This is a great history of how the tape kit came to be - a tool that helped solve many, many sexually-related crimes. What I didn’t like was the author’s constant insertion of her own sexual assault experience. It was so frequent, and sometimes irrelevant, that it took away from the importance of the discovery. The book also had a slant towards feminism and that women should be afraid of men - a vibe I don’t subscribe to.

This book was middle of the road for me I think for some reasons that would really appeal to some readers and would make others pass on the book. The author's personal connection to the subject matter was clear and I think depending on how you view that it can be a really good strength or a disadvantage. It definitely brings a specific perspective to the story and I think pushes the author's attention to detail and informs some of the connections made between the information. However, that same connection I think pushes the book's narrative into some tangential areas where it could be more straightforward.

The book blends biography, general history, and memoir. I think it would have benefited from more defined sections rather than intertwining the three throughout. I do think the information was really interesting but I wasn't the biggest fan of the author's writing style.

A good nonfiction editor should ask their writers whether their project is better a book or a blog post. Pagan Kennedy’s The Secret History of the Rape Kit, a bloated elaboration of her 2020 piece for the New York Times, drifts meretriciously from the subject of the article toward herself. The book’s focus remains on Marty Goddard, but only on the surface, as most of Secret History is reserved for Kennedy’s meditations, autobiographical anecdotes, and contrived racial bona fides.

Kennedy appears to believe that Goddard is the first self-styled inventor bitter at not having received due credit for their creation. The conceit of the article, and then the book, is that Goddard invented the sexual assault evidence-collection kit but a scientist in the Chicago Police Department’s crime lab stole the idea and branded it with his name. Kennedy offers no evidence for this beyond old interviews with Goddard grumbling about it. But she reaches a bizarrely illogical conclusion: “It seemed logical . . . that the most effective inventor of a sexual-assault forensics system would be a woman. And it also seemed cruelly inevitable that a man would be the one to receive the credit.” Kennedy believes that, since most victims of sexual assault are women, then a woman probably invented the evidence-collection kit.

What a sad, cramped way at approaching scientific innovation. Vitullo, who served in World War II, spent his entire career in public service, and retired from the police department in 1979, cuts a strange villain. There is no suggestion that he profited from Chicago’s adoption of evidence collection kits at Goddard’s expense. It does Goddard no disservice that the kits, which we now simply call evidence-collection kits, were for a time known as Vitullo kits. (For someone as obsessed with fashionably correct terminology as Kennedy is, it is ironic that she prefers the outdated "rape kit.")

Kennedy won’t hear of it. She uses this fantasized intellectual property theft as a springboard into a full-throated airing of grievances. She complains that a woman in the eighteenth century could not own a patent, even though the patent cited her as the inventrix, even though there was no suggestion that this legal fiction deprived the woman of anything due her, even though this anecdote has no relevance to Goddard and her kits.

From here, it was a seamless transition to racial grievance. Never mind that evidence-collection kits almost certainly benefit black women more than any other demographic. Never mind that Goddard wasn’t black. The reader is still treated to pages upon pages of early American law prohibiting blacks from owning intellectual property and Dred Scott. The only apparent connection to Goddard is the general idea of someone being ripped off.

The fluff continued with Kennedy’s pretended attempts to find and interview Goddard. “Pretended,” because had the author really wanted to find her subject, she could have hired a private investigator who after three hours’ work would have written her email saying that Goddard had passed away. Instead, Kennedy watched interviews, interviewed friends, read articles, and gazed at her navel for six months (and precious dozens of pages).

The overall impression that this book makes is one of inauthenticity. The prose showed no real concern for Goddard, for women, for black people. And no real concern for victims of sexual assault. There was only the flavor of bedazzled, neon-lettered mock virtue that liberal women feel compelled to air.

The subtitle of this book, “A True Crime Story,” is inapt. This is not a story about true crime; it is a story about virtue signaling — and about Pagan Kennedy.

This was certainly interesting but could be a sensitive subject for some/many. I appreciated the mix of personal account with the historical information about the development of the rape kit. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for access to this eARC.

Pagan Kennedy, a sexual assault survivor, investigates the struggle of how the rape kit came to be, and of its creator’s obscurity. The result is a blending of Kennedy’s own story with that of her search for Marty Goddard, the woman who fought for better treatment of sexual assault victims and their evidence. Goddard’s story is interesting, yet spotty, and left me wishing for more information on her activism, life, and seemingly quiet retreat into seclusion.

True crime at its best!

