True Crime Audiobooks | Mystery, Thriller & Horror

Arnold Rothstein and the 1919 Black Sox: The History and Legacy of the Most Notorious Scandal in Ame

In the early 20th century, one of the most integral members of the criminal underworld was Arnold Rothstein, the archetype of the old school mobster. He was intelligent, charming, well-spoken, grotesquely wealthy, and a sharp dresser, often pictured with a patterned bowtie and a flat-top fedora snugly fit over his receding hairline. And yet, he was nothing like the stereotypical mobster; Arnold was not a drinker or smoker, and he was not one to be tempted by illicit substances. He was a notorious high roller, with pockets holding wads of $100 bills, but to the casual eye, he was just another dapper, well-mannered gentleman who frequented the tracks and casinos after a long day at the office. Today, Rothstein is remembered for his murky association with the most notorious event in the history of American sports: the fixing of the 1919 World Series by the Chicago White Sox. The White Sox were favored 5:1 to beat the Cincinnati Reds, and for the first time since 1903, the Series would be a best-of-nine format. However, at a time when players were treated as second class, some sought a payday beyond what they made in the leagues, and the White Sox players were some of the most poorly paid in the league. The owner of the team, Charles A. Comiskey, was one of the cheapest owners in the game. Around two weeks before the World Series, Chicago first baseman Chick Gandil met with a gambler in his Boston hotel room. During that meeting, Gandil told Joseph Sullivan that for $100,000, he and other members of the White Sox were willing to take a dive and make sure that the Reds won the World Series. Gandil was able to convince the team’s top two pitchers to go along with the plan, as well as five other players. With that, the plan to throw the World Series was put in motion, and rumors began to spread around the country prior to the start of the series as gamblers wagered large sums of money on the Reds.

Charles River Editors (Author), Sam Evanston (Narrator)

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Arnold Sodeman: The True Story of the Schoolgirl Strangler

Captured in the 1930s before the words psychopath and pedophile were part of common vernacular, notorious serial killer Arnold Sodeman murdered four young girls with little thought of remorse. Without guilt, the evil serial killer strangled them to death with their own clothing and left their small bodies alone in the Australian brush, earning himself a chilling position in the annals of Australian crime. The first victim in his child murder spree, 12-year-old Mena Griffiths, showed signs of having been sexually assaulted, although the man who would become known as The School-girl Strangler denied the assault, and blamed the killing of both Griffiths and the other girls on his inability to control himself after he'd been drinking. The horrific story of this true-life murderer – a tale of mental illness, childhood abuse, brain damage and alcoholic blackouts – is true crime as its most terrible, and ranks among the worst child murders in world history. After his arrest, Sodeman calmly confessed, saying that when intoxicated, he became overcome by thoughts of revenge, and like a real-life Jekyll and Hyde, transformed from doting husband and family man into a barbarian who strangled four little girls. He chose children and teens, he said, because he could lure them away much easier, but the cold-blooded killer really didn't seem to recognize the abhorrence of taking a child's life. Experts now say the handsome but strange Sodeman would likely have been unfit to stand trial for his crimes, given his family's extensive background of mental illness, but in the 1930s, the serial killer's biography was a tale that left Australia stunned.

Jack Rosewood (Author), Gaius M. Thynne (Narrator)

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Arrested Adolescence: The Secret Life of Nathan Leopold

Nathan Leopold seemed to live a charmed life: a published, polyglot college graduate by the time he was nineteen and from a prominent, wealthy Chicago family. So, it was a shock to everyone when he and his lover, Richard Loeb, confessed to killing their fourteen-year-old neighbor Bobby Franks 'for a thrill.' During the summer of 1924 the world watched in fascinated horror as the pair were defended by the famous Clarence Darrow in what many labeled 'the trial of the century.' There was a massive public outcry when the murderers were spared the death penalty, and once they were behind bars, most hoped they would never be heard from again. Thirty-three years after the murder, it seemed that Nathan Leopold was a changed man. In prison he ran a high school and library, worked as a nurse, and helped find a cure for malaria. He was deemed rehabilitated and paroled to a tiny town in the mountains of Puerto Rico. There he got a degree in social work, raised funds to build a hospital, and advocated for the abolishment of prisons and capital punishment. When he died in 1971 there was an outpouring of support for the 'gentle' 'reformed' killer. Yet his life was not what it seemed.

