Obsessed with True Crime discussion

Currently reading: Cold North Killers: Canadian Serial Murder, Angel of Darkness: The True Story of Randy Kraft and the Most Heinous Murder Spree, Three Boys Missing: The Tragedy That Exposed the Pedophilia Underworld and A Complicated Woman: South Carolina, Notorious USA

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All at once? Man, I am a terrible influence around here...

Fishface wrote: "All at once? Man, I am a terrible influence around here..."

I cant do more than one TC at a time or I get them confused but I can do several genres at once.

I've got a start on No Remorse: The Rise and Fall of the Killer John Wallace. It's really excellent. It started out looking like a straight biography, but this guy appears to think nothing of shooting a stranger he heard something bad about or drowning someone who said something disrespectful to him.

Finished Murderous Minds: Exploring the Criminal Psychopathic Brain: Neurological Imaging and the Manifestation of Evil by Dean A. Haycock
5++ Stars

For anyone who is interested in this subject and has read and enjoyed books like Without Conscience: The Disturbing World of the Psychopaths Among Us by Robert D. Hare, The Psychopath: Emotion and the Brain by James Blair and others like them, you would love this book. I can't recommend it enough.

I am listing it here although it probably isn't "true" True Crime but it is certainly related to it and it does talk about some specific cases.

The author covers the current studies, theories, misconceptions and research on the psychopath and people with psychopathic traits. Very informative and easy to read.

I'm a very little way into A Trail of Corn: A True Mystery and it's excellent. The thing reads like a novel and takes you through the whole situation surrounding Stephanie Bryan's murder, step by step, from virtually every POV -- Stephanie and her friends, Stephanie's parents, Bud Abbott, the caretaker for the fishing cottage Bud owns, Bud's wife, her boss, every single witness who saw a terrified girl screaming in a car as the driver tried to subdue her -- everyone. I am starting to see why this is going to fill up 750+ pages, but it reads wonderfully.

Winter Of Frozen Dreams by Karl Harter
Killer women has always intrigued me and this book I just finished has everything in it to lure one in. This case involved lawyers, farmers, professors, cabdrivers, school teachers and insurance salesmen. All manner of society. The two victims were loners and what transpired in the months and years to come was astounding.
The perpetrator was brilliant in mind but demureness around people.
She accomplished much in her life but did not follow through with her
Choices. What ensued will keep the reader guessing as the case moves forward.
The Proscutor’s and Defense lawyer’s did battle for her life and people everywhere were packed in for courtroom drama. This book keeps you on the edge of your seat all the way through. It is very well written by this author and I highly recommend it to true crime readers.
5 Stars

Kentucky Bloodbath: Ten Bizarre Tales of Murder from the Bluegrass State by Kevin Sullivan

DEATH BY SWORD ~ museum worker murdered ~ Carol Frances Mudd
BLOOD IN THE MOONLIGHT ~ Albert & Mabel Bauer ~ him beaten and strangled, her stabbed multiple times
RAMPAGE ~ Escapee from jail with life sentences
THE BOXHILL MURDERS ~ Kirk Ellington Tiff
JEALOUSY IS FOREVER ~ Mary F Byron killed by ex on her 21st birthday
THE ICE MAN ~ Todd Ice ~ 15 years old murdered Donna Knox 7 years old
A WORM IN THE NOSE ~ James Becker ~ Thomas A Rankin (step-father) shot with an arrow
CLOSING TIME ~ Barbel Poore ~ raped and murdered
THE BEST OF FRIENDS ~ Scott Nelson & Richard David Stephenson by George Ellis Wade & Victor DeWayne Taylor
A VOICE FROM ABOVE ~ Monica Berger killed her two year old son Joey ‘because God told her to’

These are the cases in this compilation, I have to agree with another reviewer that these weren’t all that bizarre. A few will, stabbed with a sword and shot with an arrow. Basically these are crimes that you would find committed anywhere. The fact that they were all committed in Kentucky could be considered bizarre if you think Kentucky is all horse farms and mint juleps. Those of us who read true crime can tell you, crime happens everywhere, and mentally ill people are everywhere. That being said this is what I thought of the book.

Some don’t like the ‘short story’ aspect of true crime. I like them if they are well done. I found all these to be well done. The author made a point to research the crimes, not relying on newspaper accounts but digging into the original case files to tell us what really happened.

These crimes were all new to me and I found this author’s relating of them to be compelling. At 109 pages it is a rather quick read but very informative and fascinating.

Fishface wrote: "All at once? Man, I am a terrible influence around here..."

