UVF: behind the mask

'UVF: Behind the Mask' is the gripping and shocking history of the Ulster Volunteer Force, from the formation of its post-1965 incarnation up to the present day. Aaron Edwards, who grew up in the Protestant working class community in North Belfast, blends rigorous research with unprecedented access to leading members of the UVF. His unique position reveals startling revelations into the inner-workings of one of the world's oldest and most ruthless terrorist groups, explaining the grisly details behind their sadistic torture and murder techniques and their high profile atrocities. Brilliantly told through a compelling 'True Crime' narrative, Edwards offers key insights into the surrounding historical, social and political environment of which the UVF was a direct product. Interviews with high-profile UVF members - including Billy Mitchell, David Ervine, Billy Wright, Billy Hutchinson, Gary Haggarty, and the group's current leadership, as well as their loyalist rivals such as Johnny Adair, and the police officers who sought to bring the paramilitaries to justice - reveal the secret details behind the group's violent campaign. 'UVF: Behind the Mask' assesses the long-term effects of UVF violence on its own members, supporters and wider Northern Irish society, explaining, for the first time, how law enforcement agencies used informers and agents to combat UVF violence. Edwards' life and career has led him to the centre of the UVF's long, dark underbelly; in this defining work he offers a comprehensive and authoritative study of an armed group that has played a pivotal role in the Irish conflict.