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librarymouse's review
dark
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
4.5
This was a wild story, start to finish. I love Florence. Getting an intimate look at the Italian and Florentine judiciary systems makes me not want to go to back. However, as Preston points out, the US is just as bad - just in different ways. This is a wild glimpse into the case of the Monster of Florence and life in Florence in the 2000s. Overall, really engaging read, though I did have to put it down for a moment when Spezi's wife nearly incriminated him to the police over the phone and in French. The lack of oversight and excess of power afforded to law enforcement are just fundamentally busted in such an astounding and entertaining way.
The author handles the description of the deaths with tact, making sure to acknowledge their humanity, rather than just discussing them and their deaths as spectacle.
The author handles the description of the deaths with tact, making sure to acknowledge their humanity, rather than just discussing them and their deaths as spectacle.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Grief, Sexual content, Alcohol, Police brutality, Sexism, Murder, Death, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Violence, Blood, Child abuse, and Infidelity
Moderate: Homophobia
ruthypoo2's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
3.75
An interesting and deeply layered story about the authors’ friendship and joint investigation into a serial killer from the 70’s/80’s who was one sick puppy. The perpetrator committed double-murders in and around the city of Florence, mutilating the bodies of many victims, primarily those that were female.
This book is not necessarily focused heavily on the crimes, but rather is an amalgamation of the events taking place in relation to the crimes, over many years. Equal attention is given to the questionable police investigations and outcomes, the viability of those suspected, accused, put on trial, and/or convicted of the murders or related offenses, the journalistic investigation into the crime, and the personality of Italy and its history.
This book is not necessarily focused heavily on the crimes, but rather is an amalgamation of the events taking place in relation to the crimes, over many years. Equal attention is given to the questionable police investigations and outcomes, the viability of those suspected, accused, put on trial, and/or convicted of the murders or related offenses, the journalistic investigation into the crime, and the personality of Italy and its history.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Murder, Sexual content, Gun violence, Violence, Death, and Infidelity
Minor: Alcohol and Blood
migrex's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
4.0
This refers to the audiobook. At first I found the fake Italian accents of the narrator off putting, and still did somewhat by the end, but I can understand why the narrator, who has a pleasant voice, did this, as it seemed to be a way to differentiate the voices. A full-cast recording would solve this problem but surely create others. But one thing that still did annoy me was the lack of incorrect pronunciation, primarily placement of accents, in the Italian. Other than this, which accounts for the lower star rating, the book is an incredible look into this true crime story and the astounding events which happened when Douglas Preston and Mario Spezi investigated it. One plus in the audiobook is a phone interview with Douglas Preston at the end (I don't know if this same information is included in the print copy).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Violence, Gun violence, Sexual violence, and Sexual content
Mutilation
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