ARC review • pub date 05.20.25
🎧 audiobook review

I went into thinking it would be a documentary like feel about the murder/disappearance of Jennifer Dulos. I’m pretty familiar with the case as I’ve seen the dateline episode as well as other true crime articles.

The book ended up being mostly about Jennifer’s upbringing, her family beliefs, and eventually her strained marriage with Fotus. Her murder wasn’t really mentioned until about 88% into the book.

That being said, it was still a good book, just more read like a biography. If you go in knowing that and wanting that, you will probably really enjoy this story.

3 ⭐️

Thanks so much to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for my ALC.

#MacAudio2025

Murder In The Dollhouse is the riveting and meticulously researched missing person and presumed murder of Jennifer Dulos, Jennifer grew up in the elite world of money, privilege and luxury. She had everything she wanted in life except for a husband and children. After originally meeting at Brown University, a chance encounter a decade later leads to a fast marriage and 5 children. Jennifer and Fotos’s marriage becomes one of the most contentious divorces in Connecticut state history.

She has not been seen since 2019, and legally declared dead in 2024.

This book is filled with impeccable research and details that will keep the reader turning the pages. As an avid true crime aficionado, this book was perfect! I’ll definitely be recommending it

This was a very interesting book about Jennifer Dulos who was murdered by her husband and his girlfriend. I usually get a bit frustrated when a book goes all the way back to childhood and spends so much time on events that didn't have to do with the crime. But this one was done really well and hold my interest the entire time.

It's a pretty comprehensive look into the disappearance of Jennifer Dulos. Rich does a deep dive into Jennifer's life, not just the days leading up to her disappearance, but he goes back to her childhood. I found it informative.

Murder in the Dollhouse: The Jennifer Dulos Story by Rich Cohen, takes us through the life and final days of Jennifer Dulos who was murdered by her husband and his girlfriend. It reads more like a mystery/thriller than true crime, keeping the reader fully immersed and invested in the story throughout. The writing focused on the events that lead up to the murder but lacked the same level detail for the crime itself, and may disappoint some pure crime purists.

In addition to the book, I had the good fortune to be able to listen to the book simultaneously as well. The Narration by Edoardo Ballerini was amazing, setting a great pace for the book. I will be looking into this narrator in the future.

Thank you to Farrar, Straus and Giroux and Macmillan Audio for the opportunity to read the eARC and listen to the ALC. All opinions are my own.


Print book Rating: 3 Stars
Audible book Rating: 5 stars
Pub Date: May 20 2025

Tags:
#MacmillanAudio
#FarrarStrausGiroux
#MurderInTheDollhouse
#JenniferDulos
#RichCohen
#EdoradoBallerini
#YarisBookNook
#netgalley

I am familiar with the case, but I learned a lot more details about the family here. It was interesting to learn about Jennifer before and after her husband. What a tragedy for an amazing woman and mother. Thank you for sharing about Jennifer’s law and I hope it helps many people. My heart is with those 5 children.

I remember this case when it happened so I was super excited to dive in. The loved the way the story was told. I enjoyed the details of their lives leading up to the crime. It gave you better insight than what was in the media at the time. I also enjoyed the narrator

My actual rating is 3.5 ⭐️. I am a huge fan of true crime novels and know that they contain a lot of information. However, I feel there was a lot of fluff and needless words in this book. Once you get past all the padding, it's really quite an interesting story. I also feel this would be a much better book to listen to with a different narrator. The monotone voice and droning on and on put me to sleep several times, and had me having to go back to listen again to those I fell asleep for. I honestly probably would have only given it a 2 or 3 ⭐️ if it were not for my love of true crime and this actually being an interesting story I hadn't heard of before. I feel this could easily be a 4 star audio if the author eliminated some unnecessary to the story fluff and a completely different narrator.

I’m rating this 3 stars because even though it’s not for me, it seems throughly researched and potentially right for the right person.

I found the authors communication style to be a little odd. I don’t know exactly how to pin it, but I personally didn’t connect with his approach to sharing this story.

While it is well-researched and the author states his fixation on the story due to proximity- I still feel this reads like a book report. It is mostly chronologically linear with a lot of biographical details.

I also feel the author didn’t really add any interesting insight or perspective. So while this is certainly a tragic story, I’m left questioning what he is contributing to the narrative.

Perhaps those more acquainted with the news cycle around this case will appreciate the compilation of the family history and the case details into this single source.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, Farrar, Straus, and Giroux for an audio copy in exchange for an honest review.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the free audiobook in exchange for my honest review. Edoardo Ballerini does a brilliant job narrating this story and making it come to life.

True crime at its finest! Jennifer Dulos was a beautiful heiress and mother of 5 who disappeared one day after dropping her kids off. It was very clear that her husband killed her as he was known to be an unstable man that was not taking their divorce well. Such a tragic story but very well told!