We wouldn't have it any other way.

A Trail of Corn: A True Mystery
3 rather reluctant stars

A whopping, 755-page rethinking of the Stephanie Bryan murder and the execution of Bud Abbott. This book is either heavily fictionalized, or the author interviewed every living soul associated with this case -- every juror, witness, courtroom spectator, friend of the family, attorney, journalist and rubbernecker. This book started to seriously bog down during the court proceedings, when he subjected the reader to every single word of every sidebar discussion; the book would have been half the length if he had summarized all that stuff for us. He also could have dispensed with the frequent descriptions of how everyone's hair was combed, whether he was handsome and youthful-looking for his age, whether the coat she was wearing had cuffs on the sleeves and whether her fingers were pointing north by northwest as she laid them on top of her purse. Only in the last 50 pages did he really start to make his case that Bud Abbott was framed, and there was enough there to really make me wonder, but if he had spent more time investigating and less focusing on inessentials like the color of Georgia Abbott's hair, I would have gotten much more out of it.

Actual Innocence: When Justice Goes Wrong and How to Make it Right by Barry Scheck and others.
4 stars



A book that really makes you think. We automatically assume that all criminals are guilty and that they all say they are innocent. These are stories about people that the Innocence Project has freed through DNA testing. It is amazing how many people have been falsely accused of crimes. The book goes into depth exploring how memories fade over time or see things differently than what actually happened or how people's insight can change from suggestive comments. Very interesting!

I have begun "Son" by Gregg Olsen. Finding it way too chatty without real substance so far (I'm on page 50). Does it get better?

The best parts so far are the quotes at the beginnings of chapters. Otherwise I have no idea where his information is coming from because he gives no references. This makes it hard for me to believe what he writes. If I knew which things come from court testimony I'd be more interested. How much is hearsay?

Anyone else feel the same?

It gets better. It is largely not hearsay -- he interviewed the people involved except, I believe, for the idiot himself.

Thanks or the reassurance. So, where do the quotes attributed to Coe come from?

Probably a lot from Jennifer, news articles, courtwatching. And his weird friend Jay.

The Bloody White Baron: The Extraordinary Story of the Russian Nobleman Who Became the Last Khan of Mongolia
4 stars!

A remarkable read about one of history's most bizarre characters -- a Russian nobleman from Estonia with a Jewish name who was apparently a Buddhist religious fanatic, seen as a reincarnation of Genghis Khan and, most startlingly, bulletproof. The author, who apparently hangs out pretty close to where this story unfolded, pulls together a tremendous number of sources written in different languages and with different levels of attention to accuracy, and puts it all in one place for you. Curiously, he didn't give that much attention to the main character's cruelties, his war atrocities or the other odd features of his personality; he focuses more of the legends that spun off from the reality. Written in a light, ironic tone that continues to the last page of endnotes, which are worth reading -- not quite as funny as Will Cuppy's, but close. Large bibliography in the back makes me want to read everything listed in it.

Zebra by Clark Howard
An astounding true crime story which was gripping from beginning to end. It was about a fanatical cult whose religious initiation were just a very small group of Muslims where the white victims were attacked and hacked to death. The general public just going about their everyday business like all of us do on a beautiful sunny day were completely unaware of what lay ahead.
For a long time these Muslims felt rage and revenge to get back at the white people. For them, it was a noble cause but to the city of San Francisco their citizens, police departments and other police agencies it was a nightmare. What ensued was a painstakingly detailed man hunt which never seemed to go anywhere. The whole city was held hostage!
After many months of tracking down a flood of tips coming through it seemed hopeless. It was a portrait of tough grueling work the authorities relentlessly pursued and finally they hit on something that would bring this reign of terror to a close! I highly recommend this book by this author!
5+Stars

Turned to Account: The Forms and Functions of Criminal Biography in Late Seventeenth- And Early Eighteenth-Century England, by Lincoln Faller
3 stars

This was an interesting study of some of the earliest true-crime accounts the author was able to scare up in the libraries of Britain -- the country that also brought you the Pierrepoint family, the murder ballad and Jack the Ripper. Dr. Faller discusses the way the criminals' stories are told and why (spinning them to do the work of morality plays, shudder pulps, polemics, and much more rarely, scientific studies) and points the way to the modern true-crime story. Illustrated with engravings from the original pamphlets and books, some of which were published before George Washington was even a twinkle in his grandfather's eye. There are a lot of stories in here, some familiar, some not -- and let me direct gorehounds to the chapters on thieves, which is where the author rightly put the story of the Beane family. This is not for readers looking for some easy-reading brain candy; nearly half the pages in this book were taken up with citations and endnotes.

