A Special Kind of Evil

The Colonial Parkway Serial Killings

By: Blaine L. Pardoe, Victoria R. Hester

Narrated by: Lee Ann Howlett

Length: 11 hrs and 3 mins

Publisher's summary

For four years a killer, or killers, stalked Virginia’s Tidewater region, carefully selecting victims, sending waves of terror into the local community.

The Colonial Parkway Murders - the name given eight murders that took place in the Tidewater region in the late 1980s, two of which were on the historic Colonial Parkway, the nation’s narrowest National Park. Young people in the prime of their lives were the targets. But the pattern that stitched this special kind of evil together was more like a spider web of theory, intrigue, and mathematics. Then, mysteriously, the killing spree stopped. The nameless predator, or predators, who stalked the Colonial Parkway stepped back into the mists of time and disappeared.

Now, father-daughter true crime authors Blaine Pardoe and Victoria Hester blow the dust off of these cases. Interviewing members of the families, friends, and members of law enforcement, they provide the first and most complete in-depth look at this string of horrific murders and disappearances. The author-investigators peel back the rumors and myths surrounding these crimes and provide new information never before revealed about the investigations.

©2017 Blaine Pardoe and Victoria Hester (P)2018 WildBlue Press

Very interesting cases but the narrator. . .

I heard about these cases through a true crime podcast and was interested enough to purchase this book. The book does not disappoint.

However, the narrator is difficult to listen to and at times, it hurts my ears! I am Southern and I know I have an accent, but I am not making a living as a narrator! This woman pronounces "ur" in the strangest manner. There is no accent that I know of that pronounces "murder" and "buried" the way she does.

Again, good listen, but I will never purchase a book read by this narrator.

An interesting story

A special kind of evil is in one word interesting. There is a lot to digest in this book and it isn't always easy to do so. For those expecting a resolution to the case you will be sorely disappointed because this case is far from solved. What this book does is take all the existing information and puts it into one place while also going very deep into the lives of the victims to it's detriment at times which might make it hard for some reader's to get through. I will say that the authors state at the beginning of the book the focus was going to be on the victims and most of this book is about them by far more than most true crime books do. Having purchased the audio version of the book and while the narrator wasn't bad she wasn't great either, and the audio quality was pretty good. All in all if your looking for a true crime book more focused on the victims then the crime this is the book for you, a very interesting group of cases, bad police work and bad coverage by media at the time make the case even more interesting then most.

rewelacyjna książka!

Bardzo ciekawa książka o niezbyt znanej w Polsce sprawie. Dobrze napisana. Trzymająca w napięciu ale również niepozwalająca zapomnieć o najważniejszym w całej historii, czyli o ofiarach i ich rodzinach.
Warto odsłuchać.

Well researched

I'm a bit dubious about the rationale these authors have for writing this book. Each of the victims is described in depth through interviews of family and friends. Known facts and various theories of the cases are presented in detail. Remaining questions are clearly outlined. But these are very, very cold cases and suggesting this book might prompt a resolution seems a stretch. And if it does, who will let us know?

Lee Ann Howlett's performance is quite satisfactory. I didn't catch any glaring errors in either delivery or production.

NOTE: I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Exceptional

This book offer exceptional details into the unsolved homicides. Terrific descriptions and analysis. It lays to rest some of the many myths and rumors. May these gruesome killings be solved soon.

A bit different

This book is not a detective story or a true crimes docu where you'll get the answers at the end.
It is however a true memorial to the memory of 8 young people who were murdered cruelly and without cause.
It tells of their lives and the investigations into their deaths.
I found this book difficult to listen to in places and on a few occasions didn't want to finish it. BUT I am pleased I did finish the book. The authors did a fine and balanced job in writing the book and by the end I felt I knew these young people.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Interesting

One can only hope that the monster(s) who committed these awful crimes suffered and died by now, never to walk the earth again. Well written.

The lingering mysteries

Will the Colonial Parkway murders ever been solved? The authors are hoping that someone might still come forward with a tip or clue that could unlock these senseless unsolved crimes. In "A Special Kind of Evil," Pardoe and Hester examine the cases commonly attributed to the Colonial Parkway killer or killers. Were these acts of brutality cause by a single individual serial killer? The authors open up the cold case files and examine the evidence in detail. Pardoe and Hester also investigate other murders that took place during the same time of period and location. The authors sheds light on each victim's life story, detailing the circumstances that led to their tragic ending. As Robert Stack would say, perhaps you can help solve a mystery.

Detailed Account of a Serial Killers Wrath

I received this book in exchange for my honest review.
This book explores the lives and subsequent killings of number of victims in Virginia. I appreciated the amount of research the authors obviously did into these senseless murders, and their efforts to finally capture the culprit. However,some of the details included made this book a cumbersome listen at times. If this book was a little shorter, and some of the mundane parts of the victims' lives had been left out, I would have given it more stars. As written, it is good but not great.

A True Crime Book of the Finest Kind

Would you consider the audio edition of A Special Kind of Evil to be better than the print version?

I haven't read the written or e-book. The audio version is excellent but maybe adding a pdf to go along would be helpful in following the suspects and enhancing the timeline.

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

The fact that the crimes are still unsolved.

What does Lee Ann Howlett bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Excellent narration! Clear voice, good pacing,.

What’s the most interesting tidbit you’ve picked up from this book?

All of the victims seemed both random but shared becoming victims of murder.

Any additional comments?

I am a fan of the genre. This was right up near my favorites.

I was given a copy of this audio book in return for an honest review.
Thanks for the opportunity to share my opinions.