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Confessions of the Green River Killer: A True Story of Manipulation, Madness, and a Search for Justice
Not yet published
Expected 21 Jul 26A startling profile of one of the most prolific serial killers and the disturbing experience of the journalist who earned his trust for the sake of justice.
When crime journalist Maria DiLorenzo mailed a letter to Gary Ridgway, she never expected him to reply. He refused to speak to reporters and would send only religious materials back to anyone who contacted him in prison—if he replied at all. But instead of silence or a boilerplate letter, Maria’s phone rang–and it was the Green River Killer calling.
Over the next several years, Ridgway would call Maria hundreds of times, using all of his free time in prison to speak with her. Her goal: to pry the details of his dozens of unidentified and unsolved murders from him. His motivation in speaking to her: unknowable. Through these hundreds of hours of phone calls, Ridgway revealed new details about his life, his crimes, and his motives – and manipulated Maria much like he tormented his victims.
An insightful and deeply personal profile of a dangerous mind, Confessions of the Green River Killer is the closest depiction of Gary Ridgway ever seen and a disturbing glimpse into what it’s like to truly know a killer. Readers of I’ll Be Gone in the Dark and The Stranger Beside Me will be enraptured to experience Gary Ridgway through the eyes and ears of a woman he came to deeply trust—and deeply covet.
When crime journalist Maria DiLorenzo mailed a letter to Gary Ridgway, she never expected him to reply. He refused to speak to reporters and would send only religious materials back to anyone who contacted him in prison—if he replied at all. But instead of silence or a boilerplate letter, Maria’s phone rang–and it was the Green River Killer calling.
Over the next several years, Ridgway would call Maria hundreds of times, using all of his free time in prison to speak with her. Her goal: to pry the details of his dozens of unidentified and unsolved murders from him. His motivation in speaking to her: unknowable. Through these hundreds of hours of phone calls, Ridgway revealed new details about his life, his crimes, and his motives – and manipulated Maria much like he tormented his victims.
An insightful and deeply personal profile of a dangerous mind, Confessions of the Green River Killer is the closest depiction of Gary Ridgway ever seen and a disturbing glimpse into what it’s like to truly know a killer. Readers of I’ll Be Gone in the Dark and The Stranger Beside Me will be enraptured to experience Gary Ridgway through the eyes and ears of a woman he came to deeply trust—and deeply covet.
- GenresTrue CrimeNonfiction
Kindle Edition
Expected publication July 21, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
*Thank you to Crooked Lane for a complimentary arc of Confessions of the Green River Killer. All opinions expressed are my own.*
As an avid true crime reader, I go through a lot of books that take you into the minds of monsters, and I don’t think I’ve come across anything like this one before. I would’ve survived if I skipped it.
Normally, when you have a book focused on one person and the crimes they’ve committed, you would expect some backstory or summary of the crimes. In this book, however, it felt like the victims became a complete back thought. There were frequent mentions of how he would kill - his MO, his dumping spots, his routines and events happening in his life in times of activity changes - but the victims were more mentioned as a number; how many he got convicted for, and how many he’s suspected of. There’s more focus on his exes and old flames, than on the lives he actually took. When discussing the ages of his victims, the author mentions the youngest victim, who got identified in 2021, but then doesn’t even state her age.
Since I already know a lot about his case, I could still follow references made, but for someone that isn’t well aware of the details of his crimes, I feel like they’d struggle to follow along with this.
Since the whole premise for this book was Ridgway’s “confessions”, I was intrigued enough to push through to the end of this book, but I was quite disappointed that the whole book could’ve essentially been retitled “Rape Fantasies of the Green River Killer” because I felt like that’s all I read for the whole duration of the book.
At first I was surprised that Ridgway had actually talked with a journalist, since he’s an infamous recluse, but it didn’t take long before I found myself realising it’s not that outlandish that he would communicate with someone of a naivety like this. It occasionally felt like reading about a bizarre long distance relationship with a narcissist and an empath - just a lot darker.
The author is entertaining Ridgway’s morbid fantasies of assaulting and killing her simply by giving him attention and then letting him steer and control all their conversations. While she’s clearly doing so in the hope of gaining information he’ll never give her exactly because he’s steering the conversations, she’s instead giving him a fantasy of doing what he can no longer do from behind bars.
Confessions of the Green River Killer was both disturbing and incredibly repetitive, and while I don’t feel like I actually learned anything new about him or his cases, this could be a potentially good read for anyone interested in criminal profiling, I don’t think it’s a very notable addition to the non-fiction already written about the Green River Killer.
As an avid true crime reader, I go through a lot of books that take you into the minds of monsters, and I don’t think I’ve come across anything like this one before. I would’ve survived if I skipped it.