Now reading Andy Brown's Warnings Unheeded. It's good!

Fishface wrote: "Now reading Andy Brown's Warnings Unheeded. It's good!"

Did you say something about printing this book?

Author sent it to my e-mail addy and I printed it out to read. Simpler than obtaining an e-reader.

Fishface wrote: "Author sent it to my e-mail addy and I printed it out to read. Simpler than obtaining an e-reader."

Ah. An ARC. I just noticed "Expected publication: November 5th 2016"

Rita wrote: "Zebra by Clark Howard
An astounding true crime story which was gripping from beginning to end..."

My one HUGE dissatisfaction with every rendering of this case is that they dangle this tantalizing "and there were 135 other killings we're not going to tell you about at all" and leave it at that.

Fishface wrote: "Rita wrote: "Zebra by Clark Howard
An astounding true crime story which was gripping from beginning to end..."

My one HUGE dissatisfaction with every rendering of this case is that they dangle thi..."

There were even more killings? Oh my gosh, what I just read was enough cruelty, but it certainly was tantalizing.

Warnings Unheeded
4 stars!

This was a really good read, written in a clear, no-frills style, with hardly a single typo to jolt me out of the narrative. Even the appendices are good reading. This is a case I never heard of before, about a double disaster -- a mass shooting and a plane crash -- happening in the space of less than a week in 1994 on the same airbase. The author was right there for it and was directly involved, and I have to say this book includes one of the finest verbal renderings of an epic adrenaline rush -- and the crash that follows -- that I've ever read. He makes a point of letting the reader see the long-term aftereffects of events like these. There is a lot packed into these 354 pages. Brown paints a picture of very concerned experts doing everything they can to get the brass to make the right decision, swimming in neck-deep paperwork and bureaucratic stamping of forms, and absolutely nothing coming of it until it's far too late. He only lost me when he started using terminology that only someone who understands aviation would know -- what's an aileron roll!? Illustrated with crime-scene photos, charts, graphs and maps.

Fishface wrote: "Warnings Unheeded
4 stars!

This was a really good read, written in a clear, no-frills style ... Even the appendices are good..."

Thank you for the positive review and constructive criticism Fishface. I am glad you enjoyed the read and appreciate you taking the time to print the book.
Writing the aviation sections in a way that appeals to all audiences was one of several challenges I faced. I did translate much of the lingo and simplified a lot of the terminology. I am concerned if I oversimplify it I will loose credibility with the military reader.
Thank you again for the great review.

Negative perspiration! Thanks for the excellent read!

Fishface wrote: "Warnings Unheeded
4 stars!

This was a really good read, written in a clear, no-frills style, with hardly a single typo to jolt me out of the narrative. Even the appendices are good..."

The aileron roll is an aerobatic maneuver in which an aircraft does a full 360° revolution about its longitudinal axis. When executed properly, there is no appreciable change in altitude and the aircraft exits the maneuver on the same heading as it entered.

Which axis is the longitudinal one again?

**points**

That one.

Lady♥Belleza★✰ wrote: "**points**

That one."

Yeah, you know... the long one.

All the axes on a B-52 seems fairly long to me. You could lodge a family of 6 in that baby and still have room for a luxury tapir kennel.

I really enjoyed Forensics: What Bugs, Burns, Prints, DNA and More Tell Us About Crime by Val McDermid

I just finished If You Only Knew by M. William Phelps. In this story while drawing on interviews with law officers, relatives and friends this author has done significant research with those that were involved. The verdicts that were given were very disappointing at the end. The victim in this case was taken advantaged of and his death was a senseless act like so many we read about.

On a more personal note, I especially liked how he dedicated this book to his beloved dog "Cherry". He also thanked all of his readers and related how much it means to him. I recommend this to true crime readers.
4 Stars

I finished The State Boys Rebellion and I feel as if I'd been dragged backwards through a waterfall. It took me three or four nights to finish this one and I had nightmares every night. This is the story of the more typical institutionalized children of this country from approximately the Thirties through the Eighties -- not the Rosemary Kennedys, whose families could afford to care for them, but the John Q. Citizens who had their rights taken away before they were old enough to know their own names and found themselves imprisoned indefinitely in hideous conditions without having committed any crime. The worst thing about this story is that they only followed 4 or 5 of the more empowered victims of this system; over 200,000 others probably fared far worse.

4 exhausted, sickened stars.

