*No Major Spoilers*
In July 1933, the gangster known as George “Machine Gun” Kelly staged the kidnapping-for-ransom of an Oklahoma oilman. He would live to regret it. Kelly was never the sharpest knife in the drawer, and what started clean soon became messy, as two of his partners cut themselves into the action; a determined former Texas Ranger makes tracking Kelly his mission; and Kelly’s wife, ever alert to her own self-interest, starts playing both ends against the middle.
The result is a mesmerizing tale set in the first days of the modern FBI, featuring one of the best femmes fatales in history—the Lady Macbeth of Depression-era crime—a great unexpected hero, and some of the most colorful supporting characters in recent crime fiction.
I am a big fan of 1920-30s era fiction, especially the gangsters and Prohibition Era stories. Even though most historical fiction romanticizes racial and sexism struggles, I still enjoy them all the same.
This novel mainly takes place in the Oklahoma/Texas area. I am from this area of the U.S. so I was familiar with the layout. It felt good to have Oklahoma represented in a novel about 1930s America.
I enjoyed how Infamous felt like a documentary about Machine Gun Kelley and the other gangsters he was associated with. The language used made me feel like I was right there with both the gangsters and the officers themselves.
If you are looking for a fascinating look into 1930s America, then I would highly recommend this novel. Infamous felt like a biopic of George “Machine Gun” Kelly and life as a whole in 1930s America. I enjoyed this novel of crime, betrayal, and survival in a Depression-era world.
Elisha's Book Reviews 
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