Normally, when you have a book focused on one person and the crimes they’ve committed, you would expect some backstory or summary of the crimes. In this book, however, it felt like the victims became a complete back thought. There were frequent mentions of how he would kill - his MO, his dumping spots, his routines and events happening in his life in times of activity changes - but the victims were more mentioned as a number; how many he got convicted for, and how many he’s suspected of. There’s more focus on his exes and old flames, than on the lives he actually took. When discussing the ages of his victims, the author mentions the youngest victim, who got identified in 2021, but then doesn’t even state her age.
Since I already know a lot about his case, I could still follow references made, but for someone that isn’t well aware of the details of his crimes, I feel like they’d struggle to follow along with this.
Since the whole premise for this book was Ridgway’s “confessions”, I was intrigued enough to push through to the end of this book, but I was quite disappointed that the whole book could’ve essentially been retitled “Rape Fantasies of the Green River Killer” because I felt like that’s all I read for the whole duration of the book.
At first I was surprised that Ridgway had actually talked with a journalist, since he’s an infamous recluse, but it didn’t take long before I found myself realising it’s not that outlandish that he would communicate with someone of a naivety like this. It occasionally felt like reading about a bizarre long distance relationship with a narcissist and an empath - just a lot darker.
The author is entertaining Ridgway’s morbid fantasies of assaulting and killing her simply by giving him attention and then letting him steer and control all their conversations. While she’s clearly doing so in the hope of gaining information he’ll never give her exactly because he’s steering the conversations, she’s instead giving him a fantasy of doing what he can no longer do from behind bars.
Confessions of the Green River Killer was both disturbing and incredibly repetitive, and while I don’t feel like I actually learned anything new about him or his cases, this could be a potentially good read for anyone interested in criminal profiling, I don’t think it’s a very notable addition to the non-fiction already written about the Green River Killer.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
ARC for review. To be published July 21, 2026.
2 stars
What did I just read? Ick.
I’m willing to believe, that at the beginning, DiLorenzo’s heart was in the right place. She is an NUC based teacher who also writes a true crime newsletter. She attempts to start a correspondence/conversation with Gary Ridgway, the Green River Killer from Washington state who was convicted of forty nine murders of women, primarily prosititutes from the 1980s to the early 2000s (I think.). Ridgway normally did not cooperate with journalists so it was surprising that he agreed to correspond/speak on the phone with DiLorenzo over several years. She hoped to get information from him about other murders he is suspected of committing.
Spoiler alert: she really doesn’t. However she was, I guess, absolutely committed to the idea of writing a book about whatever she got from him, she she went ahead and published this, which is, in large part, Ridgway’s masturbatory fantasies about DiLorenzo where he told her, in great detail and over and over again, the ways in which he imagined her raped and murdered (she had even sent him photos of herself, ostensibly so he knew to whom he was speaking.) And she listened to this. For YEARS. Because, she says, she kept thinking there was a chance he would reveal more to her. And the book relates all this, again, in detail.
So, yeah, this is exactly what I imagine would be in a rapist/murderer/psychopath’s mind, and while I guess it might be of interest to an FBI profiler, I didn’t see the value to society in making this a book. The only reason I finished it was to see if he did cough up any info, and now you know so you won’t have to.
The only worthwhile part of the book is toward the end. It appears that after Ridgway was arrested and tied to four of the murders, eventually confessing to a lot more, the King County Sheriff’s Office (Seattle,) for whatever reason let the case go and stopped investigating, despite the fact that there are likely more victims out there. This must be incredibly frustrating to the families of potential victims and, sadly, it’s unlikely that a short mention in this book will do anything to rectify the situation.
To add to the gross factor Ridgway stopped contact with DiLorenzo once he was medically incapable of sexual gratification. As of this writing (12/27/25) he is still alive and lingering in prison. Skip this one.
2 stars
What did I just read? Ick.
I’m willing to believe, that at the beginning, DiLorenzo’s heart was in the right place. She is an NUC based teacher who also writes a true crime newsletter. She attempts to start a correspondence/conversation with Gary Ridgway, the Green River Killer from Washington state who was convicted of forty nine murders of women, primarily prosititutes from the 1980s to the early 2000s (I think.). Ridgway normally did not cooperate with journalists so it was surprising that he agreed to correspond/speak on the phone with DiLorenzo over several years. She hoped to get information from him about other murders he is suspected of committing.
Spoiler alert: she really doesn’t. However she was, I guess, absolutely committed to the idea of writing a book about whatever she got from him, she she went ahead and published this, which is, in large part, Ridgway’s masturbatory fantasies about DiLorenzo where he told her, in great detail and over and over again, the ways in which he imagined her raped and murdered (she had even sent him photos of herself, ostensibly so he knew to whom he was speaking.) And she listened to this. For YEARS. Because, she says, she kept thinking there was a chance he would reveal more to her. And the book relates all this, again, in detail.
