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A Dark Room in Glitter Ball City: Murder, Secrets, and Scandal in Old Louisville
This true crime saga—with an eccentric Southern backdrop—introduces the reader to the story of a murder in a crumbling Louisville mansion and the decades of secrets and corruption that live within the old house’s walls.On June 18, 2010, police discover a body buried in the wine cellar of a Victorian mansion in Old Louisville. James Carroll, shot and stabbed the year before, has lain for 7 months in a plastic storage bin—his temporary coffin. Homeowner Jeffrey Mundt and his boyfriend, Joseph Banis, point the finger at each other in what locals dub The Pink Triangle Murder. On the surface, this killing appears to be a crime of passion, a sordid love tryst gone wrong in a creepy old house. But as author David Dominé sits in on the trials, a deeper story the struggle between hope for a better future on the one hand and the privilege and power of the status quo on the other. As the court testimony devolves into he-said/he-said contradictions, David draws on the confidences of neighbors, drag queens, and other acquaintances within the city's vibrant LGBTQ community to piece together the details of the case. While uncovering the many past lives of the mansion itself, he enters a murky underworld of gossip, neighborhood scandal, and intrigue.
366 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 5, 2021
139 people are currently reading
1378 people want to read
About the author
David Domine
15 books96 followersDavid Dominé has called Kentucky home since moving to Louisville in 1993. Over the years, his adopted state has provided him an unending supply of artistic inspiration, so it’s not surprising that - from local hauntings to bourbon recipes - Kentucky spirits frequently come alive in his narratives. In addition to writing travel pieces for local and national publications, he has also published books on Victorian architecture, regional cooking, folklore, and haunted history. David has an MA in German Literature from the University of California at Santa Barbara and an MA in Spanish Literature from the University of Louisville. He also completed studies in literary translation at the Karl-Franzens Universität in Graz, Austria, and received an MFA in Writing from Spalding University. When he’s not writing, he teaches language and literature classes at the university. When he’s not writing or teaching, he’s usually cooking or eating. His current projects include the forthcoming novel Peter Paul’s Kitchen and a true-crime book about the bizarre 2009 murder of drag queen Jamie Carroll and the subsequent trials of alleged killers Jeffery Mundt and Joseph Banis.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 172 reviews
October 31, 2021
This book meandered around and didn’t really go anywhere and then just ended. Mystery not solved, unimportant details added. I think if you are from Louisville it might-be more interesting.
May 13, 2021
David Domine has outdone himself with this foray into true-crime, and the care and time he has taken to craft this novel is plain on every page. Filled with all the aspects of his writing that I’ve come to adore, (quirky characters, rich settings, artful humor, and beautiful prose) A Dark Room in Glitter Ball City seems to go a step farther, delving into the tender territories of real lives, real deaths, and moments of personal pain, too.
While this novel is riveting and enthralling, brimming with intrigue and suspense, it is also heartfelt and earnest—transparent in its goal to deliver the truth while handling the most tragic aspects of its dark subject matter with sincerity and respect.
David also deftly weaves in moments of levity and laugh-out-loud humor. Additionally, the air of unpredictability surrounding his escapades through Louisville had me at the edge of my seat, and before I’d finished the book, this aspect brought to me a fun realization—that while David happens to be one of my favorite authors, he has also come to be one of my favorite “characters” to follow through the pages of a book.
An ideal read for those interested in true-crime and Louisville history. Louisville natives will recognize many landmarks and a few familiar figures receive delightful cameos.
A mystery or two surrounding lesser city dramas, (like why we can’t call it Derby Pie!) are also solved.
A fantastic, thought-provoking, and heartrending read that had me turning pages into the night.
I wager this one will also stick with me through the years, leaving me to wondering what really happened in that old house here in the heart of glitter ball city.
While this novel is riveting and enthralling, brimming with intrigue and suspense, it is also heartfelt and earnest—transparent in its goal to deliver the truth while handling the most tragic aspects of its dark subject matter with sincerity and respect.
David also deftly weaves in moments of levity and laugh-out-loud humor. Additionally, the air of unpredictability surrounding his escapades through Louisville had me at the edge of my seat, and before I’d finished the book, this aspect brought to me a fun realization—that while David happens to be one of my favorite authors, he has also come to be one of my favorite “characters” to follow through the pages of a book.
An ideal read for those interested in true-crime and Louisville history. Louisville natives will recognize many landmarks and a few familiar figures receive delightful cameos.
