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Rating: 
Summary: Shocking, simply shocking.
Review: "Burned Alive" is the most shocking true crime tale this reviewer has read. It tells the story of a crime that badly needs solving with an incarceration of the guilty. On solely those two factors, BA is a success. A young woman named Kim is the victim of a kidnapping gone awry. When a sloppily delivered ransom message does not go through, the perps panic and Kim is murdered by literally being torched alive. BA's high points are Kim's father's zeal to solve the crime and the painstaking efforts of the New York City homicide detectives to close the crime. They follow endless leads, sifting facts, interviewing, delving through phone logs and wearing out shoe leather. We learn how the cops interrogate -sometimes bluffing that they know more than they do. The perps know the game and play it back-as best they can. BA has weak points: There are far too many facts and leads, both real and false, to hold the reader's interest. We do not need to track every twist and turn in the case. Strangely, there are FAR too many suspects! That may seem like a positive, but in the case of BA, it isn't. Also too many of the suspects have nicknames! Finally, several of the characters are not central to the plot, entertaing as some of these folks are. A final weak point lies in the victim herself. We get to know her grieving father better than her! While there is much revulsion toward the bad guys, there is little sympathy generated for this young woman who died so gruesomely. This reviewer would still recommend BA to hardcore true crime fans. They will enjoy how the NYPD solved this murder. For the rest of us, 4 stars are a more appropriate, if generous, rating. Once again, the "Ann Rule rule" is in effect. Skip over those centerfold photos until the very end. The header to this review is taken directly from an early James Bond movie because this crime is indeed shocking! (You're good if you can name the flick). No disrespect to Kim or her family was intended.
Rating: 
Summary: Good Story, Quality Writing
Review: As true crime books go, this is definitely a good one. It is a very intersting plot-line with a totally distasteful villain. There is enough interesting material to keep my attention through all 345 pages, which canmnot be said for all true crime books. The author is a newspaper reporter who covered the case and it is very well written.
Rating:
Summary: A life ended too soon
Review: Burned Alive is one book that I cry about. A sad tale of a young girl's life that ended before her time in a truely heartless and cowardly way by people trying to save themselves. The pain and fear Kim Antonakos must have felt and the pain her family and friends were put through and will always be put through for the rest of their lives. If you love true crime, you'll love this book. Very well written with lots of detailed information about the abduction, trial, and investigation. A must for all true crime fans.
Rating: 
Summary: Terrible! Don't Bother!
Review: I have not read the book because it would be too painful. But I knew Kim and her father and they truely loved each other, he is a wonderful man with a loving relationship with Kim. All of his pain and suffering is too much for a father to have to go thru. Kim was not spoiled and was a sweetheart and did not deserve this but is with our Father in Heaven with perfect love and peace and she deserves that. May God bless her father and family.
Rating:
Summary: A must read
Review: I just finished reading this book this morning... in only 2 days! One of those books where you WANT to keep reading and see what happens...I am interested to know if either Nick or Josh won their appeals and what kind of a life Jay has forged for himself... It makes you wonder who needs enemies with friends like these.. and you have to feel sorry for Tommy... I have a library of true crime books and this was the quickest one I read...
Rating:
Summary: Big Yawn
Review: I totally agree with the 10/18/00 1-star review written by "A reader from Midwest, USA". I had completely lost interest in continuing with this book about halfway through. The author was inconsistent when referring to key players...sometimes calling them by nicknames, sometimes by given names...and they all had very similar names to begin with; so it was impossible to keep everyone straight without taking notes or constantly flipping back and forth to the photos. I also found it to be a waste of time that he went into so much detail about the backgrounds of people who played no part whatsoever in the case. The biggest disappointment was the author's failure to give us sufficient background information on the victim and her family.
Rating: 
Summary: A burn out
Review: Just looking at the cover of the book in the supermarket made me want to buy it. I love true crime books, call me gruesome but it's true. After reading the summary on the back I knew I had to get it. After reading it I was very disapointed. There were about 10 MAIN characters, and who can count how many other people mentioned. It was very, very confusing and hard to follow along with. Every single character had some sort of nick name and a real name, both were used in this story. Good thing for the photos in the center or I would be completely lost. I know the author couldn't help that there were many people involved in this crime because it's based on the truth. But she didn't need to go into detail about every single person and their dog. Some characters she spent so much time with, had nothing to do with the actual crime. I do have to give this book props despite the utter chaos of the characters. It is an intruiging story, but there is no real climax to it, it just keeps going and going. If your a collector of true crime books that you should definetly get this. But if your just looking for something interesting to read I wouldn't get this book.
Rating:
Summary: A burn out
Review: Just looking at the cover of the book in the supermarket made me want to buy it. I love true crime books, call me gruesome but it's true. After reading the summary on the back I knew I had to get it. After reading it I was very disapointed. There were about 10 MAIN characters, and who can count how many other people mentioned. It was very, very confusing and hard to follow along with. Every single character had some sort of nick name and a real name, both were used in this story. Good thing for the photos in the center or I would be completely lost. I know the author couldn't help that there were many people involved in this crime because it's based on the truth. But she didn't need to go into detail about every single person and their dog. Some characters she spent so much time with, had nothing to do with the actual crime. I do have to give this book props despite the utter chaos of the characters. It is an intruiging story, but there is no real climax to it, it just keeps going and going. If your a collector of true crime books that you should definetly get this. But if your just looking for something interesting to read I wouldn't get this book.
Rating:
Summary: Torched
Review: Out of every book I have ever read no book has touched me more deeply than this one. Kieran Crowley did an excellent job of describing the painful emotions surrounding the family and the feelings of remorse or none at all surrounding the "mutts" or criminals. He put the whole story together like a puzzle; interviewing everyone. He jumps around from the family to the criminals just like a movie. It was also very descriptive painting images in my mind of how beautiful she was and how gruesome her death was. The first thing that made the book sound interesting was the title. It was catchy but the truth, in a horrific way. It showed how cruel and selfish people could be, how the world isn't innocent, and how things don't always go according to plan. Then I looked at the picture of a beautiful, not so slender woman and wondered why would any one cause so much pain and suffering on such a good looking woman. When I turned the book over to read the summary it made me want to know who these cold blooded kidnapping murderers were, what happened to them, and what went so wrong that they had to resort to burning her alive. I enjoyed this book. It kept me on my toes wondering how the detectives couldn't have all the information that I had to put them behind bars quicker. I did not want to put the book down for a second. I read it in three days and felt an emotional sympathy for the family. I recommend this book to people who don't have any real grip on the real world and those who have experienced this kind of tragedy and compare your loss to theirs. Knowing some are worse off then you should help lessen the pain and make you more sympathetic. One thing about a non-fiction novels is that it is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. I hope this astounding and most enlightening book reaches out to you.
Rating:
Summary: Evil Friends
Review: This book was very well written and clear. Crowley is an excellent story teller and very accurate on each account. I found the true crime novel easy to read and an all-nighter. This cautionary tale is about a young college student, Kimberly Antonakos, who was viciously torched with gasoline and fire by the very people she extended her home to. The motive: absolute and insane greed! This case was heartbreaking and sends off a new respect for detectives in general. The sad moral in this story is that no one is your friend and becareful whom you befriend.
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