The author knows his subject, and I enjoyed his writing style. It was easy reading, although at times I did get a bit bogged down in who was who, as he introduced a plethora of different characters.

Our Story by Reginald Kray, Ronald Kray | Waterstones

I found myself strangely attracted to reading this book as soon as I could get my hands on it. I saw the trailer for the new movie about the Kray twins and was immediately intrigued. This is the third of his books I have read to date. It is it an impressively written work following the rise and fall of the Kray twins, what really works for me is the level of detail and understanding of the subject. However, while I sadly didn’t learn anything substantially new, I did like the unbiased writing, in that many of the previous books I’ve read on the Krays was either written/ghostwritten by themselves or by associates or members of their extended family/friends. Pearson was commissioned by Donald Campbell to chronicle his successful attempt on the Land Speed Record in 1964 in Bluebird CN7, resulting in the book Bluebird and the Dead Lake. It goes without saying that they were very disturbing people but there was even further disturbing details about them that I found out in this book. It’s a heavy read obviously.

When the American Goodfellas come to London to see how they can cooperate with the Krays, there is a funny scene. That was a capital sin, outrageous and unacceptable- at least in the portraits we have of these wise guys It has to be a five star from me - as I enjoy the subject and could re-read this kind of book day in and day out! Ronnie Kray) began getting what he seemed to want--the pretense of friendship, the appearance of respect, even of social success, these were people who could introduce him to the smart life if he wanted it. They took him to their homes, their London clubs, dined him in the House of Lords, introduced him to celebrities. It was surprising how cheap the rich world was, and it gave Ronnie a new role--the playboy gangster in a sophisticated world.”

Books | thekrays.net Books | thekrays.net

John Pearson is a writer best associated with James Bond creator Ian Fleming. He was Fleming's assistant at the London Sunday Times and would go on to write the first biography of Ian Fleming, 1966's The Life of Ian Fleming. Pearson also wrote "true-crime" biographies, such as The Profession of Violence: an East End gang story about the rise and fall of the Kray twins.I actually found myself feeling sorry for both twins multiple times. I know that everyone says they were villains, but being a twin myself I couldn't imagine being without my twin. Ronnie was the younger of the two; he always got his way because it was natural for Reggie to protect Ronnie.