A mystery or two surrounding lesser city dramas, (like why we can’t call it Derby Pie!) are also solved.
A fantastic, thought-provoking, and heartrending read that had me turning pages into the night.
I wager this one will also stick with me through the years, leaving me to wondering what really happened in that old house here in the heart of glitter ball city.
November 19, 2021
The first half was slow but the 2nd half really pulled me in. Reminded me a lot of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. A wonderful history of Louisville as a backdrop to the crime.
November 29, 2021
I’ve struggled with how to rate this book and rounded up from 2.5 stars. The author does something a writer should not do and that is make himself the whole focus of the story. It is really a memoir more than a true crime. I did not learn much about the case the book is supposed to chronicle.
Because I now live in Louisville the characters and the locations and history are interesting to me, but I doubt they would be to anyone outside the city. So many of the meetings and conversations have nothing to do with the story. Side conversations are rendered in extreme detail but important ones (like the last one with Detective Jon Lesher) go no where and give no information. I’m a bit sickened by the sexual depravity scenes and details but I guess that’s what sells. I finished the book. I drive past this house nearly every day and I still wonder about what happened there.
Because I now live in Louisville the characters and the locations and history are interesting to me, but I doubt they would be to anyone outside the city. So many of the meetings and conversations have nothing to do with the story. Side conversations are rendered in extreme detail but important ones (like the last one with Detective Jon Lesher) go no where and give no information. I’m a bit sickened by the sexual depravity scenes and details but I guess that’s what sells. I finished the book. I drive past this house nearly every day and I still wonder about what happened there.
April 4, 2022
Imagine writing a true crime novel where you not only know the house in which the crime occurred, but the two perpetrators involved even though after two trails the true guilt is never really ascertained. Sounds like there's potential here.
Now add any pointless, vapid remark imaginable about unrelated historic figures and past crimes that happened in this city which randomly pop into your head along with a few sobering bits of homophobic bias to add a pretense of earnestness. Include all conversations with each buddy you encounter, hearsay, and wild conjecture-- you've just summed up "A Dark Room..." in its entirety.
A self-indulgent and senselessly meandering mess!
Now add any pointless, vapid remark imaginable about unrelated historic figures and past crimes that happened in this city which randomly pop into your head along with a few sobering bits of homophobic bias to add a pretense of earnestness. Include all conversations with each buddy you encounter, hearsay, and wild conjecture-- you've just summed up "A Dark Room..." in its entirety.
A self-indulgent and senselessly meandering mess!
December 28, 2021
I had high hopes for this book. It promised a kinky gay murder story in my home state of Kentucky. I expected it to be populated with the usual bunch of horse people, good old boys and local characters, flavored by the addition of some colorful members of the gay community. My interest was further piqued when I noticed that the murder house was ten blocks south of the office where I had a summer job as a law clerk in 1978. In those days Old Louisville was far more of a dump than it is today. It had not yet begun to move in the direction of gentrification, but there were a lot of beautiful old mansions, and I could never understand why the rich people had abandoned them to move to the western suburbs where there was no good public transportation, nothing vaguely resembling culture and the prevailing winds blew all of the pollution from downtown.
Unfortunately, I had some problems with the book. The story of the murder was entirely unsatisfying. We learn a lot about David Domine's life as he tries to put together material for his book, but the core information about the murder and the trial could have been compressed into 50 of the book's 350 pages. There is no resolution and not even a well articulated theory of what really happened. There are some tantalizing hints, but we really don't ever learn anything much about Mundt's alleged CIA connection or the counterfeiting, and a lot of the material about gay sex clubs and the S&M scene in Louisville is peripheral to the story of the murder. Too many red herrings.
Failing to get to the heart of the murder story as an investigative journalist, Mr. Domine pads the book with a lot of extraneous information about Louisville and famous people who were born there, visted there or lived there, lots of kinky murder stories from Louisville and elsewhere and too much about Mr. Domine's own life. I'm sorry for his difficulties with his brother Paul, but they just didn't have anything to do with the story, so that part and the many similar digressions in the book felt to me like filler. And I didn't care about the search for the bottle of 23 year old Pappy Van Winkle.
