I am a total true crime junkie. Dateline, podcasts, documentaries… you name it if someone was killed, raped, kidnapped or drawn into a cult… I am interested. So when I saw this one pop up on Libro.fm’s ALC choices for the month, I prioritized it. I need more true crime books in my life. Listening to it via audiobook sounded like it would fit right into my podcast junkie heart.
Journalist Kathryn Miles tells us the story of the investigation into the murders of Julie and Lollie, two avid hikers who were brutally murdered in Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park. Kathryn is drawn to the story because of the way the case was treated. Julie and Lollie were gay and became the poster children for Ashcroft’s new hate crime legislation. Miles tells us how inadequately the murders were investigated due to the politics of national parks. Then she has us follow the prosecution of the main suspect which was dubious at best.
I wanted to like this one more than I did. It mired itself in too much political rhetoric which added necessary context but often meandered a bit. I didn’t need so much content on how anti-feminist the hiker community is. I found the politics of national parks interesting but perhaps it didn’t need to be an entirely negative portrayal of how they are run. I just felt like this one had a lot of rants that I didn’t need. Also, the ending was not one. Not a fan of that. Hope some day it gets an epilogue with a real answer. ⭐️⭐️⭐
Thanks to Libro.FM for access. All opinions above are my own.
Where do you go for your true crime fix?
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