Killers Keep Secrets by James Huddle

 

Synopsis: The Golden State Killer operated in California between 1974 to 1986. In 2018, years after the last murder, Joseph James DeAngelo was arrested. DeAngelo was 72 years old at the time of the arrest, and a former police officer. Huddle, DeAngelo’s brother-in-law shares accounts of DeAngelo throughout the 48 years he knew him.

 

Review: This book was insane, throughout the book Huddle describes situations which looking back were red flags, just no one caught on. I wish we learned more of an insight to DeAngelo’s life, there were a few however, I expected a lot more based on the title. The research at the end of the book was great, he compared DeAngelo with other serial killers. Although it was filler, it was very interesting. I really enjoyed the myth section.

 

Thank you Netgallery for this ARC in exchange for an honest book review.

A fresh look at the Golden State Killer. I loved this book. The information was displayed nicely, and I thought the writing was interesting. I tend to skim through a lot of true crime books, but this one hooked me. LOVED IT.

A well organized and informative view into the life of the Golden State Killer from the eyes of his brother-in-law, James Huddle. I especially liked how Huddle included information about other serial killers for comparative purposes and explained the perceived causes of crime. Very quick read.

Short, choppy sentences and every paragraph was one to two sentences long. This book was written by the former roommate and brother in law of the GSK. Poorly written and Mr. Huddle liked writing about himself as much if not more. This book was a short one but not even worth that time.

I followed the Golden State Killer/EAR through another well-known book, but it was absolutely fascinating to hear first-hand accounts from an actual family member. The book was a simple read with some great further insight into the deceptive life that DeAngelo lived.

A new perspective to events that have been very much at the focus of the zeitgeist recently with Michelle McNamara's book and the recent HBO documentary series.

A fairly short book and one that seems to be at times all over the place - there is recounting of memories associated with DeAngelo, but then it goes into discussing serial killers in general etc.

I feel like there will be many books released on GSK in the upcoming years. This did not blow my mind, but I guess a new perspective to a case much discussed at the moment is welcome.

I love true crime and I normally stay away from books written by the family and read only accounts written by tried and true, true crime writers. Part of me always feel guilty when the story glorifies the killer instead of being an ode to the survivors. Some of us have heard of the killer known as "The Golden State Killer" our whole lives and were in shock and awe when a name was assigned to the monster. In this memoir, "killers Keep Secrets, James accounts the red flags that were presented one at a time. One at time made GSK come off as odd at times but not a killer surely. But hindsight is 20/20 and James who was GSK's room mate turned Brother-in-law and James knows now all the red flags piled up.
At times Mr. Huddle turns into a story about him, which for an already short novel I found it to be annoying. You can easily tell Huddle did not set out to be an author. A better editor or a ghost writer could have helped this human interest piece go further. It also seems to hinder the story that it was written somewhat prematurely as at time of publication GSK was only just arrested by DNA evidence and no plea or chargers were set. I feel James Huddle wanted to be the first to cash in but i could be, and hope, I am wrong.

An interesting read that gives you some insight into the Golden State Killer’s life during the time he was committing horrible crimes.

My gratitude to the publisher for a complimentary NetGalley copy of the novel. I was not required to post a review and the opinions expressed are my own.

This was an interesting look into the life of the Golden State killer. It was unique to learn of the home and family life of such a prolific serial killer. However it may have benefitted from being released after the trial had taken place as there are alot of gaps and not alot of knowledge on the actual crimes.

This book tells the behind the scenes story of what it was like to really know the GSK killer, written by his brother in law. While I enjoyed the personal anecdotes in this book it wasn’t as enlightening as I had hoped it would be. I’ve read a few books on the GSK killer before and suspect that I may have enjoyed this one more if I hadn’t already been aware of a lot of the history of his crimes already. This felt like it was probably a very cathartic writing process for the author. The last third of the book seemed like ‘filler’ to me, giving numerous details about other serial killers, which seemed to bare no relevance to GSK, other than as a way for the author to highlight that his family weren’t alone in the fact they were completely unaware of what atrocities their family member was committing. I did however enjoy the earlier chapters which focused on the author’s personal experiences and wish there had been more of that. 2.5 stars rounded up to 3.

