This local historical fiction novel is an Ohio author's take on the real-life Torso Killings as told through the stories of two women, Ethel & Kris, living decades apart, who both undertake their own efforts to find the Cleveland killer - & risk their own lives in doing so. It's got a major twist at the end that I did not see coming, which made it all the more sinister - but the twist itself wasn't for me. The story itself was rambling, and the twist felt like a cliche.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
I’ve had this book in my to read pile forever and I apologize for taking so long to read it because it was really good.
It was an original, interesting and addictive historical murder mystery/thriller.
I loved the author’s writing style: how she told the story using 2 different time periods and based her story on a true crime.
I highly recommend this book.

I started this book but couldn't finish it. I'm sure other readers will really enjoy the way the two stories from different eras intertwine but I found the writing a bit clunky and hard to follow. Just not my type of book I'm afraid!

It was just okay for me, much less exciting and riveting than Pulley's previous two books, for sure.

THE UNCLAIMED VICTIM is a dual story line of both fact and fiction, history, and an unsolved murder, with dark hidden secrets giving you the perfect amount of mystery a reader needs.

Ethel set in 1938 and Kris in 1999 are the main characters in each setting both involved somehow in the Torso killings.

In the 1930's a killer is running loose, killing prostitutes and the homeless cutting off their body parts which names him to be the Torso Killer.

Your first are introduced to Kris Wiley who is asked to come identify a headless body, the police suspects that there is a possibility that it might be her father. Kris is dead set that this is not her father and refuses to identify which leaves the body in a stand still, stuck in the freezer. Kris then finds out some rather off-putting facts in her father's life that makes her re-think how well she knew the man she called father. Which leads her into a scary path that will put her life and other's in danger.

Ethel Hardings, a prostitute in the 1930's accidentally hears things she shouldn't and becomes part of the "torso" killer scene. You get tot travel through her time with what leads us all up to the ending 60 years later.

I enjoyed this story sooo much. I enjoyed the dual story line and trying to figure out what was going on and how it all connected. I'm a huge fan also of the time era of the 30's so it kept me fully intrigued with Ethel's story more so.

I WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND READING THIS NOVEL!!!!

*thank you to Netgalley, the author and Thomas & Mercer for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review*

1.5 stars.
This was a drag. It took me 3 days to get through and for me that's a long time. It was a bit boring and I wasn't really all that interested in the characters. The story just wasn't for me. I did like the 2 different time frames though.

TW: child and spousal abuse, derogatory terms used for African Americans and Jews

I picked this up from the Read Now section of Netgalley after reading The Wife Between Us because I really hooked on mystery/thrillers after that. I was also going to read this for #arctober and I never got around to it. The cover intrigued me along with the title and I grabbed it without even reading the synopsis. Something I never do.

Well, I'm glad I did this because this was insane! This is considered historical fiction and some of the things mentioned in this book, such as the KKK actually happened. Well, the KKK is still around, unfortunately. But that is for another day.

Moving on.

This book has two MCs, Kris and Ethel. Ethel's story is set in the 1930s, where the notorious Torso Killer is running loose, killing prostitutes and poor homeless people and cutting off their body parts. Gruesome, I know. Kris' story is happening in 1999, where she is trying to find out what happened to her father.

I think that is all I should give away of this story. This is one of those books that is best read going in completely blind. It worked for me. I had a blast reading the different timelines and attempting to figure out what in the world was happening and what was going to happen next.

I highly suggest this book if you are looking for a historical fiction mystery/thriller. It will keep you on the edge of your seat and keep you guessing until the very end.

This is the first time I have read a DM Pulley novel, and I am glad that I did! Very interesting historical thriller which mixes historical facts and fiction along with a gruesome murder with alternating present(ish) and past timelines. A compelling story that kept me reading & curious of all the possibilities within the story and what was going to happen. Unpredictable with many plot twists and interesting characters kept me guessing until the very end. Actually pretty scary too! Made me want to sleep with my lights on the night I finished it!

As is D.M. Pulley’s style, The Unclaimed Victim, covers two periods of time; in this case the mid 1930s and late 1990s. April 7, 1999, Kris Wiley is sitting in the Auglaize County Sheriff’s Office and has just been informed that parts of her father, who has been missing, have been found. She is told that the crime is similar to some murders that took place in the 1930s, which are still unsolved, and were committed by someone who has been called “The Torso Killer.” Kris refuses to believe that her father is dead, even though his best friend, Ben, who is a deputy sheriff, assures her that the body parts are his. Kris begins to investigate.