I think that I would have enjoyed a book of stories about Old Louisville -a chapter on the murder, one on Candy the cross dresser, one on Margie the elderly retired dominatrix and witch, one on crazy Kelly Atkins, who likes to show up in inappropriate places in Nazi uniforms and one on Mark Anthony Mulligan, the mentally challenged artist and street person. There was enough interesting material about each of these people to make a good indpendent story, and that would have worked better for me than weaving them in and out of the story of the trial and murder investigation where their appearances sometimes seemed forced or barely relevant.
Unfortunately, I had some problems with the book. The story of the murder was entirely unsatisfying. We learn a lot about David Domine's life as he tries to put together material for his book, but the core information about the murder and the trial could have been compressed into 50 of the book's 350 pages. There is no resolution and not even a well articulated theory of what really happened. There are some tantalizing hints, but we really don't ever learn anything much about Mundt's alleged CIA connection or the counterfeiting, and a lot of the material about gay sex clubs and the S&M scene in Louisville is peripheral to the story of the murder. Too many red herrings.
Failing to get to the heart of the murder story as an investigative journalist, Mr. Domine pads the book with a lot of extraneous information about Louisville and famous people who were born there, visted there or lived there, lots of kinky murder stories from Louisville and elsewhere and too much about Mr. Domine's own life. I'm sorry for his difficulties with his brother Paul, but they just didn't have anything to do with the story, so that part and the many similar digressions in the book felt to me like filler. And I didn't care about the search for the bottle of 23 year old Pappy Van Winkle.
I think that I would have enjoyed a book of stories about Old Louisville -a chapter on the murder, one on Candy the cross dresser, one on Margie the elderly retired dominatrix and witch, one on crazy Kelly Atkins, who likes to show up in inappropriate places in Nazi uniforms and one on Mark Anthony Mulligan, the mentally challenged artist and street person. There was enough interesting material about each of these people to make a good indpendent story, and that would have worked better for me than weaving them in and out of the story of the trial and murder investigation where their appearances sometimes seemed forced or barely relevant.
April 11, 2022
Overall: ☆☆☆☆ (4.0)
Writing style: ☆☆☆☆☆
Entertainment :☆☆☆☆
Characters:☆☆☆☆
Plot:☆☆☆☆
Ending:☆☆☆
As a Louisvillian I have heard this case and remember watching it on First 48 as well.
Jeffery Mundt and Joseph Banis, charged in the murder of James Carroll, after a lovers quarrel and domestic argument led to the arrest of one of the pair. From there, both were arrested and charged with the murder, when they found a Rubbermaid tub stuffed with Carroll's body, buried in their basement.
The author does a good job of laying out the timeline of events. And while there are still many questions on who-dun-it, the author does a great job of answering the questions based off of his own research.
As a native Louisvillian, I still learned many things about the city I was born and raised in for over 30 years.
Certain to say, this author takes you on a wild ride of salacious details, that after my research, all check out.
Writing style: ☆☆☆☆☆
Entertainment :☆☆☆☆
Characters:☆☆☆☆
Plot:☆☆☆☆
Ending:☆☆☆
As a Louisvillian I have heard this case and remember watching it on First 48 as well.
Jeffery Mundt and Joseph Banis, charged in the murder of James Carroll, after a lovers quarrel and domestic argument led to the arrest of one of the pair. From there, both were arrested and charged with the murder, when they found a Rubbermaid tub stuffed with Carroll's body, buried in their basement.
The author does a good job of laying out the timeline of events. And while there are still many questions on who-dun-it, the author does a great job of answering the questions based off of his own research.
As a native Louisvillian, I still learned many things about the city I was born and raised in for over 30 years.
Certain to say, this author takes you on a wild ride of salacious details, that after my research, all check out.
April 11, 2022
2.5 stars. A lot of extraneous story-telling and anecdotes (some fascinating asides, but a lot of tales that served no purpose other than filler). An interesting crime and trial, but I think this would have been better served as a serialized podcast.
December 22, 2021
I’ll have to be honest, I was really looking forward to this book and had to stop half way. I struggled to open and read it so I ended up giving up on it. It’s very slow and doesn’t have much to draw you in which is a shame because the crime they speak of is very chilling, but the author writes more about his life and history of Louisville than the crime itself.
September 23, 2021
This is a true crime drama that will capture your attention and hold it. David Domine is a master story teller, and he tells the tale of murder in a Southern city with exquisite detail and insight. Homeowner Jeffrey Mundt and his boyfriend, Joseph Banis, point the finger at each other in what locals dub The Pink Triangle Murder. The victim is James Carroll; Domine sat through the entire trial and brings the gruesome story to horrific life. In addition to the story of the murder, trial, and resolution of the case, Domine introduces the reader to some truly novel characters who live in Old Louisville, considered by many to be the most haunted place in America. I highly recommend A Dark Room in Glitter Ball City as a story that will catch your attention from the first page and will hold it till the end.
