Synopsis:
Detective Lt. Joe Kenda, star of Homicide Hunter, shares his deepest, darkest, and never before revealed case files from his 19 years as a homicide detective.Are you horrified yet fascinated by abhorrent murders? Do you crave to know the gory details of these crimes, and do you seek comfort in the solving of the most gruesome? In I WILL FIND YOU, the star of Homicide Hunter: Lt. Joe Kenda shares his deepest, darkest, and never-before-revealed case files from his two decades as a homicide detective and reminds us that crimes like these are very real and can happen even in our own backyards. Gruesome, macabre, and complex cases. Joe Kenda investigated 387 murder cases during his 23 years with the Colorado Springs Police Department and solved almost all of them. And he is ready to detail the cases that are too gruesome to air on television, cases that still haunt him, and the few cases where the killer got away. These cases are horrifyingly real, and the detail is so mesmerizing you won't be able to look away. The tales in I WILL FIND YOU will shock you like the best horror stories-divulging insights into the actions, motivations, and proclivities of nature's most dangerous species. Don't mind the blood.

My Review:

 If you are a fan of Investigation Discovery's hit series Homicide Hunter this is must listen. If you are a true - true crime lover, this is a must listen. If you are interested in police work, the nature of crimes, and the rippling fallout they cause - this is a must listen. If you are faint at heart, get grossed out easily and find the disturbing really disturbs you - you should pass on this one.

I Will Find You is littered with Lt. Joe Kenda's quick, dark humour. Part personal characteristic, part defensive mechanism, his blunt, straight-forward, in-your-face style borders on the smart-assy. (I love it! It was got me hooked on the show.) It provides a bit of relief from the horrible, truly gosh-awful content. Lt. Kenda's narration is suprisingly polished. His emotions, voice inflections, tone and pace are all spot on. He could most definitely pursue a secondary career in book narration.

The book is divided into sections, making it easy to find a stop spot. (Should you choose or have to stop listening for a while.) I pulled an all nighter with this one. The intensity hooked me. Kenda lifts the blue curtain and gives the listener an unflinching look at detective work. The drive to find the perpetrator can take over, and empathy for victim's loved ones, both have to be kept in check. He personalizes the book by telling us a little bit about the effects of his job on his home life. There's just enough of this scattered through-out the book to make Kenda a real person, with real world issues just like you and me.

The cases Kenda talks about are gruesome and heart wrenching. Kenda describes things honestly, to give the reader a mental picture of what he's seen, felt, and dealt with. But he doesn't use the horrific nature of the crimes to sensationalize and shock.

True Crime is a genre I can never say "I enjoyed," simply because of the nature of the content. But, I Will Find You is very interesting on several levels and at times entertaining. I did enjoy Lt. Kenda's narration style and will listen to anything else he narrates. This was a good book and I definitely recommend it to the right audience.


Keep Listening,

RJ