At first glance, I wasn’t too sure what to expect with this book. Worried it would just be a graphic retelling of sexual misconduct in the decades prior to advancements in forensic technology. Due to the sensitive nature of the topic, it might not be for everyone, but I think Pagan Kennedy did an amazing job covering it while telling the story of forgotten forensic pioneer, Marty Goddard, and the innovative work she did in developing the rape kit. Marty was a devoted sexual assault victim advocate, working alongside police and health care professionals to try and help women and children who had been subjected to abuse. Sadly, like so many women, she was also a victim.

Kennedy’s research into Marty was thorough, shedding light on both her professional and personal life which, at times, was shocking and heartbreaking to read. The fact that she designed the kit still used in collecting evidence to this day is a testament to Marty’s intellectual rigor and progressive mindset. When it was revealed that her male counterparts took credit for it and even had it named in their honor, I was enraged but not surprised. So many sad truths about the justice system were exposed, more specifically regarding how victims of rape were treated by law enforcement, and it left me stunned. It’s no wonder women, even to this day, don’t trust the authorities or prosecute abusers in fear of not being believed. When the author revealed her own story of childhood abuse it added another layer of depth I didn’t expect, but which rounded out the book in a much more personal and authentic way.

5/5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
For readers who are intrigued by true crime, feminism, and forensics.

This biography/history, plus a dash of memoir, tells the story of how the rape kit was developed. It is something that, after countless Law & Order episodes and true crime podcasts, we take for granted. I was struck by how Marty Goddard, the creator of the kit, as well as others who have aimed to improve it, took a step back from the spotlight in the interest of getting this useful tool out into the hands of investigators and medical professionals. The author focuses not only on Goddard's efforts but also the backlog of kits that has come to light in recent years. I found this book interesting, and I hope that it leads to more advocacy in support of victims and survivors and further improvements in the process.

3.5.

This was a little too all over the place for me. The focus wasn’t solely on Marty or the kit, it kept straying. Which don’t get me wrong everything that was brought up is worth mentioning but it wasn’t the reason I wanted to read this particular book.

Thank you to Vintage for sending this my way!

A book I'd never think to read but really learned and took so much from it.

This piece of investigative journalism delves into the history of the rape kit and it's uncredited inventor - Marty Goddard. The book highlights how the rape kit came to be, including all it took to have the rape kit mainstreamed to be used for forensics.

There is a mix of personal story from the author (trigger warning) as well as the hunt for Marty and the development of the kit. It's very educational but also accessible from the personal experiences shared in the book.

Thank you to Netgalley and Vintage Books for an eARC of this book.

I found this book to be a bit slow but very interesting. As someone with a personal interest in rape kits I was very interested in reading how they came to be. Marty Goddard did such a wonderful thing for rape victims when she determined a way to allow their rapists to be caught.

Amazing read, fascinating to learn more regarding this. Thank you for the advanced copy, history of this subject was interesting.

journalist, survivors, brutalized, scientific-method, science, forensic-science, forensics, historical-places-events, historical-figures, nonfiction, due-diligence, historical-research, abuse, misogyny, triggers*****

I have never been the subject of the physical and emotional scrutiny a woman can be subjected to, but I have worked ER and GYN in an inner-city mission hospital in the 1970s/80s and jails in the 1990s/2000s. Sexual assault is the end game of the objectification of women. Only murder with or without mutilation tops that.
Even when evidence is well collected, there is such a backlog in every state lab that it causes an incredible delay in processing.
I requested and received a temporary uncorrected ebook file from Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor | Vintage via NetGalley. Thank you.
Avail Jan 14, 2025 #TheSecretHistoryOfTheRapeKit by Pagan Kennedy #TrueCrime @AAKnopf @PantheonBooks @IReadVintage #AnchorVintage #Nonfiction #HistoricalForensics #Scientific #Triggers #FemAbuse #Origins

Griping and educational. It is a must-read in today's world. I could not put it down.

Thank you, Netgalley for the ARC.

This is a well written book about the history of the rape kit. It talks about who founded it and the importance of its use after a sexual assault has occurred. A rape kit collects DNA evidence from the victim and perpetrator. The author does an excellent job exploring the benefits of the rape kit, and the aftermath when the evidence is used in a court of law. Even though this is an important book, there was some draggy areas that were a bit unnecessary. It reads like a textbook, which can be either a good or bad thing. Interesting and thought-provoking read.

“The Secret History of the Rape Kit” dives deep into the life and career of Marty Goddard, the woman who pioneered the development of the rape kit in 1970s Chicago. My favorite takeaway was that it wasn’t really the kit itself that made the biggest difference, it was the changing attitudes about how rape should be investigated as a crime, how victims should be treated, and how hospitals, police departments, and judicial systems all needed to work together. Spurred in part by her own assault and deep intolerance for injustice, Marty took on the deeply entrenched systems that dismissed women as “shady” or “liars” when they came forward after an assault. The author throughout the research process began to feel a kinship with Marty, and became obsessed with tracking down what happened to her after she disappeared from the public eye. This was a fascinating read and I’d highly recommend it, however there are graphic descriptions of assault so it may be upsetting for some readers.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC! All thoughts are my own.

I was immediately drawn to this book due to the title and it's current social relevance. Kennedy offers a complex and interesting overview of Marty Goddard, the development of the rape kit, and the history of forensics science. Her biography of Marty Goddard is easy to follow and the mystery helps to keep the momentum of the book. At times, it does feel like Kennedy gets a bit too close to her subject, as far as the self-identification, but Kennedy paints a clear picture of Goddard, making it easy to walk alongside her as she strives for justice for victims of sexual assault. This book is in no-way a light and easy read, but it is an important one. Kennedy's narrative is clear and easy to follow.

Amazing! Such a well written and informative book!! This is such a desperately needed story (especially with the results of the recent election) and I hope it will be spread far and wide! Many changes need to be made when it comes to the process, investigation and trainings with regards to rape investigations.

I work in a career where rape kits are found in abundance. Although I've been in this career for over a decade, I had no idea where they originated. This book interested me because I wanted to know more about their origin.

Although that question was answered, I found it to be in a very unsatisfying means. Pagan Kennedy goes through the very brief information regarding Martha "Marty" Goddard in this story. As Kennedy says numerous times she wasn't able to find a lot of information on Marty and there is even limited information available about where her creation of the first rape kits in Chicago, which were the blue print for the rape kits across the United States today. The first half of the story covers Marty's story, but is overshadowed by the overwhelming information about the corruption of the Chicago PD. The second half of her story covers how a few individuals, who have no experience with working rape kits, think they can be redone. The biggest change that is mentioned is brought about by a SANE (Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner) from Virginia who states a blue dye used to show trauma does not fluoresce on darker skins. This point is overshadowed by other women who want to change how the kits are made and administered. The changing of the dye is in my opinion is the one thing that can be easily changed but is talked about and done away with in just a few short paragraphs. Although it might be nice to think about sexual assault kit collection being done in the home via telemed, realistically it isn't something that should be done for reasons such as chain of custody, contamination, and collection of the best evidence. There is research available that sperm cells stay the longest in the cervix, which is no easily accessible via personal collection of a sexual assault kit when done at home via telemed. The points I brought up are not even talked about when discussing home collection kits. Although one jurisdiction in California did allow for home kits to be done during COVID and resulted in a judgement, there was no way to say if those two kits actually made it into the court record. I could see serious issues with chain of custody if something like this is done in the future.

The fact that more money needs to spent on SANE nurses is easily brushed past as well. Many SANE perform this task on top of their regular nursing duties with no additional pay. They are also required to testify outside of their work hours. They do the job for the patients and the love of the job. This is lost by the author who doesn't seem to think about this fact. The author also pays no attention to the male victims, although rape kits are made with a female victim in mind. I would have expected her to spend some time on male victims of rape with her constant bopping around of topics, but that wasn't the case.

Overall while there is some information about Marty Goddard available, this piece should have stayed as a long form article instead of being made into a book. There just isn't enough verifiable information to support the book, in my opinion. I had hopes for this, but it just fell short. I'm not even going to discuss the small amount of forensics in the book, but will say Kennedy picked and chose what she wanted to showcase and how she did so to fit her narrative.

Thank you to Netgalley and Vintage Books for a copy in exchange for review consideration.

Significant, well researched, and educating. Does a great job of balancing feminine rage and support for strong female trailblazers.

This book highlights the history of the rape kit and the lost credit of the original inventor.

The book had some interesting pieces, but other chapters felt tossed in just to meet some wordcount minimum. I also thought the structure of the book was too all over the place. If she opened the book discussing her own traumas and how that led to her interest in this I think it would have been a lot more impactful. Instead, her anecdotes felt sprinkled throughout in a way that felt like the author wanted to be part of the story too. It also got confusing on if the book was about the history or about Marty. I understand they are deeply related, but again structurally it got confusing with the pivoting between rape kits during covid to Marty's childhood to new advancements to Marty's sister.

Overall I would give this a 2.5 star rating. There was a lot of interesting copy here, but the structure and unnecessary details took away from the overall story.

Thank you NetGalley for an arc of this book in exchange for my honest review.