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Shadow of Doubt: The Trial of Dennis OlandBeing one of Canada's sensational murder cases this author attended the press conferences, jury selection, numerous court proceedings and the entire trial to which she live-blogged. She delves into the family history, exploring the strained relationships, infidelities and financial problems which alone was very complicated. She ultimately provided motive for murder.
An epic tale of that both engages and teaches Canada's criminal justice system with all its twists and turns in full view right from crime to verdict.
3+ Stars
The Treatment: The Story of Those Who Died in the Cincinnati Radiation Tests, Martha Stephens3 stars
This book not only takes you back to your old, half-forgotten Cold War paranoia; it takes it to a whole new level. This is the story of something the Pentagon was doing behind our backs. That something combined the worst features of Nagasaki with Dr. Mengele's science lab, and they did it right here in the U.S. of A. With all that said, this was a frustrating, unsatisfying read. The author really only hints at what she found out about this case over the years. She likes to summarize, not really draw us a picture of what went on. I don't know how many of these experiments were going on, how many died, how many survived and how many of the wrongdoers were called on the carpet for what they did. On top of that, Martha Stephens is one of those people who never writes "Gaffney's doubts" when she can use "the doubts of Gaffney" instead, cramming as many words as she can into every sentence. I would have expected an English professor to know better than to write an entire book in the passive voice. I wonder how much shorter and more accessible it would have been if she had handled it differently. The really affecting part of this book was reading the testimony of the survivors -- and that was too little, too late. I give this one 3 stars because the story is so important, not because of the way the author presented it.
Hidden Brutality: Life of Serial Killer Carl Eugene Watts, Jack Smith3 stars
Finally, another book on my old nemesis, Coral Eugene Watts. This was a very quick read but it included details I've never seen before about the murders he may (or may not) have committed. I have serious reservations about this one because there were quite a few obvious mistakes, e.g. when he said that 'George Harrison' was the mass murderer who opened fire on the customers at 'Lucy's Cafeteria' -- dude, it was George Hennard at Luby's Cafeteria -- and that tends to throw doubt on everything else he said. There were other clear mistakes in his biography of Watts. But if other details he provided turn out to be correct, I can come away from this read with a little more insight into why the police might consider Watts a suspect in certain other killings. I also learned more about the joint police investigation into these cases, and that information was serious food for thought. I recommend this one.
not the real killer!
Whodunnit? It was obviously George Harrison and Lucy in the Sky, with Diamonds.
Innocent Victims, Brian Karem5 solid stars!
If you want to really get the full effect of this atrocious story, open it and start reading WITHOUT looking at the jacket copy or the photo section. They were clearly designed to spoil the story for readers -- and is this one ever full of twists and turns! It's an infuriating case that made me want to tear the whole criminal-justice system right down to the ankles so someone can rebuild it from scratch. The screw-ups in the system managed to almost blot out the terrible, terrible crimes under discussion. The author never descended into trying to interpret this head-scratcher of a story for you. There was no shoot-from-the-hip psychoanalysis going on, for instance -- he tells you what everyone saw and lets you make up your own mind. There's a whole lot of room for debate left after the story ends. If it has ended. I came away with the feeling that there were even more disasters in store after the last page. I can't recommend this one too highly.
Ghosts of the Tsunami: Death and Life in Japan’s Disaster Zone, Richard Lloyd Parry5 stars
Having opened this book, I simply could not stop reading until the last page. The author returned again and again to Miyagi Prefecture over the course of at least 5 years to learn about developments, and record how they were experienced by a number of different people who survived the 2011 tsunami. The author does not focus on the emotional devastation of the people left behind after 22,062 people died -- he is after all a Brit writing about the Japanese, so our informants have some of the stiffest upper lips anywhere in the world -- but he does try to give an idea of the scope of the disaster, never leaning too heavily on facts and figures but simply letting people tell their stories, always reminding us that the full impact is unbearable and probably, literally, unthinkable. He even gives us the POV of several unquiet ghosts, in an attempt to give us really complete coverage. I'm not sure it's possible to really write the book he set out to write, and Parry seems to agree with that, but this was a valiant effort. I added this to the TC shelf because of the clear negligence that got almost 80 schoolchildren killed unnecessarily.
Long Mile Home: Boston Under Attack, the City's Courageous Recovery, and the Epic Hunt for JusticeThis is a mesmorizing and gripping story of the terrorist attack at the Boston Marathon Race of April 2013. We catch a glimpse into the lives of these dedicated marathon runners striving to be the very best they could be in making this beloved city proud. There is so much I never realized reading about the hard work it takes to put this together and make it a success and safety for the athletes and spectators plus among them people from all over the world come to be apart of it. It took meticulous planning that went into this and the margin of error was precariously slim.