February 24, 2022
Let me start with a few facts: I did not finish this book, I was born in Louisville, I live in Louisville, I love Louisville. What I read of this book earned 2 stars. If I had stopped after Part One, I might have given it 4 stars. I love to read anything and everything about Louisville. Good and bad. But I don’t love to read bad writing. That’s why I stopped reading. I picked this up after seeing it in the NYT book review section. The summary was written better than the book. I fancy myself a writer of fiction (and actually manage to write about 5 days out of the year). And there and many books on my shelf that I would love to emulate. So I sympathize with this author who tried to turn a seedy, sex murder into another Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil novel. It didn’t work.
January 25, 2022
An important work chronicling an infamous crime in Old Louisville Ky, and who better to author it than the voice of Old Louisville himself David Domine. Priest of the energy’s and characters floating throughout the corners of the city, the seedy and saucy, the affluent froth and the homeless strugglers, he treats them all with an empathetic pen. Every day is a novel and every experience a film, Domine embodies this and Louisville is happy to have him. Highly recommend this book to all interested in true crime, the eccentric parts of life and of course the culture and energy of Old Louisville.
December 17, 2021
DNF I tried for more than a week to get into this true crime book. I enjoy this genre and crime fiction in general. I was so bored. The pace was just too slow and there were too many side trips into local history. Padding to stretch a thin story IMHO. Got bored. And gave up.
March 4, 2024
While I am definitely not a true crime reader, I very much enjoyed this book. The interesting history of Louisville, most of which I wasn’t aware of, combined with a very scandalous crime, made for a great read!
January 26, 2022
Ever since I'll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman's Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer became a success there has been a kind of True Crime subgenre that explains how the author attempted to solve a cold case (We Keep the Dead Close: A Murder at Harvard and a Half Century of Silence is a good example). However, Domine doesn't even do that! The author just recounts how he heard of the crime, conversations he had with people familiar with either the couple charged with the murder, the murder victim or the scene of the crime (each of these conversations leads to a story about Louisville's history that detracts from what should be the focus of the book), and what the author observed during the trials.
I wanted something more in depth and was disappointed with what I read. I should have bailed on this book.
I wanted something more in depth and was disappointed with what I read. I should have bailed on this book.
December 1, 2021
I think I probably did this book a disservice by comparing the idea of it to my favorite book ever: Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. It didn’t have the same eerie underbelly that John Berendt so exquisitely portrayed in Midnight, and instead focused the vast majority of its attention on the courtroom proceedings for the two accused killers. The word for word dictation of the arguments and cross-examinations made me feel like a courtroom stenographer reading back on my work, and left me flipping past some pages just to get the story moving again. Not as captivating as I had hoped.
August 10, 2021
No wonder Publishers Weekly gave Dominé’s new true crime book a starred review! This story has it all. So fascinating on so many levels. You couldn’t make this stuff up… I live in Louisville where this terrible crime occurred and where the story unfolded. Had no idea there was so much backstory to it all. This is the new MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL indeed.
December 20, 2021
Many more adjectives than necessary, as evidenced by busy title. Story was no less cluttered. Clearly wants to be the new “Midnight in the Garden etc.” but all the drag queens in Old Louisville won’t get it there.
September 22, 2021
Was lucky enough to hear an early reading by the author, and WOW. If you’re a fan of true crime, mysteries, or just like a good gothic story, this is definitely for you!
December 13, 2021
More about Old Louisville than about the actual murder, kept getting side tracked to wax rhapsodic about the history of the town and how quirky it is.
February 28, 2022
Truly hated it.
February 1, 2022
“A Dark Room in Glitter Ball City: Murder, Secrets, and Scandal in Old Louisville,” by David Domine was my Book Club’s selection this month and a great read! It is “mostly” a true crime book, blended with a historical book about Louisville. Many of us in book club were reminded of, ``Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.”
The true crime aspect of the book centers on Jeffrey Mundt and his boyfriend, Joseph Banis, who were accused of murdering a third man in a meth induced 3 way gone wrong, known in the press as, The Pink Triangle Murder. Joseph, who went by Joey, was a bartender at the now closed Starbased Q, and has served me many a vodka based drink or bottle of Bud Light.