Erik Rebain (Author), Daniel Henning (Narrator)

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Assassination Vacation

Sarah Vowell exposes the glorious conundrums of American history and culture with wit, probity, and an irreverent sense of humor. With "Assassination Vacation," she takes us on a road trip like no other--a journey to the pit stops of American political murder and through the myriad ways they have been used for fun and profit, for political and cultural advantage. From Buffalo to Alaska, Washington to the Dry Tortugas, Vowell visits locations immortalized and influenced by the spilling of politically important blood, reporting as she goes with her trademark blend of wisecracking humor, remarkable honesty, and thought-provoking criticism. We learn about the jinx that was Robert Todd Lincoln (present at the assassinations of Presidents Lincoln, Garfield, and McKinley) and witness the politicking that went into the making of the Lincoln Memorial. The resulting narrative is much more than an entertaining and informative travelogue--it is the disturbing and fascinating story of how American death has been manipulated by popular culture, including literature, architecture, sculpture, and--the author's favorite--historical tourism. Though the themes of loss and violence are explored and we make detours to see how the Republican Party became the Republican Party, there are lighter diversions into the lives of the three presidents and their assassins, including mummies, show tunes, mean-spirited totem poles, and a nineteenth-century biblical sex cult.

Sarah Vowell (Author), Conan O'brien, Dave Eggers, Jon Stewart, Sarah Vowell, Stephen King (Narrator)

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Assassinations: The Plots, Politics, and Powers Behind History-Changing Murders

A deep dive into high stakes killings, conspiracies, and crimes! Ruthless killers and murderers for hire: they are here, there, and everywhere. They lurk in the shadows, ready to pounce. They terminate on command. And, in the process, they change the course of the world. They are among the world's most cold-hearted, deadly, and emotionless figures. They are assassins, and they have a long history of grievous deeds. From the cunning, calculating, government-trained warriors to the psychopathic, homegrown freelancers, you can find them all in Assassinations: The Plots, Politics, and Powers behind History-changing Murders. Exposed are the hidden agendas as well as the open warfare. The cynical preparations and devastating aftermaths are laid bare. You will quickly find yourself immersed in a world that is filled with killings made to seem like suicides, murders that were designed to look like heart attacks or overdoses, and accidents that, in reality, were carefully orchestrated deaths.

Nick Redfern (Author), Shaun Grindell (Narrator)

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Assassins: Cold-blooded and Pre-meditated Killings that Shook the World

Bloody, violent, and sometimes spectacularly stage-managed, assassinations have become shocking landmarks in modern history, distinguished by their careful planning and cold-hearted detachment. Author Charlotte Greig explores some of the most notorious assassinations in history, looking in depth at the killers, their motives, and the impact the deaths of victims had on society. She investigates the controversies that have arisen where the killers' motives have been unclear or their ability to organize such a crime unaided has been questionable. From the assassinations of Rasputin, Franz Ferdinand, and John F. Kennedy to Gianni Versace, John Lennon, Benazir Bhutto, and Martin Luther King - along with near misses on Ronald Reagan, Andy Warhol, Margaret Thatcher, and Sergei Skripal - this fascinating book gives you the inside track on the drama, horror, and bloody aftermath of assassinations, some of which have changed the course of history.

Charlotte Greig (Author), Colin Mace (Narrator)

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Astrology of Serial Killers, The - Volume 1: What the Zodiac Reveals About History's Most Notorious

What turns a person into a serial killer? Is it possible their dark destiny was foretold in the stars? This book provides the background stories and driving forces behind 24 of the most notorious true crime serial killers of the previous century, including Jeffrey Dahmer, John Wayne Gacy, Charles Manson, and Richard Ramirez. But that's not all!! It also includes breakdowns of the natal charts for each killer, analyzed with astrological pointers to their crime sprees. Could their descent into depravity have been recognized and perhaps diverted before they turned to a life of murder? Some of the results may surprise you.

