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Lost Girls: An Unsolved American Mystery by Robert Kolker I will admit that there were times I found myself judging the women depicted in this book because of their life choices. However, that is exactly why Kolker wrote the book, because crime victims get judged just as much as, and perhaps in some ways even more than, criminals. This book is a good counterpoint to many other crime narratives, both fiction and nonfiction, that want to create neat, linear narratives with obvious 'good' and 'bad' participants. Real life is messy, complicated, and doesn't always offer us the neat solutions we would like. Another major lesson from the book, which resonates with several other books I read earlier this year, is that violent crime affects much more than just the victim, and for much longer than anyone anticipates. Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik This book was a bit slow to get started, especially since it includes a number of different characters and storylines. Also, in...

American Sherlock: Murder, Forensics, and the Birth of American CSI by Kate Winkler Dawson I learned a number of new things about the early history of forensics from this book. It was also an interesting way to reflect on the role the media and celebrity play in our culture; although the media we have now adds new complications, many of the issues were already present a century a year ago. Sometimes the writing in this book was a little dry and there were a few repetitive parts, but in general I enjoyed it. The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel This is not a book to read quickly. It moves back and forth between characters and time periods throughout the book, sometimes revisiting events multiple times, each with a slightly different focus. I love reading books where all the pieces come together slowly and the author is so obviously skilled. This is quite different from St. John Mandel's previous book ( Station Eleven ), but I loved it just as much.  The Secrets We Kept by Lar...