Scan barcode
cheryl6of8's review against another edition
3.0
One of many books I picked up at a charity book sale to give away. I could not resist reading it first. For a book 35 years old, most of this holds up well. I know that some of the fiber evidence (particularly hair analysis) has been shown to be less than accurate, but the cases are all interesting. A couple of them are controversial (the Fatal Vision case and Steven Truscott and Hauptmann) but a lot of them are ones I was unfamiliar with -- and I follow a lot of true crime in multiple formats. The things that interest me are what would be added now that DNA and computers are so much more prominent in the field. I also learned a couple of things -- like the types of bomb testing done on luggage at the airport and the fact that most of the time you can tell if a blood sample came from a male or a female.
innae's review against another edition
3.0
A friend of mine worked in Oklahoma PD when the John Joubert case was being investigated (pg. 285)
Fascinating reading.
It took me longer than expected to finally finish this book. What should be noted - even when investigators (forensic and otherwise) mess up, the bad guy usually gets caught on something. The evidence doesn't lie, even if the people processing the evidence do.
A good read, and fascinating for anyone interested in the world of the REAL CSIs (you all know that the popular TV show is fake, right?)
ewp11577's review against another edition
3.0
A very quick survey of numerous cases where forensic science was developed to help solve crimes. From odontology to ballistics and everything else you can imagine, each case is summarized in just a few pages with scant highlights of what was used to bring conviction. Think "weekly reader," if you will. An excellent short read to pass time if one is interested in bare facts.
runeonilyn's review
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.75
mystereity's review
4.0
The Casebook Of Forensic Detection As I said earlier, this was a fascinating book, it just felt like it took forever to read it. And it was only 350 pages or so.
I liked the style of the book, a short summation of each forensic technique (time of death, fingerprints, DNA, etc) that gave a little bit of an explanation and a little history before delving into specific cases. And a great selection of cases, from murder to forgeries to poisonings, all over the last few hundred years to show how each aspect of forensics moved the science forward. Each case was given just a few pages to lay out the facts of the case and then another page or 2 to cover the science used and the outcome. So each case was around 5 to 10 pages at the most. Which means there were a lot of cases, so much so that after a few, I was ready to move on to the next chapter, but unwilling to skip ahead and miss a good story.
So I think that's why it felt like it took forever to finish the book. It's not that it was dry and boring - far from it. Just too much of a good thing, and I'm sure the author found it frustrating not to add "just one more case..."
Overall, riveting and fascinating read, but became overwhelming after awhile. But if you love true crime stories and the science that goes along with solving them, then you will enjoy this book.
I liked the style of the book, a short summation of each forensic technique (time of death, fingerprints, DNA, etc) that gave a little bit of an explanation and a little history before delving into specific cases. And a great selection of cases, from murder to forgeries to poisonings, all over the last few hundred years to show how each aspect of forensics moved the science forward. Each case was given just a few pages to lay out the facts of the case and then another page or 2 to cover the science used and the outcome. So each case was around 5 to 10 pages at the most. Which means there were a lot of cases, so much so that after a few, I was ready to move on to the next chapter, but unwilling to skip ahead and miss a good story.
So I think that's why it felt like it took forever to finish the book. It's not that it was dry and boring - far from it. Just too much of a good thing, and I'm sure the author found it frustrating not to add "just one more case..."
Overall, riveting and fascinating read, but became overwhelming after awhile. But if you love true crime stories and the science that goes along with solving them, then you will enjoy this book.
mystereity's review against another edition
4.0
The Casebook Of Forensic Detection As I said earlier, this was a fascinating book, it just felt like it took forever to read it. And it was only 350 pages or so.
I liked the style of the book, a short summation of each forensic technique (time of death, fingerprints, DNA, etc) that gave a little bit of an explanation and a little history before delving into specific cases. And a great selection of cases, from murder to forgeries to poisonings, all over the last few hundred years to show how each aspect of forensics moved the science forward. Each case was given just a few pages to lay out the facts of the case and then another page or 2 to cover the science used and the outcome. So each case was around 5 to 10 pages at the most. Which means there were a lot of cases, so much so that after a few, I was ready to move on to the next chapter, but unwilling to skip ahead and miss a good story.
So I think that's why it felt like it took forever to finish the book. It's not that it was dry and boring - far from it. Just too much of a good thing, and I'm sure the author found it frustrating not to add "just one more case..."
Overall, riveting and fascinating read, but became overwhelming after awhile. But if you love true crime stories and the science that goes along with solving them, then you will enjoy this book.
I liked the style of the book, a short summation of each forensic technique (time of death, fingerprints, DNA, etc) that gave a little bit of an explanation and a little history before delving into specific cases. And a great selection of cases, from murder to forgeries to poisonings, all over the last few hundred years to show how each aspect of forensics moved the science forward. Each case was given just a few pages to lay out the facts of the case and then another page or 2 to cover the science used and the outcome. So each case was around 5 to 10 pages at the most. Which means there were a lot of cases, so much so that after a few, I was ready to move on to the next chapter, but unwilling to skip ahead and miss a good story.
So I think that's why it felt like it took forever to finish the book. It's not that it was dry and boring - far from it. Just too much of a good thing, and I'm sure the author found it frustrating not to add "just one more case..."
Overall, riveting and fascinating read, but became overwhelming after awhile. But if you love true crime stories and the science that goes along with solving them, then you will enjoy this book.
antessmer's review against another edition
4.0
This was a great book! It gave me just enough scientific background in each case to be satiated. I would have liked a little more depth with some of the cases, but I understand that it would have caused the book to be extremely lengthy. Other than that, excellent read.
celli's review against another edition
4.0
A collection of one hundred crimes. Each summary is a couple pages long, and they're grouped by the forensic discovery that best defines the case (time of death, fingerprinting, etc). A good read, and a book I'll be keeping around as a reference/for story ideas.
More...