2.5 stars
I could read more about Mrs. Hope in a more interesting story. The old Hollywood setting is fine and makes this more readable, but it feels like there are no stakes, and most characters are paper-thin.

What I managed to rip from these letters was that, despite they were well written, Abelard was self-centered, worried about his reputation, arrogant, eager to gather pity from others and lacked the sense of responsibility. Heloise was asking him to write more and express his kindness and love to her after being put into a convent by him etc. So... I didn't really see that "true love" thing going on for even half the time I was reading.

"Somehow, we just don't see how it is with other folks till--something comes up."

When the wives of the sheriff and the witness are brought to the alleged crime scene, the wives are underestimated and belittled, but they have the knowledge and compassion that their husbands lack.

Hitchcock has a knack for improving the source material, but most of the Alfred Hitchcock Presents episodes were directed by someone else. Robert Florey's season 7 episode was quite good, so I thought I'd also try the short story. Turns out both are equally good.

3.5 stars
Laura Ingalls Wilder (the author of Little House on the Prairie) and her family didn't live in Kansas near a serial killer family for long, but the juxtaposition is striking. Unlike the Kelly family over a decade later, the Benders, who targeted lone travelers in their squalid inn, seemingly got away. There were many stories about vigilantes allegedly catching them, but it was likely a case of everyone wanting to be part of the story, like the people who wandered to the crime scene and stole pieces from the cabin or locks of hair from the bodies. And I thought I had heard it all.

3.5 stars
Unless you have a great interest in true crime, especially historical cases, these Bloodlands stories are probably just curiosities. Stories that have been forgotten in the depths of history for one reason or another.

The Pirate is about Albert Hicks, whose bloodthirsty journey around the world ended when he was convicted for killing three people onboard an oyster sloop. His execution became a spectacle (papers advertised trips to see it, complete with refreshments), and for years, his wax figure was one of the most popular displays in P. T. Barnum's museum.

3.5 stars
Shortest of the bunch so far, but unpacks everything economically: the effects of police brutality in squeezing out a confession, the repercussions of an all-white jury when the defendant is black, the racist coverage of the case etc. When Nixon was executed, the killings stopped. That would indicate he was guilty, but considering the previously mentioned issues, it can never be fully confirmed.

Well... You know, it's pretty much the same than the movie so I don't think it deserves much credit as it is. Though I don't know the back story of writing this book so can't comment much.