Shake the Devil Off: A True Story of the Murder that Rocked New Orleans [Hardcover]

Ethan Brown (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2009

A charismatic young soldier meets a tragic end in this moving and mesmerizing account of the war in Iraq, Hurricane Katrina, and no-safety-net America

Zackery Bowen was thrust into two of America’s largest recent debacles. He was one of the first soldiers to encounter the fledgling insurgency in Iraq. After years of military service he returned to New Orleans to tend bar and deliver groceries. In the weeks before Hurricane Katrina made landfall, he met Addie Hall, a pretty and high-spirited bartender. Their improvised, hard-partying endurance during and after the storm had news outlets around the world featuring the couple as the personification of what so many want to believe is the indomitable spirit of New Orleans.

But in October 2006, Bowen leaped from the rooftop bar of a French Quarter hotel. A note in his pocket directed the police to the body of Addie Hall. It was, according to NOPD veterans, one of the most gruesome crimes in the city’s history. How had this popular, handsome father of two done this horrible thing?

Journalist Ethan Brown moved from New York City to the French Quarter in order to investigate this question. Among the newsworthy elements in the book is Brown’s discovery that this tragedy—like so many others—could have been avoided if the military had simply not, in the words of Paul Sullivan, executive director of Veterans for Common Sense, “absolutely and completely failed this soldier.” Shake the Devil Off is a mesmerizing tribute to these lives lost.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. On October 17, 2006, 28-year-old Iraq war veteran Zackery Bowen leapt to his death from a New Orleans hotel roof, leaving a suicide note directing police to the dismembered body of his girlfriend, Addie Hall. In journalist Brown's (Snitch) account of Bowen's life, the deterioration of the vet suffering from PTSD parallels that of Katrina-whipped New Orleans, its residents left as stranded as unsupported veterans like Bowen. A high school dropout, New Orleans bartender and a father at age 18, Bowen was determined to improve himself and do well by his child and Lana, his wife, and enlisted in the army, serving as an MP in Kosovo and Iraq. Granted what Brown says was an unfair general (under honorable conditions) discharge, Bowen returned to New Orleans in late 2004, where, abandoned by Lana, he began a turbulent relationship with Hall, culminating in Bowen methodically dismembering and cooking her remains. After covering the murder-suicide for Penthouse in 2007, Brown moved to New Orleans, and his detailed reconstruction of both Bowen's life and the city's deterioration make heartbreaking reading. Perhaps most poignant is the message painted on Bowen's apartment wall: please help me stop the pain. 14 b&w photos. (Sept. 1)
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Review

"Heartbreaking."—Publishers Weekly

"The value of this provocative … book lies in its careful examination of a tragic crime; the author has also made a significant contribution to the literature about the Iraq war. Shake the Devil Off can … be read as a follow-up to Dexter Filkins’s … The Forever War. If Filkins taught us about the war over there, Brown has brought the war home."—Lisa Scottoline, The New York Times Book Review

"Brown creates a riveting portrait of a gruesome crime while detailing the heart of a city in distress. A grim … story delivered with skill and verve."—Kirkus Reviews

"A nicely crafted shocker." —Booklist

"Ethan Brown examines a notorious murder case, rescues it from the talons of tabloid journalists, and comes up with something much more than a true crime book. Shake the Devil Off is a gripping suspense story, an indictment of the military’s treatment of our soldiers in and out of war, and a celebration of the resilience and worth of a great American city."—George Pelecanos, New York Times bestselling author of The Turnaround and Hell to Pay

"Ethan Brown establishes himself as a prodigious reporter and masterful storyteller in Shake the Devil Off, a chilling portrait of a broken hero failed by the system."—Evan Wright, author of the New York Times bestseller Generation Kill

"A ‘coming home’ story that rivals any written about veterans of the war in Iraq, and a true crime account that raises the bar for the genre. Measured, thoroughly reported, and written with true empathy."—Nate Blakeslee, author of Tulia

"Looking more deeply at that from which the rest of us turned in horror, Ethan Brown has transformed an ugly and disturbing shard of the post-Katrina anguish. In this book, that which was lurid and sensational becomes, chapter by chapter, something genuinely sad and reflective, something that now has true meaning for New Orleans and for all of us."—David Simon, author of Homicide and The Corner

"The account of a volatile relationship gone terribly wrong, but [a] lot more than that…. Demonstrates a deep understanding of how New Orleans is…. [Brown] gets New Orleans and the people who choose to reside here."—OffBeat

