Reviewed by Anne-Marie Reynolds for Readers' Favorite

A Special Kind of Evil by Blaine L. Pardoe and Victoria R. Hester is a look back at the Colonial Parkway Serial Killings. A team of true-crime authors, father and daughter, are bringing these cold cases back to life in the hope that new evidence can be uncovered. The Tidewater region in Virginia was terrorized for four long years by a serial killer or killers. The victims seem to have been selected with care and the killer was never caught. Indeed, to this day, the bodies of two victims have never been found. Together with investigators, family members and friends of the victims, Blaine and Victoria attempt to piece together the events with a full, in-depth look at what happened. We go on a journey through myth, through rumor, and through fact with never-before-heard information coming to light in a bid to shake the memories of those who were there, to bring new information before us, the jury.

A Special Kind of Evil: The Colonial Parkway Serial Killings by Blaine L Pardoe and Victoria R Hester is one of the most comprehensive true crime stories I have ever been privileged to read. The detail in this book is second to none, the depth of information and investigation incredible. We learn who the victims really were, we step into their shoes for a while as well as the shoes of the investigators on the ground, the first responders, and the families and friends of the victims. The story has been laid out in an organized manner, at times told like a story, at others revealing more information than we have been given before. The way this has been written immediately takes you to the areas where the murders took place. The descriptions draw you in, placing you there almost as a bystander watching events unfold and, from my point of view, that is very important for this kind of book. I highly recommend this to any fans of true-crime stories and those who are genuinely interested in cold cases.