American Murder Houses; Steve Lehto

This is one of those true crime books I recommend reading alongside something else. Not because the stories included in “American Murder Houses” is particularly gruesome or detailed, but because it’s just not that engaging otherwise. I’m not saying that the selected houses aren’t worth talking about, some are genuinely interesting and I learned a lot about the lore surrounding places that have since become legend (like the Amityville House and The Gardette-LaPrete House). And while most of the houses are famous either because of the serial killer who lived there, or the fame the murders themselves garnered (either because of the celebrities involved or the media circus around the crime) the selection of the homes and crimes included was… odd. Meaning, the house itself was an afterthought and not really involved in the crime the way you’d expect from “murder houses”.

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True crime does not need to be sensationalized, but it shouldn’t be dry either. Something horrific happened and the natural inclination most people have (at least if they are interested in the subject matter like I am) is to understand why someone would do this, or, in the frame of the “murder houses” what was it about this home that then held on to these gruesome crimes that would then make the home stigmatized, and later part of the legend. Unfortunately, I think something that could have been really interesting was simply written by the wrong author. In his acknowledgements, Lehto is the first to admit he has no idea what attracts people to true crime, and if you don’t have that at least small amount of morbid curiosity, maybe don’t write this kind of book? I think that’s what contributed to a lot of the dryness of what was presented, as well as the odd mix of homes. Some are included simply because someone very famous died on the premises, not necessarily IN their home (like Lennon and Versace), or are famous because of the media circus around the crime (the Menendez brothers and the Nicole Brown-Simpson murder), but the homes themselves? Not part of the story the way that the Lizzie Borden House is, or even the Amityville House and the LaLaurie Mansion are. On top of that, when you throw in the homes where serial killers did part of their spree right up against the homes where a mother drowns her children due to postpartum depression (as in the Andrea Yates house), I have to wonder what really was the criteria for what house was or was not selected for this sort of anthology. Why include Andrea Yates’ home but ignore, say, H.H. Holme’s actual murder hotel where he also lived? Or even the home of Ed Gein? Those homes are as much part of the story as the crime’s themselves, and yet not even an honorable mention whereas the Manson murders are ALL included, all the homes. See what I mean about just including famous murders rather than places where the “murder house” is actively part of the history?

While it was nice to get a refresher on some of these rather famous homes and the crimes that gave them fame, this book wasn’t particularly interesting as a whole, and, again, I question some of the homes that were included at all. It was interesting to see some of the lawsuits and then state laws that came about due to selling homes that had death or murder happen in them and how/when a realtor has to disclose that information, but that was just the Afterword of this book so not really much of a focus, either. This book is, sadly, a bit forgettable, hence the 2.5 stars. I’m just glad I was reading something else in tandem with this or I think I’d have put it down and moved on without even noticing.