On the House: The Bizare Killing of Michael Malloy

A friend of mine was talking about how dark and funny this book was. I picked up a copy because I was out of reading material, though I wouldn't normally read true crime. But this was fabulous! The story itself is one of those too-crazy-to-be-true stories, and the writing is dark, funny, and vivid. Ever since I read it, I've been cruising through other true-crime books. I think Simon Read made me a convert! I'll definitely read his future books, as well...

A sort of nonfiction version of the hard-boiled "noir" novel, dripping with black comedy. The author hits the perfect mordant tone & captures the sordid desperation of the 1930's perfectly, down to the sardine sandwiches & rotgut booze slung in cheap speakeasies. The running gag focuses on a mark who is being set up to be murdered for an insurance scam, and who proves inconveniently durable despite increasingly desperate measures taken by the bungling plotters.

Mr. Read's dreary look at the life of these speakeasy dwellers was entertaining and delightfully dark... I really liked Read's well-written desciprtions of his novels characters. I found myself able to connect to the characters and understand why they acted the way they did. I look forward to more of his writing in the future and would encourage others to get off the computer and get On The House.

"On the House" is both darkly comedic and violently gritty. It's the true story of a group of bungling thugs in 1930s New York who take a life-insurance policy out on a hapless drunk in the hopes of killing him for a quick buck. Unfortunately for them, their intended target, Michael Malloy, proves to be nearly indestructible. Using old newspaper accounts and court records, Read comically details the frantic efforts of the group -- dubbed The Murder Trust by New York tabloids -- as its seemingly perfect plan descends into chaos. Each attempt on Malloy's life becomes more outrageous than the last. Read's writing is sleek and keeps the pages turning. The humor is dark and the crimes are violent, resulting in a disturbingly entertaining read. The story is even more fascinating because it's true. Anyone looking for an off-beat foray into non-fiction will enjoy . . .

Looking for a serious, harrowing book about criminal masterminds? Fuggedaboutit! On the House will indeed keep you up all night and have you in tears - of laughter. Even years of reading dumb criminal anecdotes couldn't prepare me for this book. The persistence of both the crooks and their erstwhile victim should have made it into the Guiness Book of World Records. So should Simon Read for keeping his face straight long enough to bring this bizarre story to print. On the House covers the exploits of a gang of lowlifes dubbed The Murder Trust as they try to pull off a simple murder-for-insurance scheme. They had it all planned: the insurance, the murder method, and the victim. Unfortunately, they chose a victim with more lives than a Hindu cat. The holding power of this book is not the brutality of the crime or the sympathetic qualities of the victim: it's the horrified fascination as we watch this witless bunch of crooks verge on nervous breakdowns as their every attempt is met with abject failure. Their victim takes everything they serve up and keeps coming back for more. Honestly, I started getting just as desperate. Read does an expert job of putting us in these feeble criminals' minds. He shows why each attempt should have worked, so we share the crooks' disbelief as the victim survives - not once, not twice, but dozens of times. I've never read a true crime book like it. Neither have you. So if you're ready to set aside the serial killers and the Mobsters and read about Keystone Kriminals instead, pick up this book. And then raise a glass in honor of Mike "Iron Man" Malloy.