Domine does much more than just inform his readers of the details (some rumor and speculation from people involved, and also direct transcripts from the trail) of the crime. He also takes you on a historical tour of Louisville and all her rich history and characters.
You don’t know what Louisville has to do with “Glitter Balls?” Well you will after you read this book! It is a must read for fans of true crime, creative narrative non-fiction, and the Derby City.
The true crime aspect of the book centers on Jeffrey Mundt and his boyfriend, Joseph Banis, who were accused of murdering a third man in a meth induced 3 way gone wrong, known in the press as, The Pink Triangle Murder. Joseph, who went by Joey, was a bartender at the now closed Starbased Q, and has served me many a vodka based drink or bottle of Bud Light.
Domine does much more than just inform his readers of the details (some rumor and speculation from people involved, and also direct transcripts from the trail) of the crime. He also takes you on a historical tour of Louisville and all her rich history and characters.
You don’t know what Louisville has to do with “Glitter Balls?” Well you will after you read this book! It is a must read for fans of true crime, creative narrative non-fiction, and the Derby City.
June 25, 2023
Trigger warning: death, murder, drug use, homophobia, HIV, racism, gore.
2.5 stars
The premise of this sounded fascinating, and I think what the author was aspiring to was Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil - telling the story of a horrific crime alongside the story of the city where the crime took place. But he makes a critical error, and that error is placing himself at the centre of the story. The author is, in effect, the protagonist and it all revolves around him and his experiences.
As a result, the victim very definitely gets lost, and that's definitely not what I want from a true crime story.
2.5 stars
The premise of this sounded fascinating, and I think what the author was aspiring to was Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil - telling the story of a horrific crime alongside the story of the city where the crime took place. But he makes a critical error, and that error is placing himself at the centre of the story. The author is, in effect, the protagonist and it all revolves around him and his experiences.
As a result, the victim very definitely gets lost, and that's definitely not what I want from a true crime story.
November 8, 2022
This was a wild ride through a Louisville that I only ever experienced tangentially. Sure, I've been to loads of the places he mentions, but Domine's version of Louisville is Lynchian, both sordid and spectacular. There's a true-crime skeleton that barely holds the book together, but the real fun comes from Domine roaming around all the Louisville sights: Churchill Down, The Brown Hotel, St. James Court, and so on. Domine seems to know half of the town and probably has tasty gossip on the other half.
December 20, 2021
A surprisingly interesting read...I loved all the references to Louisville landmarks and fixtures in the community. I learned many new things about my hometown as well. I would be interested to hear what people who aren't from here think of this book. Overall an engaging and entertaining read revolving around a very dark and sinister deed.
December 8, 2021
Now this was interesting. Living in Louisville at the time of this murder, I had an idea of how things played out, but Domine's account went deep and explored many themes that were merely touched on by the media. The author borrows heavily from the style of Berendt's Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, but he does own that in his acknowledgements. If you've read Berendt's book, you can't miss the similarities. That being said, A Dark Room is engrossing. Domine sat through the trials of both Mundt and Banis and had conversations with many people who had first hand knowledge of each of the parties involved and the evidence in the case. The author is a local historian and has immense knowledge of the city, both documented and the stuff of lore. Sometimes it feels that he is trying to fit all of that knowledge in this one book and so the narrative goes off on a tangent, but overall this is an enjoyable read about a bizarre and tragic real-life event. Domine was the right person, in the right place, at the right time to tell this story.
September 26, 2022
Decent true crime about a gruesome murder in Old Louisville, KY USA involving three gay men. Watching the new Dahmer series while finishing this book. Too much? Shiver.
September 9, 2021
I was lucky enough to get an early read of this, and it’s fantastic. It’ll conjure a lot of comparisons with Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil for sure, but be warned, this is better.
October 19, 2021
A DARK ROOM, indeed! But this is so much more than one incident; although, I got the chills so many times reading this book.
I also had a great many laughs at the real and colorful characters David describes.
It completely blew my mind and made me excited to go to Old Louisville immediately - Old Louisville being one of the most magical and mysterious neighborhoods I've ever been to.
The Murder House - The Witches Tree - St. James Court and Floral Terrace. I wanted to be around all of this after reading the book.
Domine's ability to capture the nuances of the city while also zeroing in on very specific details of the murder case makes this a MUST READ. I couldn't put it down and I appreciate all the information Domine reports from being in the courtroom during both trials.
