This was a well-researched and well-written true crime book. Steve Hodel's writing grabs you, and he is thorough in his descriptions of events and people. I had never really looked into the Black Dahlia, but I knew the basic information. I was not completely convinced that Dr. George Hill Hodel was the Black Dahlia killer though.

I felt like some of the evidence that was presented was circumstantial and reaching. There were many times that I thought "that could have happened, but there's no proof, it could have been someone else." I definitely didn't agree with the handwriting analysis. I'm not an expert, but I looked at those samples and to me, they looked completely different and I don't believe the same person wrote them at all. And connecting some events to Man Ray's art because Dr. Hodel was "obsessed" with it seemed to be reaching for a connection. Plenty of murderers and serial killers pose their victims, I really feel like the fact that Elizabeth Short was posed doesn't have the connection to Man Ray's art that Steve Hodel thinks it does.

There is, obviously, proof that Dr. Hodel and Elizabeth Short knew each other, because he had her pictures in his album. However, that doesn't necessarily mean he killed her. It does seem likely, and Dr. Hodel was a manipulative, deceptive man. Some of the other murders that are included here I'm not so sure about...or there are a lot of others that Steve hasn't connected yet. There are time frames where Dr. Hodel and/or Fred Sexton were murdering almost weekly, then there's no one for over a year.

I will say that I was definitely on the fence about Steve's evidence and case against his father until the Aftermath section at the end of the book. After gaining access to certain files that he hadn't previously had access to, and having the transcripts from the bugs in the Franklin house, I feel some of the items that I wasn't convinced by seemed to finally solidify for me.

All in all, a great read. Well written and researched, and thorough to the point of sometimes being too detailed. If you enjoy true crime, this is definitely one to get engrossed in. ( )

424 / 7 - Η αρχή φάνηκε εντυπωσιακή. Στη συνέχεια η συνεχής επανάληψη καταντάει βαρετή.
΄Οσον αφορά το θέμα , δε με έπεισε , με προβλημάτισε. Ναι υπάρχουν στοιχεία που μπορεί να παραπέμπουν στην ενοχή του πατέρα του συγγραφέα. Ναι η αδερφή του σίγουρα σίγουρα αδικήθηκε.
Αμφισβητώ τη σιγουριά του συγγραφέα για το γραφικό χαρακτήρα , η ειδικός αναφέρει πως μπορεί να είναι ο ίδιος . ΄Οσο για την ομοιότητα στις φωτογραφίες , συγχωρέστε με , αλλά δε βλέπω καμία ομοιότητα. Μόνο τη μύτη να δεις αρκεί.
Μετά από κάποιο σημείο το βιβλίο δεν έχει ενδιαφέρον ( )

I had a hard time getting started on this book. Right off, he tells us he got suspicious after finding photographs of Elizabeth Short in a photograph album of people special to his father. Looking at the photos myself, I couldn't make the connection.

So I went to the back of the book with the updates -- as you do. This made me curious, so I started reading mostly from the beginning and continued on.

While I think the catalyst was sketchy, he did find some evidence that his father was probably involved, though he does make a few giant leaps, not the least of which was a black sedan being spotted at the crime scene(s), so it must have been his father, since he owned a black car!

It was also off-putting that he felt he had to mention, quite often, that he was a trained, successful homicide investigator. Who was he trying to convince? And does that mean taking what he says at face value?

There are quite a few photos and documents included in the book. Unfortunately, the rendering is so poor as to make many of them useless.

He's probably on to something, not because he says so, but because he's presented his case to others in the District Attorney's office and the police department(s) that agree with him. ( )

How does one review a murder case laid out so cooly and efficiently, it is almost like watching it happen in real time?
Steve Hodel is a retired L.A.P.D. detective, but it read like he was still on-the-job. Concise, clear, no obfustication about the details. They're all there. Timelines, objective and logical reasoning for events, clear deliniation of "the evidence says" vs supposition, even when supposition is based on evidence.

Y'all gotta read this book just to get into the groove of it. It's like Steve Hodel transformed into Sherlock Holmes (hmmm, they even have the same initials!). Beautifully put together despite the utter tradgedy that befell these women, and Elizabeth Short herself.

The second half of this book, which covers more probable victims, and is definitely slightly more gory and detailed than the first half, is certainly more difficult to get through. But the first half, concerning primarily the murder of Elizabeth Short, known as "The Black Dahlia", is detailed but not crude, and is the most important part of the manuscript. The end chapters are also incredibly revealing, but more about the state of the L.A.P.D. force than the murder. But *everything* is necessary.

10/10. ( )

We need a subgenre of the true crime genre; it would be called the ratting out one's close relative as an infamous serial killer subgenre. I read this but never saw smoking gun type evidence against the author's father. Since its Los Angeles based I asked Michael Connelly about it when he was here on a book tour. He said he believed it but his LAPD detective buddies did not. Then Hodel published another book that revealed his father was also the Zodiac Killer. So there you have it. Does giving no stars register as a rating? ( )