I recall reading this book circa 15 years ago and being much more impressed than 2nd time round. Marks' autobiography details his life as a marijuana smuggler in the mid-80's portraying himself as an all-round "nice" guy whilst trying to convince us that weed (and hash) should be legalised. The book provides good insight into the lifestyle that accompanies a drug smuggler, glamourising the events that occurred, and also providing what, on the face of it, is a startlingly amount of detail on other individuals also involved in this trade.
Unfortunately, whilst Marks' story is interesting it quickly becomes repetitive and the writing certainly doesn't light up the pages. There are, however, some genuinely entertaining passages, most especially those surrounding his dealings with the IRA gun-runner and classic Belfast con-man, Jim McCann, but on the whole not enough to keep it going through its bloated 560-odd pages.
3 stars out of 5
Credit: Banner photo by Esteban Chiner