If you loved Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, there is no way you'll be able to put this book down. A Dark Room in Glitter Ball City, however, is so much more my style - what I look for in "true crime." I loved meeting all the colorful characters throughout this colorful city.
Such a fun read.
I also had a great many laughs at the real and colorful characters David describes.
It completely blew my mind and made me excited to go to Old Louisville immediately - Old Louisville being one of the most magical and mysterious neighborhoods I've ever been to.
The Murder House - The Witches Tree - St. James Court and Floral Terrace. I wanted to be around all of this after reading the book.
Domine's ability to capture the nuances of the city while also zeroing in on very specific details of the murder case makes this a MUST READ. I couldn't put it down and I appreciate all the information Domine reports from being in the courtroom during both trials.
If you loved Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, there is no way you'll be able to put this book down. A Dark Room in Glitter Ball City, however, is so much more my style - what I look for in "true crime." I loved meeting all the colorful characters throughout this colorful city.
Such a fun read.
April 19, 2022
I was really excited for this book because I worked for a TV station in Louisville while the Banis/Mundt trials were underway. I remember certain segments of trial coverage quite vividly and was hoping for a true crime book that would analyze how gender and sexuality played a role all throughout the investigation. This book absolutely does that. But it also does - well, some other things. And ultimately, I think it ends up muddled.
For me, this book's marketing is a bit misleading - instead of the straight-up true crime story I was expecting, the story of the murder is woven into the fabric of the quirky Old Louisville neighborhood. Sometimes, this can lead to poignant moments. Other times, it feels like the author is flexing his (admittedly extensive) knowledge of local history. Like, there are a LOT of asides. The characters often bring up offbeat references in their conversations that need to be explained - and then the book refocuses on the dialogue, and that reference never comes up again! I also have complex feelings about the author's role in the story itself. One particular passage sticks out to me, where he describes getting to hang out with Baz Luhrmann shortly after the murder - to me, these moments cause abrupt shifts in tone that are distracting and can come across as crude.
I especially dislike the end-of-chapter cliffhangers. This is a device that's employed again and again - and nearly every time, it's a misdirect. It gets old.
And really, it's a shame, because I love Louisville and I love local news. I still had a good time with this book for many reasons - I covered a lot of the other cases it mentions, and some asides about the Highlands and NuLu had me feeling nostalgic for my old stomping grounds. (I was ecstatic the Whiskey Row sex clubs make an appearance! One of my old coworkers broke that story!) However, I do think this book is so hyperlocal, I wonder if it would have broad appeal - if someone who's never been to Louisville would feel transported. But maybe I just can't separate my memories from this reading experience.
Overall, I respect the research and exhaustive historical context included in this book - truly this is a love letter to Louisville in many ways. But ultimately, the forced contrast between neighborhood quirkiness and grisly murder leads to too many needle-scratch moments for me.
For me, this book's marketing is a bit misleading - instead of the straight-up true crime story I was expecting, the story of the murder is woven into the fabric of the quirky Old Louisville neighborhood. Sometimes, this can lead to poignant moments. Other times, it feels like the author is flexing his (admittedly extensive) knowledge of local history. Like, there are a LOT of asides. The characters often bring up offbeat references in their conversations that need to be explained - and then the book refocuses on the dialogue, and that reference never comes up again! I also have complex feelings about the author's role in the story itself. One particular passage sticks out to me, where he describes getting to hang out with Baz Luhrmann shortly after the murder - to me, these moments cause abrupt shifts in tone that are distracting and can come across as crude.
I especially dislike the end-of-chapter cliffhangers. This is a device that's employed again and again - and nearly every time, it's a misdirect. It gets old.
And really, it's a shame, because I love Louisville and I love local news. I still had a good time with this book for many reasons - I covered a lot of the other cases it mentions, and some asides about the Highlands and NuLu had me feeling nostalgic for my old stomping grounds. (I was ecstatic the Whiskey Row sex clubs make an appearance! One of my old coworkers broke that story!) However, I do think this book is so hyperlocal, I wonder if it would have broad appeal - if someone who's never been to Louisville would feel transported. But maybe I just can't separate my memories from this reading experience.
Overall, I respect the research and exhaustive historical context included in this book - truly this is a love letter to Louisville in many ways. But ultimately, the forced contrast between neighborhood quirkiness and grisly murder leads to too many needle-scratch moments for me.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 172 reviews