Skip Hollandsworth is a legendary crime writer, and having many of his longform articles gathered in a book is so valuable. He has a knack for capturing the human side of true crime.

Given Skip Hollandsworth's prowess in true crime as a genre, I was primed to enjoy this collection. Maybe it's just that the tone of true crime reportage has changed so much in the last 25 years, or that so much of the genre now rewards longform deep-dives, but I found myself disappointed. Each piece feels curiously unfinished, perhaps even hollow. I was enchanted by the quote Hollandsworth attributes to a long-ago court-watcher: "where else are you going to find so much human nature?" — yet I found little insight into, or even interest in human nature in these pieces. While Hollandsworth avoids presenting his subjects as acts in a freak show, his journalistic focus here still reads as a cursory gesture ("weird, huh?"), before we're on to the next.

The standout piece is unquestionably "O Sister Where Art Thou", covering the incarcerated women of the Goree State Farm and their brief and surprising fame as a touring musical group. The length, depth, and general execution of this piece makes one wonder what might have been had Hollandsworth chosen to expand it into a full book. I believe I would have enjoyed it more than this one.

Even if I didn't read everything Skip Hollandsworth writes, I'd still find She Kills fascinating. The storytelling really sucks you in. I'm a lifelong Texan so I'd heard some of these stories, but some were brand new (like the Goree Girls and the Burns family). If you like true crime, you'll really love She Kills.