So, yeah, this is exactly what I imagine would be in a rapist/murderer/psychopath’s mind, and while I guess it might be of interest to an FBI profiler, I didn’t see the value to society in making this a book. The only reason I finished it was to see if he did cough up any info, and now you know so you won’t have to.
The only worthwhile part of the book is toward the end. It appears that after Ridgway was arrested and tied to four of the murders, eventually confessing to a lot more, the King County Sheriff’s Office (Seattle,) for whatever reason let the case go and stopped investigating, despite the fact that there are likely more victims out there. This must be incredibly frustrating to the families of potential victims and, sadly, it’s unlikely that a short mention in this book will do anything to rectify the situation.
To add to the gross factor Ridgway stopped contact with DiLorenzo once he was medically incapable of sexual gratification. As of this writing (12/27/25) he is still alive and lingering in prison. Skip this one.
January 30, 2026
The premise of this book really intrigued me. Gary Ridgeway is notorious for not giving interviews, so when I saw a book that was about a journalist that he would speak with, I knew that I had to read it.
While there is a lot of insight to the man and his actions, it is a very difficult read. The content definitely needs to come with some trigger warnings. You learn just how depraved the serial killer is and what goes through his mind is very disconcerting. I thought that some of the information or thoughts that are shared did not necessarily need to be in the book, and were a bit off putting. Additionally, while you do get insight into the strange relationship that was built over the phone between Maria and Gary, this is not the typical true crime book, you learn more about their relationship then anything else.
While there is a lot of insight to the man and his actions, it is a very difficult read. The content definitely needs to come with some trigger warnings. You learn just how depraved the serial killer is and what goes through his mind is very disconcerting. I thought that some of the information or thoughts that are shared did not necessarily need to be in the book, and were a bit off putting. Additionally, while you do get insight into the strange relationship that was built over the phone between Maria and Gary, this is not the typical true crime book, you learn more about their relationship then anything else.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
While I found this interesting for the insights into how Gary Ridgway’s mind works, it was also quite frustrating. The premise is that the author being the only known media person that the killer actually agreed to have contact with, her objective to try to get information on additional kills falls flat. In fact, it mostly seems that Ridgway is really just toying with her, shutting down her endless questions until she feels like she only gets information when she’s letting him control their talks. He’s more interested in her as a fantasy, and tries to advise her how to avoid becoming a rape victim. True crime is my main reading genre, so I was surprised that at the very end of this story, it says that it is a work of fiction. What the heck. How is this a true story then?
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Confessions of the Green River Killer: A true story of Manipulation, madness, and a search for justice by Maria DiLorenzo
Maria, a teacher and writer of a true crime newsletter corresponds with Gary Ridgway aka The Green River Killer.
As a reader it was fascinating to see both sides of the story. Maria was hopeful that Gary would give up clues that could further the investigation. Gary on the other hand, thought of the conversation as a game of sorts, relaying what came to mind at the time. He seems to toy with her, often roping her into sick fantasies that he's playing out in his head.
I received an advanced reader copy of this book from NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books in exchange for my honest opinion and review.
Coming to stores July 21 2026
Maria, a teacher and writer of a true crime newsletter corresponds with Gary Ridgway aka The Green River Killer.
As a reader it was fascinating to see both sides of the story. Maria was hopeful that Gary would give up clues that could further the investigation. Gary on the other hand, thought of the conversation as a game of sorts, relaying what came to mind at the time. He seems to toy with her, often roping her into sick fantasies that he's playing out in his head.
I received an advanced reader copy of this book from NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books in exchange for my honest opinion and review.
Coming to stores July 21 2026
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
This was a very intriguing true crime book, different from what I’m used to. Maria actually takes us along in her shoes as she makes contact with Gary the serial killer, develops regular communication with him, and hopes that may be more information can come from him. There were times that I felt very uneasy as I read, matching how she felt. As someone who is very into true crime, this book was very satisfying for me because it felt as if I was the one looking into this and trying to get more information. There aren’t many books like this out there so it’s great Maria shared hers with the world. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Thanks to Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review
I felt quite frustrated reading this book most of the time - I kept thinking Maria would have a breakthrough in her communication with Ridgeway, and it just didn't get anywhere. Granted, this all served to fully emphasise how much of a psychopath this man is. I really couldn't deal with the way this man speaks, too, it was so disjointed and rambling I found myself getting confused and just really irritated!
I feel that a certain type of true crime fan will enjoy this, but unfortunately I did not.