"[A] sensational chronicle…. Bowen’s story … draws at least as much of its moral from Sid and Nancy as it does from Full Metal Jacket…. Brown deftly summons up [Zack and Addie’s] immediate social world as a testament to how the city felt to certain residents on the ground in the wake of Katrina."—Bookforum

"The chilling story of Zackery Bowen… a fall that indicts the military’s treatment of its soldiers."—St. Petersburg Times

"Delves straight into the heart of darkness…. Well-investigated, well-written and tautly paced…. A unique portrait of tenacious New Orleans, pre- and post-Katrina, and a reflective—though utterly chilling—account of how veterans of the Iraq war are suffering from mental degradation and lack of support."—BookPage

"Gripping and honest."—Amy Wilentz, Democracy: A Journal of Ideas

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.; First Edition edition (September 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805088938
• ISBN-13: 978-0805088939
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (71 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #536,640 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Ethan Brown is the author of three, investigative-reporting driven books on crime and criminal justice policy:

His first book--Queens Reigns Supreme: Fat Cat, 50 Cent and the Rise of the Hip-Hop Hustler--was published by Random House in 2005 to rave reviews in the Boston Globe ("diligently researched and trenchantly observed...a fascinating look at the way one generation's reality becomes the next's mythology"), The Village Voice ("one of the first reliable accounts [of the crack era]...the fact that Brown was able to publish so thorough an account is itself notable") and Publishers Weekly ("A vigorous account of an American subculture that's colorful, influential and, given the body count, tragic").

Ethan's second book--Snitch: Informers, Cooperators and the Corruption of Justice--was published by Public Affairs in 2007. The Legal Times wrote of Snitch that "Many police and prosecutors reading his book (or this review) will surely cry foul. Their cries will too often be proven insincere upon close examination, however, because Brown's evidence...is overwhelming." Brown University economics professor Glenn Loury praised Snitch as "must reading for anyone concerned about the future of 'law and order' in America." Manhattan Institute Scholar John McWhorter called Snitch one of the "strongest, smartest" books about race in the past decade.

Ethan's third book--Shake the Devil Off: A True Story of the Murder that Rocked New Orleans--was published by Henry Holt in the fall of 2009. Evan Wright, author of the New York Times bestseller Generation Kill, called Shake the Devil Off "a chilling portrait of a broken hero failed by the system." George Pelecanos, New York Times bestselling author of The Turnaround, said that "Ethan Brown examines a notorious murder case, rescues it from the talons of tabloid journalists, and comes up with something much more than a true crime book. Shake the Devil Off is a gripping suspense story, an indictment of the military's treatment of our soldiers in and out of war, and a celebration of the resilience and worth of a great American city." In a starred review, Publishers Weekly called Shake the Devil Off "heartbreaking" and Nate Blakeslee, author of Tulia, hailed the book as "a 'coming home' story that rivals any written about veterans of the war in Iraq, and a true crime account that raises the bar for the genre. Measured, thoroughly reported, and written with true empathy." David Simon, creator of The Wire and author of Homicide and The Corner, said that "looking more deeply at that from which the rest of us turned in horror, Ethan Brown has transformed an ugly and disturbing shard of the post-Katrina anguish. In this book, that which was lurid and sensational becomes, chapter by chapter, something genuinely sad and reflective, something that now has true meaning for New Orleans and for all of us." In September of 2009, Shake The Devil Off was chosen as a "Critics' Pick" in the Washington Post and an "Editors' Choice" by the editors of The New York Times Book Review. In December of 2009, the Washington Post named Shake the Devil Off one of the best books of 2009.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

42 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thank you Ethan, September 2, 2009

By 

L. Moffitt "Lori" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Shake the Devil Off: A True Story of the Murder that Rocked New Orleans (Hardcover)

I just want to thank Ethan again for the excellent way he handled Zack's story. I am Zack' Mom and I wasn't going to read this book as I thought it would be too painful, but I kept looking at the cover and then the pictures and then a few lines and I was hooked. It was like I got to see inside the 10 years I lost with Zack. When I'd talk to him, everything would be "I'm fine Mom!" Evidently, not. It has given me a closure at last to the last three years of not really knowing what happened to my son. He was a wonderful gentle giant with a big heart--not a horrible monster as some proclaimed after the murder. I just hope someone can learn something from this sad tale. Ethan has done a wonderful job of this story---as hard as it was to read some parts---I thank him for his hard work and dedication to getting the true story out. Zack's Mom

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Does not realize its potential, September 16, 2009

By 

Menagerie (CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Shake the Devil Off: A True Story of the Murder that Rocked New Orleans (Hardcover)

After tours in Afghanistan and Iraq, Zack Bowen went home to New Orleans only to face Hurricane Katrina. Haunted by both his military and storm experiences he killed his girlfriend, Addie Hall, and then committed suicide, leaving behind a stunned city and a devastated group of family and friends.

