This is not the blood-and-gore type of True Crime story that’s full of murders and mayhem, although the 3 murders it details hit me even harder, like a punch in the gut. Instead, it is an amazingly detailed, almost high-definition account of the famous case of Susan Powell’s disappearance and the subsequent murder of her two young boys by their father, who intentionally torched himself, his sons and the family home 3 years later. Just writing those words is heart-wrenching. To its credit, Olsen’s thoughtfully-rendered account of these crimes and the families involved is even more so. It’s impossible not to get caught up in the people and their story as it unfolds, and even though I knew from national news reports at the time how the horrific drama ended, I was totally hooked by the author’s detailed unveiling of the events that led to that unthinkable ending. It’s hard for anyone, let alone a father of two boys like myself, to comprehend the things that Josh Powell did to his family. Olsen never fully explains the “why’s” of it all, although there are plenty of clues in the killer’s past and his family’s history. But by the end of his account I was glad he didn’t try to fit it into a pat, easily digested explanation. It was just the inexplicably evil acts of a shockingly banal, selfish little man. It defies easy explanation.
The narration by Kevin Pierce was excellent, and perfectly suited to the story. It’s a documentarian’s voice — no nonsense, no extraneous emotionality, but with an undertone that conveys the genuinely heartbreaking emotion behind the facts of the case. I requested a free copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review, but I happily would have paid full price for this one. It’s a great True Crime book, meticulously detailed, thoughtfully written and professionally narrated. And I’ll be thinking about it for a long time.