American Demon: Eliot Ness and the Hunt for America's Jack the Ripper
Written by Daniel Stashower
Narrated by Will Damron
4/5
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About this audiobook
"Will Damron performs a meticulous, exact narration of Stashower’s work. He unpacks the background and history of the places and players with the calm and collected authority of an insider, yet exudes the excitement, confusion, and fear of outsiders when delivering numerous gruesome passages about the 13 dismembered murder victims." - Library Journal
New York Times bestselling author and Edgar Award-winner Daniel Stashower returns with American Demon, a historical true crime starring legendary lawman Eliot Ness.
Boston had its Strangler. California had the Zodiac Killer. And in the depths of the Great Depression, Cleveland had the Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run.
On September 5th, 1934, a young beachcomber made a gruesome discovery on the shores of Cleveland’s Lake Erie: the lower half of a female torso, neatly severed at the waist. The victim, dubbed “The Lady of the Lake,” was only the first of a butcher’s dozen. Over the next four years, twelve more bodies would be scattered across the city. The bodies were dismembered with surgical precision and drained of blood. Some were beheaded while still alive.
Terror gripped the city. Amid the growing uproar, Cleveland’s besieged mayor turned to his newly-appointed director of public safety: Eliot Ness. Ness had come to Cleveland fresh from his headline-grabbing exploits in Chicago, where he and his band of “Untouchables” led the frontline assault on Al Capone’s bootlegging empire. Now he would confront a case that would redefine his storied career.
Award-winning author Daniel Stashower shines a fresh light on one of the most notorious puzzles in the annals of crime, and uncovers the gripping story of Ness’s hunt for a sadistic killer who was as brilliant as he was cool and composed, a mastermind who was able to hide in plain sight. American Demon reconstructs this ultimate battle of wits between a hero and a madman.
A Macmillan Audio production from Minotaur Books.
Editor's Note
Award-winning true crime author…
After taking down notorious bootlegger Al Capone, famed prohibition agent Eliot Ness faced another great challenge: hunting the “Cleveland Torso Murderer,” a prolific serial killer active during the 1930s. Stashower (“The Hour of Peril”) gives readers a true crime account of the case that shook Cleveland residents to their core. This book paints a fair picture of a fallible man, while allowing Ness’ effectiveness as a leader intent on justice to shine through.
Daniel Stashower
Daniel Stashower is an award-winning mystery novelist and the author of A Teller of Tales: The Life of Arthur Conan Doyle. He lives in Bethesda, Maryland.
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Reviews for American Demon
34 ratings1 review
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5So good. I am a big true crime fan, and this is one of the best books of that genre I have read in a loooong time. Highly recommended to anyone that enjoys true crime.