The Real-Life Murder Clubs: Citizens Solving True Crimes by Nicola Stow gives us a look into the world of citizen sleuths. Unlike investigators who are actively involved in solving these cases in an official capacity, these individuals/groups work with whatever information is available in the public domain. As the author mentions that while she had initially assumed that she would be meeting people similar to Richard Osman’s characters from his popular Thursday Murder Club series she found that the real-life versions of citizens attempting to solve crimes were “grittier, inhabited by obsessive, intrepid souls who delve into some of the most gruesome cases in true crime history, while seeking justice and truth for both loved ones and strangers.”

Concise yet factual and informative, this is a well-researched book. Divided into twelve parts; each detailing the crime/crime scene and the sleuth or group/initiative involved in working on that case. From simple internet research and poring over missing person databases and data mining to forensic artistry, bioinformatics and genetic genealogy, these citizen sleuths employ several techniques in the process of identifying unnamed victims, not only providing their families with the answers they have been seeking but also present law enforcement with new details on cold cases. The author mentions different initiatives/groups that work toward victim identification and researching cold cases such as The Doe Network, Project EDAN, The DNA Doe Project and Websleuths.com among others.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the citizen sleuths who are motivated to help bring closure to the families and friends of those who have lost their lives to heinous crimes and remain unidentified. You have to admire the methodical approach and the hours and hours these people devote to their endeavors. While many are motivated on account of personal experiences (or that of people known to them), others simply want to help. In the first segment, a mother uses the internet and made-up social media profiles to identify gang members who were involved in the shooting of her daughter in a case of mistaken identity. The author talks about several cases, some cold cases from decades ago, some of which are well-known (JonBenet Ramsey and Golden State Killer cases, for example) and some lesser known cold cases, as well as some relatively more recent cases ( such as the arrest of Luka Magnotta that was documented in the Netflix documentary series Don't F**k with Cats: Hunting an Internet Killer). She has also mentioned instances in which the overzealousness of citizens researching crime has resulted in false allegations and has caused much chaos in the lives of innocent people. The author also notes that in many instances the authorities have not acknowledged the contribution of the internet sleuths in solving some of the cases mentioned. This, however, has not deterred the individuals and groups in question in their efforts to help as many victims and their families find closure.

The author also provides a list of resources available for those who might want to know more. I should mention, however, that the descriptions of the crimes and the crime scenes described in this book might be upsetting for some readers.

Overall, this is an interesting read that I believe would appeal to true-crime aficionados, those who are curious about citizen sleuths and the different initiatives that are available for those who require assistance.

Many thanks to Ad Lib Publishers and NetGalley for the digital review copy. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. This book is due to be released on November 24, 2022. ( )

“Have you ever come home from work and thought, Tonight I’ll scour the internet, see if I can identify that decayed head found in a bucket of cement? or worked through the night drawing digital pictures from autopsy photographs of an unidentified teenager found murdered in a field thirty years ago? Has it ever occurred to you to compare lists of unidentified corpses with those of missing people? If not, then welcome to the surprising world of citizen sleuths.”

The Real-Life Murder Clubs by Nicola Stow is an interesting examination of the ordinary individuals who devote their spare time to solving cases involving missing and murdered people.

Drawing from information in the public domain, including databases such as NamUS (National Missing and Unidentified Persons System), the DoE Network, and Project EDAN (Everyone Deserves a Name), thousands of volunteer citizens from housewives to retirees to artists to genealogists, spend countless hours combing through social media accounts, maps, newspaper articles and government records, sometimes collaborating in online groups such as websleuths.com, or Facebook.

Their motivation is sometimes personal, as it was for Belinda Lane who was determined to solve her daughter’s murder and bring her killer to justice, and Tricia Griffith, the founder of websleuths.com who had a close encounter with the notorious Ted Bundy. For others it’s simply a sense of empathy, outrage, curiosity or the satisfaction of solving a puzzle. Todd Matthews was a factory worker but nursed an obsession of over 20 years to identity the remains of a woman known only as ‘Tent Girl’, Deanna Thompson was one of the online group members determined to expose the identity of the man who posted two horrific video’s of kittens being suffocated in a vacuum bag, which was the subject of the Netflix documentary Don’t F*ck With Cats. Stow highlights twelve citizens in all and draws on personal interviews, and other sources.

There is some discussion about the pitfalls of citizen involvement in crime solving, including a look at the Boston Bomber case and the Westminster Bridge terror attack, which both led to the false identification of suspects, as well as the personal risks to the amateur sleuth, such as possibly attracting the attention of a killer, and the emotional toll of repeated exposure to trauma.

I found The Real-Life Murder Clubs to be an interesting read, though, as most of the cases have been explored in the media, it doesn’t offer any particularly unique information about the subject. I was slightly disappointed by the exclusive focus on North American cases, persons and communities, especially as the author resides in the UK, and could have explored citizen sleuths as a global phenomenon. Even the list of ‘Useful Resources’ Stow includes are US centric.

I’d recommend The Real-Life Murder Clubs to readers unfamiliar with, and curious about, the activities of citizen sleuths. True crime junkies aren’t likely to learn anything new. ( )

The Real-Life Murder Clubs, by Nicola Stow, is a fun and interesting look at the citizen sleuths who, largely online, work to solve (or at least help authorities to solve) crimes.

This looks at a space that most of us have heard about and many follow in one form or another. This book covers it in a way that is almost adjacent to actual true crime works. Relax, I said almost, it is still true crime. But while the focus of most are on the crimes and uses the methods used as part of the storytelling device, this is more about those who use methods available to everyday citizens and the crimes are part of the storytelling device to tell us about these "detectives."

This is good as either a straight through read or one to read as the time presents itself. This is because of the short chapters and the crisp writing style. So if you're sometimes hesitant to start a book because you'll only have short periods in which to read, this is an ideal option for you.

One thing I found intriguing was my reaction to some of these people. Some I didn't care for, no matter what good they might be providing. Don't get me wrong, I'm not talking about an active dislike, I just don't think I would care to know them if they were my neighbor. Then there were others who I think I would like to know more about as people, not just as citizen sleuths. That, of course, is well beyond the scope of this book, but does illustrate the variety of people who choose to do this.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley. ( )