I felt quite frustrated reading this book most of the time - I kept thinking Maria would have a breakthrough in her communication with Ridgeway, and it just didn't get anywhere. Granted, this all served to fully emphasise how much of a psychopath this man is. I really couldn't deal with the way this man speaks, too, it was so disjointed and rambling I found myself getting confused and just really irritated!
I feel that a certain type of true crime fan will enjoy this, but unfortunately I did not.
January 18, 2026
Fascinating and horrifying at the same time. The author’s communications with Gary Ridgeway were, at times, uncomfortable to read and grotesque in nature. His words, both spoken and written, leave no doubt that he is a true psychopath, and I don’t think anything would have stopped him becoming the monster he is.
Well written, recommend to true crime fans who are interested in the minds of serial killers.
Well written, recommend to true crime fans who are interested in the minds of serial killers.
March 5, 2026
A dark book about a prolific serial killer. The phone conversations between Gary and Maria are shocking, haunting and at times gross. The insight into Gary lets you know he is everything you expect him to be as someone who has killed so many women. You may need some lighthearted TV after you read this book!
Review of advance copy
Awful...while her articles are slightly not awful, this book is TERRIBLE. I received an advanced copy and only finished because I started. The writing is elementary, there is a lack of information, and the entire thing is a waste of time. There are 106,273 better books to read. SKIP THIS
April 25, 2026
Got this one as a Netgalley arc
I loved the idea of the book..but it was a bit repetitive. I was disturbed to hear how ridgeway thought and spoke but we didn’t really get any new confessions from this book.
I loved the idea of the book..but it was a bit repetitive. I was disturbed to hear how ridgeway thought and spoke but we didn’t really get any new confessions from this book.
January 30, 2026
Thank you Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for providing me with this eARC for review consideration.
The following is my personal perspective on the book.
I was not familiar with this serial killer prior to reading this book and this was a very disturbing and difficult read.
The book reads almost like a transcript of the conversations the author had with Gary Ridgway. I’m not sure how Ms. DiLorenzo managed to endure listening to the disassociated ramblings of this deviant.
I have read true crime novels written by journalists before but I found the writing style in this book to be crude and unpolished compared to what I would have expected but perhaps the goal of the author was to have an unedited representation of what the killer had to say.
Later in the book, she remarked that she felt as though she was experiencing some form of Stockholm Syndrome and given the nature of the conversation she continued to have, I have no doubt there is a sliver of truth to that statement.
Stating that his voice became familiar like freshly brewed coffee or sunlight filling a room suggests an enjoyable relationship despite her claiming she couldn’t cease communication when she felt uncomfortable or nervous.
As mentioned, this was a difficult read and not for the faint of heart. If you like diving into the inner thoughts of a serial killer, this book may be for you.
The following is my personal perspective on the book.
I was not familiar with this serial killer prior to reading this book and this was a very disturbing and difficult read.
The book reads almost like a transcript of the conversations the author had with Gary Ridgway. I’m not sure how Ms. DiLorenzo managed to endure listening to the disassociated ramblings of this deviant.
I have read true crime novels written by journalists before but I found the writing style in this book to be crude and unpolished compared to what I would have expected but perhaps the goal of the author was to have an unedited representation of what the killer had to say.
Later in the book, she remarked that she felt as though she was experiencing some form of Stockholm Syndrome and given the nature of the conversation she continued to have, I have no doubt there is a sliver of truth to that statement.
Stating that his voice became familiar like freshly brewed coffee or sunlight filling a room suggests an enjoyable relationship despite her claiming she couldn’t cease communication when she felt uncomfortable or nervous.
As mentioned, this was a difficult read and not for the faint of heart. If you like diving into the inner thoughts of a serial killer, this book may be for you.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I have to start this by saying I’m a huge true crime junkie and I’ve been fascinated by the case for years.
Thank you to my coworker who happens to know the author and brought her up to my attention.
This was so captivating and insightful, brings so much to light which I didn’t know as well as Gary’s personality. The way his mind works, the things he says and how he wanted to be seen as a good person.
The amount of time this has taken Maria to get information out of him was a lot. I don’t think I could have had the patience to do it as well as staying calm.
I also just found out about her website and now will be spending my time reading them.
Thank you so much NetGalley.
Thank you to my coworker who happens to know the author and brought her up to my attention.
This was so captivating and insightful, brings so much to light which I didn’t know as well as Gary’s personality. The way his mind works, the things he says and how he wanted to be seen as a good person.
The amount of time this has taken Maria to get information out of him was a lot. I don’t think I could have had the patience to do it as well as staying calm.
I also just found out about her website and now will be spending my time reading them.
Thank you so much NetGalley.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews