“One of history's most macabre bouts of serial killing . . . David King, the author of Vienna 1814 , has more than just fresh eyes and imaginative speculation to power his revisiting of this long-forgotten true crime . . . he gained access to the extensive police records of the case, which had been classified for six decades.”
-The New York Times |
“If you like true crime, put this book at the top of your reading list. Death in the City of Light is the gripping rapid-fire suspense story of one of the most terrifying serial killers ever, a man that few of us have ever heard of . . . An exceptional piece of crime reporting backed by a gut-wrenching narrative that is masterful, haunting, and an incredible literary achievement.”
-King Features Syndicate
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“As compelling as a thriller and hauntingly grim.”
-Sunday Times (London)
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You won't read many better true crime books.”
-London Evening Standard
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“A story of two different types of evil, one against the backdrop of the other, this is a must for those who addictively consume the fact-fiction thrillers of Erik Larson and Ben McIntyre.”
-Daily Mail (London)
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“Engrossing and atmospheric . . . true crime noir at its best.”
-Book Browse, Editor's Choice
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“Erik Larson's tour de force of narrative nonfiction hasn't been matched – until now . . . While this work is painstaking in its research, it still has the immediacy and gasp power of a top notch thriller. True crime at its best.”
-Booklist (Starred)
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“Gripping . . . Expertly written and completely absorbing.”
-Kirkus Reviews (Starred)
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“A gripping story . . . this fascinating, often painful account combines a police procedural with a vivid historical portrait of culture and law enforcement in Nazi-occupied France.”
-Publishers Weekly (Starred)
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A new masterpiece of true crime writing . . . just shy of setting a new standard for the form.”
-Salon
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“A story of almost incomprehensible madness, a uniquely disturbing chapter in wartime history . . . richly reported and engagingly written.”
-The Daily Beast
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“King's admirably clear-headed account puts what's known in context, filling out the narrative with verbatim police-report dialogue to create a compelling portrait of Occupation-era France.”
-The Onion's AV Club
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“Required reading.”
-New York Post
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“A mass murderer even the Gestapo found creepy . . . [King's] descriptions of the underworld are fascinating and I appreciated his attention to detail.”
-San Francisco Chronicle
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“Unprecedented detail . . . The detail with which King explores the story is aided by the fact that not only did he have access to trial materials, including a stenographic record no one thought existed, but also the complete police dossier, which had been classified since the investigation began.”
-Seattle Post Intelligencer
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“Fans of Erik Larson will revel in this account . . . David King had access to previously unavailable documents and his account of the manhunt and farcical trial, which makes the O.J Simpson case seem a model of juridical probity, is funny and macabre.”
-The Globe and Mail
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“Very sinister . . . through an ocean of impressive research, he has successfully added another horrid chapter to a period of time that can scarcely afford another horrid chapter.”
-Toronto Star
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“Expertly told”
-Maclean's
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“Beyond chilling.”
-New York Daily News
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“Gripping story of true crime . . . Reads like a thriller.”
-Cleveland Plain-Dealer
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“At its heart, King's book is a page-turning, detective/manhunt/courtroom drama . . . and King tells it with the skill of the best police and courthouse beat reporters, mixed with the sweeping eye of a social historian.”
-Lexington Herald-Leader
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“Meticulously researched page-turner . . . This outstanding work of true-crime writing has its own place in the pantheon of the genre. You'll be up long into the night, unwilling to put this one down.”
-Louisville Courier-Journal
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“Death in the City of Light is a thrilling masterwork of archival research, popular history and true crime.”
-ACE
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“A well-placed narrative . . . sweeping cast of characters reflecting the moral, political, and personal tangles in Paris that the Nazi occupation fostered.”
-The Scotsman
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“If you like Erik Larson, especially the 2003 bestseller The Devil in the White City , you will appreciate King's latest tome.”
-ABC Local, Australia
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“Grisly . . . Compelling and extremely well-researched.”
-Edmonton Journal
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“David King gives us a story that is part history, part true crime, part thriller, and thoroughly enjoyable. . . . full of twists and turns worthy of classic detective stories.
-New York Journal of Books
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“One of history's most gruesome serial killers.”
-The Daily Mirror (London)
in a feature on the book
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“David King, acclaimed author of Finding Atlantis , draws extensively from many new sources, including the massive, classified police file on Dr. Petiot, to create a gripping, page-turning narrative of the riveting murder investigation and subsequent trial that rocked wartime France.”
-Book-of-the-Month Club
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“There's a very short list of books about serial killers that manage to be both creepy and smart. David King's compelling story of the murderous Marcel Petiot, Death in the City of Light , belongs high on this list. It's a story of dark deeds and dark times wonderfully illuminated by its insights not only into the behavior of human beings at their worst but also at their best, a recognition of the steadfast courage that eventually brings evil to an end.”
-Deborah Blum, author of The Poisoner's Handbook: Murder and the Birth of
Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York
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“David King is that rarest of rara avises, a masterful historian who also knows how to tell a ripping good story. I can't get enough of this marvelous, riveting book.”
-Ed McClanahan, author of The Natural Man , Famous People I've Known , and I Just Hitched In from the Coast
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“David King's anticipated crime history.”
-NPR
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“David King turns his unprecedented and unfettered access to declassified police files into a mesmerizing read. . . King lays it all out in a way that combines psychological character study with the crime story.”
-Fredericksburg.com
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“A remarkable portrait of Paris under the Nazi occupation and just after the war . . . With the strengths of a novelist, King's book reads like a great thriller.”
-Deseret News
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“King has some new evidence and presents as full a recounting as we are going to get. It is an exciting, bizarre, and macabre tale, told with just the right amount of detail and explanation . . . a significant contribution to the history of the Occupation.”
-The Dispatch
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“A riveting choice for book clubs interested in history and true crime.”
-Association of Library Trustees, Advocates, Friends, and Foundations, Book Club Choice |
“I think fans of the television show Law and Order , especially those interested in factual, historical mysteries, would really love this book.”
-Criminal Element |
“One of the best historical serial killer stories you're likely to ever hear.”
-Barnes & Noble Book Club True Blood |
“An absolutely gripping story . . . Anyone who has an interest in the history of Paris during World War II and enjoys a good thriller that captures your interest to its stunning conclusion will love this book.”
-The Cairns Post, Australia |
“ Death in the City of Light by David King has to be one of the most frightening things I have ever read.”
-Book Lounge, Canada |
“ Death in the City of Light is one of the most cogent examinations of pure evil that I have read.”
- Northside, PW Bookseller of the Year |
