House of Horrors: The Horrific True Story of Josef Fritzl, the Father From Hell.

by Nigel Cawthorne

In the quiet Austrian town of Amstetten in the balmy spring of April 2008, a truly horrifying vision of hell was discovered by police in the cellar of a normal suburban home. On 28 August 1984, seemingly respectable family man Josef Fritzl had lured Elisabeth, the youngest of his seven children, into the cellar of their family home, where he then drugged and handcuffed her in a windowless dungeon he'd spent years constructing. For the next 24 years Josef held his daughter captive in unimaginable conditions and repeatedly raped her, fathering seven children. When the eldest captive child, Kerstin, was admitted to hospital, Josef's sickening web of incest and abuse was uncovered by the authorities. This is the full and utterly disturbing true story of what happened in those underground chambers of horror.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, Crime, Biography, True Story

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

Nigel Cawthorne is an Anglo-American writer of fiction and non-fiction, and an editor. He has written more than 80 books on a wide range of subjects and has contributed to The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph Daily Mail and The New York Times. He has appeared on television and BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

Many of Nigel Cawthorne's books are compilations of popular history, without footnotes, references or bibliographies. His own web site refers to a description of his home as a "book-writing factory" and says, "More than half my books were commissioned by publishers and packagers for a flat fee or for a for a reduced royalty".

One of his most notable works was Taking Back My Name, an autobiography of Ike Turner, with whom he spent a number of weeks working with him on, taking up residence in Turner's house. The book caused much controversy, resulting in court cases for three years following its release.

Cawthorne currently lives in Bloomsbury, London with his girlfriend and son, Colin (born 1982).

Reviews

[Diane in Australia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a difficult book to rate. The facts of the true life horror that happened to Elisabeth, her siblings, and her children, is worth 5 Stars. But this book was published so close on the heels of the gruesome discovery that it doesn't even include Josef's trial, and seems to be mostly a regurgitation of facts available elsewhere.

If you don't have any knowledge of this crime, you may find this book enlightening.

3 Stars = It was okay.

[Mel · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was written so soon after the horrific discovery that it reads more like a reporting of the issue and provides no insight on how such a brutal and horrible act could happen.

[Horror Sickness · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is always so difficult to rate a book like this but I can say that despite the crimes that occurred being horrific I appreciated that the author told the story without exploiting the victims and going into detail on the horrors that happened in that basement.

This book was written right after the horrific discovery and it reads more like a reporting of the issue. So we do not get much of a resolution because this happened right before any trial or any conclusions were reached by the police.

If you enjoy true crime and are unfamiliar with the story, you might want to pick this one up. Also if you are aware of the case but never really watched anything about it you might find the book interesting.

[Marianne Webb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even though this was an horrific true story, I found it compelling reading.

[crashqueen73 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this was an informative read. It did the job of telling the story of the "House of Horrors"... a girl that was kept by her father in a dungeon under his house from the time she was 18. For 24 years. And then fathered seven children with her. And made her birth them all on her own. In the dungeon. And the dungeon was so low ceiling- ed that she and one of her male children developed stoops. Some people are so so sick and depraved and cruel. And then to make excuses for their behaviour just makes it all the more disgusting!

So that is the story. The book itself gave all this information but my complaint was that it was repetitive. The same point was detailed again and again.... such as Micheal (a twin) dying at three days and being burned in the furnace by his father/ captor. (If this had been a text for school it would have been quite easy to recall information.) But as far as reading experiences go, it became annoying.

3 stars for this one.

[Yayu Sri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh ya ampun ! Ternyata orang gila ini ayah si korban! Oh tidak, bukan orang gila, tp monster. Iya, dia layak disebut monster karena telah menyekap putrinya sendiri selama 24 thn dan memperkosa putrinya tsb selama dlm penyekapan shg membuahkan 7 orang anak. 6 orang anak yg hidup dgn membawa kelainan genetika krn lahir dr hasil hubungan inses ayah dan anak. Anak2 yg hidup dlm penyekapan jg, meski akhirnya krn alasan tertentu 3 diantaranya di rawat oleh istrinya yg notabene nenek mereka. 1 anak meninggal saat usianya 3 hari dan kemudian dg sadis dibakar oleh monster ini di tungku pembakaran sampah.
Siapa bilang makhluk paling buas adalah binatang predator? tidak, makhluk paling buas di dunia adalah manusia, dan Josef fritzl adalah contohnya.

