, but I agree with other readers, this was not well executed. There were two plot lines told in alternating chapters which made the whole thing difficult to follow. I’m walking away from this without a clear understanding of the topic, because of the way the story is told.
Want to read
February 21, 2025The Killing Fields of East New York by Stacy Horn
February 22, 2025
Interesting, and timely.
February 26, 2025
How the HUD scandal and related corruption of the 1970's destroyed Brooklyn. White collar crime gets the exposure it so richly deserves but seldom gets.
March 1, 2025
A gripping and eye-opening blend of true crime and investigative journalism that exposes the devastating impact of white-collar corruption on an entire community.
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