Time After Time: Why Criminals Can't Quit Crime by Chris Atkins - True Crime Non Fiction - Paperback

Condition: BRAND NEW
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781838954697
Publisher: Atlantic Books

Overview:
Time After Time: Why Criminals Can't Quit Crime is Chris Atkins' unflinching investigation into Britain's broken justice system. Drawing on his own experience as a former inmate and documentary maker, Atkins exposes the strange, darkly funny loopholes that let offenders slip through the cracks, revealing why reoffending is almost inevitable. Following his acclaimed memoir A Bit of a Stretch, this paperback blends investigative rigour with genuine warmth, essential reading for true crime fans and anyone concerned with justice reform.

About the Book:
Chris Atkins spent time behind bars after being convicted of film financing fraud, an experience that gave him unprecedented access to the world of ex-offenders navigating life after release. In Time After Time, he uses that access to unpick a justice system that regularly fails the people it claims to rehabilitate. Through astonishing real cases, readers meet a man who escaped custody by posing as his own twin, another who lived in luxury hotels impersonating a duke, and others recalled to prison over trivial technicalities rather than genuine reoffending. Atkins weaves these stories together with sharp analysis of probation failures, chronic underfunding, housing shortages, and the mental health crisis inside prisons, showing how these problems combine to trap people in a revolving door of custody and release. The tone is compassionate and often wickedly funny, never losing sight of the human cost behind the statistics. Rather than dry policy analysis, Atkins tells these stories with narrative flair, making complex justice issues accessible while satisfying readers with a deeper interest in criminology. The result entertains as much as it informs, and stands as an urgent call for reform of a system that makes staying out of prison harder than being in it.

Key Benefits:

• Written by a former inmate with genuine insider access to the criminal justice system.
• Combines real-life case studies with sharp, engaging investigative writing.
• Explores probation, housing, and mental health failures behind chronic reoffending.
• Blends dark humour with compassion, avoiding dry policy-speak.
• Follow-up to the acclaimed prison memoir A Bit of a Stretch.
• Ideal gift for true crime, current affairs, and social justice readers.

About the Author:
Chris Atkins is a documentary filmmaker and journalist. After being convicted of film financing fraud, he served time in a category C prison, an experience he chronicled in his bestselling memoir A Bit of a Stretch. Since his release, Atkins has continued campaigning on prison and justice reform, drawing on his unique perspective as journalist and former prisoner. His work combines investigative depth with a distinctive, humane voice, and he is regarded as a sharp commentator on the British criminal justice system.

Why You'll Love This True Crime Read:
Funny, furious, and deeply humane, Time After Time turns hard facts about reoffending into a page-turning read, perfect for anyone who loves true crime with real substance and heart.

Please Note: Please check the ISBN listed to ensure this matches the UK edition and cover shown before purchase.