The Crime of the Century
Richard Speck and the Murders That Shocked a Nation
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The Crime of the Century
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Narrated by:
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Christina Delaine
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Written by:
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Dennis L. Breo
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William J. Martin
About this listen
On July 14th, 1966, Richard Franklin Speck swept through a quiet Chicago townhouse like a summer tornado and stabbed, strangled, and killed eight young nurses in a violent sexual rampage. By morning, only one nurse, Corazon Amurao, had miraculously survived, and her scream of terror was heard around the world.
As the eight bodies were carried out of the small building, the coroner, who had seen the carnage up close, told a gathering crowd: "It is the crime of the century!"
Now, the prosecutor who put Speck in prison for life (William J. Martin) and the author and journalist who won an award for his coverage of the crime (Dennis L. Breo) have teamed up to recreate the blood-soaked night that opened a new chapter in the history of American crime: mass murder.
Corazon Amurao, the nurse the killer left behind, confronted Speck at trial and told jurors, "This is the man!" Richard Speck was spared execution by Supreme Court rulings and here is the inside story of how he confessed to the murders in a sordid prison video made three years before his death of a heart attack in 1991. And here is the life today of the nurse who survived the crime that murdered American innocence.
©2016 Dennis L. Breo and William J. Martin (P)2017 TantorWhat the critics say
What listeners say about The Crime of the Century
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- 905Canuck
- 2019-09-07
A slow burn to a breath-taking courtroom drama
The book starts a bit slow as it follows Richard Speck's rather dreary existence. This speaks more to Speck's aimless shamble through life than it does to the authors. The pace remains much the same as the book describes the murders, but again this isn't a fault of the authors. Little is known of what actually occurred and the authors don't try to inject any melodrama. In the courtroom however, the storytelling really takes off! Here the authors have real facts and documents to wield with great effect.
But Christina Delaine’s narration of this novel is sublime. Ms. Delaine punches up the dialogue with regional and cultural accents. The listener is keenly aware of a witness’ trepidation, the prosecutor’s fervor, the murder’s callousness, without the narration ever becoming heavy-handed. It’s not easy for a female narrator to provide a variety of male voices. While you’ll never think you’re hearing a man speaking, you’ll find yourself immersed nonetheless. Ms. Delaine gives the impression that she’s truly emotionally invested in her narration, but never skews her tone outside of the actual character dialogue.
A professional delivery of a deeply moving narrative. Authors Dennis L. Breo and William J. Martin, and narrator Christina Delaine really do justice to this horror story that needed to be told.
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