You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.56 AVERAGE
3.56 AVERAGE
I really like the first part of the book which described in detail the girls' backgrounds and what led them to a life of prostitution. A very humanizing description which leads to the issue of how such women are easy victims for predators, and how Craigslist and others have altered the business. The second devolves into unsatisfying gossip and conspiracy issues.
Sadly, this book is a mess. I didn't come away from reading it's 400 pages with any better understanding of what did happen or any real theories of the crime, outside of speculation. The way it was written made it very confusing and i had a hard time keeping the victims and their family members straight. And then the dates things happened - i couldn't tell you when bodies were found in relation to each other, which is pretty problematic. And there several other bodies found that weren't cover in burlap were semi-glossed over which made it even more muddled. I knew we wouldn't know who the killer was by the end of the book, but i didn't think i'd be so confused about the events either.
Read in less than 48 hours. Fascinating, haunting, heartbreaking.
The writing/voice was good. I loved that so much focus was put onto the victims, who many people chose to ignore due to their occupations as escorts. The author did an amazing job telling their sad life stories. It was also very informative and gave a closer insight to the things that escorts face.
Since there are five missing girls as the focus, there are a lot of people to keep up with in the ways of families, friends, coworkers, and significant others. While there is a small character list in the back, I still got a little confused at who was who at times.
I am sad that the case is still unsolved. It was baffling that the police didn't seem to take it as seriously as they should since the girls were escorts. 45 minutes for 9-1-1 to send someone? I liked seeing the families rally up together, though it was sad when some of them eventually began fighting. The first half of the book was strong but I felt the second, especially the last third, started to lose its wind.
Overall it was informative and a book I feel did justice to a group of victims who seemed to fall in between the cracks. I listened to the audio and also read parts of the physical and ebook editions.
3.5 stars.
Since there are five missing girls as the focus, there are a lot of people to keep up with in the ways of families, friends, coworkers, and significant others. While there is a small character list in the back, I still got a little confused at who was who at times.
I am sad that the case is still unsolved. It was baffling that the police didn't seem to take it as seriously as they should since the girls were escorts. 45 minutes for 9-1-1 to send someone? I liked seeing the families rally up together, though it was sad when some of them eventually began fighting. The first half of the book was strong but I felt the second, especially the last third, started to lose its wind.
Overall it was informative and a book I feel did justice to a group of victims who seemed to fall in between the cracks. I listened to the audio and also read parts of the physical and ebook editions.
3.5 stars.
This book does a fantastic job of telling the stories of the victims, something that lacks greatly with other true crime books that I’ve read. Heartbroken that it’s still unsolved but I’m thankful these women had their stories told and didn’t just get lumped in as “victims of xyz killer”. A much recommended read to other true crime fans!
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
When I was reading this I realized that there is a whole segment of American women whose stories only seem to show up as the stories of victims in true crime books. I don’t totally know what to do with that observation, but this book did succeed in telling a type of story that rarely finds itself in the eyes of the book reading public.
A fascinating and eye-opening read, though inherently unsatisfying for me because there are no answers in this case. This book does not dwell much on the details of the murders, nor does it provide any logical suspect for the culprit. It is instead a narrative about the victims, their families, their lives, and the cultures (of sex work, police work, and the barrier communities of Long Island) that failed these women and those they loved. This case is truly odd, confusing, and complicated, which makes for good true crime literature. However, if you can't handle stories without resolutions or you want the author to take a stance on what they believe happened, this is not the book for you.
More like a 3.5
The book had some strong points and was certainly interesting but it also went on and on about unnecessary details. Also, I listened to it and the reader paused in weird spots.
The book had some strong points and was certainly interesting but it also went on and on about unnecessary details. Also, I listened to it and the reader paused in weird spots.