Ann Rule (1935–2015)

I've always enjoyed Ann Rule's books. I'm horrified by the depravity and sated by the capture and imprisonment of the criminal(s). Ann Rule's former career as a Seattle police officer gives her the background to write about crime knowledgeably, and her "in" with the police officers involved in the case means that she has more access to police knowledge than do most crime writers.

All that said, this wasn't one of her best books. It's either that, or I was in a headspace that didn't appreciate the book as much as I usually do. I especially found the multiple court cases and the finale of the book to really drag.

The story is a horrible one. It's the tale of a never-do-well man named Harvey Carignan, a violent criminal if ever there was one. His brutality spread across states, making it harder to apprehend him, and he murdered, raped, and bludgeoned women with impunity for years.Carignan was an intelligent criminal who knew how to remove every trace of his presence from a crime scene, and how to use legal loopholes to keep himself out of the penal system. It was interesting hearing how different states have different rules about search warrants, permitted length of imprisonment, etc. I was fascinated by the fact that he'd actually been a prisoner at Alcatraz for a period.

I was shocked to find that Carignan lived until age 95 in a Minnesota prison, and that he just died this past March (2023). I don't believe in the death penalty, but I'm certainly glad that he never again got the chance to harm more women.… (mer)