Tag: true crime

  • The Case of the Murderous Dr. Cream by Dean Jobb

    The Case of the Murderous Dr. Cream by Dean Jobb

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Case of the Murderous Dr. Cream: This Cream has gone bad. (I’ll see myself out.) Quick synopsis: The story of Victorian era serial killer, Dr. Thomas Neil Cream. Fact for Non-History People: Crime was so bad in one area of London during this time that instead of Waterloo Station people…

  • Trail of the Lost by Andrea Lankford

    Trail of the Lost by Andrea Lankford

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Trail of the Lost: If you don’t have a plan, one may be made for you. Quick synopsis: The search for three missing hikers on the Pacific Crest Trail. Fact for Non-History People: The Pacific Crest Trail travels 2,650 miles from Mexico to Canada. So, it can kill you by cold…

  • Behold the Monster by Jillian Lauren

    Behold the Monster by Jillian Lauren

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Behold the Monster: A lot of Little. Quick synopsis: The story of Jillian Lauren’s meetings with serial killer Samuel Little. Fact for Non-History People: Samuel Little is most likely the most prolific serial killer in U.S. history. Fact for History Nerds: Both Little Richard and Malcolm X are in Little’s family…

  • Girls and Their Monsters by Audrey Clare Farley

    Girls and Their Monsters by Audrey Clare Farley

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Girls and Their Monsters: They got four kids when they deserved none. Quick synopsis: The story of the Genain quadruplets and their horrible lives growing up. Fact for Non-History People: Numbers are fuzzy, but the Genain quadruplets birth (and survival) is about a one in 20 million chance. Fact for History…

  • Burn It Down by Maureen Ryan

    Burn It Down by Maureen Ryan

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Burn It Down: Mo already lit the match. Quick synopsis: A look at the dysfunction of Hollywood and how to fix it. Fact for Non-History People: Female movie stars earnings increase until age 34 and then drop like a rock. Male movie stars peak around 51 and then stay steady after…

  • The Angel Makers by Patti McCracken

    The Angel Makers by Patti McCracken

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Angel Makers: Don’t trust Auntie. Quick synopsis: A true crime story about a poisoning ring in 1920s Hungary. Fun Fact for Non-History People: An old test for finding out if someone was poisoned was combining copper, acid, and a sliver of organ tissue from the victim. If it turned black…

  • Ambush at Central Park by Mark Bulik

    Ambush at Central Park by Mark Bulik

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Ambush at Central Park: Snitches get….shot in a totally different country. Quick synopsis: The story of the only IRA sanctioned assassination on U.S. soil. Fun Fact for Non-History People: In Cork, Ireland, a favorite activity was called “road bowling” and it involved cannonballs and public streets. Fun Fact for History Nerds:…

  • Life Sentence by Mark Bowden

    Life Sentence by Mark Bowden

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Life Sentence: “The Wire” is more realistic than we want to admit. Quick synopsis: The life and crimes of Montana “Tana” Barronette in Baltimore. Fact for Non-History People: In 2015 Sandtown, Baltimore, there were 64 murders and only 18 people ended up being charged. Yes, that’s a very bad rate. Fact…

  • The Wager by David Grann

    The Wager by David Grann

    Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for The Wager: Maybe the mutineers had a point. Quick synopsis: The story of the shipwreck and mutiny on the HMS Wager. Fun Fact Non-History People Will Like: If you were the captain of an English ship and it sank, you were automatically given a court martial. Well, assuming you survived. Fun…