Dillinger

Written by Jack Higgins

Narrated by Jeff Harding

The dramatic final moments of the legendary outlaw’s career – retold by the world’s master storyteller, Jack Higgins.

Early March 1934, America’s most notorious criminal makes his spectacular escape from Lake County Jail, Indiana. Three months later, John Dillinger, the last American outlaw, is gunned down by FBI agents outside a movie theatre in Chicago.

But what really happened during Dillinger’s final months of liberty?

As the fugitive makes a desperate break for the Mexican border, master thriller writer Jack Higgins takes up the story, following Dillinger into the savage hands of his new captors. Where love is as elusive as a pardon. And the price paid for freedom is blood…

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Jun 20, 2019
• ISBN: 9780008361297

Jack Higgins

Jack Higgins lived in Belfast till the age of twelve. Leaving school at fifteen, he spent three years with the Royal Horse Guards, and was later a teacher and university lecturer. His thirty-sixth novel, The Eagle Has Landed (1975), turned him into an international bestselling author, and his novels have since sold over 250 million copies and been translated into sixty languages. Many have been made into successful films. He died in 2022, at his home in Jersey, surrounded by his family.

Reviews for Dillinger

[npjacobsen · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

In March of 1934, John Dillinger, arguably the most notorious criminal America has ever known, broke out of the escape proof Lake County Jail in Crown Point, Indiana. On July 22, 1934, he was eventually found and shot dead by agents of the FBI outside the Biograph Movie Theater in Chicago, Illinois. Where Dillinger went and what he did during the period of time between March and July is a matter of speculation. There were reported sightings in Los Angeles, New York, New Orleans, and even London. Jack Higgins account has Dillinger traveling to Mexico to lay low until the heat died down. This is not a history book. It is all speculation, and if anything might be classified as alternate history. But since nobody knows where Dillinger went or what he did, who's to say the events in this book didn't happen?Dillinger is portrayed in this book as sort of a Robin Hood character. He stole from the greedy, evil bankers, who were getting rich foreclosing on delinquent properties, and gave to the more deserving. After his escape he gives a friend a substantial amount of money in order to prevent the bank from foreclosing on his farm. In an ironic twist, Dillinger stole the money from the very bank in question. Dillinger is also portrayed as never having killed anyone, just robbed banks. However, he does seem to know his way around weapons, including the Thompson machine gun. I guess if you are going to write an alternate history then it's fine to include an alternate personality.The book is fun and action packed. Dillinger runs into problems in Mexico not uncommon for that time, as well as in our own time. Corrupt government officials, greedy land owners, unsafe working conditions, and lack of regard for anyone else are just a few of the things Dillinger faced. He also meets Rose, a half Chinese and half Mexican beauty, and they fall in love during the short time they spend together. But alas, their love is not meant to be as they realize that their lives diverge in two different paths.If you are looking for a straight history with all the facts notated, do not get this book. If you are looking for a "what if" type of book that is fun and action packed, then this is the book for you. Sometimes we all wish history could be re-written, and this is one of those even Dillinger might like.