The “riveting behind-the-scenes story” of the infamous rampage that killed eight student nurses in Chicago (Vincent Bugliosi). On the night of July 14th, 1966, drifter Richard Benjamin Speck broke into a Chicago dormitory that housed eight student nurses. One by one, Speck raped, strangled, and stabbed them to death in a sadistic sexual frenzy. Miraculously, one victim, Corazon Amurao, … Corazon Amurao, survived by hiding under the bed during the long, nightmarish ordeal. By morning Speck had changed the landscape of American crime.
Now, award-winning Chicago journalist Dennis L. Brea and prosecuting attorney William J. Martin reveal the never-before told story of one of the most appalling mass murders in history–from the killer’s twisted upbringing to the lives and deaths of his innocent victims to the massive manhunt and investigation and the trial that held the country spellbound. Meticulously researched with scores of interviews, including that of Speck’s lone survivor, TheCrime of the Century is “the richly detailed and riveting behind-the scenes story of the crime that murdered American innocence and ushered in the era of mass murder” (Vincent Bugliosi, author of Helter Skelter).
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Perhaps because I read about this story in Time magazine as a young tween, reading it as an adult horrified me even more when I learned of how passive these young women were.
This is a very good book telling of how this happened. It is sad what happened to these nurses but this book tells the story about Richard Speck and what kind of person he was very accurately.
Well written and well paced. I thought it included everything needed without becoming tedious. Good for fans of true crime, a classic. The weak point was understanding motivation, but that is not the author’s fault.
I remember when this happened. Such a tragedy! I didn’t learn much more than I already knew, except details that were left out of the press. For anyone who doesn’t know the story, you should read to learn more about it.
I was probably in my 30’s when this crime happened & I remember hearing & reading about it. This book that told the inside story of the trial after the guy’s apprehension was a good read & so glad the defense didn’t make him out to be insane for what he did. A true crime & interesting read. If anyone is into that sort of stuff….read this one.
I love a good true crime book. This one is loaded with details of everyone involved from the many victims to the killer himself. I had not heard of these murders until reading the book and it’s written in a way that makes the reader feel immersed in the story.
This is a real life story about the killing of the 8 student nurses in chicago. Richard Speck was such a terrible man. G-D did us a favor letting this man die.
The Gripping true story about young student nurses that never got to have a career. They instead were tracked and murdered by a degenerate perpetraitor.
Detailed account of the infamous and shocking nurse murders committed by Richard Speck in 1960’s Chicago. Having been written by the lead prosecutor in the case no detail was left out of the narrative. Hence my problem. This book often slowed down to a crawl while each piece of evidence or each expert witnesses’ testimony was examined from every conceivable angle. Did we really need to spend several pages exploring why one finger print expert was substituted for another on the eve of that testimony? Having said all that this book does show the evil and horror one man can create and the depths that good men and women will go through to prevent that person from ever being given a second opportunity.
This book has stayed with me. The detail was great.
I was in elementary school when this happened. Have never forgotten it. The book is very well written. Gives a good background on his family and all of the trial aspects, prosecution and defence.
Completely engrossing and well written account of the tragic murders of eight nursing students in 1966. I spent several nights reading this way past my bedtime because I couldn’t put it down. A must for lovers of true crime.
Incredible amount of detail. Well done by the author. A Tragic real world event. I was not aware it had occurred.
Very Explicit, and includes the trial on one of the first horrific serial killers in the US.
I thought the book was good but very disturbing
Remember the headlines with this tragic event.
It was kind of slow. Stared out good but got a little boring. Haven’t finished it yet.
Well written
I was in Athens, Greece when this happened. It was headline news in all the newspapers at the newsstand in multiple languages. The group I was traveling with (all Americans) were horrified. I lost track of case and was glad to find out what had happened. I had even forgot that they caught him in a couple of days. We seemed so handicapped back then without computers, cell phones, internet, etc. Thank you for writing the book.
This book is a comprehensive and graphic story about The Crime of the Century and the serial killer Richard Speck and the triumphant effort by a team of prosecutors and law enforcement personnel driven to see justice. I could not put the book down and highly recommend this as a well written work that is graphic in its detail of police investigative work, the effort and strategies of the prosecutors, the handling of witnesses and media, and the killing of eight student nurses in Chicaco 50 plus years in what was billed as the Crime of the Century. A chilling yet fascinating book.