Under and Alone

Starred review from March 21, 2005
This harrowing, turbocharged account of undercover life is reminiscent of Joseph D. Pistone's Donnie Brasco
. After military service in Vietnam, Queen began his law enforcement career, eventually spending 20 years as an ATF special agent. In 1998, through contact with a "confidential informant," he began to hang with the Mongol Nation, a violent Southern California motorcycle club ("a tight-knit collective of crazies, unpredictable and unrepentant badasses") with 20 chapters in several states and 350 members both in and out of prison. Assuming the role of bearded biker "Billy St. John," Queen entered into a 28-month undercover operation. To gather evidence of homicide, weapons and narcotics violations, he sometimes wore a wire, knowing that its discovery could lead to his murder. Indeed, he was suspected at first of being a cop and forced to prove himself in more than a few dangerous situations. But after months of hazing, he became a trusted member. Queen steers clear of melodrama and captures both sides of his double life; the sadistic characters and criminal camaraderie are contrasted with his own inner turmoil, as he thought of the Mongols as his friends while the investigation escalated. The strength and white-hot intensity of the writing make this read like a movie, and Hollywood is certain to take note. 16 pages of b&w photos not seen by PW
.

March 15, 2005
While undercover police officers may have backup relatively close at hand, their fate lies in their ability to alter their personalities and sense of right and wrong to match those of the criminals they are attempting to bring to justice. Queen was a Vietnam veteran who had worked undercover as an Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms operative, but his previous experiences were no match for his assignment to infiltrate the vicious Mongols motorcycle gang, a California-based gang involved in drugs, stolen motorcycles, weapons traffic, and murder. Queen, a motorcycle enthusiast, used his training and courage to attain high rank in the Mongols and, after a long and difficult period, see most of them arrested. The author admits that at times he felt strong emotional ties with many of these extremely violent men, and the reader gets caught up in the self-doubt that seems endemic to undercover work. The rough language, constant drinking, and violence may put off some readers but are a natural part of this story. Suitable for comprehensive criminal justice collections in academic libraries and for public libraries. -John R. Vallely, Siena Coll. Lib., Loudonville, NY

Copyright 2005 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 1, 2005
Queen infiltrated the notorious California motorcycle gang the Mongols for two years (1998-2000) and recalls the experience in an account remarkable not only for its cliff-hanging moments but also for the perceptive observations of gangster culture. Mongols are lethally loyal to their own, with an interior hierarchy ascended by passing various tests. Deadly situations abounded for Queen, a special agent for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, and while he didn't have to carry through on a group expectation to stab a Mongol enemy, he projected a pugilistic allegiance that earned him the club's trust and its coveted patch, which proclaimed him a true Mongol brother. The psychological stress of living the deception (including witnessing the abuse and sexual degradation of women) was compounded by acting the Mongol part for uniformed police who pulled him over. Ratcheted up by foreknowledge that Queen would eventually betray the Mongols, some of whom he regarded as genuine friends, the narrative is unstoppable. A word-of-mouth sleeper.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2005, American Library Association.)