The Monster of Florence
 | Average Customer Rating: Recommend In the nonfiction tradition of John Berendt ("Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil") and Erik Larson ("The Devil in the White City"), New York Times bestselling author Douglas Preston presents a gripping account of crime and punishment in the lush hills surrounding Florence, Italy.In 2000, Douglas Preston fulfilled a dream to move his family to Italy. Then he discovered that the olive grove in front of their 14th century farmhouse had been… Product details and pricing info |
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100 Customer Reviews Posted
- Monster of Florence
- Very interesting book. I am very familiar with the italian psyche and the book was true in all respects. Would be a little harder to understand if one is not familiar with the Italiens, particularly the authorities.
A very good and intersting read. - 2008-08-02, 1 of 3 people found this review helpful, Rated:
- Long Winded and beside the point...
- This book started out well, but then it just rambled on and on, with a complex story that finally became almost impossible to untangle. It's a true story so can you really blame the author? No, but it's another example of truth being stranger than fiction!
- 2008-08-02, 0 of 6 people found this review helpful, Rated:
- The good story ended around page 120
- The good story in this book ended around page 120. What followed were 200 pages of scattered thoughts, assumptions and an upleasant account of the author's struggle with the Italian judicial system.
Instead, I recommend 'Portrait of a Killer: Jack The Ripper - Case Closed' by Patricia Cornwell. - 2008-08-01, 1 of 7 people found this review helpful, Rated:
- An Unsolved Tale of One of Europe's Serial Killers
- Preston puts his investigative reporter hat and presents a totally different genre of work as he delves into the story of serial killings in Florence Italy. The book is based on extensive interviews with Mario Spezi, the reporter that covered the serial killings for about 30 years. What makes it interesting is that the case was never actually solved and various individuals were arrested and some even convicted, then let go. In fact Spezi himself was arrested during the time.
People well versed in crime stories will cringe at the bungling that happens at the crime scenes and possible evidence is lost. It is amazing that this story went on for many years and there was virtually no coverage of it in the US.
Preston does an excellent job of weaving the tale almost like a novel and keeping the reader engaged throughout. He also gives and nice portrait as to the culture of Florence and how it differs from the rest of Italy. - 2008-08-01, 0 of 0 people found this review helpful, Rated:
- Not very satisfying
- I knew when I started reading this book that there wasn't going to be a nice and tidy ending, pronouncing the killer, but it was still disappointing. The synopsis of the story implies that Douglas Preston was much more involved in the events reported in the story, but he doesn't even get to Italy until about 15 years after the last murder is committed. He's only implicated in the murder in a minor role, that was mostly because he stepped on some toes. I had a hard time finishing the book, it dragged on. I have to ask if this book would have been published in the U.S. if not for Mr. Preston putting his name on it and exaggerating his minor role. Otherwise, who in the US would really care about murders committed in Italy over 15 years ago??
All that aside, the descriptions of the incompetence of the local authorities and the village idiot type characters depicted did make the investigations of these tragic murders a complete farse. Unfortunately someone has gotten away with murder and the families of the victims will never see justice served. This would have made an excellent Vanity Fair article, but I don't think it should have been made into a book. There's probably a movie in the works, too. I don't know if Mr. Preston's other books are similar in quality to this one, and I don't intend to find out. - 2008-08-01, 2 of 11 people found this review helpful, Rated:
