Vulgar Favors

The Assassination of Gianni Versace

By: Maureen Orth

Narrated by: Dan Woren, Maureen Orth

Length: 18 hrs and 6 mins

Publisher's summary

Hear the true story of the manhunt that inspired The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, the acclaimed FX series.

“The breadth and thoroughness of [Maureen] Orth’s research are often staggering.”—The New York Times

“Fascinating . . . ripe with chilling detail.”—Entertainment Weekly

On July 15, 1997, Gianni Versace was shot and killed on the steps of his Miami Beach mansion by serial killer Andrew Cunanan. But months before Versace’s murder, award-winning journalist Maureen Orth was already investigating a major story on Cunanan for Vanity Fair. Culled from interviews with more than four hundred people and insights gleaned from thousands of pages of police reports, Vulgar Favors tells the complete story of Andrew Cunanan, his unwitting victims, and the moneyed world in which they lived . . . and died.

Orth reveals how Cunanan met Versace, and why police and the FBI repeatedly failed to catch him. Here is a gripping odyssey that races across America—from California’s wealthy gay underworld to modest Midwestern homes of families mourning the loss of their sons to South Beach and its unapologetic decadence. Vulgar Favors is at once a masterwork of investigative journalism and a riveting account of a sociopath, his crimes, and the mysteries he left along the way.

©2010 Maureen Orth (P)2017 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“A fascinatingly detailed account.”—USA Today

“It will hook you from the first page and never let you go.”—San Francisco Chronicle

“Vulgar Favors by Maureen Orth might be called the complete Cunanan. . . . She [has] an indefatigable hunger to know everything.”—Chicago Tribune

Solid Read

very engaging read with lots of details that were previously unknown. good narration too. twado thumbs up

Very thorough

I purchased this after watching the American Crime Story mini-series. I’m not generally interested in true crime but this focused less on the gory details and more on how the families and communities were affected.

The narration was great. I liked that he did accents so it was easy to follow who was speaking.

One of the greats, with a couple of caveats

"Vulgar Favors" is among the best true-crime books I've ever read/listened to. I recall "the mysterious gay killer" wreaking havoc across the U.S., including where I lived, although his presence in SE New England turned out to be just a false sighting.
The author Maureen Orth takes readers along with her as she crosses the United States, contemporaneously reporting the deaths of Andrew Cunanan's first four victims. No one knew if, when, or where Cunanan was to strike next, but after she heard the news that Versace had been murdered, she was sent by "Vanity Fair" magazine to report Versace's -- and later Cunanan's -- death.
Although I did very much enjoy this book, the text is outdated in its mostly condescending tone regarding gay men. Orth describes gay men as shallow, vain, sex-hungry, drug-using, superficial, body-conscious, lesser-than individuals, who are either rich or money-grubbing. Some of this comes from the places where she did her interviews: Hillcrest (San Diego), Boysland (Chicago), South Beach, and San Francisco present a very narrow view of "a gay" (Orth's term, which is really bad phrasing; gay men never say, "Hi! I'm a gay!"). I would hope that if she were to revise the text one day, she would reconsider her judgmental categorization of gay men.
Also, Orth refers to Cunanan's case as the most bungled criminal investigation in U.S. history. That is not true. Here's just one example: the investigation into the Charles Manson family's killing spree was so disjointed that in hindsight it's amazing the defendants were found guilty, nevermind (originally) sentenced to death.
But -- despite these flaws -- I still recommend "Vulgar Favors" as engrossing and time well spent.

Interesting but not enough

I realize this book was written in 1999. Therefore, I give some slack to the writers at often times misguided and offensive portrayal of the LGBTQi community. Not all gay men flock to beach towns and do crystal meth with aspirations of being a porn stars. The over exaggeration of these stereotypes still exists today. Again, the book was written 21 years ago, but as a gay man who came out around 1997 I hate to think this is what others viewed me as.

wow was that long...

so I was super excited to start this book after watching 'american crime story' and the first half of the book was so engaging! but then...when it got to the actual "good stuff" it dragged so much! ended up sounded like a thesis rather than a book for entertainment. way too much boring details about the police and proceedure and if you're looking for any answers to questions about the murders you won't find them here. just waaaaay to long. half the length would have been good.

Entertaining

The story is good, I feel like the author kept it real. As others have mentioned , there is a lot of "gay" in the story. I think the sexual preference and lifestyle of everyone involved was very Germain to the story. It was a different time then and In a lot of ways it was a more honest time. It's weird how everyone in America is now offended at everything. If you are gay and have pride in your lifestyle, then what's the problem? I was reminded of the character Doug Danger on the Phil Hendrie show, which was in the mid 90s. The guy always started his conversation with "I'm a gay man and gay journalist". He was very vocal and a bully. It was parody but worked because of the society at the time. But I digress... it's worth a listen regardless of your sexual preference.

loved it!!

I listened to the book a 2nd time right after listening to it the 1st time. I vaguely remember news clips and TV coverage from 1997 so this story really brought the case to life. This is a must for any fan of true crime. Finally major kudos to author Maureen Orth for her integrity and respect to all of those involved!

Easily one of the best

I REALLY wish Maureen Orth published more true crime books. The level of research that went into this was documented so perfectly. I was in Miami Beach while listening to this so many places were familiar; it made the listening experience all the more real.

Narration was fantastic. MUST LISTEN.

If you cab get past the homophobic

If you can get passed the homophobic language the case is fascinating. I'm assuming it homophobic language has to do with who wrote this book and the year it came out. I would love if they rewrote it and cute out all the stereo types.

Much more...

Than I hoped for. Very detailed, elaborate and gripping. If you ve seen the ACS on Netflix - this still has much more light to shed on the whole story! Brilliant thriller and hats off to the author !