Back in the 30s a prostitute named Ethel had friends who disappeared and were victims of The Torso Killer. The novel also follows Ethel and what happens to her as she tries to avoid The Torso Killer and also find what happened to her friends.

Pulley is an excellent writer, evident in this book, and also her previous novel which won several awards. She easily goes from the 30s back to the 90s and at the same time keeps readers enthralled as the suspense builds. Kris puts herself in danger while investigating, and so does Ethel.

At the end of the novel, everything comes together, but not like readers would expect. Things are not as they appear, and readers will be on the edges of their seats, and find it difficult to put the book down until they get to the end. Although a work of fiction, The Torso Killer apparently existed, and Pulley has done some research and made the book fascinating since it is based loosely on something that actually occurred.

Kris and Ethel are quite well-developed characters, and seem real; the scenarios also ring true. The book is interesting, and will definitely keep the interest of most readers who enjoy the thriller genre. The suspense begins at the start of the book and continues throughout. Pulley is a fairly new author, and is one to watch - she has an interesting style writes in a way that readers won’t want to put the book down.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.

D. M. Pulley returns following The Buried Book and The Dead Key with her latest historical fiction THE UNCLAIMED VICTIM—a blending of fact and fiction, history, a gruesome unsolved murder mystery, with dual timelines and dark hidden secrets.

“He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And when you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss also gazes into you.” – Fredrich Nietzsche, Beyond Good, and Evil, 1886

Pulley is a pro at digging up the dark secrets of the past and blending with the present while intertwining her own fascinating "what if" shocking conclusion.

Cleveland, Ohio. In 1999 a man is found, Alfred Ray Wiley. The daughter Kris recalls the argument with her father. He wanted her to move back home. He did not like her wasting her time with starving artists.

A tattoo. Dark secrets. Her father’s obsession with the Torso Killer. The library books. and the Search for a Psychopathic Killer.

The Torso Killer got his name by cutting off his victims’ heads, arms, and legs. What did her father have to do with this horrible stuff?

Thirteen bodies from 1934-1938, victims of the serial killer dubbed as the “Torso Killer, and the “Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run.”

In the past, 1938 during the Great Depression. A madman terrorizing the city.

Ethel Harding, a prostitute. The monstrous Harmony Mission. She was desperate. A horrible mistake. Her mother had thrown her out onto the street.

A religious cult. Brutal slayings. White supremacist. Crime group. Unsolved murders. The casualties of the Depression littered the banks with starving children and battered women. Bodies found in the river.

From 1935 to 1938, bodies were dumped in the area known as Kingsbury Run, a creek bed that runs from East 90th Street and Kinsman Road to the Cuyahoga River.

The victims included seven men and five women. Most were hobos and prostitutes, people living on the edge at a time when Cleveland was hard hit by the Great Depression. Many weren't missed for months.

Pulley takes a real shocking story and adds her own unique spin. It's her second book that shines a light on Cleveland's notorious past; the first, 2015's "The Dead Key," was a thriller set in the old Cleveland Trust Tower.

From 1930’s Ethel and 1990’s Kris – how are the two cases linked?

As with Pulley’s other two books, they are well-researched blending mystery, intrigue, and history.

Creepy and haunting, based on the most gruesome crime spree in Cleveland history, making headlines across the nation--and still haunting the streets of Cleveland. The killer who was never caught.

For fans of historical mysteries with a twist of Gothic. Also, fans of Aimee Austin (Sylvie Fox)’s Casey Cort Legal series - set in Cleveland will enjoy (have read them all). Always interesting for readers located in the South to visit the shocking secrets of the Midwest. Found myself doing additional research to learn more.

The author includes additional research for those interested in this era. View Video with the author.

Looking forward to seeing what's next.

A special thank you to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for an advanced reading copy.

JDCMustReadBooks

I read The Dead Key by D.M. Pulley in 2015 and it was a good book, but it was the second book The Buried Book that really made an impression on me. So, when I saw this books cover and read the blurb did I know I just had to read it.

I have a thing for dual storylines so I was quite thrilled to get a story that is both sets in 1938 and in 1999. This is quite a dark story, with both women from different periods getting involved in the Torso killings. Ethel Harding lives a hard life a prostitute and by accident does she get involved when she sees and hears things she shouldn't. 60 years later and Kris Wiley learns that there is a possibility that the butchered remains of a body is her father. But, there are odd things in her father's life and she learns things that make her wonder if she knew the man at all.

The Unclaimed Victim is a bleak book. The story is interesting, it just never gets really thrilling to read. I found the pacing of the story slow and there came a moment when I had read half the book, and I just was unsure if it was worth continuing. Thankfully, I kept going and the last part of the book was better with a faster pace and revelations that I didn't expect. I think what the book lacks is suspense. I mean it has everything for a good creepy setting, a spooky big old house where one easily can get lost in. But, I never felt that it got under my skin and to be honest neither Kris nor Ethel really made an impression on me. Truthfully, I found that the 1938 storyline worked not as well as the one in 1999. I can see the necessity to have it, but everything the story shifted did I wait for it to go back to 1999.

Still, as I wrote above was it worth reading the book. I did not expect the twist that came towards the end of the book and I love it when I get surprised like that. I liked how the book was set in 1999, it's not that long ago, but reading this book makes me realize how much has happened since then. I look forward to reading the next book D.M. Pulley will publish.

Better read as historical fiction than as a thriller, this creatively framed novel uses the dual time period device to explore mid 20th century Cleveland. The alleged death of Kris' father in the contemporary thread plunges her into a search for information about the Torso Killer. Some might quibble with Kris' reaction but think how you might feel. Ethel, a prostitute in the 1930s, is the spark for the historical info. Cleveland was not a pretty place in those days; if you aren't familiar with it, and I'm not, you'll learn something. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

A competent story of a life interrupted when a Father is killed. I enjoyed the sense of place but couldn't get a grip on the main character somehow.

4.5 stars

I'm always thrilled when I choose a book that I think is going to be merely one thing and it turns out to be MORE! It's serendipity! That is exactly what I found with D. M. Pulley's The Unclaimed Victim. I assumed it was just a suspense novel but I found a book filled astounding historical information from one the worst eras in Midwest history: the 1930s - 50s.

Most Americans are familiar with the activity of the KKK in the southern part of the US but few realize the largest concentration of the Klan and Nazi sympathizers during the Depression was in the Midwest, specifically Indiana and Ohio. Unfortunately vestiges of these organizations and those who believe in their merits have survived in the rural pockets of the region. They take aim at anyone who is different.

I give you this background as context for the story which intertwines the tales of two women: Ethel, a prostitute from the 30s and Kris, a young woman who has just been told of the possible death and dismemberment of her father. Through the marriage of these two stories, we learn of the Torso Killings, a true event, which happened in Ethel's time but eerily relates to Kris as well. As Kris discovers more about the Torso killer her own life is put in jeopardy until we reach the climatic twist near the end of the story. This twist would appear unbelievable, and I daresay many find it so, but I've known a few people like Kris's nemesis in my lifetime, people whose horrific secrets are hidden perhaps until after they are dead. So, for me, living in a very small, rural town in the Midwest, I believed. More importantly, after concluding the book there is a wonderful list of references regarding everything upon which the book was based. I've been hanging out in online libraries ever since!

This is a fabulous mystery/suspense thriller and an even better historical fiction novel. I highly recommend this one!

Very interesting story. Ethel is awesome. Ethel is my favorite character. I enjoyed reading this book.

I received an ARC from NetGalley for an honest review.

2 and 1 / 2 stars

Kris Wiley, the protagonist in this story, refuses to believe that her father is dead. He was on a fishing trip when he was murdered and dismembered. She sees his driver’s license, items of clothing and other artifacts, including a tattoo but still comes up with excuses as to why it is not him. Puleese!!

I got to 59% in the book with Kris still refusing to believe that her father was dead before I gave up. I did not finish the novel.

I must say that I have read each of the D.M. Pulley novels since “The Dead Key” and they have gotten progressively worse in the wandering and disjointed plots. The words in the story are well put together, but the plotting is all over the place. Kris is a totally unsympathetic character and I did not feel any empathy or sympathy for her at all. Why do all of D.M. Pulley’s characters need to grow the heck up? I usually truly enjoy Thomas & Mercer’s novels, but was sorely disappointed in this one.

I want to thank NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for forwarding to me a copy of this book to read.

Very boring and could not finish it. Just the beginning is annoyed me enough to lose interest.

Kris is being told that her father is dead and she is like, are you sure is him? Yes, the police tell her, we found parts of his body, his clothes, and his wallet. Yet, Kris says that that doesn't mean anything because he could have been robbed and that is why they found his stuff. Crying? Not at all.