Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
71st out of 84 books
—
93 voters
At the Devil's Table: The Untold Story of the Insider Who Brought Down the Cali Cartel
In this riveting and relentless nonfiction thriller, award-winning investigative reporter William C. Rempel tells the harrowing story of former Cali cartel insider Jorge Salcedo, an ordinary man facing an extraordinary dilemma—a man forced to risk everything to escape the powerful and treacherous Cali crime syndicate.
Colombia in the 1990s is a country in chaos, as a weak...more
Colombia in the 1990s is a country in chaos, as a weak...more
Hardcover, 368 pages
Published
June 21st 2011
by Random House
(first published May 31st 2011)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
404)
First off, I'm reviewing the Kindle edition, should that make any difference to anyone.
I picked up my Kindle earlier this week to find this book. I'd completely forgotten I'd pre-ordered it. I've done that more than a few times lately. I'd just finished two fiction novels and since I have this rule about one fiction - one non-fiction, it was time to read a 'true' book. I'm not 100% convinced this is all true, but it's marketed that way.
Ok, so flash back to the mid-90's. That's when Columbia was...more
I picked up my Kindle earlier this week to find this book. I'd completely forgotten I'd pre-ordered it. I've done that more than a few times lately. I'd just finished two fiction novels and since I have this rule about one fiction - one non-fiction, it was time to read a 'true' book. I'm not 100% convinced this is all true, but it's marketed that way.
Ok, so flash back to the mid-90's. That's when Columbia was...more
Excellent, true story of the inside working of the Cali Drug Cartel in Colombia, as well as a few highlights of its rival cartel in Medellin, led by Pablo Escobar. The book is an insider's story on the Cali Cartel, covering their war with Pablo Escobar's organization, the infamous gimmicking of the Colombian election won by President Ernesto Samper (thanks to millions of dollars in funding from the drug cartel) and the eventual downfall of the Cali Cartel, orchestrated in great part by the sourc...more
Highly recommended. I am surely biased, having lived in Cali starting right about the time most of this story winds down. But Rempel is a great storyteller. I read these 325+ pages in a period of a little over 24 hours. It really gives a sense of the level of corruption in Colombia, although this is changing and this country has a great future. The other big impression I have is how this history repeats itself - the Medellin and Cali cartels, and now how drug traficking is centered in Mexico. Th...more
Apr 18, 2011
Beth
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommended to Beth by:
publisher newsletter
Shelves:
first-reads-and-early-reviews
AT THE DEVIL’S TABLE, nonfiction by William Rempel, reminded me of a book I read a few years ago, KILLING PABLO by Mark Bowden. That book described Pablo Escobar’s control of, literally, everyone in Columbia. His control of the country came as a result of his control of the country’s illegal drug business.
When Escobar encountered opposition, he simply had them killed. Likewise, when he found competition, he had them killed.
AT THE DEVIL’S TABLE describes one of those competing cartels, the Cali...more
When Escobar encountered opposition, he simply had them killed. Likewise, when he found competition, he had them killed.
AT THE DEVIL’S TABLE describes one of those competing cartels, the Cali...more
My initial thought in purchasing this book was that it would be a slow,dry read , but still educational. But when I started reading it I found it to be gripping and very enlightening. The scary balancing act that the inside informant had to maintain took tremendous courage as his life and that of his family was constantly at risk. The book provides a very informative account of how one of the major cartels in Columbia operated as a business organizaton in relating to its internal and external en...more
This is a very well written and well researched book into one of the drug cartels in Colombia and how one man reluctantly became head of Cali security and how he tried to escape from that life. Along the way it also highlighted how cheap and scary life is there, and illustrated for me how very lucky I am not to live in a country where drugs have totally changed the police force, military, and politics.
Although this book is easy to read because of the construction and excellent writing, it is of...more
Although this book is easy to read because of the construction and excellent writing, it is of...more
Excellent insider's story of the Cali cartel. The first part tells how Jorge Salcedo joined the cartel in hopes of taking down their rival, Pablo Escobar, which he felt would be a huge duty to Columbia. It covers the inner workings of the cartel and Columbia corruption as he soon gets in too deep, realizing even the "good" cartel is putting him in legal and moral jeopardy. The 2nd half turns into a tense thriller as he tries to get out alive. A fascinating story of a world where money and power...more
One of the best and most surprising non-fiction books I've read lately.
I heard part of this story on an episode of This American Life, and was intrigued, but incredulous that there could be enough new material to fill out a 300+ page book. I was wrong. The 5+ years that the subject of this book (Jorge Salcedo) spent in the (somewhat reluctant) service of the Cali cartel were chock full of intrigue, violence, plus lots of other interesting details. I was only vaguely aware of the general outline...more
I heard part of this story on an episode of This American Life, and was intrigued, but incredulous that there could be enough new material to fill out a 300+ page book. I was wrong. The 5+ years that the subject of this book (Jorge Salcedo) spent in the (somewhat reluctant) service of the Cali cartel were chock full of intrigue, violence, plus lots of other interesting details. I was only vaguely aware of the general outline...more
Jorge Salcedo has big brass balls. Salcedo became the head of security for the Cali cocaine cartel and gradually was drawn deeper and deeper into the dark, violent side of the cartel. His only possible escape was to bargain with the DEA and betray his cartel bosses. William C. Rempel does a remarkable job in telling this story. He doesn't make Salcedo out to be a hero, but a person who bargained with the devil and lost. I highly recommend this book to anyone wishing to understand the turmoil in...more
William C. Rempel tells the engaging yet frightening story of Jorge Salcedo, a former battery manufacturer turned head of security for the leadership of the Cali Drug Cartel of Columbia. With Rempel's lively and engaged prose the reader feels effectively transported inside of the inner workings of a Columbian drug cartel and the confliction that exists inside of Mr. Salcedo, in that he loves his job as a security man for the Cali Cartel and sees a hopeful future as the security consaultant while...more
Jul 06, 2011
Zohar - ManOfLaBook.com
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
2011
“At the Devil's Table: The Untold Story of the Insider Who Brought Down the Cali Cartel” by William C. Rempel is a non-fiction narrative of the Cali drug cartel in the 1990’s. The book is written in an investigative journalism style.
