Book Review Tuesday: Unmasked: My Life Solving America’s Cold Cases

Unmasked: My Life Solving America’s Cold Cases by Paul Holes

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I listed to this book on the Libby App. It is the first time using the app, so it was interesting. It was not what I tried to get, but there are waiting lists.

First off, the author is reading his own book. I thought that would be nice, but I ended up finding it rather annoying. He over annunciated his words, perhaps thinking he looked more professional? I am not sure, but I found it grating on my nerves.

The subject material was pretty entitled. Quotes like “I know I am good” and “Everyone knows I am the man about these subjects” was a little surprising. He let the Golden State Killer fame go to his head.

In the beginning he does go over how he got into this career. He talks about cases prior to this. He does repeat things a lot. There is a story about a girl with her pink unicorn room mentioned several times.

I did find the way that he ended up catching the killer at the end with Parabon. This part was fascinating because he was fought every step of the way. He did have people that he was convinced was the killer, only to have DNA clear them. He did have a lot of set backs. When he actually got the results, he was retired and had moved from California to Colorado. He talked about his marriages and how the job takes a toll on a relationship.

I was sad to hear that Michelle McNamara passed away sleeping pills and fentanyl. This is a hard subject for me that I am hyper aware of these days.



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