Dead men's wages

Scratch the surface of any family and you will find stories of intrigue, abuse and illegitimacy.

It is just that, because of the nature of my grandfather's business, our secrets are more sinister'Lilian Pizzichini's grandfather was a conman who worked with some of London's most notorious gangsters.

Within the pages of this haunting and revealing account of his life, she re-creates, in vivid detail and with remarkable detachment, the world of criminals and corrupt policemen that he dominated until his death in 1978.

This is a book to set the mind reeling with thoughts of cunning and intrigue, corruption, hardship and secrecy.

Above all, it conveys beautifully the glamour and seduction of a London shrouded in mystery and this charismatic criminal who rose from its war-torn ashes.