Rhys Navarro (Author), Kevin Kollins (Narrator)

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At the Devil's Table

In this riveting and relentless nonfiction thriller, award-winning investigative reporter William C. Rempel tells the harrowing story of former Cali cartel insider Jorge Salcedo, an ordinary man facing an extraordinary dilemma—a man forced to risk everything to escape the powerful and treacherous Cali crime syndicate. Colombia in the 1990s is a country in chaos, as a weak government battles guerrilla movements and narco-traffickers, including the notorious Pablo Escobar and his rivals in the Cali cartel. Enter Jorge Salcedo, a part-time soldier, a gifted engineer, a respected businessman and family man—and a man who despises Pablo Escobar for patriotic and deeply personal reasons. He is introduced to the godfathers of the Cali cartel, who are at war with Escobar and desperately want their foe dead. With mixed feelings, Jorge agrees to help them. Once inside, Jorge rises to become head of security for Miguel Rodríguez Orejuela, principal godfather of the $7-billion-a-year Cali drug cartel. Jorge tries to turn a blind eye to the violence, corruption, and brutality that surround him, and he struggles privately to preserve his integrity even as he is drawn deeper into the web of cartel operations. Then comes an order from the godfathers that he can't obey—but can't refuse. Jorge realizes that his only way out is to bring down the biggest, richest crime syndicate of all time. Thus begins a heart-pumping roller-coaster ride of intensifying peril. Secretly aided by a pair of young American DEA agents, Jorge races time and cartel assassins to extract damaging evidence, help capture the fugitive godfather, and save the life of a witness targeted for murder. Through it all, death lurks a single misstep away. William C. Rempel is the only reporter with access to this story and to Jorge, who remains in hiding somewhere in the United States—even the author doesn't know where—but has revealed his experience in gripping detail. Salcedo's is the story of one extraordinary ordinary man forced to risk everything to end a nightmare of his own making.

William C. Rempel, William Rempel (Author), Fred Sanders (Narrator)

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Australian Heist

Australia's Number 1 True Crime Writer on Australia's Greatest Gold Robbery. On 15 June 1862, a gang of bushrangers held up a gold escort at Eugowra, just east of Forbes, NSW. They escaped with a pile of cash and 77 kilograms of gold, worth about $10 million today. It remains the largest gold robbery in Australian history. In this riveting re-creation of the events, James Phelps finally tells the full story of how Frank Gardiner, Ben Hall, John O'Meally, Johnny Gilbert, Henry Manns, Alexander Fordyce, John Bow and Dan Charters planned and executed the robbery - and what happened to all that gold. Australian Heist is a thrilling, fast-paced and thoroughly modern take on one of the most extraordinary episodes in the nation's history, by Australia's number-one true-crime writer.

James Phelps (Author), Peter Hosking (Narrator)

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Australian Heist: The gripping extraordinary true story of Australia's biggest gold robbery from the

James Phelps (Author), Peter Hosking (Narrator)

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Ave Vinum: Kulinarischer Kriminalroman

Nach einem schweren Unwetter steht das idyllische Ahrtal unter Wasser, doch für Sternekoch und Hobbydetektiv Julius Eichendorff kommt es noch schlimmer: Ihm wird eine Leiche buchstäblich vor die Füße geschwemmt. Der Mann ist ertrunken. Aber nicht im Wasser. Sondern in Sangri-Ahr, der neuen Spezialität des Tals. Schnell wird klar: Julius' Verstand muss diesmal schärfer als ein japanisches Messer sein, um dem raffinierten Täter das Handwerk zu legen.

Casten Sebastian Henn (Author), Jürgen Von Der Lippe (Narrator)

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Babes in the Wood: Two girls murdered. A guilty man walks free. Can the police get justice?

'An extremely well-written and detailed account' - Adam Hibbert, former head of Surrey and Sussex Major Crime Team 'A triumph . . . Babes in the Wood should be required reading for all budding detectives' - Malcolm Bacon, former DI On 9 October 1986, nine-year-olds Nicola Fellows and Karen Hadaway went out to play on their Brighton estate. They would never return home; their bodies discovered the next day concealed in a local park. This devastating crime rocked the country. With unique access to the officers charged with catching the killer, former senior detective Graham Bartlett and bestselling author Peter James tell the compelling inside story of the investigation as the net tightens around local man Russell Bishop. The trial that follows is one of the most infamous in the history of Brighton policing – a shock result sees Bishop walk free. Three years later, Graham is working in Brighton CID when a seven-year-old girl is abducted and left to die. She survives . . . and Bishop’s name comes up as a suspect. Is history repeating itself? Can the police put him away this time, and will he ever be made to answer for his past horrendous crimes? Both gripping police procedural and an insight into the motivations of a truly evil man, Babes in the Wood by Graham Bartlett with Peter James is a fascinating account of what became a thirty-two year fight for justice.

Graham Bartlett (Author), Leighton Pugh (Narrator)

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True Crime Audiobooks in Mystery, Thriller & Horror