Jorge Salcedo was an insider of the Cali cartel. He personally saw to the safety of the heads of the family and became their electronic security expert. Mr. Salcedo thinks of himself as noble, he joined the cartel to fight against the notorious...more
Jorge Salcedo was an insider of the Cali cartel. He personally saw to the safety of the heads of the family and became their electronic security expert. Mr. Salcedo thinks of himself as noble, he joined the cartel to fight against the notorious...more
Sep 13, 2011
Ricardo
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
History lovers, suspense story readers
Not so much an investigative report but rather a narrative of events and situations dating back to the time of the bitter rivalry between the Medellin cartel and the Cali cartel, as told by a very close collaborator of one of the main drug lords of the Cali cartel. This is a very well developed (real life) story that gets momentum as we approach the decisive time when the insider decides to betray and denounce the leaders of the Cali cartel, as well as set up a plan to inform about the cartel's...more
This is a fascinating look at life in a country ruled by corruption and how easily a cartel can suck people in and own them. Jorge Salcedo was one of those unfortunate people who became Columbian cartel property, then spent most of the 1990s trying to get out. This story is his perspective, taken from nearly a decade of interviews by investigative reporter William Rempel.
I was immediately swept up in Jorge's life. This book puts us all in 1990s Columbia. We're shown the truth of how few options...more
I was immediately swept up in Jorge's life. This book puts us all in 1990s Columbia. We're shown the truth of how few options...more
Very chilling book, we just do not realize how horrible these Colombian Drug lords really are. They kill their own family if they think they will talk to anyone, crime, political corruption, police corruption, even the local phone company has men working for them.
A very raw and to the point about the man that had had enough of this criminal way of life, risking everything family included to get this cartel taken down.
A very raw and to the point about the man that had had enough of this criminal way of life, risking everything family included to get this cartel taken down.
Riveting from middle to end. I understand the beginning details laid the foundation of what was to happen and Jorge Salcedo's role in the Cali Cartel. It got a bit tedious but overall not hard to read straight through in a couple of days. What a brave man to risk his and his family's lives to help capture Columbia's drug lords. He is now in the witness protection program, along with a few others told about in the book. I like the wrap-up at the end of the book, as well, that tells you what event...more
If you've already read about the drug wars in Colombia this may not be anything new to you, but it was an eye-opening read for me. I'm continually astounded by the brutality of human beings toward one another and how those in positions of authority abuse their power. The story of how this guy came to be ensconced in the cartel and finally extricated himself was fascinating.
This is a very interesting book. It shows how easy it is to get in over one's head dealing with a criminal organization. The details about the Cali drug cartel and how it corrupted Colombian government, military, business - pretty much all aspects of life in that country - are disturbing and illuminating.
Rempel proves in telling this tale about the Columbian cartel security chief who defected that writing should be left to the professionals. All you need to bring to the book is at least a passing interest in the subject matter and a bit of your time.
This book is a fascinating inside look at the man who first joined the Cali cartel, then, in order to escape the cartel acted as an informant. Well written, well researched, highly recommended.
This book was a super-interesting look at the behind the scenes machine of the Cali cartel and how it was brought down. It is a true (ish?) story and really well told.
Mar 09, 2013
Mtrim
added it
True story of the man who brought down the Cali cartel. Although there is a lot of background at first, this one turns into a real page turner, great story.
chilling story.. great book, well and friendly written.. I'm scared to say more...that much it impacted me... those who've read it and are familiar with current situation about drug trafficking and organized crime, might be able to guess why...:/
Fascinating book - it reads better than any Grisham suspense fiction. The people in this non-fiction book lived in a different universe - the author does a good job of putting all the pieces together in this complex story of the Cali drug cartel.
Has to be one of the best books I have read. This book had great detail and hooks in it that to be honest I thought I had better be careful of my surroundings dealing with the Cali Cartel! Although there is much more to the situation that none of will really know, Rempal gave a real dipiction of how rough, tough and corrupt the Columbia drug cartel and Columbian Government was or is??? Great read! fyi.....book is not out to the market until 5-31-11.
Incredible story! A look into a lifestyle that most of us can't possibly imagine. And a story of an unbelievably courageous man.
the best part of the book is the end of it. The rest of it is fiction and is a desperate effort to make himself look like the good guy... All the details are very fuzzy! and i don't think the cartel had a job description such as security boss!!
Feb 28, 2011
Jeffrey
marked it as to-read
I won this book from Goodreads First Reads. Looking forward to reading it. Thanks.
This should have been a fast-paced popular history book on the Cali Cartel side of the Colombian drug wars and I suppose it must have been, although it wasn't fast-paced enough to keep my attention. It's decent narrative, but it sort of plods along and definitely suffers from being nowhere near as good as News of a Kidnapping by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. It's probably not fair to compare the two, but I've decided that for me, News of a Kidnapping is the definitive word on the predations and destru...more
Excellent account of the Colombian Cartels' implosion in the 1990s.
Excellent, reads like a thriller. Fascinating stuff.
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
