Today’s Nonfiction post is on The Forest City Killer: A
Serial Murderer, a Cold-Case Sleuth, and a Search for Justice by Vanessa Brown.
It is 360 pages long and is published by ECW Press. The cover is an old black
and white photograph of a search team looking for Jackie English. The intended
reader is someone who enjoys true crime. There is mild foul language, sex and sexuality,
and violence in this book. There Be Spoilers Ahead.
From the eblurb - Dig deep into the unsolved murder of
Jackie English and join the hunt for a serial killer
Fifty years ago, a serial killer prowled the quiet city of London, Ontario, marking it as his hunting grounds. As young women and boys were abducted, raped, and murdered, residents of the area held their loved ones closer and closer, terrified of the monster -- or monsters -- stalking the streets. Homicide detective Dennis Alsop began hunting the killer in the 1960s, and he didn't stop searching until his death 30 years later. For decades, detectives, actual and armchair, and the victims' families and friends continued to ask questions: Who was the Forest City Killer? Was there more than one person? Or did a depraved individual commit all of these crimes on his own?
Combing through the files Detective Alsop left behind, researcher Vanessa Brown reopens the cases, revealing previously unpublished witness statements, details of evidence, and astonishing revelations about how this serial killer got away. And through her investigation, Vanessa discovers the unthinkable: like the notorious Golden State Killer, the Forest City Killer is still alive . . . and a simple DNA test could bring him to justice.
Fifty years ago, a serial killer prowled the quiet city of London, Ontario, marking it as his hunting grounds. As young women and boys were abducted, raped, and murdered, residents of the area held their loved ones closer and closer, terrified of the monster -- or monsters -- stalking the streets. Homicide detective Dennis Alsop began hunting the killer in the 1960s, and he didn't stop searching until his death 30 years later. For decades, detectives, actual and armchair, and the victims' families and friends continued to ask questions: Who was the Forest City Killer? Was there more than one person? Or did a depraved individual commit all of these crimes on his own?
Combing through the files Detective Alsop left behind, researcher Vanessa Brown reopens the cases, revealing previously unpublished witness statements, details of evidence, and astonishing revelations about how this serial killer got away. And through her investigation, Vanessa discovers the unthinkable: like the notorious Golden State Killer, the Forest City Killer is still alive . . . and a simple DNA test could bring him to justice.
Review – An interesting book about an uncaught killer who
has a high body count. Brown has lived in London, Ontario for years without
ever knowing about the murders that happened in the 60s. She was told about the
dark past in the city and became obsessed with it and with the murder of Jackie
English in particular. The book is the result of four years of research,
interviews, and digging into everything about the murders. Brown used more than
just traditional resources like police reports and in person interviews; she
also used the internet sites like the Unsolved Canada website about the unsolved crimes
that have happened all over the country. While I do not agree with all of Brown’s
conclusions, I do think that she has done great research and is bringing these
cases to the public with great insight and compassion for the both the victims
and their families.
I give this book a Four out of Five stars. I get nothing for
my review and I borrowed this book from my local library’s Hoopla account.
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