Sophia C. reviewed on 11/27/2009 + 289 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 2

This true crime story seems to be about two Monsters of Florence. The first is the serial killer who preys on couples making love in cars parked in the Tuscan countryside. His story is skillfully related in Part I: The story of Mario Spezi as the facts of this never-solved case are revealed in an organized manner from the lazy Sunday morning when young crime reporter Spezi receives word of a brutal crime scene in 1981 to 2000, when novelist Douglas Preston moves his family to Italy and encounters Spezi when researching Italian police procedure for a novel.

The second "monster" is the bloated police and judicial investigation which has ruined the lives of the numerous suspects in this sensational case. Those potentially include Preston and Spezi themselves as their own investigation threatens the official one -- which starts to delve into satanic cults and high-level masterminds for the killings of eight couples for their sex organs. Douglas Preston takes over the narrative in Part II, switching to a first-person style, when describing who he and Spezi believe is the Monster and how state powers can interfere with the freedom of the press even in a "civilized" country.

Although the original crimes and investigation were sensational, I thought this story would have been better if it was much shorter. It drags on, especially in the latter half, with increasingly far-fetched theories and indigant reactions. The timeline and cast of characters are exteremely helpful in keeping everybody straight. However, true crime fans, and those of Hannibal--this is some of the source material for Thomas Harris-- would be interested in the material.

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