Manhunt
The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer

When I'm as disappointed in an audiobook as I am in this one, I wonder if it might have been better in an unabridged version. As it is, it's a very short audiobook and did not need to be abridged. The Wilkes story is incredible enough and exciting enough that it doesn't need the over-dramatization given it by both the author's florid writing and by Richard Thomas' unnecessarily dramatic reading. I would love to have this extraordinary moment in history told by a better historian and read by a better reader.

After John Wilkes Booth did his thing at Ford’s theater, it took the combined forces of the United States, Virginia, Maryland, private pursuers and even Confederate soldiers to track down Booth and his partners in crime. Swanson gives us a beautifully detailed blow-by-blow of the actions that took p......more

I actually started reading this around the same time we were watching the series on Apple TV+. For anyone who has access to the series, I recommend it highly. The acting is superb and the nuances to what is happening in today’s American politics, cannot be ignored. Back to the book. I forgot to add......more

I love this author and I'm trying to read every book by him, so of course I needed to read this one and I am so glad I did. James is a fantastic writer that writes for all abilities and understandings. A fascinating tale of murder, intrigue, and betrayal. A gripping hour-by-hour account told through......more

This book reads like a well-paced murder mystery novel. It was fun to read and I gobbled it up quickly. The book does not really give much background historical information, as it says laser focused on the story of the assassination (including the attempts on the lives of the Secretary of State and V......more

This was positively Shakespearean. Not in the poetry, but in the sheer drama of it. The plotting, the conspiracy, the murder. Swanson does a terrific job of cobbling together a stunningly complete and compelling narrative of Booth's time on the lam while armies hunted for him, all from interviews wi......more