What a crazy story! I love true crime on audio, so I enjoyed this book. Narrator was good. Very "dateline"esque.

4 stars

What a chilling, disturbing narrative.

I came into this read without any prior knowledge of this case at all, so my review is obviously from the perspective of a reader who has no incoming expectations or feelings about the case or the parties it involves. A future step I'll take is researching how more informed readers feel about this presentation.

Jennifer Dulos, the focal point of this novel and crime, was a devoted mother from an incredibly privileged background. Her choices in marital partner? More out of a sense of urgency (fertility) than logic. This is now even clearer based on the fact that Dulos one day went missing and never returned, and every sign points to the creep to whom she was married.

This is a tragic tale, obviously, and while it's unfortunately one we hear a lot in this society, it still has it's particularities. As much as one can enjoy true crime, I did find this to be logically ordered, supported, and engaging, especially in the audio format. It's a tough listen for obvious reasons, and prospective readers should anticipate that experience.

4.25/5. Thank you to Rich Cohen, Macmillan Audio, and Netgalley for the ALC/audio ARC.

I remember when this case broke, Jennifer Dulos disappearing right after I became a mother for the first time. Being adjacent to the forensic science field, I yearned to analyze all the evidence, but without a body, what could we do? Well, plenty, as Fotis Dulos and his accomplices found out.

Rich Cohen weaves together an interesting narrative of Jennifer's life from when they were in the same social circles during their collegiate years to what he could interpret through his source materials (as described in his Note on Sources near the end of the book). Though there were moments when he took a little bit of liberty (such as going through what Jennifer's last thoughts might have been), they weren't as frequent as they could have been. I very much appreciated that he didn't attempt to write what the children may have felt upon seeing their father for the last time as he succumbed to his suicide attempt.

I felt this did have a fair amount of new material with acquaintances he and Jennifer shared giving their insight. It helped keep the focus on Jennifer and her story, the victim (along with her family and friends who lost her). It also laid out the facts of the case in a way that flowed, tying in backstory where needed and in a cohesive way. A definite recommendation to true crime fans that don't feel averse to stories of this nature.

The story is about the disappearance and likely murder of Jennifer Dulos during the tumultuous divorce. She comes from wealth (her aunt is Liz Claiborne). It’s truly heartbreaking and the author gave us a personal view into Jennifer’s life. He paints a picture of Jennifer Dulos both before and after she married Fotus. Her body has never been found, and her husband was ultimately charged with her murder.

I have read and followed the case and I found details that were brand new to me. Thank you NetGallery for allowing me to read this book.

A well written account based on facts about the disappearance of Jennifer Dulos. Edoardo Ballerini's narration takes on a documentary-like vibe.

Are you familiar with the fad "Blind Date with a book"? Essentially you buy a wrapped book with no idea what you are buying. It's basically how I deal with most of the books I read. I don't look at reviews prior. I don't read the back cover. I don't try to suss out too much info. If I like the title, if the cover art is intriguing - that's my next read. Murder in the Dollhouse was on Netgalley as an audio arc and just based on the title, I requested it. As a true crime fanatic, imagine my utter delight when I started listening and recognized the names of the main characters within minutes of the start. This is the true story of the murder/disappearance of rich woman, wife and mother of 5, Jennifer Dulos. I've actually watched several television shows covering the murder so I went into this book with some knowledge. Compared to the shows I've seen, author Rich Cohen includes a ton of detail about friends and relatives of the wealthy couple, highlighting for me how insanely rich and influential they and their society were. It was a super quick listen, presented the facts, but ultimately didn't add much for me. If you know nothing - it's absolutely a great read and will give you an overview of an awful subject.

This was a well written and researched telling of the tragic disappearance of Jennifer Dulos. Cohen paints a picture of a family crumbling under the pressures of one parent while the other parent tries to overcompensate and hold everything together. He deftly argues that money cannot solve every problem under the sun. He describes Jennifer as a frightened and anxious woman who is afraid for her life and those of her children. I had never heard of this case, and while it is tragic and terrible, Cohen does point out that this case got more recognition due to the "missing white woman" syndrome that American society so often falls prey to. Definitely a good read for true crime readers.

This is the true story of the murder of Jennifer Dulous, who disappeared after dropping her children off at school in 2019. In the middle of a very contentious divorce, Jennifer had five children with her husband and there was a lot of money and property in play. Her husband and his mistress were arrested for her murder, but sadly, he never had to face a judge or jury, because he killed himself the day he was supposed to appear in court. His girlfriend is in jail for conspiracy to commit murder. As for Jennifer, her body has never been found. A tragic story is all too common today, where women are more likely to be killed by a spouse or partner than a stranger