I received a free digital ARC from the author via BookSirens in exchange for an honest review.
Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐
I previously read the author's first book in this series, the review of which you can find HERE. I like this author because he remains respectful of the victims, no many how many years, decades, even a century or two that they have been gone. Sometimes A lot of the time with true crime, the murderers are intentionally or unintentionally glorified, and the victim is lost in the chaos (Meredith Kercher, anyone?)
One thing I really appreciate about this author is that he strictly in the business of providing the facts. He does not use any filler or attempt to tell us what anyone involved "might" have been thinking. I think that is especially important when it comes to true crime because in many cases, we will simply never know - especially those cases that happened so long and all involved are long since gone from here.
As with the author's first volume, there was a good variety here of stories both new to me and ones I was familiar with. I appreciate his ability to convey the story efficiently by giving enough information for me to decide if it is something I want to find more information about. Some of the crimes relayed have full books dedicated solely to them, so it is nice to have a good jumping-off point if I do choose to seek out more information.
I appreciate that the author takes time to research his subjects, including seeking out primary sources from the time period. Even when those Victorians are ridiculously sensational (and they are ALWAYS sensational), there are still good bits of information to be gleaned from their reports.
I am looking forward to volume three!
Thanks for turning me onto this series. Like you, I'm fascinated with true crime, but often find the focus is purely on the killers. While that is an important part of the story, I agree that it often undermines the victim and the full person that they were. Adding volume 1 to my TBR!
ReplyDeleteIf you're into something similar, I'd recommend Unmasked by Paul Holes. He too has a great balance of respect for the victim and explanation of the crimes. He also mixes in more personal recollections about the toll his work took on his personal life.
I am so glad you will be giving this series a look. I think the author's background as a psychologist or therpist helps to create some empathy. The victims deserve to be the ones remembered.
DeleteI read Unmasked a few months ago...I will review eventually, haha.