Bombshell: The Night Bobby Kennedy Murdered Marilyn Monroe by Mike Rothmiller and Douglas Thompson is a very thorough book that tries to explain how Marilyn Monroe was murdered, and the LAPD and numerous other high-ranking officials covered it up. The authors claim to have had access to LAPD secret files, Monroe's personal diary, and interviews with people who have never talked about the night of her murder or suicide before. This book was very interesting and did a good job of presenting the reasoning behind the belief that Bobby Kennedy murdered Marilyn Monroe. Do I believe that everything the authors are presenting is true? I don't know, but I suppose it's possible that Monroe was murdered. Thanks to NetGalley for the free digital review copy. All opinions are my own.

I really wanted this to be the book that cast the Kennedy family in a new light, especially on the back of films like Chappaquidick. Knowing that Mike Rothmiller served as a consultant on that film in some capacity gave me hope but unfortunately he chose precisely the wrong person to bring his work to life. I wondered why a book with such an explosively confrontational title would even be allowed by the Kennedy family to go to print but the reality is it reads like garbage. Little to no editing and circular chapters that repeat themselves often while eking out woefully small bits of actual information. For this reason it will probably be dismissed like all the other crackpot theories, which is a real shame. I believe Mr. Rothmiller and the other people closely involved, and I think others would too if someone else had been given this project to lay out in a concise, factual way instead of wasting the opportunity and instead stuffing the pages with old Hollywood gossip and snippets from other people's books. Hopefully someone will run with the details that are laid out and take this story to the masses another way.

I enjoyed this book. I'm a huge fan of conspiracies and Hollywood crime and like a lot of people have suspicions on MM's official cause of death. While the information in this book is uncorroborated, it does ring true based on what I know of the time period and everything swirling around the Kennedys during the 60s. It did get a bit repetitive and the writing was at times all over the place. Still, I found it fascinating. Hollywood has a history of corruption and mobster influence and when adding the political climate of the 1960s it was a recipe for disaster. I don't think it's a coincidence that so many people associated with the Kennedys, Sinatra, et.al mysteriously died. There was definitely more going on and unfortunately Marilyn ended up being collateral damage. While it would have been nice to have proof, rather than just one insider's information, it does come across as convincing.
There were a couple of typos which hopefully were corrected in the print edition (such as an incorrect date for the JFK assassination and also Bobby's wife being referred to as Eunice, which was his sister.) Recommended for fans of old Hollywood and conspiracy theories.

Marilyn Monroe was here and gone long before I was born but I grew up knowing of her success and life. I watched her movies and was really in awe of her.

This story brings to light some hidden dirty secrets that make the most influential people in America look like the nastiest human beings on the planet.

I truly wish there was some actual justice for Marilyn Monroe and so many of the “suicides” that were covered up.

Mystery, conspiracy and controversy has always surrounded the untimely death of Marilyn Monroe.
Author Mike Rothmiller, agent with the LAPD’s Organized Crime Intelligence Division had personal access to the departments secret files. Those kept on Monroe revealed entries from her private diary and, her intimate involvement with John F. Kennedy and the one that followed with his brother Bobby. Marilyn was used by the President and Attorney General. She gratified and satisfied them sexually. With this intimacy came knowledge about the machinations of the Kennedy’s, the people, the places and the protection. When all was said and done, Marilyn knew enough to dim the light that shined brightly upon Camelot if she went public with their relationships.
With an investigators eye, Rothmiller digs deep into Monroe’s last days, the people who were there the night she died, the fact that Bobby was in town and concludes that her apparent suicide was something much more. She was the victim of a homicide at the hands of Bobby Kennedy.
The evidence is there, the scenario is laid bare before the reader and provides raw truths in this captivating page turner.
Thank you NetGalley and Ad Lib Publishers for an ARC in exchange for an honest book review.

I wish to thank NetGalley and Ad Lib Publishers for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book. I have voluntarily read and reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

If you like true crime stories this is an absolute MUST READ for you. It is the fully documented story of how Robert Kennedy killed Marilyn Monroe in her home on August 5, 1962. The proof is in Marilyn’s diary, LAPD secret files, phone records, police photos, wire taps, bugs place in the homes of Marilyn, Peter Law ford, Frank Sinatra, crime bosses and all the way to the White House where John Kennedy and Robert planned to deal with Marilyn before she could expose them for what she knew they were. The book starts and the beginning and builds the evidence piece by piece and interview by interview. Mike Rothmiller at the time was a member of the OCID, Organized Crime Intelligence Division of the LA Police Department. It deals with police corruption, gang interest, Big name stars and starlets, and Marilyn’s marriages. Nothing is left out. I simply could not put the book down and find it amazing that all of this has stayed hidden from sight for all this time. Until now, when the majority of those involved have died. How can you not believe this book with all the evidence he brings to light.

I guarantee you this story will stay with you long after you have closed the book. I will never forget it.

A heartbreaking insight into the corruption and awful treatment surrounding an absolute icon.

Monroe and the Kennedy family have always fascinated me. It's such a awful yet interesting time in our history. I've no doubt that these powerful men in her life led to her unfortunate demise.

This book was intriguing to read all the information around the culture of the LAPD in the 60's and the amount of scandalous cover-ups they caused. However, for me personally, it was laced a bit TOO much 'padding' that could have been left out... it was hard to follow at times!

If you love details, a lot of names and information in abundance that doesn't directly involve Monroe, then sure, this may be YOUR cup of tea.

This is a very interesting account of a detailed investigation. Even if you have no interest in Marilyn Monroe and her death, this book is certainly worth reading for the insights it gives into the criminal investigative process. There is a lot of detail here - probably a bit too much, but I can understand why the authors wanted to “cross the Ts” in presenting such controversial information.