Killers Keep Secrets is the story that can only be told by someone close to a serial killer.
Joseph James deAngelo was discovered to be the famed Golden State Killer in 2018, after dozens of rapes and murders committed in the 1970s and 80s.
This book is writen by his brother-in-law and former roommate, James Huddle.
The first half of the book recounts the author's personal dealings with deAngelo, as well as his crimes as the GSK. The remainder of the book is on the history of famous serial killers and crime statistics, which feels like filler.
The book would work as a sidebar to others about the GSK case. If you've read I'll Be Gone In The Dark by Michelle McNamera or any other about the case, this might be a suitable companion.
Thank you to Netgalley for the eARC for review.

I tried with this book. I really tried. But everything was so jumbled that I couldn't keep my eyes focused upon the page. It read like pieces of police reports just jammed together for chapters at a time, sprinkled with random insights like "well maybe Joe was the killer because he did point a gun at those men that one time".

I anticipated this to be more of a tell all. That Mr. Huddle would have more of a biographical look of Joseph DeAngelo to offer readers. Something new and interesting. But he states at the beginning of this book that his other family members (including his sister, who was married to DeAngelo) didn't want to be a part of it. If he had pushed for interviews of family, friends, coworkers, Huddle may have been able to offer a more illuminating piece of work that really does convince us of the monster that DeAngelo is and was. Instead, he gives us brief, yet equally exhausting rehashings of all 50 plus cases the Golden State Killer was involved in, with random memories peppered in. It was confusing to follow and, unfortunately, just not very well written. I hate to give this 1 star because I think this could have really been an illuminating story if it was approached from a different angle.

DNF

I was unfortunately underwhelmed and stopped after 30%
This is a subject I'm fascinated by and I thought it will be very interesting to read a story from a family members point of view but I found this a bit thin. Yes, there is a lot of information on all the different rapes and murders but I was looking for some more juice! It was also strangely enough emotionless.
Maybe I will pick it up again at a later stage to finish. It did pique my interest to read up on this case though.

This book was a #ARC from #NetGalley provided to me by the author and publisher - free of charge for an honest review. I was in Pittsburgh, PA on April 25, 2018 standing in the hotel lobby getting coffee when I read that the GSK had been caught the night before. The hunt was over. The terror could finally be put to rest.

East Area Rapist. Original Night Stalker. Visalia Ransacker. Golden State Killer. Joseph James DeAngelo Jr. All of these are one in the same. Written by the brother-in-law of DeAngelo, this is an insightful look into the life of one of the most notorious criminals in American History - before his family knew he was the monster in the dark perpetuating horrific crimes spanning decades. Did they miss something in his behavior? Could they have stopped him?

James Huddle provides a private look into the lives his family, himself and DeAngelo. He provides a contemplative narrative of who this person was and how his actions impacted their lives - before and after his crimes were revealed. The book also clears up several serial killer myths with shocking insight. Huddle is aware of the pain caused by someone he one called a friend and family. My favorite line from the book is ""if any of the details I've shared make him mad, I'll be glad for it. I hope it'll shake him up enough to spill the rest of his secrets".

If you are a fan of true crime this book provides a different perspective into one of the most prolific killers in American history.

#NetGalley #KillersKeepSecrets #bookreview #truecrime #truecrimebooks #goldenstatekiller #gsk #bookreviewblogger

This is a very quick read, as it’s short and mostly to the point. The first 60% of the book is really interesting, as Huddle talks about the GSK crimes in sequential order while interspersing it with anecdotes about Joe DeAngelo [the GSK and Huddle’s brother-in-law] (whether it be conversations, experiences, personal happenings, etc.). There are a couple of instances he mentioned where Joe would make offhand comments or would do things that Huddle now realizes were obvious red flags. He did a really good job at balancing the details of the crimes with what was happening in Joe’s life at that time, which helped piece together how he could have committed some of the crimes. However, in later parts of the book he goes completely off topic to talk about other serial killers, which I could have done without, as I read this book specifically because of the GSK. Granted, I do understand where he was going with bringing up the specific serial killers that he did - they were all individuals who led secret lives as serial killers while seeming completely normal to family members, friends, and coworkers (i.e. the BTK killer).
Huddle wrote this book to make sense of what happened & to help him come to terms with the fact that he and his family knew and cared for Joe DeAngelo for more than 40 years, and none of them ever suspected a thing. I hope writing this has brought him some peace. And as he mentions toward the end of the book, I also hope this book pisses off DeAngelo as he rots in his prison cell for the remainder of his life knowing that his family now knows every horrible thing he ever did (and thought he got away with).

Thank you to NetGalley & the author for providing the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I received a copy of Killers Keep Secrets from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are, of course, my own.

***3.5 stars***

Are you fascinated by true crime? This book is a rare look at a serial killer – how they are in their day to day life according to someone close to them. 

The Golden State Killer terrorized California in the 70s-80s and then magically stopped. This case garnered a lot of attention with Michelle McNamara's book true crime I'll Be Gone in the Dark (which is now a documentary on HBO and so, so good) and then, of course, the arrest of Joseph (Joe) DeAngelo. 

Joe went undetected for thirty years and finally was caught at the age of 74. While this book was written when Joe was only accused and awaiting trial, Joe has now been convicted. 

What was this book? This wasn't beautiful prose or the next great novel. But, it was an honest, straight forward, no BS look at the Golden State Killer's life during and after the times he was an active serial killer. The author was very close to his brother-in-law for a large part of his life, especially during the times of the murders.

This book is an easy and quick read that is fascinating for anyone interested in this case, true crime, or getting into the mind of a serial killer. 

The author discussed meeting Joe and how he became a part of the family, Joe's life as a police officer, and the jobs he held after he was fired from the police force. What's really important though are the red flags that Huddle discusses in the book that he would have never (and didn't) think anything of but now in hindsight, they're chilling and glaringly obvious. 

This book won't be a detailed account of the crimes and it is definitely a telling rather than a showing. But, that's okay. Huddle isn't a writer by trade and he doesn't need to sugarcoat anything. He tells it exactly how it happened.

I have followed the Golden State Killer murders for many years, so I was intrigued by this insider story by his brother-in-law. This true-crime allowed a glimpse of how deceitful the Golden State Killer was and also warning signs that became significant only with hindsight. It would have been much more enjoyable if it was not filled with so much fillers though.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for an ARC in exchange for a honest review.

I've never read a book about a serial killer that was written by their close family member. And that's what intrigued me so much about this book.

James Huddle recollects his memories, from when he first met his brother-in-law, Joseph James "Joe" DeAngelo, to that fateful 25th day of April 2018, when he also came to be known as The Golden State Killer.

It's written with raw emotion, his anguish, his guilt at not seeing the possible red flags in Joe's behaviors.
You can feel his disbelief, his pain at being betrayed by the person he loved and treated like his own brother. And then came the doubts.

"Did he hurt anyone close to me, and I just don't know it?" "Was my life in danger at any point?" "Were we nothing but a cover story to him?"

This ended with the author citing Myths about serial killers, his thoughts on Joe's horrible crimes and how his family has managed in spite of it all.

"I want him to start paying for what he's done...Though I considered him a friend for more than 40 years, I hope he pays for what he did."

"No one in our family suspected a thing. We were all devastated."

---
I feel so sorry for the author and his family, especially for Joe's kids and grandkids. Whatever Joe did was his decision - that is, if he was even capable of making decisions. I can only hope that people would think of it this way and not shun them because of something that wasn't even their fault.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Independent Book Publishers Association Members' Titles for loaning me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is written by James Huddle, the brother in law of Joseph James D'Angelo who, as we all know, is the golden state killer. The author tells the story of how he met Joe, their interactions through the years, myths about serial killers, and his ultimate opinion on the matter (the trial had not occurred when this book came out). I really enjoyed this book. I have read Michelle McNamara's book, I'll Be Gone In The Dark, and Billy Jensen's book, Chase Darkness with Me, and now believe this book should be the third required in the golden state killer trifecta books. This book gives you the inside information that you want to know. I describe it as the "Ted Bundy Moment." There was a moment in Ted Bundy's trial when he lost his calm, cool, and collected demeanor for a split second and showed his true nature. He showed the monster that he was in that split second. That is the moment this book gave me. This book gave me the inside look into his true nature and not the front he puts on now that hes been arrested. This one is written in a very raw way and you can just imagine the author sitting in his RV writing this book as a way to sort through his feelings and it showed. At the same time, it was a well researched book and I would highly recommend this to anyone invested in the golden state killer case and lovers of true crime!

An interesting history of the Golden State killer thru his brother in law's memories. I think Joe was cunning enough to do these horrible crimes and those closest to him never knew. Hopefully his family and victims can heal. #netgalley #killerkeepsecrets