Organized Crime: From Trafficking to Terrorism (2 Volume Set).

Despite its impact on international security and the world economy, organized crime is an unusual topic for a reference book. Difficult to research, the high-profit, high-risk subculture of drug lords, diamond smugglers, and sex slavers is rarely investigated by scholars. Organized Crime: An International Encyclopedia ventures behind the scenes into this hazardous territory.

In the first volume, expert contributors offer a global perspective on issues such as weapons and arms trafficking, high-tech and cyber crimes, the future of organized crime, and the connection between organized crime and armed conflicts. The second volume consists entirely of primary documents, national and international laws, and treaties that reflect the international community's many attempts—largely ineffective—to combat organized crime. Together the two volumes provide students and general readers with a road map to a shadow world with far-reaching impact on the world we know.

Frank G. Shanty is director of research for the COBRA Institute, a private research firm located in Abingdon, MD.

Patit Paban Mishra, PhD, is a professor in the Department of History at Sambalpur University, Dist. Sambalpur (ORISSA) India.