Audiobook6 hours
House of Evil: The Indiana Torture Slaying
Written by John Dean
Narrated by John Glouchevitch
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
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About this audiobook
In the heart of Indianapolis in the mid-1960's, through a twist of fate and fortune, a pretty young girl came to live with a thirty-seven-year-old mother and her seven children. What began as a temporary childcare arrangement between Sylvia Likens's parents and Gertrude Baniszewski turned into a crime that would haunt cops, prosecutors, and a community for decades to come . . .
When police found Sylvia's emaciated body, with a chilling message carved into her flesh, they knew that she had suffered tremendously before her death. Soon they would learn how many others-including some of Baniszewski's own children-participated in Sylvia's murder, and just how much torture had been inflicted in one House of Evil.
When police found Sylvia's emaciated body, with a chilling message carved into her flesh, they knew that she had suffered tremendously before her death. Soon they would learn how many others-including some of Baniszewski's own children-participated in Sylvia's murder, and just how much torture had been inflicted in one House of Evil.
Author
John Dean
John Dean is a former newspaper reporter who has had articles published in Rolling Stone, Esquire, and the Chicago Journalism Review. His books include House of Evil: The Indiana Torture Slaying.
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DCI Jack Harris
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Reviews for House of Evil
Rating: 3.7916666145833333 out of 5 stars
4/5
48 ratings5 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5John Dean is one of my new favorite authors. Very in-depth researcher. Great Listen.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5I read this in one sitting. I was already familiar with this horrific crime, and found Dean's research to be thorough enough (although still scratching the surface in terms of background). However the execution of the book was incredibly poor. The writing style was inconsistent and patchy and often times felt like he was wavering between trying to create a pulp fiction account of event and at other moments he was clinical and bland in his recounting of courtroom events. As for my rating, the two stars are based solely on content.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I saw the movie "An American Crime" first and actually found this a few months later at a thrift store and it's a really good book. Horribly tragic story and I thought Ellen Page looked remarkably like Sylvia Likens. In my opinion the movie was pretty good too!
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Such a terribly compelling story of Sylvia Likens. So many questions left unanswered. Why? Why did no one say anything? Why did she not run away? Why did she not defend herself? Why did no one else defend her? One of the worst crimes committed in this country, this book tells the sad tale of Sylvia's last months of torture. I do wish the author would've gone more in depth about the last months Sylvia endured, rather than alluding to them. I also would've preferred a slimmed down version of the trial - too much mumbo jumbo.This book proves you can get away with murder in Indiana. Terrifying and eye opening.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5On October 26, 1965, the body of sixteen-year-old Sylvia Likens was found in the basement that had become her prison. She died there alone as the result of the horrific abuse inflicted on her by the woman who was meant to be caring for her; Gertrude Baniszewski. Gertrude and her children reguarly subjected Sylvia to beatings and burnings until her body could take no more. Sylvia was failed in so many ways, even after her death. This is her story.