The Devil in the White City in Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge

Aug 06, 2009 Beth Given rated it liked it · review of another edition

So I didn't like the first half of this book -- some parts were boring (like the whole chapter on how Burnham went to woo the Eastern architects) and the other parts other parts stomach-turning (everything about Holmes building his lair and, oh yeah, killing people). The author has this technique of trying to build suspense that I found just plain annoying (all the "engineer from Pennsylvania" references, for example). Had this not been a book club read I might have abandoned it midway through.

B So I didn't like the first half of this book -- some parts were boring (like the whole chapter on how Burnham went to woo the Eastern architects) and the other parts other parts stomach-turning (everything about Holmes building his lair and, oh yeah, killing people). The author has this technique of trying to build suspense that I found just plain annoying (all the "engineer from Pennsylvania" references, for example). Had this not been a book club read I might have abandoned it midway through.

But thankfully this picked up a lot for Part III (maybe I just appreciated that things were actually happening and the author didn't have to rely on the perverse psychopath to further the plot). Part IV was all about Holmes again, but more from the point of view of the detective chasing him, so it didn't feel quite so dark. I did really enjoy the epilogue, which tied up lots of loose ends and also tried to make sense of everything. And, since I'm a nerdy history-lover, I actually liked reading about his research in the "notes" section (I didn't read his actual notes; I guess I'm not THAT nerdy). While I was reading, I couldn't figure out why in the world he would go into such detail about Pendergast ... and then I read how he held that postcard in his hand, and suddenly I understood why he'd chosen to tell the story that way.

This book was full of lots of interesting facts and tidbits about a topic I didn't think I was even interested in. I especially loved reading about the Ferris Wheel (crazy!) and the fledgling city of Chicago.

Yes, I do love that this was set in Chicago! We spent a couple of years out there, and I kind of wish I would have gotten around to reading this back when I first put it on my to-read list -- then I could have visited the places I read about! Luckily for me, I visited Jackson Park without even realizing it when we went to the Museum of Science and Industry. I wonder if I'd ever driven by the former site of Holmes' "castle" ... ugh. On second thought, maybe it's better I didn't know! ...more

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May 28, 2010 Joanna rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: nonfiction, 2014-read, audiobooks, rws-2014-fall

Scott Brick is one of my favorite narrators. He does a great job with everything he reads and this book is no exception. This book tells two basically unrelated stories: a serial killer who was in Chicago at the time and the story of the building and running of the World's Fair of 1893. I loved the way these two stories were told in parallel and found much of the story fascinating. I knew little about the Fair, little about the time period, and nothing about the murders. The writing is a little ...more

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