When Nashville Bled: The untold stories of serial killer Paul Dennis Reid by Judith A. Yates
5 stars

Kudos to this author. You can tell she did a lot of research and interviews and that this story was not taken from newspaper articles and transcripts. Each victim has a story to tell. Sad that so many of them were such likeable people. This book is meticulous on detail but the trials are condensed nicely and not repetitious. The end of the book has an update on the family members and people that had a part in capturing the criminal. If you have an Amazon Prime membership this book was a monthly free pick.

currently reading Privileged Information

So far it's fascinating.

Mother Love by Judith Henry Wall
This is a well-told sensitive and moving story about a mother caring for her family. There is no love as strong and enduring as the love of a mother for her child. Together with her
Husband who is a lawyer they raised their son and daughter in a wealthy part of Oklahoma City. Being a stay-at-home mother to her kids she was very close to them both. Time passed and when her son came home from collage unexpectedly she knew something was wrong. Everything was perfect in her world until now. Without calling his return touched off a shattering chain of events which placed this mother in an agonizing dilemma on how far she would go to protect her son.
I highly recommend this book.
5 Stars

Rita wrote: "Mother Love by Judith Henry Wall
This is a well-told sensitive and moving story about a mother caring for her family. There is no love as strong and enduring as the love of a mother for her child. ..."

The Evil Mother by Fred Rosen. 3 stars

A mother who appears to be someone who campaigns against gang violence turns out to be an enabler. There is a lot of word for word testimony here but it is a quick read. I started it one day and finished the next.

Rita wrote: "Mother Love by Judith Henry Wall
This is a well-told sensitive and moving story about a mother caring for her family. There is no love as strong and enduring as the love of a mother for her child. ..."

Is this a true crime book?

The Evil Mother by Fred Rosen. 3 stars

A mother who appears to be someone who campaigns against gang violence turns out to be an enabler. There is a lot of word for word testimony here but it is a quick read. I started it one day and finished the next.

Koren wrote: "Rita wrote: "Mother Love by Judith Henry Wall
This is a well-told sensitive and moving story about a mother caring for her family. There is no love as strong and enduring as the love of a mother fo..."

Yes, it is Koren. There was no trial in this book and unfortunately no pictures.

Little Demon in the City of Light: A True Story of Murder and Mesmerism in Belle Epoque Paris, by Steven Levingston
3 stars

This is the story of the murder of Toussaint-Augustin Gouffé, and everything that happened afterwards. I breezed through the 300-plus pages in a few hours after a false start. Interesting characters in here, including all kinds of big names in French medicine (neurological and forensic) and crimebusting, and a very unusual legal defense. The text was marred in a couple of places by clumsy writing -- the author keeps saying "Mephistopheles" when he wants "Mephistophelian" -- but most of the writing was flawless, even elegant. This book provides an entertaining glimpse into the French legal system, where the defendant is allowed to argue with the witnesses without going through defense counsel and where the gallery is allowed to applaud the closing arguments. Well worth your time.

Every Move You Make
by M. William Phelps (Goodreads Author)
34600202
Rita Gurdas's review Jan 25, 2016 · edit
it was amazing
bookshelves: psychological-thriller, shelfari-favorites

This book I will never forget. The author was SO amazing in the writing of this
True Crime and he pulled me in and I could not put this book down because
it was such a riveting, detailed and intriquing story. I was crushed when I came
to the end. A MUST READ for all true crime fans.

Koren wrote: "Rita wrote: "Mother Love by Judith Henry Wall
This is a well-told sensitive and moving story about a mother caring for her family. There is no love as strong and enduring as the love of a mother fo..."

no

Rita wrote: "Koren wrote: "Rita wrote: "Mother Love by Judith Henry Wall
This is a well-told sensitive and moving story about a mother caring for her family. There is no love as strong and enduring as the love ..."

Fiction

Finished Confession of a Serial Killer: The Untold Story of Dennis Rader, the BTK Killer by Katherine Ramsland
4 Stars

A lot of the book is in Radar's own words and about his thoughts and the crimes. It got to be sickening at times. I also wish Ramsland had offered more analysis.

Madeleine by Kate McCann
This is a powerful and well-written story of a terrible crime and it is hard to read without weeping.
From the time Gerry and Kate McCann met and married they were ready to start their family. Kate McCann described in detail the agony they went through to conceive. The shattering disappointments they went through as time marched on until finally their little miracle happened.


What transpired just a brief three years later turned out to be every parent’s worse nightmare. It is a detailed description of the terrifying years searching for their beloved daughter. 4+ Stars