John Wayne Gacy: Defending a Monster by Sam Amirante

Book:  John Wayne Gacy:  Defending a Monster 

Author:  Sam Amirante and Danny Broderick

Grade:  C+ 

Recommended To:  Lawyers,  People who are full of themselves. 

I'm an attorney, so I occasionally (and I do mean very occasionally) like to read books about other lawyers and the work that they do.  So, I picked up this book at the library.  Free.

The book was average.  I expected the book to be more about John Wayne Gacy than about the attorney, but I suppose I should have read the title more clearly because it says : The true story of the lawyer who defended one of the most evil serial killers in history.  Okay, obviously I was just distracted by the huge print and I should have known that this wasn't going to be about Gacy's character.  But, that's what I wanted, so this book got a C+.  (I told you, its subjective...)

Also, this attorney is super full of himself.  Evidently he went on to become a judge in Cook County, which is pretty admirable.  But did he have to reprint his entire 10 hour closing argument in the book?  It's not like this is Barack Obama talking and the argument is quote worthy, it was just a very very long closing argument that I didn't want to read in full.  Sam Amirante is admirable because he truly believes that every single person is entitled to a defense.  I appreciate that and I appreciate that he was able to provide a defense even to this totally creepy, Chicago based killer.

I also liked that this book is based in Chicago.  WGN, the best new station in the universe, had a story just a few years back about how the police were still searching for bodies under Gacy's house.  That's crazy close to where I live (okay, not that close, but still crazy)!   So, the fact that this still has repercussions today is amazing and interesting.

I recommend this book to my attorney friends and anyone with a fascination in serial killers.

Happy Reading!

Small Sacrifices by Ann Rule

Book:  Small Sacrifices 

Author:  Ann Rule 

Grade:  B

Recommended To:  True Crime Fans,  Farrah Fawcett Fans.  

Small Sacrifices is the true crime story of Diane Downs, the mother that shot her three children and then drove them to the hospital with a dramatic and terrifying tale of a 'bushy-haired stranger' who had demanded Downs' car and then inexplicably shot her children when she refused.

Some of you might know this story from the Farrah Fawcett made for TV movie by the same name, personally I've not seen it, but it is on now on our Netflix.

The book has an air in incredibility, how could a mother not fight to save her children? And, when Downs becomes the prime suspect, how could a mother have shot her children as they lay sleeping in the backseat of her car.

Ann Rule writes many true-crime novels, although this it the first that I've read of hers.   I think it is difficult to write true-crime stories without getting boring, but for the most part, Rule accomplishes this and weaves together all of the incredible evidence with precision.  There are times when the story drags a bit because Rule is literally just recounting factual data or testimony.  Her sentences in places also are a bit choppy, but this seems to be part of the problem with a lot of true crime books.

The story is powerful.  When Christie Downs, Diane's daughter takes the stand and definitively points to her mother as the shooter, Rule captures the event with enough description to make the reader feel as if they are really in the courtroom witnessing the exchange between the child and the prosecutor.

I gave this book a B because it was very well put together, if a bit lengthy.  Diane is an extraordinarily interesting and terrifying woman and this account captures her personality well.  I recommend this book to anyone who really enjoys true-crime novels.   I will certainly be reading more of Rule.

Happy Reading!! 

The Monster of Florence by Douglas Preston - Guest Review by Holly

***This is Holly's first review.  I've not read The Monster of Florence, but after reading this review I'm certainly putting it on my list!***


Book:  The Monster of Florence 

Author: Douglas Preston 

Grade:  A- 

Recommended To: Non-Fiction Fans, True Crime Fans.  


This is an amazing account of a serial killer roaming the hills of Florence and the botched investigation into the murders.  Starting in the late 1960s, young Italian couples were being murdered after parking their cars in secluded places to have sex.  No one knew when or why the murderer would strike, only that the man would be shot immediately with a .22 caliber pistol and the woman would be dragged out of the car, shot, and mutilated to provide the killer with a "trophy."  (Thomas Harris based the character Hannibal Lecter loosely on these murders.) 

This book follows the career of Mario Spezi, a journalist, who reported on the murders and covered the subsequent investigations and trials in Florence and Douglas Preston, an American author, who moves his family Italy and unknowingly rents a house near one of the murder scenes.  Preston meets Spezi and quickly becomes fascinated with the story.  They decide to start their own investigation using the extensive files Spezi kept through the course of his career and come to their own conclusion about the identity of the murderer.  Unfortunately for them, their theory contradicts the official version of events, and puts both Preston and Spezi in danger.  Preston is questioned as an accessory to murder, and Spezi is accused of being the Monster himself!

This book gets an A-.  It includes a lot of background information on the Italian criminal justice system; how it's organized, the functions of the polizei, the carabineri, prosecutors, judges and courts, which is very helpful to the reader.  It really makes you appreciate the rights that Americans have in our courts, even though our own system is imperfect.  The only thing I didn't love about this book is that I think the authors are a little too close to the subject.  I understand that they wanted to tell the story of what they went through, but I think it may have benefited from an outsider's voice telling their tale.

The investigation into the Monster killings remains open to this day and dozens of people have been arrested, tried, convicted and released for these crimes, including the authors. This investigation is truly bizarre and very enjoyable to read about!

Happy Reading!!