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'My Favorite Murder' Podcast Hosts Share Their Favorite True-Crime Reads
Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark are the cohosts of the wildly popular true-crime podcast My Favorite Murder. This spring they'll also become published coauthors with their memoir Stay Sexy & Don't Get Murdered: The Definitive How-To Guide. Here they share their favorite true-crime reading for all you Murderinos out there.
Karen Kilgariff: When I was a kid, I always felt like the adults were keeping all the interesting, juicy stuff a secret from me. The first true-crime book I ever read was like graduating into the world of adults, where suddenly I was finding out how horrible everything really was. I loved it.
Georgia Hardstark: Morbid curiosity and acute anxiety.
Goodreads: What makes a great true-crime book?
KK: I think the key is a strong beginning that hooks you in so you have to know what happens next. I like clean, simple writing that tells a human story without being too clinical or too pious. I just read an advanced copy of American Predator by Maureen Callahan about the serial killer Israel Keyes, and it was exactly like that. I finished it in three days. It was just perfect.
GH: I love when you can tell the author is the kind of person who can’t stop talking to their friends and family about the crime they’re obsessed with, to a point where those friends and family, who aren’t as into true crime, have asked them to stop sharing the details with them and just write a book already. The Poisoner’s Handbook by Deborah Blum and I’ll Be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara are great examples of this.
Check out Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark's favorite true-crime books:
Which of these true-crime books would you recommend? Tell us in the comments!
Check out the complete coverage of Mystery & Thriller Week:
Spring's Most Anticipated Mysteries & Thrillers
Top 100 Mysteries & Thrillers on Goodreads
The Best Mystery & Thriller Adaptations Since Gone Girl
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Tanya
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Apr 01, 2019 08:25AM
Where's the pioneers and best the genre has to offer, In Cold Blood and Helter Skelter?
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This is the best true crime book I've ever read, because it actually cares about the victims. The media gives fame and celebrity to the perpetrators, but the people who were affected are far faaarrr more important, and we need to remember that. One of Us: The Story of Anders Breivik and the Massacre in Norway
The one that comes to mind for me is Devil in the White City. I suppose there is a distinction to be made between True Crime as non-fiction or True Crime as a novel. In Cold Blood is also a good example.
I thought the same thing! Tanya wrote: "Where's the pioneers and best the genre has to offer, In Cold Blood and Helter Skelter?"
'Your favorite' and 'Most important to the genre' are often different things - plus they talk about Helter Skelter so much on the podcast that it doesn't surprise me they didn't put it on this list.
I agree with Devil in the White City..one of the best. I highly recommend "Killers of the Flower Moon" A fascinating examination of the mysterious deaths of wealthy Osage Indians and the creation of the FBI
The first true crime book I read was Someone's Husband, Someone's Son by Gordon Burn and it was all about the Yorkshire Ripper.I enjoyed Columbine by Dave Cullen and Evil Relations by Carol Ann Lee but my biggest favourite was The Executioner's Song by Norman Mailer. Also most of Ann Rule's books are on my bookcase.
Yet I hated In Cold Blood......
Carol Ann Lee just released a book called Somebody's Mother, Somebody's Daughter about the Yorkshire Ripper's victims, which is a clever take on the Burns' title.
No Stone Unturned by Steve Jackson is incredible. I learned more from this book than any other true crime read. It goes through different murders and goes into detail about the mistakes made while investigating, other victims etc. Probably going to read again
Carrie-Anne wrote: "This is the best true crime book I've ever read, because it actually cares about the victims. The media gives fame and celebrity to the perpetrators, but the people who were affected are far faaarr..."Thanks for the suggestion! I've been interested in this one since they covered it on MFM.
Lost Girls is one of my all-time favorite books so happy to see it make the list. I also thought People Who Eat Darkness: The Fate of Lucie Blackman was incredible not just for the true crime stuff but also for the dive into Japanese culture.
All of Ann Rule's books are at the top of my True Crime books read.
If you want something new to read, look no further than Nomad's Island. A novel that will keep you on the edge of your seat with twists and turns that will keep you guessing. Nomad's Island will whisk you away to a ruthless place where life struggles to survive and eyes taunt you from the jungle's edge.
The Boston strangled was my first. Ann rule is the best!!!
BAD BLOOD is not a mystery. It is nonfiction, a true story of a very expensive con.
No list of books belonging to 'true crime' genre can be complete without Helter Skelter.
I am so unfortunate. I live in one of the most remote part of the world where its really hard to get a hand on good books. Our book stores sell books which have been published many years back, still I enjoy them. I really hope I could get some new books to read.