[Dora Santos Marques · Rating 2 out of 5]

Como não consigo resistir a feiras de livros com promoções, às vezes compro coisas sem ler bem do que tratam...
Pensei que este livro era o relato da sobrevivente mas não, é uma investigação feita pelo autor. Fala de praticamente tudo mas o que eu queria era a história na primeira pessoa...

[Amanda Stanford · Rating 1 out of 5]

Fascinating subject but unfortunately very repetitive and badly written. You could read the newspaper clips from the time and obtain the same information in less time. A shame that the book doesn’t do justice to such a horrific tragedy.

[Giulia Dell'Uomo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Buona ricostruzione dei fatti, ma non mi sono ritrovata molto nello stile di scrittura. Risulta un po' dispersivo.

[Joel Smart · Rating 2 out of 5]

Poorly written and mostly guesses rather than facts.

[Renata · Rating 4 out of 5]

A narration of the horrific events that unfolded at the Fritzl household in 2008, when 42 year old Elizabeth Fritzl was discovered to have been locked and raped by her father for 24 years, that resulted in the birth of 7 children. Cawthorne gives us an account of the accused Josef Fritzl, his early years and Nazi past that had a major influence on his relationship with and subsequent treatment of his wife and children. We also learn of his wife Rosemarie Fritzl and her passivity in the relationship that ultimately led to a series of unfortunate events. But the protagonist of the book is Elizabeth herself, and her tremendous strength and courage in the face of everything she encountered while living in isolation for a quarter of a century. The book was published immediately after the news came out in the media, as a consequence of which Cawthorne's narration appears to be a simple retelling of events that people familiar with the case would already be aware of. We learn nothing of Josef's trial, whether the critically ill daughter/granddaughter Kirsten pulls through or passes away, the present condition of the children born in the cellar and their integration into society. A little more research or some more time spent with the case would have made this a more fulfilling read.

[Odette Linnane · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a good read, considering the contents if the story. I have read reviews from other people, and what they thought. I had not heard anything about this story in Australia. But apparently the book was written not long after the truth came out. It woukd if been better to wait, and to include the court case wih it, to see what this monster deserved. But as many books as I read about these kind of issue's, it still dumb founds me how parent could do these things to their own children. There is a whole big world of absolute disgust out there, that I was not aware of.
The resilience if these children and adults is amazing, I don't think I could handle that and continue on with my life. Not only does this daugther/mum have to live the rest of her life trying to get on with her life, but so do her children. They have to adjust ti what the outside world is, and also have to deal with what went on down in that basement. They would not know what we call a normal life is.
I hope the author reads all these co.ments and writes about what happrnes in the court case, and also writes about how all affected are doing and coping

[Stfnie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won’t be giving this book a rating for the horrors that the author describes. It will be solely about how the author chose to write the book. After about 50% the book gets waaay too much repetition. When I was nearly done, I asked myself why the author didn’t choose to do a different format, so I wouldn’t have to read something 10 times (i kid you not). There’s also A LOT of speculation in this book, and I guess that’s to be expected from a book written so quickly after everything came out, but I think the book would’ve been stronger without them. I admire how the police refused to share any details about what had happened in that cellar.

[Tija Addams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Josef Fritzl is the epitome of evil. The sick bastard deserves to be thrown into a 4ft by 4ft underground pit and forgotten about. Such a well written book about a pure evil monster

[Leslie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unbelievable. Fact is stranger than fiction.

[Neil Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hastily cobbled together research that repeats itself over and over, but interesting and informative none the less.

[Cláudia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Como se esperava, esta não foi uma leitura agradável, porém, para uma entusiasta de true crime, é uma leitura essencial.

[Shnice Rickman · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had high hopes for this book as I find the story fascinating but it was just so badly written and repetitive I couldn't finish it!

[Gail murray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shocking not as good as I thought it would be

[Elle · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐⭐⭐½

La storia disturbante di Josef Fritzl, il 70enne (all'epoca dei fatti) austriaco che rinchiuse sua figlia Elisabeth nello scantinato-bunker costruito sotto casa e per 11 anni la tenne lì segregata, al buio, violentandola quotidianamente e facendole mettere al mondo sette figli. Al mondo “in superficie” aveva raccontato che sua figlia era scappata per darsi ad alcool-droghe e rock'n'roll.
Leggere un libro così non è facile. Ti costringe ad oscillare tra la rabbia e la tristezza. Ma va fatto. Se tutti chiudessimo gli occhi di fronte agli orrori, non ci sarebbe memoria storica, e la violenza genererebbe altra violenza.
Per scrivere di certe cose bisogna avere tatto, mantenere un certo distacco e attenersi ai fatti senza indugiare troppo. Cawthorne ci riesce. E per questo, lo consiglio.

[The Life of a Kindle Girlie. · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book I just found to be a recollection of what we already knew about who he was and where he came from - I was hoping for more of a retelling of what he did and what was going through his mind but I definitely didn't enjoy it - It didn't capture my interest

[Caroline2 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Suddenly I stopped and had a look to the title of the book. Shock and terror is on my face. How could a father whose suppose to protect and lead us from the villain in this world yet he was the one we must fight on!!!!!

Gosh, that day after my bff and me end up to the book store before we begin our noon class for national exam prep. we chat all the way for the romance corner but we made our way to the true story side. I decided to buy this book, i want to know why why why why Elizabeth must got the hell fate.

Nigel told the story brilliant, I read it but felt the goosebump every page. I hate how Elisabeth mother lack of life! she is zombie how could she let this to happen! yes! maybe she is innocent but there are many thing is not right from her husband about Elizabeth dissapeared and the next infant coming!!!!!!, why she is not aware what happened under her roof!!!!!

Elizabeth father is lucifer in flesh! much worse than evil satan, because he is rape, abuse, and torturing not only body but also mind.


I want to say, it is so damn hell what is going on there. Elizabeth survive, and not forget she is also fill her children with love and education as best as she can. The good things she does, she do not give up to live and to keep hope.

Nice work Nigel, the red cover edition is in my country Indonesia and I have it!

[Bianca Ward · Rating 2 out of 5]

I brought this book because I was interested in the content, and sympathize with the case. However the book was poorly written the author is over doing it and repetitive, he gives everything away in the first two or three chapters then he rinses and repeats through out the entire book. The only chapter that got me emotionally bound was the one where Fritzle explains his lack of remorse. The remainder of the book was just frustratingly written there are only so many words you can use for the term incestuous and only so many times you can discuss the ramifications of paternal inbreeding medical conditions. I felt like yelling out loud every time he mentioned the reason why the children had medical conditions due to the paternal nature of conception (no sh*t you only have mentioned this reason for the last 6 children).

[Masniaty · Rating 4 out of 5]

setelah 24 tahun dikurung di bawah tanah oleh ayahnya yang gila itu menurut aku, akhirnya elisabeth dan anaknya bisa menghirup udara bebas dan lega. selama 24 th dikurung di bawah tanah di rumahnya sendiri elisabeth telah menjadi budak sex ayahnya sendiri tanpa bisa melawan, melahirkan tujuh anak juga sendirian, sungguh aku tidak bisa membayangkannya bagaimana bisa elisabeth melahirkan anak2nya sendirian, dan menurut aku elisabeth sungguh wanita hebat. kisah penyekapan dirinya selama 24 tahun itu dituturkan dlm buku ini hingga membuat aku tercengang-cengang. ada ya orang sejahat si fritzl ini sampai mengatasnamakan nazi sebagai akibat dari perbuatannya.

[Shannon Bavister · Rating 5 out of 5]

My thoughts: Despite the absolute horror and brutality of Fritzl’s actions which are enough to make you sick to your stomach, Cawthorne does an excellent job in this non-fiction text of inviting the reader into the world of Elisabeth and the atrocities committed against her.

Cawthorne’s descriptions allow the reader to use all of their senses to smell, taste, hear, see and to an extent feel how being trapped in that cellar would have been and how Elisabeth was breathtakingly brave and resilient in a time that would have been so incredibly difficult.

I am a pure true crime girly and I always appreciate texts like these that bring us so many facts around such devastating truths.

[Troy Cook · Rating 5 out of 5]

The truest definition of living a nightmare.The depths of depravity,Narcissism and utter lack of conscience make this so called man the very personification of evil.Yet through it all there is a story of strength and courage and will to survive that will bring tears to even the hardest of readers eyes.A story of terror and inspiration that will amaze.

[Kristina Naumov · Rating 3 out of 5]

After finished this book, I was completely shocked. How could this even happened in our world?! People are going crazy and it makes me sad. Living in our society, make me look at the people with different perspective. This book is hard reading and people with soft personality will not be able to function normally after finishing this book.

[Ellis Spicer · Rating 3 out of 5]

A genuinely tragic story, but this book is very sensitive and well written

[Indah Threez Lestari · Rating 2 out of 5]

791 - 2012

[Augustine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was too scared with what happened in true story of Elisabeth and her basement children, his writing is good, so detailed and so much describing how bad it was.