Fred & Rose West Britain’s most infamous couple killers by Ryan Green Book Review

Do you ever fall down a bit of a rabbit hole that you can’t find the way out of? that’s what happened with this book. After reading Brian Masters’ book on the trial of Rose West and having read many others previously, this book, ‘Fred and Rose West, Britain’s Most Infamous Couple Killers’ by Ryan Green fell into my basket as well. Sometimes you just have to follow the path and keep reading…

Click me to go to my Review

Synopsis

On the 24th of February 1994, police knocked on the door of an aging house in the English town of Gloucester. They’d come to serve a search warrant in the case of a missing girl – the daughter of the house’s inhabitants. What they uncovered would shock the world: decades of child abuse, an underground torture chamber, and a burial ground containing the bodies of the spent victims of the torture– including that of the missing daughter. The address was 25 Cromwell Street, and these discoveries would earn it the moniker “The House of Horrors”.

At the end of the investigation, the number of the murdered was twelve – all young females, including one daughter and one stepdaughter. The couple responsible were Rosemary and Frederick West, and this book will tell you their story. We’ll start from the very beginning, with the killers’ childhoods and upbringings, exploring in detail the factors that contributed to their later depravities. From there we’ll detail the crimes themselves, following the tragic tales of their victims, including the mechanisms that led them to their grim fates. We’ll examine how the full extent of their crimes was uncovered in the subsequent investigation. Finally, we’ll dig into the malignancies both surrounding the killers and within themselves that drove them to perpetrate their heinous acts.

This book is not one for the faint of heart. It enters into graphic details that may upset those of a delicate constitution. It is a true life report on real events. If you believe as I do that we are better served knowing and understanding the full depths of darkness the human soul is capable of, and if you are able to stomach this knowledge, then read on and discover the story of one of Britain’s most infamous killer couples.

About The Author

Ryan Green is a true crime author in his late thirties. He lives in Herefordshire, England with his wife, three children, and two dogs. Outside of writing and spending time with his family, Ryan enjoys walking, reading and windsurfing.

Ryan is fascinated with History, Psychology and True Crime. In 2015, he finally started researching and writing his own work and at the end of the year, he released his first book on Britain’s most notorious serial killer, Harold Shipman.

He has since written several books on lesser-known subjects, and taken the unique approach of writing from the killer’s perspective. He narrates some of the most chilling scenes you’ll encounter in the True Crime genre.

My Review

This is a very short, 68-page book, which I didn’t realise when I got it. Thankfully I obtained it through Kindle Unlimited so it didn’t cost me anything. I say thankfully because it was probably the worst book I have ever read on the case and I have read most of them over the years, to be honest.

Ryan Green gives a very basic overview of the crimes of Frederick and Rosemary West, and their victims, something I could have probably written myself in a few hours without anything more than a basic google for the girl’s ages and date of death.

It is good if you know nothing at all about this case, this will give you the basic overview. Between 1967 and 1987, Rosemary and Frederick West killed at least 12 young women and girls, including their own daughter and stepdaughter. Most of their victims were hitchhikers or runaways whom they lured back to their home with promises of food or shelter. Once there, they would rape and torture their victims before ultimately killing them. They would then dismember the bodies and bury them in shallow graves, mostly around their property.

Both Rosemary and Frederick were arrested and charged with multiple counts of murder. Frederick hanged himself in his jail cell before he could be tried, while Rosemary was sentenced to life in prison where she remains today.

In conclusion, if you want a really basic overview of two heinous murderers then this is a good introduction for you. It doesn’t contain many details so will save you from the majority of the gruesome facts. However, if you enjoy reading true crime, or want something to get your teeth into then there are far better books than this one. Ones with more information and a more in-depth look at the crimes and trial of Rosemary.

Rated