The Man from the Train

The Solving of a Century-Old Serial Killer Mystery

De: Bill James, Rachel McCarthy James

Narrado por: John Bedford Lloyd

Using unprecedented, dramatically compelling sleuthing techniques, legendary statistician and baseball writer Bill James applies his analytical acumen to crack an unsolved century-old mystery surrounding one of the deadliest serial killers in American history.

Between 1898 and 1912, families across the country were bludgeoned in their sleep with the blunt side of an axe. Jewelry and valuables were left in plain sight, bodies were piled together, faces covered with cloth. Some of these cases, like the infamous Villasca, Iowa, murders, received national attention. But few people believed the crimes were related. And fewer still would realize that all of these families lived within walking distance to a train station.

When celebrated baseball statistician and true-crime expert Bill James first learned about these horrors, he began to investigate others that might fit the same pattern. Applying the same know-how he brings to his legendary baseball analysis, he empirically determined which crimes were committed by the same person. Then, after sifting through thousands of local newspapers, court transcripts, and public records, he and his daughter, Rachel, made an astonishing discovery: They learned the true identity of this monstrous criminal. In turn they uncovered one of the deadliest serial killers in America.

Riveting and immersive, with writing as sharp as the cold side of an axe, The Man from the Train paints a vivid, psychologically perceptive portrait of America at the dawn of the 20th century, when crime was regarded as a local problem and opportunistic private detectives exploited a dysfunctional judicial system. James shows how these cultural factors enabled such an unspeakable series of crimes to occur, and his groundbreaking approach to true crime will convince skeptics, amaze aficionados, and change the way we view criminal history.

©2017 Bill James & Rachel McCarthy James. All rights reserved. (P)2017 Simon & Schuster Audio. All rights reserved.

Good but Dry

This book was fantastically researched and factually facilitating. However it definitely reads more like a research paper at times. There’s very little descriptive narrative, it’s almost all laid out point by point. I liked the book, but would recommend listening at 1.25x or faster to get through it.

interesting story, dubious execution

The narrator does a good, solid job so let's get that out of the way.

The topic is interesting but the writing a bit lacking. The attempts at wit and comic relief are rather annoying, their timing is particularly off. My biggest issue, however, is how derisive they're about speculations when it's others doing the speculating, while remaining very impressed by their own. Century old records and reports will of course necessitate assumptions to fill in the blanks, but is there need to be so arrogant? Worse part is they may not be, just come across that way, thus the comment about the writing.

Anyway, I wouldn't pay full price for this but if this type of stuff interests you, and you can pick it up on sale or something, might be worth it.

Awesome

very well done. I definitely recommend this book for anyone that loves a good read.

Very interesting

I very well written and interesting book. The narrator was well chosen to read it. He was excellent.

great mystery solved

The writing struggled at times. The narration was very good the story was captivating.... not just smoking out a killer they actually smoke out the crime...a100+ year old crime spree no one recognized...kudos for that!

Very Interesting Story, Weird Storytelling

This was weirdly written, more like a ranting editorial than a novel. The author calls us all assholes for some reason at the end. The storytelling jumps forward and backward in time for some reason, and goes off on a very long tangent. But when this book does hit, it hits hard. I learned a lot about the early 1900s and I want to know more about this murderer. 👍

Promising beginning dragged by the end

I was very engaged and interested until about halfway through. The authors must have little regard for the reader as they bludgeoned you with their theories like the man on the train with his ax. Eventually I dreaded the repetitive countdowns of points. Dear authors, I got the point the first time. Book could have been very good had they streamlined and let the reader decide on their own by just providing facts.
I also found the next to last chapter insulting to the reader when they went off on a strange misplaced “attack” of people’s opinion. Unnecessary. Wish I could recommend but in the end.. no.

One of the odder true crime books I’ve ever listened to.

The whole book is obviously heavily researched but extremely strangely presented. Im over half way into the book and the author still refers to the perpetrator as “The man from the train” and gives no indication he is going to reveal who this person is anytime soon. He spends a great deal of time attributing certain crimes to “The man from the train” while not giving any linear timeline. The author jumps from crime to crime forward and back in time seemingly at random while always promising more later. While I don’t doubt the author believes he’s connected all of these crimes, the evidence he has presented so far is less than compelling. To be clear, claiming a serial mass killer ranging from Oregon to Georgia with lots of points in between in the early 20th century should require a ton of evidence and it doesn’t feel like the author has presented his case well.

Deep Dive into a Century Old Series of Murders

So much research went into this book- it's astounding considering how long ago it was. The authors explain which cases are connected, which are not & share with readers or listeners why. Investigators back in the late 1800's & early 1900's looked at the axe murders committed in a very myopic manner. Had they looked outside of each community or at the modus operandi things might have been different & the suspect apprehended. But this was before profiling & crime scene analysis. The Jameses did a fantastic job with this book & I believe they've solved the mystery of who killed so many families around the US & likely in Germany. I was captivated by the level of detail and the retelling of the stories about the victims. Not just their unfortunate demise, but about their lives as well. Get this book!! It's very good. In spite of the subject matter being tragic, the authors treat it with respect.

A must for true crime enthusiasts

From the first page this true crime kept me captivated. I am still thinking of this well documented story months later.