From the author of El Narco, the shocking story of the men at the heads of drugs cartels throughout Latin America: what drives them, what sustains their power, and what they stand for

Grillo's investigations into the cokehead brokers, dealers and professional killers who manage the supply and demand of cocaine involves him in a degree of danger ... An absorbing work of reportage Daily Telegraph Grillo is a breathtakingly intrepid reporter, diving in where police fear to tread, seeking out men who wouldn't hesitate to kill him ... A grim, gripping book **** Francis Wheen, Mail on Sunday Grillo has done sterling work on the front lines ... His portraits of gangster societies living beyond law or even reason are starkly persuasive Spectator Grillo makes it clear that gang members like Montana, cartel leaders, sicarios, and powerful member soft crime organizations exist all over Latin America and the Caribbean - not just Mexico ... Gangster Warlords is a step-up for the writer, documenting a very grim reality that's unfolding in real time Vice Grillo's strength is that while he draws the broad patterns of the raging conflict, he also zooms in on the particularities of each front ... He even offers a few prescriptions for tackling what he calls this "cocaine-fuelled holocaust": decriminalising marijuana ... Investing money in the lost-cause neighbourhoods where drug gangs are seen as heroes and police are the enemy The Times A vitally important book Library Journal As Mr. Grillo unfolds the complex and often gruesome stories of the drug trade, it becomes clear that this terror is comprehensible. It is the result of ossified policies ... that are wholly inappropriate for the globalized world ... It is an exhausting and often nerve-wracking job ... Grillo scores some spectacular successes ... [and shows] how drug violence is not so much senseless but the devastating result of economic calculations taken to their brutal extreme -- Misha Glenny New York Times

Ioan Grillo has reported on Latin America since 2001 for international media including TIME magazine, Reuters, CNN, the Associated Press, PBS NewsHour, the Houston Chronicle, CBC, and the Sunday Telegraph. His first book, El Narco, was translated into five languages and was a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Born and educated in the UK, Grillo lives in Mexico City.