Overview

The true story of a series of bold killings which took place in a shadowy American expat community in Panama--a tale of greed, political history, and murder In the remote Bocas del Toro, Panama, William Dathan Holbert, a.k.a. ""Wild Bill,"" is awaiting trial for the murder of five fellow American expatriots. Holbert's first victims were the Brown family, who lived on a remote island in the area's Darklands. There, Holbert turned their home into the ""Jolly Roger Social Club,"" using drink- and drug-fueled parties to get to know other expats. The club's tagline was ""Over 90 percent of our members survive."" Those odds were not in his victims' favor. The Jolly Roger Social Club is not just about what Holbert did or the complex financial and real estate motives behind the killings; it is about why Bocas del Toro turned out to be his perfect hunting ground, and why the community tolerated--even accepted him--for a time. Told through the fascinating history of the country of Panama, a paradise with sinister ties to the political and economic interests of the United States, journalist Nick Foster brings this uniquely bizarre place to life. He sheds light on a community where many live under assumed names, desperate to leave their old lives behind--and sometimes people just disappear.

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9781504730419

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Reviews

""A juicy, disturbing account of 'the world's first capitalist serial killer, ' who wreaked havoc among unsuspecting expatriates in a remote, hedonistic Panama archipelago...An engrossing, well-developed true-crime tale, unsettling in its portrayal of the underbelly of its tropical setting."" -- ""Kirkus Reviews"" ""Journalist Foster, who writes features for the international edition of the New York Times, turns in solid research and gripping writing on the familiar theme of 'there's always a snake in Paradise'...Foster's eerie account of a serial killer operating until a few years ago is set against the backdrop of the history of Panama. A completely riveting true-crime tale."" -- ""Booklist (starred review)"" ""Nick Foster's shrewdly told, rum-soaked, all-too-true tale of serial murder in the tropics is simply stunning."" -- ""Robert Kolker, author of Lost Girls: An Unsolved American Mystery"" ""Noir reporting at its best, a true crime tale for our age, a deftly guided tour into a shadowy netherworld where the phrase 'last call' can be taken quite literally."" -- ""Susan Casey, author of Voices in the Ocean""

Author Information

Nick Foster was born in Liverpool in 1966 and educated at University College London. He worked for several years as a European Union diplomat, and as a stringer working out of Caracas, filing news stories and research to the UK broadsheets. He now writes features for the Financial Times and the International New York Times, among other outlets. He is also producing a documentary film on France's highest-profile cold case. Foster lives with his family in Belgium. Donald Corren is a New York actor, with leading credits on and Off-Broadway, as well as numerous television appearances. On Broadway, he costarred with Judy Kaye in the critically acclaimed production of Souvenir, and replaced Harvey Fierstein in the seminal production of Torch Song Trilogy. His Off-Broadway appearances include The Soap Myth, Dietrich & Chevalier, The Last Sunday in June, Stephen Sondheim's Saturday Night, and the original New York production of Tomfoolery. His television credits include eight seasons as forensic tech Medill on NBC's Law & Order, as well as his current role as Dr. Kurian on Syfy's Z Nation.

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