In a very different vein, I have read a number of books recently that feature a surprising amount of "scam and schemes": - The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan,

In a very different vein, I have read a number of books recently that feature a surprising amount of "scam and schemes": - The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan, about the Dust Bowl during the Great Depression. A lot of people were scammed into settling the high plains by railroad salesmanship and other "real estate" scams. - The Indifferent Stars Above by Daniel James Brown. A book about the harrowing Donner Party. Scamming and scheming are what draw them out to that expedition. - The Guns of August by Barbara Tuchman. WW1 history but it boils down to the scheming of various men in the respective countries. - The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money, and Power, Daniel Yergin. The oil rush from America to the World. Scheming features prominently to say the least.