Fascinating-Every Avenue Explored

This is an extremely well researched book. I like the way the author also discusses mental health issues in depth & is brave enough to let us into his own mental health issues which are relevant to the story. It's a tragic case & my conclusion is that Elisa's death wasn't suicide or an accident, I think someone else was involved. Full marks for bringing this story into the open in such a comprehensive way.

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Fantastic take on an important case————-MrsUrquhart

This was a well researched and written book on the Elisa Lam case. It does explain in many ways the difficulty the author came up against, trying to get to the truth of this poor woman’s, death, murder, suicide whatever in fact it was. But doors closing in his face didn’t stop him trying different ways to discover voices that could tell the truth of Eliza’s last days. Also gives explanation of the video of Elisa which went viral worried after her death.

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Full of Good Data!

Having just watched the Netflix miniseries about Elisa Lam - this book is a timely reminder of the many broader aspects that surround this case. The thing is that something just does not feel right about this entire affair! Elisa has becone all things to all people - and is portrayed as a naive young woman from an ethnic minority background - or a progressive and highly switched on modern woman wise beyond her years! Was she raped, murdered and her body dumped in the water tower? Or, did she suffer a bizarre psychological episode that ultimately cost her her life?

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1 person found this helpful

A thorough review of the case

Jake Anderson really put a lot into this book. It has a great insight into the case. It has well thought out and formed theories. He documents and discusses at length mental health which is really brave and the parallels of his own struggles with demons and that of ms Lam. **Spoiler** he eventually unearthed a cover up and although not surprised he has clear MO of why it could have been covered up. I found it fascinating and intriguing, I really hope the case gets reexamined and justice prevails.

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Disappointing

Having watched the Netflix show about this story I was looking forward to this book. The story of Elisa is almost secondary to the authors own Mental Health struggles

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Needs a discerning proofreader

This book does tell the story of the sad death of Elisa Lam.

Unfortunately it takes such a circuitous route, especially the sheer volume of information about the author’s own struggle with mental health problems. They are relevant but should only have been mentioned in passing, those details would fill a good book alone.

The problem comes when the author tries combine his own experiences with Elisa Lam’s story. This, combined with all of the other blind alley details and explanations i.e an exhaustive monologue about Lithium, which includes; the Big Bang theory, it’s biological effects on the body and then the author’s own experiences and those of others who have taken Lithium. That’s just one of many, many examples. These all serve to dilute the story of a sad and terrible death.

As I say; it is unfortunate that the author doesn’t stay with his original theme and theories of what happened to Elisa Lam. This would have been a much better book for it.

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Disappointing

An intriguing story but overly long and boring, killed off by a self indulgent author, obsessed with his own mental health. Too many philosophical musings. The actual evidence and information uncovered about Elisa Lam's death could have been covered in about an hour.

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