A few years ago Sarah Weinman thought she was going to have a career as a forensic scientist. But then she launched the crime and mystery fiction blog Confessions of an Idiosyncratic Mind as a way of procrastinating on her master’s thesis, and it changed her life’s path. As she’s the most voracious reader we’ve ever met, we’ve asked Sarah to recommend a new book for Flavorpill readers to check out each Wednesday. Learn more about her latest pick — a thrilling-but-true American crime tale — after the jump, and leave us a review in the comments if you’ve already read it.
The Love Pirate and the Bandit’s Son: Murder, Sin, and Scandal in the Shadow of Jesse James, by Laura James “James, who set the bar on historical true crime blogging, brings her knowledgeable and accessible voice to book form with this rollicking tale of Zeo Zoe Watkins, the woman who always chose money over love, and Jesse James Jr. How their lives intersect makes for fascinating reading and of course it’s inevitable things go horribly wrong. The Zeo sections brim a bit more with life, but overall this is exactly what fact crime should be: informative, entertaining and told with the narrative verve of a thriller.”
– Sarah Weinman