
The Man from the Train
The Solving of a Century-Old Serial Killer Mystery
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Narrated by:
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John Bedford Lloyd
Using unprecedented, dramatically compelling sleuthing techniques, legendary statistician and baseball writer Bill James applies his analytical acumen to crack an unsolved century-old mystery surrounding one of the deadliest serial killers in American history.
Between 1898 and 1912, families across the country were bludgeoned in their sleep with the blunt side of an axe. Jewelry and valuables were left in plain sight, bodies were piled together, faces covered with cloth. Some of these cases, like the infamous Villasca, Iowa, murders, received national attention. But few people believed the crimes were related. And fewer still would realize that all of these families lived within walking distance to a train station.
When celebrated baseball statistician and true-crime expert Bill James first learned about these horrors, he began to investigate others that might fit the same pattern. Applying the same know-how he brings to his legendary baseball analysis, he empirically determined which crimes were committed by the same person. Then, after sifting through thousands of local newspapers, court transcripts, and public records, he and his daughter, Rachel, made an astonishing discovery: They learned the true identity of this monstrous criminal. In turn they uncovered one of the deadliest serial killers in America.
Riveting and immersive, with writing as sharp as the cold side of an axe, The Man from the Train paints a vivid, psychologically perceptive portrait of America at the dawn of the 20th century, when crime was regarded as a local problem and opportunistic private detectives exploited a dysfunctional judicial system. James shows how these cultural factors enabled such an unspeakable series of crimes to occur, and his groundbreaking approach to true crime will convince skeptics, amaze aficionados, and change the way we view criminal history.
©2017 Bill James & Rachel McCarthy James. All rights reserved. (P)2017 Simon & Schuster Audio. All rights reserved.Listeners also enjoyed...




















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Historical true-crime investigation at it’s best.
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+ It's detailed and thorough and one of the only true crime books that's piqued my interest to finsih.
- The sentences were repetitive enough I checked my phone more than once to see if there was some sort of playback glitch.
- I enjoyed the material but found the overly familiar writing style cringy; like a professor who thinks he can relate to 'the kids'. I didn't get his dated pop culture references or relate to his jokes or personal flair. It is more off-putting than the gruesome murders.
Interesting but hard to recommend
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Loved it
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Very interesting, but a bit dense
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Simply Captivating
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meh
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Amazing Audio book
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A big issue I had with the book was the recording of it... there are several sections that skip portions of the story, as if it were a record that skips after someone bumps into the table holding the record player.
@ 5:55 of Chapter 46 is a good example of this. There were a few skips where I thought I had just misheard, but this one was much more noticeable, so I decided to point this one out. It skips from "the little girl was missing from school on Monday, then Tuesday, then..." all the way to the description of the bodies that are found sometime in the future. I have no way of knowing if I missed 6 seconds or 6 minutes of the story. That was the most frustrating thing about this particular audio book.
Book is ok, meant to be a very detailed theory
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Engrossing Story, Though Slightly Too Long
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Entertaining true crime stories
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