by Robert Hoshowsky,
Dundurn Press, 2010
Hoshowsky's second book of true crime examines twelve Canadian cases that remain unsolved, but that are still considered solvable, with the oldest case dating back to 1967. Most of the cases have some Toronto connection, so in this sense the book doesn't represent the whole of Canada well, but the author is based in Toronto and likely most familiar with the cases he's chosen to include. In addition, he'd have the best access to local police and family members and friends of the victims by focusing on Toronto-related stories.
The goal is admirable: to solve these crimes by providing known and new information and jogging readers' memories surrounding the reported events. Some of the cases are undoubtedly well-remembered by the public (think Sharin' Morningstar Keenan, Nicole Morin, and Nancy and Domenic Ianiero - the latter with a Mexican venue, but involving Canadian victims), others have receded in memory (Ingrid Bauer and Veronica Kaye, for example). The final case in the book documents the mysterious instances of feet washing up on west coast shores in recent years. The stories are well-researched and presented, though some stories are necessarily longer than others, since more information is available about them. There is some repetition throughout the book, possibly because each story stands alone and does not need to be read in the order in which it appears. Weblinks designed to aid in the solving of cold cases are also provided.
I recommend this book to avid true-crime readers, and hope the author is successful in seeing his book used as a tool by ordinary citizens who may have crime-solving information to share with police. This is a much- needed addition to Canadian crime collections.
No comments:
Post a Comment