The Real Life Murder Clubs - Nicola Stow

3 ⭐️

This is the book form of Don’t F With Cats crossed with a true crime podcast.

It has citizens solving crimes and backstories and harrowing details.

As someone that loves my local true crime podcast I had to read this. The stories tell of true dedication to solve crimes and the years of work it can take to find the name of a Doe.

As much as I enjoyed each story I felt myself longing for more storytelling amidst the facts, something to bring it all together a bit more and provide continuity. The writing style was very factual and I wouldn’t have minded a bit of filler to gap the disconnect between stories.

TW: some sections of this book depict graphic violence and sexual assault.

Publication date: Nov 24, 2022

Thank you netgalley and Nicola Stow for the ARC!

This book is awesome. Thrilling and informative, I could not put the book down from the moment I started reading it. Absolutely loved it.

I really enjoyed this book, it is very detailed and a fascinating read. It is however quite graphic in its explanations at times

I truly enjoyed this book. It was interesting to read about every day people who devote their time to help identify missing/dead people. I did not realize this was such a huge thing with websites and all. The book was very, very informative and kept my interest throughout. Thank you to these wonderful people who do this. Thanks to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for the ARC of this book in return for my honest review. Receiving the book in this manner had no bearing on this review.

The Real-Life Murder Clubs by Nicole Stow was incredibly interesting and I’m so glad that I took the time to read it. Three stars!

As a fan of both true crime, and fictional thrillers and crime shows, this us right up my street. Thanks to the publisher, author, and netgalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The book is split into smaller sections each focusing around one person/story/site, and this made it super easy to read in small doses as I was running around after my niece and nephews! There was also nice connections back to past sections too when referencing people or tools used that we had already been introduced to.


I'd heard of some of the cases and things like project EDAN before, so it was great to get a deeper insight into how those things came to be, and what the process was around them. If you're a naturally curious person like me you will love the amount of base information the book provides. I really think long running fans of true crime will enjoy this as will this be a great jumping point for any newcomers brought in.

I'm happy that the book also included the warnings of how things can go wrong, how much time and effort these people put in, and how they get little credit, having this towards the end should help prevent over eager readers from jumping straight online to try solve cases for the wrong reasons.

I wanted to like this book a lot, but unfortunately did not. The premise is good...regular people who are affected by crime who take it upon themselves to solve them. However, the writing just didn't work for me and I felt like I was dropped into the middle of a story and the bouncing back and forth. It might appeal to people who have enjoyed Richard Osman books, which I did, but willing to work a bit with the writing. I received a copy of this book in exchange for a fair review.

This was such an interesting and thought provoking read. I love true crime anyway but it has always fascinated me when people have decided they are not happy with something particularly the outcome of a case and have taken to their computers and social media to try and solve the case and I have watched several documentaries based on this such as Don't f**k with cats and the Elisa Lam cecil hotel documentary. I adored this book as it showed me cases I wasn't aware of, as well as the other side when innocent people get targetted. This book sis definitely worth a read.

Who says you can't solve crimes in your spare time? The Real-Life Murder Clubs by Nicola Stow is a look at different people who solve crimes as a side hustle instead of being cops. Each story has someone who goes about their sleuthing in very different ways and highlights many people you would never hear of. The true crimes described can be very grisly and if you don't like too many details then this one could be tough to stomach.

For true crime addicts, I think many will find this book a bit too shallow in its treatment of each case. For a casual read where you knock out a chapter a night, it is wonderful. For a true understanding of these people, their techniques, and especially the "why" then some people will be left with too many questions left unanswered.

(This book was provided to me as an advance copy by Netgalley and Ad Lib Publishers. The full review will be posted to HistoryNerdsUnited.com on 2/2/2023.)

This was an interesting read , introducing the reader to the online sleuths who try to identify Jane and John Does in the US from behind their computers. Each chapter covers a different murder victim and how the online groups and forums were able to identify them, which sometimes led to the killer being arrested. It covers in detail two Netflix documentaries (Don't F**k with Cats and Disappearance at the Cecil Hotel). which for those who have seen them gives an indication of the content.

However, I think those who enjoyed Richard Osman's cosy crime thrillers The Thursday Murder Club, will be surprised at the graphic detail in this book. The sleuths in this book are a far cry from the group of retired care home residents solving cold cases.

I think the publisher (rather than the author) is very much trying to cash-in on the success of someone else's books..

An interesting collection of real-life sleuths who were able to crack cases and bring criminals to justice.
Each ‘story’ isn’t too long which makes this a good book to dip in and out of and the way in which the author puts them together telling each one in first person is engaging.
Recommended for anyone who enjoys true crime / crime

Thanks to netgalley for the ARC of this book

I received an ARC of, The Real-Life Murder Clubs, Citizens Solving True Crimes, by Nicola Stow. I really enjoyed this interesting read. How far people go to help others, often people they do not even know, and solve murders. I learned a lot of information. A really good read.

Definitely a must read for fans of true crime!
Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

This is a great book about regular people who solves crimes summer moms and summer strangers but all offset on putting criminals where they belong. This is a True Crime book where you route for the investigator even more because there’s someone like you. Although I did think the first lady who I believe‘s name was Belinda did some dangerous stuff to try and catch her daughters killer, but it seems she was more focused on the driver and not actually the guy who shot her daughter that just threw me sideways I didn’t get it at all. if you like True Crime you’ll enjoy reading about regular people getting real murderers put in prison. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I received this book from NetGalley and the publisher but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

I've only recently started reading true crime and this is a whole new perspective on the underbelly of cold and famous cases that gained armies of internet citizen sleuths. Bringing their passionate, hard work to light, showing the havoc or bittersweet solves internet sleuths can create. The stories wrenched on my heart at the atrocities these people had to endure and the moment they find out the fate of their loved ones. I enjoyed this book, and it quenched my curiosity, I'd recommend it to fans of true crime I believe they would truly enjoy it.

Kindly gifted to me! I loved this book, frankly, because it just gave me the momentum I needed to get back into true crime. It's so interesting, to see people help the victims go home, being laid to rest in a respectful and traditional way. I think it's a great book for people that are into true crime and not into reading, and also good for people that are into reading and not necessarily true crimes. I will recommend this book to other people, definitely.

An interesting collection of real life murders. Hard to read at times, so best to take each one at a time instead of trying to read them all at once. Would recommend, but know what you are reading.

Citizen Sleuths Gather…
Citizen sleuths gather together in this well crafted account of mainly high profile, heinous crimes and some lesser known. It’s a fascinating insight and includes commentary taken from many of the more prominent sleuths, some of whom have particular and often rather intriguing and remarkable talents. Things can also go very wrong and there are some tragic instances of this too. True crime aficionados will certainly not want to miss this.

This book was sent to me by Netgalley for review. Thanks to the publisher for the electronic copy. This is a compilation of real life murders...true...could be a series on television or a movie. Don't miss this one...it has much to offer...