The Unicorn's Secret (Onyx) [Paperback]

Steven Levy (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Originally published in 1990, The Unicorn's Secret tells the strange tale of Ira Einhorn, a counterculture bigwig who hobnobbed with the likes of Abbie Hoffman and Jerry Rubin before police discovered the badly decomposed body of his girlfriend Holly Maddux in a trunk in his Philadelphia apartment in 1979. Although Einhorn, known to friends and enemies alike as "The Unicorn," claimed innocence in Maddux's murder, he fled the country after receiving an unusually low bail (and before being found guilty of the crime in absentia in 1983) and didn't surface again until 1997, when he was apprehended by police in France, still proclaiming his innocence. Levy spent 30 months researching the case and the Unicorn's life to write this book, which includes finely painted detail of Einhorn's rise, from his days as a would-be campus leader during the first shock waves of the '60s to his heyday as a respected ecologist, sociologist, and man-about-town in the 1970s. As Levy tracks the collision course between Einhorn and Maddux, a small-town Texas girl from a conservative home, hints of Einhorn's darker side emerge, illustrated by entries from the Unicorn's own diaries, filled with vast wellsprings of inner rage. The danger to Maddux rises palpably as the book nears its grisly conclusion, with Levy finding his own conclusions safely sealed away inside the paper remnants of Einhorn's darkly brilliant mind. --Tjames Madison

From Publishers Weekly

In what PW called a "spellbinding sociological/true-crime study," Levy tells of Ira Einhorn, counterculture spokesman in Philadelphia, who was arrested in connection with the death of one of his disciples, Holly Maddux; her mummified body was found in Einhorn's closet. The guru skipped bail, presumably fled the country and is still at large. Photos.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 392 pages
• Publisher: Onyx (January 2, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451401662
• ISBN-13: 978-0451401663
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,311,754 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gripping, Informative, a Real Page-Turner, August 28, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Unicorn's Secret (Onyx) (Paperback)

This book is far more than a whodunit. It is a wonderful history of the politics and pop-culture of the 1960s and 1970s and it provides in-depth character analyses of all of the central players. This one really puts "The Age of Aquarius" in perspective! Was the Unicorn a murderer or framed by secret operatives? The revelations in the last chapters provided an unequivocal answer for me.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Maniacal Ira Einhorn Still Hides In France . . ., May 12, 2000

By 

"lisadiva" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Unicorn's Secret (Onyx) (Paperback)

Hard to believe that I was about 5 years old in a suburb of Philadelphia when Holly Maddux's body was found in a trunk in Ira Einhorn's apartment . . . even harder to believe is that he managed to escape and has been living in France for all these years. This book is fabulous . . . I was totally engrossed in it from page 1. Being from the Philadelphia area, I was somewhat familiar with the case, but reading this book opened up so much more to me about Holly, her family, and this monster, Ira Einhorn. He was a small-town nobody, the founder of Earth Day who thought the world revolved around him. What a shame that Holly got involved with him and could have been so naive and easily fooled. The pictures are disturbing -- she was such a beautiful girl, and Ira such a fat, disgusting, ragged-looking oaf. It does not seem to make sense. Then again, it shows how manipulative and sneaky Ira really was.

Even though I knew how the book was going to end, I actually found myself applauding Holly as she began to discover her strengths and pull away from Ira and resolutely decide to remove herself from his life. What if she had been able to do that? How wonderful (for everyone) if that had happened . . . but Ira would not let anyone leave him. He considered Holly to be his possession, and was not about to let anyone get away from him so easily. It amazes me that he was able to escape detection for so long, and that his friends and acquaintances actually trusted and believed his stories . . . even after Holly's body was found. How does one explain that? A body is found in your apartment and you expect everyone to believe you had nothing to do with it? That there was a conspiracy against Ira Einhorn? Get real! Ira was a nobody -- no one would waste their time conspiring against him. The book was fascinating and frightening at the same time. Much better than the TV movie about the case (which, I admit, sparked my interest and convinced me to buy this book). I recommend it to anyone who is at all intrigued by the case, or anyone who is a fan of the true-crime genre. It is a page-turner, a tale that will sicken and sadden you all at once. Unfortunately, it is a story without a resolution, since Einhorn is still in France and has not been brought to justice -- and that will make you seethe with anger.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very well researched, June 3, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Unicorn's Secret (Onyx) (Paperback)

I saw the movie and it sparked an interest in the story. I was pleasantly surprised at how good the book is. It is well researched and paints a very clear picture. I can't put it down.