MARY CONWAY revels in a powerful reminder that human lives are not defined by physical perfection
Latest editorial
Gripping tale of dark-web drug dealer’s rise and demise
Daniel Moutia reviews American Kingpin by Nick Bilton
PAUL DONOVAN recommends the fine performances in this account of the pre-war meeting between the US president and the British king
TECLYN AROD relishes an intimate celebration of jazz improvisation that mixes local and national musicians
The missing sister, the vengeful WAG, cruise ship claustrophobia, and reanimated Avengers
Three great releases of lost concerts by Duke Ellington Orchestra, John Taylor & Stan Sulzman, and Joe Henderson
To rescue Kahlo from the clutches of the corporate art market, we need to acknowledge the overt and covert political dimensions of the work, demands GAVIN O’TOOLE
American Kingpin by Nick Bilton (Virgin Books, £12.99)
DRUGS, guns and illegal porn are said to be the only things you can buy with the cryptocurrency Bitcoin and this well-written book chronicles its centrality to the rise and fall of the Silk Road, the site on the dark web — the hidden part of the internet — the people behind it and those tasked with bringing the virtual marketplace to an end.
The creation of the Silk Road, the “Amazon of drugs,” came about at the perfect time, according to American Kingpin’s author Nick Bilton. In its ascendancy, Bitcoin allowed online trade to flourish anonymously and all that was required was someone willing to take advantage.
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