Review of Twisted But True
Posted: 11 Feb 2023, 03:42
[Following is a volunteer review of "Twisted But True" by Darren Burch.]
Twisted But True by Darren Burch is a true crime autobiography by a retired sergeant who served for over 30 years in various branches of law enforcement in and around Phoenix, Arizona. With that many years under his belt, you’d think he'd have a stack of stories to tell, and they're all right here in this book.
Told in first person across 35 chapters, Darren gives us an in-depth look into various crimes and police procedures. He’s a skilled storyteller. You’ll be chuckling in one paragraph, then gasping in shock in the next. He has an engaging sense of humor that shines through in every story.
There’s so much to love about Twisted But True. The book never gets stale. Heartbreaking stories about his family and personal losses are mixed in with some serious crimes and many of his own comical mishaps. His use of amusing nicknames to protect the criminals from being identified is highly entertaining and very appropriate.
Every chapter is a new story and ranges from 3 pages to 20 pages, with the average being around 6. Broken down like this, it’s a book you can read if you have a few spare minutes. But be warned, I found it an absolute page-turner and finished it across three sessions.
My only issue with this book is that the focus is supposed to be on the ‘twists.’ Yes, there is one at the end of every chapter, but sadly, for me, they were more like a ‘what happened next’ or a piece of backstory. An unexpected twist usually comes out of the left field, and there weren’t really any of these, although chapter 14 came close.
I wanted to give this book 5 out of 5 stars, but the twists left me wanting more, leading to my final score of 4 out of 5. The book is professionally edited, and I only picked up one tiny grammatical error.
Fans of true crime books and TV series will love this book. His pacy way of getting to the good stuff leaves no room for boredom or tuning out.
It’s not for the squeamish, though. At the start of the book, he has a disclaimer warning readers of the adult content. Some descriptions, like the dismembered sheep or the liquified, decomposed corpse, are confronting. At the beginning of chapter 22, he even suggests putting down any food you have until you’ve finished reading.
For several years, he worked in the sex crime division and doesn’t hold back with his descriptions of some startling things that people get up to.
For anyone with a strong stomach and an interest in true crime, this book will be hard to put down once you start. Darren hints at a second book coming out, and I’ll be one of the first in line to read it.
******
Twisted But True
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes
Twisted But True by Darren Burch is a true crime autobiography by a retired sergeant who served for over 30 years in various branches of law enforcement in and around Phoenix, Arizona. With that many years under his belt, you’d think he'd have a stack of stories to tell, and they're all right here in this book.
Told in first person across 35 chapters, Darren gives us an in-depth look into various crimes and police procedures. He’s a skilled storyteller. You’ll be chuckling in one paragraph, then gasping in shock in the next. He has an engaging sense of humor that shines through in every story.
There’s so much to love about Twisted But True. The book never gets stale. Heartbreaking stories about his family and personal losses are mixed in with some serious crimes and many of his own comical mishaps. His use of amusing nicknames to protect the criminals from being identified is highly entertaining and very appropriate.
Every chapter is a new story and ranges from 3 pages to 20 pages, with the average being around 6. Broken down like this, it’s a book you can read if you have a few spare minutes. But be warned, I found it an absolute page-turner and finished it across three sessions.
My only issue with this book is that the focus is supposed to be on the ‘twists.’ Yes, there is one at the end of every chapter, but sadly, for me, they were more like a ‘what happened next’ or a piece of backstory. An unexpected twist usually comes out of the left field, and there weren’t really any of these, although chapter 14 came close.
I wanted to give this book 5 out of 5 stars, but the twists left me wanting more, leading to my final score of 4 out of 5. The book is professionally edited, and I only picked up one tiny grammatical error.
Fans of true crime books and TV series will love this book. His pacy way of getting to the good stuff leaves no room for boredom or tuning out.
It’s not for the squeamish, though. At the start of the book, he has a disclaimer warning readers of the adult content. Some descriptions, like the dismembered sheep or the liquified, decomposed corpse, are confronting. At the beginning of chapter 22, he even suggests putting down any food you have until you’ve finished reading.
For several years, he worked in the sex crime division and doesn’t hold back with his descriptions of some startling things that people get up to.
For anyone with a strong stomach and an interest in true crime, this book will be hard to put down once you start. Darren hints at a second book coming out, and I’ll be one of the first in line to read it.
******
Twisted But True
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes
