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Unsolved Crimes: Infamous Cases That Have Puzzled the Greatest Minds
Astonishing advances in DNA analysis and forensic technology mean that today there is more reason than ever to believe that an unsolved crime might one day be resolved. And yet still, from outrageous robberies to haunting serial killings, there remain those cases that refuse to be cracked.
'Unsolved Crimes' collects together the most notorious and mind-boggling felonies ever committed.
'Unsolved Crimes' collects together the most notorious and mind-boggling felonies ever committed.
224 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
January 7, 2025
As True Crime books and podcasts and telly productions continue to increase in popularity, this title takes a swing at determining some of the unsolved cases that have become famous through the years. It starts with Napoleon Bonaparte’s demise (murdered or not?) and continues into the 21st-century. This is a 2018 publication, so a few of these files have either been solved or have new clues, but it’s all rather interesting in any case.
The book is broken up into separate chapters, based on the type of crime. We start with MURDER, under which we have the infamous St. Valentine’s Day Massacre of 1929. At this point, about 99% of crime solvers have determined the mob hit was ordered by Mr. Al Capone. His hitmen dressed up as policemen and shot the last remaining members of Capone’s greatest arch-enemy gang. Machine-gunned them in their backs. It wasn’t as though there hadn’t been mob hits before, but the newspapers in the United States carried the pictures of the resulting dead bodies and bloodied walls and suddenly True Crime was a popular topic. There is the 1986 assassination of Swedish Prime Minister, Olof Palme. While one suspect was eventually arrested, he ended up being released because of identification issues. The book highlights a more likely killer, who was a member of a far-right extremist group.
There’s a chapter on TERRORISM, which is followed by the SERIAL KILLER section. As usual, Jack the Ripper takes up some space here, but there is also the grisly Axeman Of New Orleans, who killed constantly within that city from 1911 to 1919. Was he the same Axeman who had terrified the Midwest just a few years earlier? If so, this unknown fiend would be the most prolific murderer in the history of the United States.
The ROBBERY AND FRAUD chapter was not as exciting for me, as it seems jewels and artworks get stolen quite often. But the final section on UNEXPLAINED DISAPPEARANCES was a good endcap for the book. Joseph Crater was a New York Supreme Court judge who disappeared in 1930. He was on vacation with his wife when he received a phone call. He told her he had to return to New York to “clear up a few things”. She never saw him again. Was he a victim of organized crime? Was it a spousal hit? No one will probably ever know. And what about the Alcatraz Island escapees of 1962? Did they really get off the island? Did they drown? I remember being a guest on a little sailboat on the San Francisco Bay, when this topic was brought up and the sailor said that based on the currents, most likely the prisoners were swept away into the open ocean. He didn’t think their little homemade raft would have survived and based on the very clear weather that day, but with the treacherous Bay currents requiring constant supervision, I would agree.
The book is a very nice production. It has a French flap binding and every section provides a timeline, a history, and then a Strange Suspicion ending page. So, if you have finished reading about one subject and believe you know the answer, the last page will set you to re-thinking everything you just thought was correct. A decent read and not too strenuous.
Book Season = Autumn (gothic horrors)
The book is broken up into separate chapters, based on the type of crime. We start with MURDER, under which we have the infamous St. Valentine’s Day Massacre of 1929. At this point, about 99% of crime solvers have determined the mob hit was ordered by Mr. Al Capone. His hitmen dressed up as policemen and shot the last remaining members of Capone’s greatest arch-enemy gang. Machine-gunned them in their backs. It wasn’t as though there hadn’t been mob hits before, but the newspapers in the United States carried the pictures of the resulting dead bodies and bloodied walls and suddenly True Crime was a popular topic. There is the 1986 assassination of Swedish Prime Minister, Olof Palme. While one suspect was eventually arrested, he ended up being released because of identification issues. The book highlights a more likely killer, who was a member of a far-right extremist group.
There’s a chapter on TERRORISM, which is followed by the SERIAL KILLER section. As usual, Jack the Ripper takes up some space here, but there is also the grisly Axeman Of New Orleans, who killed constantly within that city from 1911 to 1919. Was he the same Axeman who had terrified the Midwest just a few years earlier? If so, this unknown fiend would be the most prolific murderer in the history of the United States.
The ROBBERY AND FRAUD chapter was not as exciting for me, as it seems jewels and artworks get stolen quite often. But the final section on UNEXPLAINED DISAPPEARANCES was a good endcap for the book. Joseph Crater was a New York Supreme Court judge who disappeared in 1930. He was on vacation with his wife when he received a phone call. He told her he had to return to New York to “clear up a few things”. She never saw him again. Was he a victim of organized crime? Was it a spousal hit? No one will probably ever know. And what about the Alcatraz Island escapees of 1962? Did they really get off the island? Did they drown? I remember being a guest on a little sailboat on the San Francisco Bay, when this topic was brought up and the sailor said that based on the currents, most likely the prisoners were swept away into the open ocean. He didn’t think their little homemade raft would have survived and based on the very clear weather that day, but with the treacherous Bay currents requiring constant supervision, I would agree.
The book is a very nice production. It has a French flap binding and every section provides a timeline, a history, and then a Strange Suspicion ending page. So, if you have finished reading about one subject and believe you know the answer, the last page will set you to re-thinking everything you just thought was correct. A decent read and not too strenuous.
Book Season = Autumn (gothic horrors)
January 8, 2025
Despite the advances in DNA analysis and forensic technology in the modern age, these 39 crimes described in 'Unsolved Crimes' remain exactly that - unsolved!
Was Napoleon Bonaparte the victim of arsenic poisoning, was Edgar Allan Poe murdered are two of the earliest crimes under discussion and, despite, plenty of conspiracy theories - all the episodes are subjected to that treatment, of course - there is no definite evidence to prove the cases one way or the other.
And the same principle applies to cases in each of the categories, 'Murder', 'Terrorism', 'Serial Killing' 'Robbery and Fraud' and 'Unexplained Disappearances'. In the last named we have the celebrated Lord Lucan case and also that of Madelaine McCann while the question remains unanswered as to what were the fates of the Alcatraz escapees of 1962. However, a recent TV documentary did shed some light on that one with 'proven' evidence of the escapees living a life of riley in Brazil. All speculation, of course.
Jack the Ripper gets yet another airing as do the Zodiac Killer and the Long Island serial killer amongst others. Who did commit the Black Dahlia murder and was Al Capone responsible the St Valentine's Day massacre? We will probably never know and that uncertainty makes this volume something of a pot boiler with nothing definitive coming out of it.
Was Napoleon Bonaparte the victim of arsenic poisoning, was Edgar Allan Poe murdered are two of the earliest crimes under discussion and, despite, plenty of conspiracy theories - all the episodes are subjected to that treatment, of course - there is no definite evidence to prove the cases one way or the other.
And the same principle applies to cases in each of the categories, 'Murder', 'Terrorism', 'Serial Killing' 'Robbery and Fraud' and 'Unexplained Disappearances'. In the last named we have the celebrated Lord Lucan case and also that of Madelaine McCann while the question remains unanswered as to what were the fates of the Alcatraz escapees of 1962. However, a recent TV documentary did shed some light on that one with 'proven' evidence of the escapees living a life of riley in Brazil. All speculation, of course.
Jack the Ripper gets yet another airing as do the Zodiac Killer and the Long Island serial killer amongst others. Who did commit the Black Dahlia murder and was Al Capone responsible the St Valentine's Day massacre? We will probably never know and that uncertainty makes this volume something of a pot boiler with nothing definitive coming out of it.
September 19, 2021
it was an alright book, i feel like it was very biased though and didn't cover all the suspects
instead it just focused on like two at most
instead it just focused on like two at most
October 16, 2019
I enjoyed the arteries and it was an easy book to pick up and read for a few minutes at a time. Some stories could have dug in a little more.
Read
June 2, 2024I don’t think I need to rate this book, it’s just a recap summary of some infamous cases. it did frustrate me how much information was packed into a few pages, the chapters could’ve been longer and there could just be lesser cases - maybe just the more interesting ones could’ve been included and in more detail but we move.
the tupac and biggie cases had SO much left out of them I was itchinggggg
the serial killers and unexplained disappearances were the best chapters imo, maybe because I knew more about those cases than the rest, so I didn’t feel as overwhelmed reading them 😭 the madeleine mccan and jonbenet ramsey cases still baffle and disturb me honestly. I can’t wait to get all the answers on judgement day 😭😭😭
the tupac and biggie cases had SO much left out of them I was itchinggggg
the serial killers and unexplained disappearances were the best chapters imo, maybe because I knew more about those cases than the rest, so I didn’t feel as overwhelmed reading them 😭 the madeleine mccan and jonbenet ramsey cases still baffle and disturb me honestly. I can’t wait to get all the answers on judgement day 😭😭😭
July 4, 2019
This was an interesting read about a wide variety of unsolved crimes. I appreciate the fact that there is also an index at the end of the book that provides ideas of other sources to explore for more information the the cases in this book.
November 28, 2020
An interesting introduction to a wide range of unsolved crimes that made for varied and thought provoking reading. Some globally infamous, some I’d never heard of and even one that has been solved since the publication of this book (Michelle McNamara was an incredible woman who I hope is never forgotten!). Perhaps not your usual bedtime read but an engaging one that was easy to dip in and out of when I had a spare ten minutes to stoke the coals of my brain.
June 1, 2023
4.5 Stars. An interesting overview of multiple different unsolved cases grouped into 5 different sections: Murder, Terrorism, Serial Killing, Robbery and Fraud, and Unexplained Disappearances. None of the 38 cases are gone over in great detail and given the length of the book is only 224 pages I think that’s to be expected. Some of these cases would easily make whole books of their own if you included every detail and all the twists and turns the investigations took only to lead to nowhere. I consider them more to be summaries of the cases, intended to wet the reader’s interest and hopefully inspire them to do research for more information.
The cases covered in this book, starting from the 15 cases from the Murder section are: “Did Napoleon Bonaparte die from arsenic poisoning?, Was Edgar Allan Poe murdered?, Did Lizzie Borden murder her father and stepmother with an axe?, Who assassinated Michael Collins?, Was Al Capone behind the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre?, Who killed Sir Harry Oakes?, Who was responsible for the Black Dahlia murder?, Who was behind the assassination of Archbishop Oscar Romero?, Who murdered the Italian banker Roberto Calvi?, Who killed Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme?, Who killed hundreds of women on the Mexican city of Ciudad Juarez?, Who killed JonBenet Ramsey?, Were the murders of Tupac Shakur and Biggie Smalls connected?, Who ordered the murder of Anna Politkovskaya?, and What is the explanation for the Salish Sea feet mystery?”
Then continued in the 4 cases in the Terrorism section: “Who was responsible for the Wall Street bombing?, Who were the real Birmingham pub bombers, Who was responsible for the East African U.S. embassy bombings?, and Who shot down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 over Ukraine?”
The 7 cases within the Serial Killing section: “What was Jack the Ripper’s real identity?, Who was the Axeman of New Orleans?, Who committed the Cleveland torso murders?, Who was the Zodiac Killer?, What was the identity of the Original Night Stalker?, Who was responsible for the Chicago Tylenol murders?, and Why haven’t police caught the Long Island serial killer?”
The 7 cases within the Robbery and Fraud section: “Who stole the Irish Crown Jewels?, Who was the Mystery Man with 21 Faces?, Who robbed the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum?, Who committed the Amsterdam diamond heist?, Who was behind the Banco Central robbery in Fortaleza, Brazil?, Who stole four masterpieces from a Zurich art museum?, and Who committed the Carlton Hotel diamond heist?”
And finally the 5 cases within the Unexplained Disappearances section ending off the book are: “What happened to Judge Crater?, What happened to the Alcatraz escapees?, Did Lord Lucan murder the family nanny and then make his escape?, Why did Jimmy Hoffa disappear?, and What happened to Madeleine McCann?”
Some of these cases I have heard of before but others were totally new to me. There’s a good mix of more vintage cases and modern ones. If you have any interest in True Crime or mysteries, consider checking this book out.
The cases covered in this book, starting from the 15 cases from the Murder section are: “Did Napoleon Bonaparte die from arsenic poisoning?, Was Edgar Allan Poe murdered?, Did Lizzie Borden murder her father and stepmother with an axe?, Who assassinated Michael Collins?, Was Al Capone behind the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre?, Who killed Sir Harry Oakes?, Who was responsible for the Black Dahlia murder?, Who was behind the assassination of Archbishop Oscar Romero?, Who murdered the Italian banker Roberto Calvi?, Who killed Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme?, Who killed hundreds of women on the Mexican city of Ciudad Juarez?, Who killed JonBenet Ramsey?, Were the murders of Tupac Shakur and Biggie Smalls connected?, Who ordered the murder of Anna Politkovskaya?, and What is the explanation for the Salish Sea feet mystery?”
Then continued in the 4 cases in the Terrorism section: “Who was responsible for the Wall Street bombing?, Who were the real Birmingham pub bombers, Who was responsible for the East African U.S. embassy bombings?, and Who shot down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 over Ukraine?”
The 7 cases within the Serial Killing section: “What was Jack the Ripper’s real identity?, Who was the Axeman of New Orleans?, Who committed the Cleveland torso murders?, Who was the Zodiac Killer?, What was the identity of the Original Night Stalker?, Who was responsible for the Chicago Tylenol murders?, and Why haven’t police caught the Long Island serial killer?”
The 7 cases within the Robbery and Fraud section: “Who stole the Irish Crown Jewels?, Who was the Mystery Man with 21 Faces?, Who robbed the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum?, Who committed the Amsterdam diamond heist?, Who was behind the Banco Central robbery in Fortaleza, Brazil?, Who stole four masterpieces from a Zurich art museum?, and Who committed the Carlton Hotel diamond heist?”
And finally the 5 cases within the Unexplained Disappearances section ending off the book are: “What happened to Judge Crater?, What happened to the Alcatraz escapees?, Did Lord Lucan murder the family nanny and then make his escape?, Why did Jimmy Hoffa disappear?, and What happened to Madeleine McCann?”
Some of these cases I have heard of before but others were totally new to me. There’s a good mix of more vintage cases and modern ones. If you have any interest in True Crime or mysteries, consider checking this book out.
December 29, 2021
Title: Unsolved Crimes: Infamous Cases That Have Puzzled The Greatest Minds
Author: Sarah Herman
Genre: True Crime
Page Count: 224
Book Type: Fiction
Publication Date: ?/?/2018
Rating: 4/5
Review:
I mostly read fiction books so please take that into account with my review. I like crime and mystery stories as one of the main genres i read is mystery so it was really interesting to read about real life mysteries. This book gives you an overview of lots of cases giving a few pages to each one, with a consistent format throughout the book. It gave you the basics of the basics of the case but over than that not an amazing amount of detail but i feel like it could be a good starting place if you are interested in the area of expertise. One really good thing about the book is that it is a good book to pick up and read for five minutes, put down and come back to in a few days.
Overall if you already know stuff about a case this isn't the book to learn more, but if you are looking for a case to get your teeth into it could be for you. Or if you are a casual reader like me, it's a good book to read on and off.
Trigger Warnings:
Abusive relationship, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Assault, Attempted murder, Attempted rape, Blood, Child death, Death, Depression, Divorce, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Sexual abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Suicide, Violence
Author: Sarah Herman
Genre: True Crime
Page Count: 224
Book Type: Fiction
Publication Date: ?/?/2018
Rating: 4/5
Review:
I mostly read fiction books so please take that into account with my review. I like crime and mystery stories as one of the main genres i read is mystery so it was really interesting to read about real life mysteries. This book gives you an overview of lots of cases giving a few pages to each one, with a consistent format throughout the book. It gave you the basics of the basics of the case but over than that not an amazing amount of detail but i feel like it could be a good starting place if you are interested in the area of expertise. One really good thing about the book is that it is a good book to pick up and read for five minutes, put down and come back to in a few days.
Overall if you already know stuff about a case this isn't the book to learn more, but if you are looking for a case to get your teeth into it could be for you. Or if you are a casual reader like me, it's a good book to read on and off.
Trigger Warnings:
Abusive relationship, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Assault, Attempted murder, Attempted rape, Blood, Child death, Death, Depression, Divorce, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Sexual abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Suicide, Violence
November 21, 2020
A decent read, not very deep, but kind of a guilty pleasure book. Goes over most of the famous unsolved crimes like was it really Lizzie Borden who murdered her father and stepmother, and who is responsible for the Black Dahlia murder, JonBenet Ramsey, the St. Valentine's Day Massacre, Jack the Ripper, etc. It was written before the Original Night Stalker was caught, so it ponders that as well. There are some new things I had not heard of before - like the 20 detached feet that have been found washed up on the coasts of the Salish Sea in Canada and Washington! But, in every case, the stories are very truncated and don't give you a lot of info, they cram 38 stories in 208 pages, so about 5 pages per story, but with pictures and wide margins, the actual reading is probably closer to 2-3 pages per story. So, you're not going to get all in information about anything. It's all very pared down. And the last page for each story is dedicated to the "Strange Suspicion," which is like the conspiracy theory RE: that particular story, like the person that went missing, it was due to UFOs of the CIA/FBI...
November 18, 2023
Beyond EBN 2023
Another great book in the "Unsolved" series. This one is about crimes, from Murder and Serial Killers and Terrorism, to Robbery & Fraud and Unexplained Disappearences.
Some of the subjects mentioned include: The Axeman, The Zodiac Killer, who killed Edgar Allen Poe, and of course we can't forget the JonBenet Ramsey case. I really enjoyed this one just as I did the others and if you are interested is this type of subject, I recommend you check them out.
Another great book in the "Unsolved" series. This one is about crimes, from Murder and Serial Killers and Terrorism, to Robbery & Fraud and Unexplained Disappearences.
Some of the subjects mentioned include: The Axeman, The Zodiac Killer, who killed Edgar Allen Poe, and of course we can't forget the JonBenet Ramsey case. I really enjoyed this one just as I did the others and if you are interested is this type of subject, I recommend you check them out.
June 29, 2022
Honestly it was really captivating because it tells the events leading up to the events as well as conspiracies of the most infamous cases. Some of these were just really tiresome to read because they’d be like
ok so they found blood and evidence in this man’s home but he wasn’t charged bc he’s dead now so
many of these were so obvious but just hadn’t been closed i guess?
ok so they found blood and evidence in this man’s home but he wasn’t charged bc he’s dead now so
many of these were so obvious but just hadn’t been closed i guess?
September 13, 2021
My only comment is that some of these unsolved crimes actually were/are solved, the culprits were just never brought to justice or a group committed the crime and only a handful of the people involved were caught.
Regardless this was a fun read, introducing you to a variety of unsolved crimes.
Regardless this was a fun read, introducing you to a variety of unsolved crimes.
September 25, 2021
Interesting mix of cases. Some well known to me, some not. I appreciate the format of this book with each case being a few pages; it makes it easy to keep around as a book that can be started & stopped frequently without having to keep track of a plot.
December 25, 2023
Regardless if they are unsolved….some of them I knew, some I didn’t. Quick read. Some I skipped because I don’t mind having to come back and read it.
It is like a book you’d put on the coffee table or in the bathroom
It is like a book you’d put on the coffee table or in the bathroom
June 12, 2019
Really enjoyed this quick reference read! Gave me ideas on other books to look for too!
June 25, 2020
This was a good book, There are all kinds of unsolved cases in it, old & new. It does show its age, as a few of the cases have been solved but overall a good read.
July 20, 2020
most of these stories didnt have more detail than a wikipedia page. and the format made it very repetitive
July 30, 2020
Who doesn't love a good mystery?!
March 14, 2021
For someone who loves mystries...this was awesome!
December 4, 2022
This is our second or third in this sort-of-series. We like them, as they're good conversation starters about history.
January 8, 2023
Solid spread of different types of unsolved crimes. It does a good job of providing a brief description and theories for each one, and it was really easy to read through fast.
January 31, 2023
This was a nice little read! I don’t have any complaints, it was very fun
May 9, 2023
It was nice to read about an array of cases, but I wish it was longer and spent more time delving into the cases.
June 5, 2023
A nice mix of cases, many I had not heard of. Overall would recommend.
July 3, 2023
I love learning more about unsolved cases and these ones were written in such a digestible way.
July 13, 2023
An interesting book covering some of the most famous crimes in history, all of which have never been solved. An enjoyable and quick to read book for fans of true crime.
September 24, 2023
This one was very good. Would have liked a little more detail but was interesting enough.
March 12, 2024
Good Book to read „ Short Story „ Crimes . I liked it and some of them I have never heard of. Creepy was the Story about the shors und the feet.
June 22, 2024
If you like history.you will love this book
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews