I Will Find You

I love Homicide Hunter and Joe Kenda so was excited to read this. I really enjoyed it even though some of the cases I had seen on the show. I feel like we got to know Joe a little better and the book goes into more detail than the show. A really well written and interesting memoire. Only negative is it could have been longer!

Detective Kenda Solved 92% of 387 Homicides


In I WILL FIND YOU, former Colorado Springs Detective Joe Kenda takes us on a gritty tour of his life catching murderers. The book reads a little like a “police procedural,” and is pretty gory at times in describing the murders. The crime scenes are described in great detail, as are the injuries to the victims. So, if you are sensitive to violence and gore, avoid these sections. (When I came to the parts about child victims, I skimmed over those sections.)

Kenda made his name as a tough guy early on in his career. He recalls a situation early in his career, where a huge man was strangling one of his colleagues. Kenda took quick, brutal action: “I did not intentionally flatten the dispenser with his face, but that was the result.” Kenda thought he might be fired for unnecessary force , but instead, his superiors admired the forceful action of a rookie.

Kenda developed a routine for each crime scene. In the chapter, “I Talk To Dead People,” he explains his routine. He asks, “What did you do here? Why did you do it? What was your first move? What was next?” At the crime scene, he “listened” intently to the victim, or even spoke out loud. His methods were very successful. Of his cases going to trial, 215 out of 217 suspects were convicted.

The author corrects some misconceptions about police work, as compared to what is simplified on TV. For example, fingerprints aren’t checked in just a few minutes. In reality, you send your prints in, and “within a couple of weeks or months AFIS sends you back fifteen possible suspects.”

The author’s approach to making an arrest was simple: He just threatened to blow the suspect away. Pointing his gun right at them, he announced: “My name is Kenda. I’m with the police department. You are under arrest. If you don’t do what I say, I will kill you right here and now.”

The author explained something that has always confused me about cop shows on TV. Why do suspects on TV always start blabbing on without a lawyer? They can’t possibly be this stupid!
Well, it turns out that suspects DO usually talk to the police. Kenda explains that about 80% of suspects waive their Miranda rights to an attorney and “just gab away.” They think they can outwit the police, since they are so used to getting away with lies.

For folks considering buying a hand gun for self-protection, the author recommends that purchase only if you are willing to do the training. Don’t get a gun unless you are buy a gun unless you are “supremely confident that you can use it with great accuracy and protect those you love from it.” This strikes me as good advice.

All in all, I enjoyed reading the book. It has lots of interesting detail, and is a captivating read. Yes, it is on the grisly side, but the gore was not exaggerated. Near the end of the book, the author gives his take on the justice system:

“We don’t have a perfect system. Yet, as imperfect as it is, I don’t see anything better out there. For all of its weaknesses and all of the mistakes that happen, our rate of success is still better than most.”


Advance Review Copy courtesy of the publisher.

See also:

https://www.bassocantor.com/blog/find-you

Fans of the television series will certainly enjoy this book. Part memoir and part true crime, this book is vivid in the descriptions at times.
I voluntarily reviewed an advance copy of this book.

Joe Kenda the homicide hunter. I love his show and have been watching it from the beginning, this book was just as interesting. I enjoyed reading about his cases but also about more of his personal life. Some of the cases that he had to deal with would have destroyed a lesser person. Thank you NetGalley and Joe Kenda for allowing me to read this book and write a honest review.

Lt. Kenda!!! You are my hero. What an outstanding read. As a watcher of his show on the ID channel, I was so happy to get the ARC of this book. I read it in 2 days, only because I had to go to sleep for work the next day!! Lt. Kenda takes us into some of his cases that were deemed a bit to much for the tv series. We also get to meet his family. We learn the life of a cop. Lt. Kenda is straight with no chasers. He had a job to do and he did it well. Very engrossing book. Well written and I must say, even in the acknowledgements was worth reading!!! Any Lt. Kenda fan must get this book. Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for the ARC of t his book in exchange for my honest review.