I just finished ordinary Grace by William Kent Kruger..... WONDERFULl!!!I’d recommend it to those who haven’t discovered it yet! S A Burton
I just looked that up, Sherry, but I realised it wasn't a true-crime tale !! What a shame !
One of Us by Asne Seierstad or Columbine by Dave Cullen need to be on this list
I am so glad they aren't just listing the same old books everyone has read already like Helter Skelter. I want more obscure stories that are new to me!
Villisca is my favorite locked-room mystery, creepy as that sounds. I want to know what happened and yet I don’t because the answer can’t possibly be as fascinating as what I have imagined. The book isn’t great, but it is interesting and provides a decent background.
Tanya wrote: "Where's the pioneers and best the genre has to offer, In Cold Blood and Helter Skelter?"Was thinking the same thing!
Morgan wrote: "Lost Girls is one of my all-time favorite books so happy to see it make the list. I also thought People Who Eat Darkness: The Fate of Lucie Blackman was incredible not just for the true crime stuff..."This is my ultimate "favorite" true crime book — such a good exploration into the culture and this murder, told so well.
In Cold Blood is a must read classic!Midnight in the Garden of Good & Evil
Devil in the White City
Helter Skelter is a bit more pulp fiction, but still needs to be included.
Morgan wrote: "Lost Girls is one of my all-time favorite books so happy to see it make the list. I also thought People Who Eat Darkness: The Fate of Lucie Blackman was incredible not just for the true crime stuff..."Those are also two of my all-time favorites.
J wrote: "The one that comes to mind for me is Devil in the White City. I suppose there is a distinction to be made between True Crime as non-fiction or True Crime as a novel. In Cold Blood is also a good ex..."Totally agree. It was an excellent book about a subject I had never heard of before but have read a lot about since. Also it was fascinating to read about the 'White City' itself.
Katherine wrote: "Villisca is my favorite locked-room mystery, creepy as that sounds. I want to know what happened and yet I don’t because the answer can’t possibly be as fascinating as what I have imagined. The boo..."It you go to Youtube there is a hour long documentary on those murders. I had just read The Man on the Train and again had never heard of it before so saw this video. It is a fascinating case. This little town murders from way back when are so interesting because you know that probably a lot of people knew who the killers were but kept their mouths shut. The link for the video is:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NNCcs...
Soenam wrote: "I am so unfortunate. I live in one of the most remote part of the world where its really hard to get a hand on good books. Our book stores sell books which have been published many years back, stil..."You can purchase used books from BetterWorldBooks. It's cheap, ships internationally usually no shipping fee
I had such a bad taste in my mouth after finishing reading The Stranger Beside Me. I guess it's a perfect illustration of a person under Bundy's spell and in itself is an interesting thing to witness, but Ann's constant excuses for the man all while describing the horrific things he's done to these women are just sickening.I'm happy they mention Poisoner's Handbook - a fantastic read!
My personal favorite True Crime author was the late great Jack Olsen, his books Doc, "I" and Son are particularly unforgettable portraits of depraved psychopaths. Fairly well regarded as a writer in a not particularly esteemed genre back in the day, he is sadly now all but forgotten. A worthy writer ripe for rediscovery.
Tanya wrote: "Where's the pioneers and best the genre has to offer, In Cold Blood and Helter Skelter?"Agree!
i remember learning about chloroform through the poisoner's handbook when i was about 12 and being utterly fascinated by how many times it cropped up in shows i watched like criminal minds - maybe that was the birth of my true crime interest, lol
Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI --- loved this one
The adversary, by Emmanuel Carrère and Kidnap. The shocking story of the Lindbergh case, by George Waller.
I'm a huge fan of true crime compilations and behind-the-scenes first-person procedurals. A few of my favorites are Every Contact Leaves a Trace by Connie Fletcher, What the Corpse Revealed by Hugh Miller and...one from my local library whose title I've forgotten because I'm a dork like that. I'm currently reading Famous Crimes the World Forgot by Jason Lucky Morrow, and it's turning out to be rather good, as well. Oddly, I am not a fan of Ann Rule.
For those of you who loved the Poisoner's Handbook:A is for Arsenic: The Poisons of Agatha Christie
and
Poison: Sinister Species with Deadly Consequences
are both good readig.
Carrie-Anne wrote: "This is the best true crime book I've ever read, because it actually cares about the victims. The media gives fame and celebrity to the perpetrators, but the people who were affected are far faaarr..."Absolutely, I agree.
I would add Midnight in Peking to any true crime list!
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