Member Review

I grew up in the 1960s and fondly remember the old black and white TV shows of The Untouchables, starring Robert Stack as Eliot Ness. So when I saw this book available via NetGalley I made a request for an ARC and was pleased to receive permission to read. The following is my own unbiased review.

American Demon is the story of Eliot Ness' appointment as Safety Director for the Cleveland Police Department following his years of service in Chicago where he and his collection of "untouchables" helped to bring down the Al Capone empire. Ness took the Cleveland position after being rebuffed to join the FBI by Director J. Edgar Hoover who was jealous of the publicity Ness received in Chicago and was committed to keeping Ness out of the FBI.

Cleveland needed help in the 1930s due to what we would today call a serial killer, but in those days was referred to as the "torso" killer because the victims were dismembered and their body parts were separated and dumped in various locations--including Lake Cayauga. Police detectives and the coroner were very limited in the clues they had available as the number of torsos began to pile up. American Demon is largely the story of Ness' arrival in Cleveland and his own efforts to find the killer (labeled as The Mad Butcher), many victims whose remains were found in an area known as Kingsbury Run.

The narrative is interesting as the timeline rolls forward and the many attempts to find who was responsible for the murders of so many people who were never identified properly, likely because they were homeless or transients. The savagery depicted in the story by the murders may be a bit disturbing for some readers. Ness encountered many obstacles from the Police Department, politicians, and others which made his task all the more difficult.

Ness also created his own problems. He was a heavy drinker, was married three times, and by the time of his death of a heart attack in his early 50s was nearly destitute. It really is a sad story, and the Ness in real life was nothing like the Ness character in the old TV series.

Having lived in Ohio (GO BUCKS) years ago I was interested in reading this book. The book is interesting, but at times my attention waned as the body count kept piling up (along with the politics) and efforts to identify the killer failed. The book is well-researched and the writing is clear. If you have an interest in the topic give it a try, but you may end up a bit disappointed as I did that one of your TV heroes was nothing like the real person.

I give this book three stars. My thanks to NetGalley, the author, and St. Martin's Press for an opportunity to review this book.