Like the central person in this book, the story fails to realize its potential. Brown seems to flail in the beginning as he tries to eulogize a person and a situation he doesn't quite understand. He finds firmer ground as he recounts Zack's tours overseas, interviewing the soldiers that shared his experiences. A new husband and father, Zack finds himself torn between his duty to his country and more importantly to his comrades, and his very ill wife and two small children. When the Army denies his request to join his wife on a German base as she undergoes life-threatening treatment for hepatitis, Zack's positive attitude towards the military is replaced with seething anger. This anger only underscores his disagreement with the two wars, and eventually Zack quietly decides to get out of the military. Despite an impressive service record, he is discharged for failure to do an adequate number of push-ups and his discharge denies him much-need veterans benefits.

From there, Zack's life begins a downward spiral. He and his wife separate and he hooks up with Addie, a mercurial bartender in the French Quarter. Zack supports himself delivering groceries and tending bar and his girlfriend does much the same. When Katrina hits New Orleans the couple hunkers down and actually turns the whole experience into an adventure. Their freedom ends when military forces finally arrive in NO to restore order. From there, Zack and Addie's relationship grows increasingly turbulent and ends in a murder-suicide that no one saw coming.

In the last third of the book, Brown theorizes that Zack suffered from undiagnosed PTSD and that had he been given adequate medical care none of this would have happened. The last several chapters are devoted to the staggering murder rate in NO, the military's unwillingness to help its vets, and Brown's own inexplicable love for NO. Brown, who moved to NO to research and write the book and wound up staying, writes a lot about his own feelings and experiences in NO and the French Quarter.

While the evidence about the lack of mental health care for military personnel is compelling and the murder statistics for NO are mind-boggling, the chapters on them feel like they belong in another book. Had Brown incorporated more of these facts and anecdotes throughout the earlier chapters they would have seemed more relevant and the book would have flowed better. Brown's own story of moving to NO and falling in love with the people of NO is worthy of an epilogue, but did not belong in the body of the book. In the final chapters, Brown seems to merely use Zack and Addie's story as a way to preach about the corruption and apathy in both the US government and the New Orleans government and police force. While those factors are relevant to the story, it is the human story of these two people that draws readers.

Overall, this book feels incomplete. We are left without knowing the fate of Zack's wife and two small children. We do not know how his mother and brother have dealt with Zack's death or his horrific actions. No one from Addie's family is even interviewed regarding her death and there is no explanation as to why. There is no way to answer all the questions about this story, but some of the most basic ones are not even asked.

14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Sympathy for the Devil?, November 17, 2009

By 

minty - See all my reviews

This review is from: Shake the Devil Off: A True Story of the Murder that Rocked New Orleans (Hardcover)

Is it possible to humanize a murderer to excess? Throughout this rambling account of Zack Bowen's life and death, I couldn't "shake" the image of Addie Hall's body parts simmering on a kitchen stove. While Zack's life is examined in rich and sympathetic detail, Addie is a "firecracker" who we only come to know through her explosions. Even her face is obscured on the book's cover.

As other reviewers have pointed out, the linkage of Bowen's obscene act with PTSD is forced, almost like padding. Maybe Bowen chose the military BECAUSE he had homocidal urges. By the end of the book I wanted to puke if faced with one more description of Bowen as a great guy who "must have been in a lot of pain". What a wildly irrelevant observation. The painful episodes of Bowen's life rendered here don't stand out in any way from millions of other people's. The author solemnly tells us that Bowen was disappointed when he didn't win high-school homecoming king. So intent on building a case for unremitting stress on the shy and awkward Bowen, the book almost veers off into farce. Finally, there is not one voice among all Bowen's friends that declares "I thought I knew the guy, but obviously I didn't. He was someone who could present himself as likable and non-violent. So can many killers."

My sympathy is for the victim. Her story, like many female victims of male violence, is howling in the wind.