Fascinating Take on a Famous Murder

Wolfe relates how he grew up in LA during the time of the Black Dahlia murder and lived behind Bugsy Siegel. Very interesting new twist on a story that has been written about so many times. Really enjoyed the personal recollections of the case. Lots of photos, too, including two pretty gruesome ones of the victim. Well worth reading.

Good read for crime history buffs.

I found this book very enlightening. I have read five other books on the "Black Dahlia Murder" and found the author's solution both plausible and intriguing.

The Black Dahlia Files

This book was riveting, i hard time putting it down. I have been fascinated by the Black Dahlia murder for as long as I can remember, and by far this bookk has come up with the most believable facts ever. It really opened my eyes to the fortys. Ive always tought of the 40's as golden years of Hollywood, magical. I really had my eyes opened. Fantastic reading!!!!!

Loved It!

Other then nothing more than pure speculation as to who killed her, this was a riveting book! I really couldn't put it down until I finished it. The crime scene photos are VERY graphic and not for those weak in the knees. Actually, the pics alone make this book worth purchasing.

chilling story

the black dahlia files is a chilling story you cannot put it down. the pictures are grusome but tells a tale of what happened to the black dalhia

A HEARTBREAKER!!!,

'She'd come into our drugstore frequently. She'd usually wear one of those two-piece beaching costumes, which left her midriff bare. Or she'd wear black lacy things. Her hair was jet black and she liked to wear it high. She was popular with the men who came in and they usually called her `The Black Dahlia'' 'Each time she would be gone for the day or two saying that she was going to hitch a ride downtown to Sixth Street. Upon her return, she was always loaded with money and would pay all her bills.' I felt for Elizabeth Short. I felt for her poverty and what she thought she had to do to get money, with hopes of seeing her names in lights and eventually becoming a move star. I sense that most of these young girls when starting out never imagined what they were in for until it was too late and they stared danger in the face. But these girls wanted the same as all others, love, acceptance family and marriage no doubt. It is just that they chose a different way which might have seen easier and more lucrative at first then they saw the dead end literally. What I would like to know though is why did these rich guys that courted her never had the presence of mind to help Elizabeth Short with her dental work. She must have gone through so much stress having to put Paraffin candles on the parts of her teeth that has gone bad. (I know someone who put White correction fluid on theirs as a temporary measure until they got to the dentist.) This true story was well told but I cannot help the heavy feeling of sadness for her, and especially her mother who seemed a strong woman holding everything in. If these greedy men in higher echelons wanted to get rid of her so badly, so that shame would not be reflected on them, they should have paid her a good sum to get lost in Australia or some part of Europe, and that would have done her well, I'm sure. Why did they have to cut her up like that? I sincerely hope that young women will read this book and be cautious in their journeys to other states looking for stardom. Reviewed by Heather Marshall Negahdar 09/02/07

An overall good book

This was an overall good book. Not only did it explaine the Dahlia murder, but the people involoved and their contributing story towards Elizabeth Short. Although the middle of the book did steer away from Short, in the end it all tied in and i was glad to have stuck with it.

Inside a Brutal Murder

On Wednesday, January 15, 1947, in Los Angeles, California the body of Elizabeth Short was found. Her head and face had been badly beaten, her mouth slashed from ear to ear and her body had been cut completely in half at the torso. Although hundreds of police officers and homicide investigators worked on the case, the murder to this day remains unsolved. The Black Dahlia Files gives a detailed description of the investigation and attempts to unmask the individuals involved in the murder by taking a closer look at organized crime in California during the 1940¿s. The novel was able to catch my attention with the detail used to describe its important themes of organized crime and corruption and their presence in the justice system during the time period. I found it to be quite frightening how because of this corruption no one has been punished for such a heinous crime. I also liked how real evidence and dialogues were used to better illustrate the truth in this story. The use of photographs and real news clippings were a great way to portray the time period. On the other hand the novel tends to add a few details about the investigation that seem to be irrelevant. I did not like how the novel added information about other murders that took place around the same time because they seemed to be irrelevant to Elizabeth Short¿s murder. I would definitely recommend this novel because it is in no way a boring read and takes a very detailed look at true organized crime and its shocking realities.

For Dahlia buffs and novices alike

Whether you have read every book on the Black Dahlia case or are just a little curious about it, this is the book to read. Wolfe's book is by far the most factual and best substantiated full-length account of the case to date. Wolfe's tenacious digging through official documents and other sources give us what is by far the most detailed factual account of the victim, her life, and her murder. It does not detract much from the book that Wolfe's postulated solution to the crime is merely plausible. Wolfe relies too much and heresy and dubious sources for this part of the book to be convincing. But Wolfe is to be commended for giving detailed source notes for all the information he presents, which allows the reader to evaluate its credibility. Very refreshing compared to the chest-beating 'Take my word for it! I should know!' posturing of other Dahlia authors. The extensive appendices of this book are a trove of firsthand information, reproducing many of the official case documents. Wolfe devotes a 12-page appendix to a point-by-point debunking of Dahlia author Steve Hodel's heavily publicized 2003 claim of having proved his father was the killer. Wolfe shows that Hodel's claim that this father had photographs of the Black Dahlia have been refuted by the woman's family and by facial recognitions experts that his claim to have matched his father's handwriting to notes supposedly written by the killer did not follow standard handwriting analysis procedures and have been refuted by handwriting experts that Hodel deliberately misrepresents press and official references to other suspects and persons of interest as referring to his father and that Hodel's father was not a suspect in the crime until 1949, at which point he was thoroughly investigated by LADA's office and dismissed as a suspect. All and all, Wolfe presents a thoroughgoing look at the crime that is well worth reading.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.

No text was provided for this review.