Bodies of Evidence: The Shocking True Story of America's Most Chilling Serial Murderess... From Crime Scene to Courtroom to Electric Chair

by Chris Anderson

She Spun a Web of Deceit

To the rest of the world, Judias Buenoano was the American sucess story -- a savvy businesswoman who pulled herself up from a childhood of dire poverty. To the men in her life, she was the charming seductress -- turned cold, calcuating killer who grew richer with each of their agonizing deaths. And to her child, she was the woman who gave him life, only to take it away in a cruel act of violence.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction

384 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

Librarian note: There is more than one author with this name in the Goodreads database.

Reviews

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting and twisted

I read the book due to the closeness I am to Pensacola. The author outlines the events well and is a fairly easy read.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Riveting account of a serial murderess.

[Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an interesting read but I couldn't get into it like I usually can with true crime books

[Marura · Rating 2 out of 5]

Court proceedings are the absolute worst.
The preview makes it sound like a very interesting read but the body is the absolute snooze-fest. They really could have done a better job

[Samantha · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very well-written true crime, the only downside lying in the (relatively speaking) somewhat boring nature of Judias Buenoano's crimes. Various accounts of arsenic poisoning, drowning, and attempted car bombing, committed against her husband, a lover (and very nearly a second one as well), and her son for a relatively run-of-the-mill reason. I won't give anything away (the back cover lists her victims, so I don't believe I've done so with my previous sentence), but the crimes don't scream "thrilling." That said, the authors do a fantastic job of compellingly unfolding the various details of her and her victims' history. A vicious hatred between Buenoano and a lead detective on the case is exciting (she allegedly considered him her arch nemesis), but I wish more had been done with it. This is by no means the fault of the authors, though, because they can't very well go back and change history and it's to the book's credit that everything remains vividly real throughout the narrative. I'll give it 4 stars (which I am wont to do in most cases) because of the writing. I think a suspenseful, bloody, compelling crime would be absolutely chilling in their hands.

P.S. The cover stinks, but that's not the authors' fault. Nor really the publishers (I got this at the company's free book day...), because the true crime genre begs for sensational titles and overly long explanatory subtitles.

[Chelsea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Without conscience or compassion, this woman murdered some close family members (and others) in the course of over 10 years. She was a female serial killer, a rare specimen indeed. When you read this book, you are just going to be in shock. This woman did some horrendous acts and almost got away with murder.

After I read it, I was so depressed. I am always surprised (and not in a naivete kind of way but a human "feeling" way) about what horrendous acts people can do to each other.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting true-crime book about a woman who was tried for the murder of her boyfriend, and the resulting investigation turned up THREE other murders she had committed in years past-- two ex-husbands and her own 19-year-old handicapped son; all of whom she had collected large amounts of life insurance for.

The author's writing style kept me interested from start to finish.




**#12 of 100 books I have pledged to read and review in 2015**