At the beginning leading up to April 15th of 2013, Boston was euphoric!!! Nothing would prepare them for what was to come. The spectators with numerous dignitaries, police, the Mayor and city workers took position standing guard for any suspicious activity. What happened later was hard to fathom. In debelief victims fell to the ground and people were found dead.
I would like to say more about all the many heroes that came to the rescue in all the chaos was staggering. The aftermath with victims now amputees and the killers on the loose had to face a new and grueling kind of battle. These brave souls put tremendous courage in this aftermath in order to fight back and not let these two brothers win.
There are many hero's in the wonderful city with signs everywhere proudly
displaying BOSTON STRONG!
5+ Stars
Cold Storage, Don Lasseter4 enthusiastic stars
Don Lasseter really outdid himself with this one. He collected a staggering amount of information from who-knows-how-many primary sources and put it all together into a very readable, well-organized TC book that never gets confusing, repetitive or wild-eyed. For instance, he doesn't make the elementary mistake of telling you everything about the crime, then making you read all the same details for a second time during the trial. He never indulges in shoot-from-the-hip psychoanalysis and never tries to tell the reader what to believe about the evidence. This is also (I hope) a very unusual case worthy of the reader's attention. I highly recommend this one.
The Burning of Evelyn Foster, Jonathan Goodman4 stars
An intriguing read about a real head-scratcher of a case. The investigation rivals that of the Hall-Mills murder, and all the loose ends in this case could be knitted up into a tea cosy big enough to envelop a bank building. At the same time, it seems rather obvious what happened here -- once again, not unlike the Hall-Mills murder. My only complaint about this book is that Goodman seemed to want to keep the known facts of the case to himself, commenting acidly on the shaky time-keeping or honesty of this or that witness without spelling out for us what he thinks really happened, and where and when. I got all bollixed up trying to follow the wildly scattered timelines. The nearly-blank maps didn't help at all. I finally stopped worrying about knowing who saw what, when and where and focused on identity of the elusive killer.
Invisible Killer: The Monster Behind the Mask, Diana Montane and Sean Robbins3 reluctant stars
I read this book in spite of the writing quality, not because of it. I found the writing pretty clumsy and purple, but the story was written from an unusual perspective and the case itself was pretty unusual. I was thrown throughout this book by the author's odd statements. For instance, he said again and again that a certain 13-year-old girl was probably his subject's "first killing" even though he'd been crystal clear that the first killing had been committed years earlier and the whole world knew about it. He also seemed to call mental retardation a "controllable condition" at one point. In spite of this kind of goofiness, I found the book intriguing because it focused on how completely normal the killer was when he wasn't disemboweling someone -- it's a point too many true-crime writers forget, that even serial killers are 99% normal and unremarkable.
Mom, Dad, Mike and PattieThis is the second time I read about this shocking crime. The author lived, ate and breathed this trial. What a journey it was. Her attention to detail was riveting and I learned things that I hadn't before.
Sifting through evidence and theories with the investigating team took time as the weeks went by. What they couldn't find is MOTIVE. The daughter of the slain family offered her own theory. Disturbed by her dry-eyed demeanour, detectives shifted to her as all the tips from neighbours and friends didn't pan out. A liar and a manipulator the likes of which nobody could have guessed as she was chatty and eager to help but seemingly emotionless. Her gentleness would be dropped in a flash as she reacted in anger and abusive verbal threats. She was and is still the ultimate con artist. Her friends and family members overwhelmed by her diconnect was stunning. So many fell prey to her guile. An incredible story that keeps you turning pages.
5+ Stars
The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace: A Brilliant Young Man Who Left Newark for the Ivy League, Jeff Hobbs4 reluctant stars
I have to say that all the raves I heard about this book, it did not quite live up to expectations. It's won half the awards available, for Pete's sake, but what I read was a non-overwhelming, non-heartbreaking, non-shattering, but still thoughtful and elegaic biography of one of the author's college roommates. He never seems to just say right out that his friend's THC addiction is what kept him from using his Yale degree to really get himself somewhere. A quote from another friend, Oswaldo Gutierrez, sums it up best: "so smart, but so dumb." It's a terribly sad story of a life that ended too soon, but the author also does a great job of helping us understand how Rob rightly made a tremendous impression on everyone who knew him. It's a story of good people in bad situations, and how only some of them found their way out into something better. Well worth your time. Would make a great companion read with Dead Opposite: The Lives and Loss of Two American Boys.
Fatal DosageOMG, I know I usually gush about the book I finished. Well this time I am RAVING about the story, how this author penned it and what the victim's family had to go through.
