The Syndic

Written in the golden age of science fiction, and shows it. Nevertheless, it's an interesting story that comes to some surprising conclusions. War has rendered significant portions of Europe either uninhabitable or barbaric. The U.S. Government has failed, to be replaced by organized crime -- Syndic is short for Syndicate. The unusual premise is that a well-run criminal organization is a better government than the one it replaced. If you have a fondness for Heinlein, Ayn Rand, or the Libertarians, you'll like this book.