Deadly Valentines: The Story of Capone's Henchman "Machine Gun" Jack McGurn and Louise Rolfe, His Blonde Alibi
"[Gusfield] vividly tells the twisted, yet somehow moving love story of an iconic American gangster and his sexy, nutty gun moll. Told with a driving, you-are-there narrative, it's a rigorous, sometimes astonishing, and consistently entertaining performance."  —Douglas Perry, author ofThe Girls of Murder City: Fame, Lust, and the Beautiful Killers Who Inspired Chicago "Authoritative, fast-moving, and affecting,  Deadly Valentinestells a compelling true-life gangland saga that is loaded with action and, not least, the ache of romance. "  —Howard Blum, author of American Lightning: Terror, Mystery, the Birth of Hollywood, and the Crime of the Century"Skilled researcher and empathetic writer Gusfield steers us into the private world of Al Capone and the pugilist-turned-killer, Jack McGurn – their clannish roots and gangland alliances – and explores the Machiavellian power that Capone directs toward McGurn and his failed dream of ringside glory.  If the underworld ever produced an American tragedy, this is it."  —Ellen Poulsen, author of Don't Call Us Molls: Women of the John Dillinger GangandThe Case Against Lucky Luciano:  New York's Most Sensational Vice Trial"Jeffrey Gusfield'sDeadly Valentinesis an encyclopedic love letter to the Roaring Twenties as embodied in its title characters, Jack McGurn and Louise Rolfe, each of whom succumbed to the seductive flash and drunken abandon of each other and the dark side of the American Dream. " —Paula Uruburu, author ofAmerican Eve:Evelyn Nesbit, Stanford White: The Birth of the "It" Girl and the Crime of the Century"[Deadly Valentinesis] a masterful attempt to find the facts about [McGurn], his second wife and alibi Louise Rolfe, and the events related to them. Gusfield is an engaging storyteller."  —John Binder, author ofThe Chicago Outfit  "Deadly Valentines is not just a story of gangsters and guns, but of a love story that still captivates to this very day."  —Dan Waugh, author ofEgan's RatsandGangs of St. Louis: Men of Respect"A thoroughly researched and colorful account." —Publishers Weekly"[Deadly Valentines]is an engrossing look inside Al Capone's murderous ranks[and]a lively, detailed history of gangland Chicago." —Kirkus Reviews