Reviews

The Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule

spazk27's review against another edition

informative sad slow-paced

1.0

Ted Bundy through the eyes of a woman who called him a friend. While I was very interested in this story, to hear the background, to learn how he was caught, and to hear stories of his victims, I am disappointed in the book. I wish more time was spent on the victims and the investigations. I also feel the author was sorely disillusioned or else tried too hard to say Ted was more than an acquaintance. She barely talked to him. She was manipulated by him because he wanted the fame of her ability to tell his story. And then she used this to sell a book like she knew Ted personally. I doubt anyone really knew this psycho. Too much time spent on her own story, it was like a mix between a memoir and a retelling of the murders. I suffered through to the end as I needed the closure of Ted's capture. But really could have done without this book. 

katie_schabilion's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional medium-paced

4.25

iphigeniad's review against another edition

dark informative slow-paced

3.5

2ndhandcoffin's review

dark sad slow-paced

3.5

jhallett's review

dark sad medium-paced

togram2001's review

dark emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

4.25

florapants84's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense slow-paced

4.0

kkelly83's review against another edition

dark informative sad fast-paced

5.0

kheleesi's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative slow-paced

4.5

Ann Rule’s relationship with Ted is fascinating, and her complexity in writing about him with empathy but no apologies is intriguing. 

tilda_bookworm's review

2.0

At points Rule was overly flattering towards Bundy (she described him as handsome about 100 times - I didn't count but every 5 pages seems about right! - and vastly exaggerated his intelligence). I thought the actual friendship was over-egged as well; it seemed to be mostly a business transaction, although that would be true of anybody plus a psychopath. The book could have done with a good edit. Way too long with repetition and unnecessary details, like a whole paragraph just full of journalists names, something only a journalist would care to include. I managed to read the whole book and I was gripped, but I don't know if that is just because of the morbid, twisted draw of true crime and the delusion that if we consume it we'll somehow be better prepared/protected, rather than anything the author did.