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  • Under and Alone

  • The True Story of the Undercover Agent Who Infiltrated America's Most Violent Outlaw Motorcycle Gang
  • Written by: William Queen
  • Narrated by: Don Leslie
  • Length: 8 hrs and 14 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (69 ratings)

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Under and Alone cover art

Under and Alone

Written by: William Queen
Narrated by: Don Leslie
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Publisher's Summary

In 1998, William Queen was a veteran law enforcement agent with a lifelong love of motorcycles and a lack of patience with paperwork. When a “confidential informant” made contact with his boss at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, offering to take an agent inside the San Fernando chapter of the Mongols (the scourge of Southern California, and one of the most dangerous gangs in America), Queen jumped at the chance, not realizing that he was kicking-starting the most extensive undercover operation inside an outlaw motorcycle gang in the history of American law enforcement. Nor did Queen suspect that he would penetrate the gang so successfully that he would become a fully “patched-in” member, eventually rising through their ranks to the office of treasurer, where he had unprecedented access to evidence of their criminal activity. After Queen spent 28 months as “Billy St. John,” the bearded, beer-swilling, Harley-riding gang-banger, the truth of his identity became blurry, even to himself.

During his initial “prospecting” phase, Queen was at the mercy of crank-fueled criminal psychopaths who sought to have him test his mettle and prove his fealty by any means necessary, from selling (and doing) drugs, to arms trafficking, stealing motorcycles, driving getaway cars, and, in one shocking instance, stitching up the face of a Mongol “ol’ lady” after a particularly brutal beating at the hands of her boyfriend.

Yet despite the constant criminality of the gang, for whom planning cop killings and gang rapes were business as usual, Queen also came to see the genuine camaraderie they shared. When his lengthy undercover work totally isolated Queen from family, his friends, and ATF colleagues, the Mongols felt like the only family he had left. “I had no doubt these guys genuinely loved Billy St. John and would have laid down their lives for him. But they wouldn’t hesitate to murder Billy Queen.

”From Queen’s first sleight of hand with a line of methamphetamine in front of him and a knife at his throat, to the fearsome face-off with their decades-old enemy, the Hell’s Angels (a brawl that left three bikers dead), to the heartbreaking scene of a father ostracized at Parents’ Night because his deranged-outlaw appearance precluded any interaction with regular citizens, Under and Alone is a breathless, adrenaline-charged read that puts you on the street with some of the most dangerous men in America and with the law enforcement agents who risk everything to bring them in.

©2005 William Queen (P)2006 Books on Tape

What the critics say

"His story is tight, suspenseful, and unstoppable." (Bookmarks Magazine)

"[A] harrowing, turbocharged account of undercover life....The strength and white-hot intensity of the writing make this read like a movie." (Publishers Weekly)

"Under and Alone is the dangerous and fascinating true story of an undercover ATF agent and the psychological price he was made to pay for his courageous work.” (Joseph Wambaugh, best-selling author of The Onion Field)

What listeners say about Under and Alone

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Great listen!

This is a really interesting story that keeps you listening. I binged it in just over a day. I found it very thought provoking. Sometimes I found myself almost rooting for the bad guys because of the relationships he established with them. I can’t believe how brave Billy was and how calm he was able to be. The writing really describes the danger he was in and that made it exciting. I can’t recommend this book enough!

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a good listen

it starts slow and almost breaks down too much of the biker code and slang, but it picks up mid way and comes full circle to be a good listen

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Fascinating

This retelling of events is so outside my wheelhouse, yet I found myself drawn to the moral dilemmas faced by Billy. Not many people would be able to handle themselves in such challenging conditions.

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Excellent Narration!

The narrator of this story is phenomenal, kept me interested and intrigued the whole time. What an excellent biography, this man has balls of steal, I can only imagine he is still looking over his shoulder wondering if they're coming up behind him!!

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Great read!!

Great read #Audible 1,hard to put my phone down once I started to listen! Awesome!

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amazing listen

performance and story compliment eachirher.. definition of binge listening. was sad when it was over. lol

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pretty solid book

I heard Billy Queen's story on the tv show "outlaw bikers" growing up and it was always my favorite episode, his story is very intriguing and if you haven't seen the episode yet I suggest you listen or read his book first. it really sheds a light on how absolutely insane the San Fernando Velley chapter of the mongols were, great listen, I listened to the whole book at work on my 12 hour shifts.

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