Although the courtroom interrogations were lengthy, not as tedious as some nor as repetitive. I never got that impression once. Every page I turned kept me on the edge of my seat!
The author filled us in as to what happened after the trial in the Epilogue. That alone was riveting and I loved the way it put together all the pieces of the story.
A resounding 5+ Stars
I just read “If I Can’t Have You” about Susan Powell. I already knew most of the story from a podcast, but I still really enjoyed getting more details. It was a crazy story. I can’t believe Josh and Steve Powell are real people. They seem...so...not human? I don’t know. It was a great book. I really enjoyed it. But /listening/ to the 911 call from the Children’s rep at the end of this tragic tale is way more powerful than reading the transcript.
Let's Kill Mom: Four Texas Teens and a Horrifying Murder Pact by Donna Fielder4 stars
A well-written case about a daughter that enlists the aid of her boyfriend and brother to kill her mother because she wasn't getting her way. I really felt sorry for the mother, a single mother working two jobs and had very little time for her children. Not sure if it would have made a difference in the outcome if she had been home more. The daughter was basically out of control, probably some oppositional defiance disorder going on. I liked that this book was concise with the investigation and trial. I didn't think the last few chapters were necessary where she talks about going to the prisons to interview the kids, but otherwise this book held my interest from beginning to end.
Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI got 4 stars from me. The author uncovers one corner of the genocidal spree against the Osage Indians of Oklahoma, targeted after someone found oil on their reservation and they suddenly became some of the richest people in America. He also makes clear that there was much, much more to the story than the murders committed by this particular set of conspirators...and he maddens me by hinting at some of those crimes without telling me much of anything, not even names and dates of death that might allow me to look into them further. What he did tell us here is thoughtfully researched and well told.
Sleep, My Child, ForeverThis is a heartbreaking story of a mother and how she spiraled downward through bad choices she made which led to a tragic ending for her family. One particular detective was relentless in pursuing the truth. A labyrinth of deceptions and lies revealed this mother as a cold-blooded killer who secretly took out insurance policies on her children. These chilling events are unspeakable but because of this brilliant cop, he succeeded in finding the truth determining to bring her to justice.
4 Stars
A Perfect Gentleman This is a riveting story about the cross-country psycho who charmed teen age girls to death. A terrifying portrait of a sociopathic mind who commited cold-blooded murder and mutilation. It sparked a massive nation-wide man hunt across five States and two continents to apprehend one of the most elusive and charming serial killer who ever lived. The police in Indian, Florida and Texas as well as their prosecutors put in long grueling hours fitting the pieces together to catch this Perfect Gentleman. I especially liked what the honourable Larry Gist, senoir criminal district judge consented to write in the last chapter of this book.
5 Stars
I read the Girl in the Leaves. I have to say I wasn’t that impressed.
Kristin wrote: "I read the Girl in the Leaves. I have to say I wasn’t that impressed."That seems to be the consensus around here!
50 American Serial Killers You've Probably Never Heard Of: Volume 5, Robert Keller3 stars
What a lot of new names this book gave me for my Book of the Dead! It was a quick read without a lot of in-depth discussion of anything, but it gave me a lot of new cases to look up elsewhere. Well written and hard to put down, like many of my old favorites, New Murderer's Who's Who, The Giant Book of Murder : Real Life Cases Cracked by Forensic Science and 501 Most Notorious Crimes. And almost none of these cases are guys you've ever heard of before. That's the biggest selling point!
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Obsessed with True Crime
Books mentioned in this topic
50 American Serial Killers You've Probably Never Heard Of: Volume 5 (other topics)The Giant Book of Murder : Real Life Cases Cracked by Forensic Science (other topics)
The New Murderers' Who's Who (other topics)
501 Most Notorious Crimes (other topics)
A Perfect Gentleman (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Blaine Lee Pardoe (other topics)Terry Ganey (other topics)
Martin L. Friedland (other topics)
Tina Dirmann (other topics)
Donna Fielder (other topics)
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4 stars
This book made me so heartsick that I had to take a break from reading it for a while before I could finish. I learned more about the victims, more about their relationships to each other, and above all more about the timeline of events, filling in gaps I didn't know existed after reading Nobody's Women: The Crimes and Victims of Anthony Sowell, the Cleveland Serial Killer. The author was able to get farther into the nooks and crannies of the story than I dared to hope. Both the books I've read on this case are more than worth your time, and I don't think you can have a good sense of the story without both. So many serial-murder cases involve finer-pointing at the police, saying they didn't take the victims seriously; this book shows you exactly why they felt this way. I came away even angrier at the plight of the surviving victims than I was already for the women whose problems are now over.