This was a challenging book to get through. It covered much more than just the cover up of Marilyn’s death, The corruption is certainly not something new, but this book provides more thorough information.
I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy of this book.

This book wrecked me. I only knew a few things but now I am absolutely obsessed with learning more. I think the authors presented this information in such a great way that it flowed nicely.

This is an awesome new book on Marilyn Monroe’s death. I’ve read several other books about her and of course I had to add this to my knowledge base on her. It’s written by a man who was part of LA’s OCID, and had access to their secret files. He found the file on Marilyn and it included a copy of her “lost” diary. The book give a lot of background on the LAPD and the chiefs who ran it from its beginning, and also on the local mobsters of the era. A wonderful read on the whole situation with Marilyn and those she was involved with, and the people around her. Advance electronic review copy was provided by NetGalley, authors Mike Rothmiller & Douglas Thompson, and the publisher.

I've always been fascinated by Marilyn Monroe and the mistery of her death.
This is a hard, tough read from which no one comes out well: the Kennedys, society, politics, the system. Corruption is everywhere and is acceptable, as is the appalling treatment women get.
Eye opening, but tough.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Did Marilyn Monroe kill herself or was she murdered by Robert Kennedy as the author Mike Rothmiller proposes.? His theory is one of many that surrounds her death. In his new book, he lays out the background and his theory as well as those of others. Robert Kennedy was in the area of her home at the time of her death. Over the years, his alibi has been shredded. He had the motive. The affair he had with Monroe, preceded by the one she had with his brother, then Pres. Kennedy is pretty common knowledge albeit protected by the Kennedys and their supporters. He had the means. The times, were different then.

In this narrative, Rothmiller lays out the corruption of the law enforcement in charge of investigating her death and all those who were monitoring her while she lived and those that feared what she knew, Monroe had the ability to topple Camelot and the Kennedy dynasty by going public and she was threatening to do just that.. Through his access to private secret files and tapes, Rothmiller exposes many of that era, including the mafia. It was a time where women were exploited and treated as mere pleasure machines in the male=dominated world of that time.. Hoover's involvement in monitoring for control of anyone that might need to be silenced is also a part of this book. Martin Luther King's well-documented sexual exploits are also included.
The book is racy. The actions of politicians and popular people of the 1960s are explored in depth. What they did and with whom is written about.

If you are interested in getting anywhere near the truth about the Kennedys, Monroe, or Hollywood this book is one you won't want to miss. If you like scandal, corruption, and conspiracy theories it is a must-read. Can the claims be proven? Probably, but will they be? In a world that seems determined to topple heroes, they just might be. I was taken with the book. It has been a while since this mystery has been explored. Maybe it is time to finally open the can of worms that is the murder of America's most revered sex symbol and her lovers and killers. Thanks to #Bombshell#Netgalley for the opportunity to read and give an honest unbiased review of this book.

Who knows whether the theory promulgated in this book is correct it cannot be denied that this is a riveting and unsettling read.

Laying bare the sleaze and depravity of Los Angeles in the 60s. Nobody really comes out well particularly the Kennedy's. The evidence of Bobby Kennedy's guilt in Marilyn Monroe's tragic death provided is cogent and Mike Rothmiller makes a convincing case for his guilt given the way he came about the evidence but this is ultimately a sad book dominated by unpleasant and crooked individuals many of them in positions of influence and power.

“In life [Marilyn] could be anybody or anything you wanted her to be. Her ending came when she became trouble.”

Mike Rothmiller knows who killed Marilyn Monroe - it was Bobby Kennedy, and in this book he will tell you how he knows that she was silenced to prevent her going public with details of her affairs with the Kennedy brothers.
In 1978, working as a detective in the LAPD’s OCID (The Organized Crime Intelligence Division), Rothmiller had access to thousands of index cards relating to restricted files containing information on notable figures in America, not all of whom would have been seen as criminals - actors, TV newsreaders, sportsmen from Muhammad Ali to Michael Jackson. Eventually he came to an index card for President John F. Kennedy, cross-referenced with his brothers Bobby and Ted, Rat Pack actors Frank Sinatra and Peter Lawford (who plays a large part in events) and, of course, Marilyn Monroe.
Before her death, Marilyn had long been a “person of interest” for the authorities due to the kind of people she was linked to. After encountering a bedraggled and boozy Lawford during a tour of the Playboy Mansion, Rothmiller contrives to interview him some weeks later. The details of this conversation, and the “truth” about Marilyn’s death resulting from it, are being presented in this book for the very first time. Also, many of JFK’s hitherto unknown sexual shenanigans are being made public within these fiery pages due to them being filmed or bugged by the OCID at the time. Once JFK’s Presidential nomination was announced, all of these details were suppressed and Marilyn’s days were numbered.
This book, written by Rothmiller with Douglas Thompson, is, basically, sleaze-city. Thanks to irresistible scene-setting, a world of mobsters, corrupt politicians and Hollywood sex parties is vividly brought to life. Bedrooms are bugged, phones are tapped. It is unputdownable in the most delicious way, but for all that it never loses sight of the tragedy of Marilyn Monroe, who was ostensibly abused by the Kennedys; indeed, by many people. Despite the enduring legend of the Kennedys, their true personas are laid bare in this book. There are many passages in the book that some may find upsetting - the abusive treatment of Marilyn sometimes beggars belief.
The evidence presented is compelling, but whether one believes it or not, noted figures such as the Kennedys, Frank Sinatra, and especially the easily-intimidated Peter Lawford don’t come out of it very well. This book starts out as a titillating thrill but becomes progressively more tragic. You will learn some things that you’d probably rather not know, but it is well-written and timely. Like a car-crash, this book is hard to stop looking at.