Customer Reviews

Where the Bodies Are Buried (St. Martin's True Crime Library)

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1 star:		(2)

 

 

My nephew happens to be one of the victims in this book. The writers detailed the facts in this case pretty much as I know them. At the time this book was publised the case was still an open investigation. As of last week...June 8, 1999 DNA testing results confirmed our worst nightmare. Yes, our loved one was identified thru DNA on the remains/bones that were found on the estate of that lunatic! I have no sympathy for that murderer's wife who claims to this day that she didn't know or even suspect her husband was leading a double life. I find that hard to believe and feel like she could have saved some lives if she'd only came forward to police with the information she knew regarding the skull found on her property a year before he was found to be a suspect and then killed himself before we could have justice for our loved ones. The book was "OK" and I appreciate the author's sticking to the facts as we knew them at the time the book was written. Thank You, Aunt of Victim

"Where the Bodies Are Buried" is basically a "paint by the numbers" true crime book. The book is competently written, which is a plus, and the story has potential interest.

However, as is often true of the run-of-the-mill true crime attempt, the book is way too long on the boring routine police work and way too short on information on the perpetrator's wife, who seems more than a little strange, and on the victims. An interesting crime book will explore - in detail - the upbringing, motivation, and personality of the major interesting characters. In this case that would include Herb and Julie Baumeister and the victims. There is very little of this in depth reporting, and way too much description of various policemen who perform for the most part a mundane investgation which is not interesting enough to comprise, as it does, the major part of the second half of this book. I find this type of writing to be typical of true crime writers who apparently have access to policemen and police records, but who are either unable or unwilling to thoroughly investigate the lives and psychology of the people of interest. Do we really need to know that, from page 147, "(Captain) Anderson threw down the Winston he was smoking and stubbed it out with his toe. It was the umpteenth cigarette of the young day."? Are the authors sure he didn't stub it out with his heel? Was it truly his umpteenth? Does any of this make any difference? This is the kind of inane filler that is all too common in mediocre true crime writing.

The requisite 8 pages of pictures, which are at least not referred to on the cover as shocking, are a joke. There are 2 pages of pictures of investigative personnel, which does not include the empathetic Mary Wilson, who seems to have been responsible for launching the investigation; but, amazingly includes one of a private detective who has a VERY minimal part in the book. Getting a recent picture of Julie Baumeister should have been easy, as she has not shied away from publicity and has appeared on "Oprah". But her picture is of a very young woman taken probably around 15 years before the events of this book. Most astoundingly there is NO - I repeat NO - picture of the protagonist, Herb Baumeister.

There is no reason to read this book. Anyone who is new to the true crime genre would be better served by reading some of the really good authors like Lowell Cauffiel, Jack Olsen, Darcy O'Brien, or Gregg Olsen to name a few. Anyone who is a long time fan of the genre has read hundreds like it.

This book stuck to the facts but, became a bit "long" before it ended. Still, it is a good Serial Killer book. (add it to your collection)

Herb Baumeister is claimed by the authors of "where the Bodies are Buried" to be the 'most prolific serial killer in Indiana state history'. However, he committed suicide in Canada before he was ever caught or put to trial so there's really no legal claim to this. Herb is also suspected of not only strangling men at the Fox Hollow Farm estate he owned but was possibly also the I-70 Strangler, dumping bodies along the interstate between Indiana and Ohio. It is unknown whether he worked alone or had an accomplice either. While the evidence certianly points to Herb,to my knowledge, there was never any resolution to the matter.

Unfortunately, this was a terrible book. Time flow is horrible, there's nothing to hold your interest, and the authors couldn't weave a story to save the book. With the right author, this could have been a pretty decent True Crime book but as it is, it falls flat. The story lacks flow, the matters concerning witness of Tom Harris (?) should have been better organized, there's little about Herb's wife's awareness, and there are sidetracks that have little to do with the story. The backstories of some of the victims is boring and there is virtually nothing about the I-70 bodies other than mentioning them.

I bought this at a used book store and returned it three days later because I know I'll never read it again. I just can't recommend it, even as a True Crime book.

A fast-paced look at a deranged man who wore a suit to work and appeared to be the average Joe Normal. His wife and children never caught on to his homosexual side -- or his poolside manner. Where literally thousands of human bones were found is astonishing. Given their location, it's amazing this serial killer was able to carry off his crimes for such a long time. A super investigative journalism description of a hideous man.

Herbert Baumeister committed suicide rather than face the charges of killing several men at his large estate outside of Indianapolis, Indiana. He did this without the knowledge of his wife or their children. From all appearances, Herb pretended to be heteroseuxal husband, father, and businessman. Nobody could have foreseen him becoming a homosexual serial killer with the likes of Jeffrey Dahmer and John Wayne Gacy. For the families of his victims, since most of the missing men were homosexuals or hung around homosexual establishments, their disappearances went un-noticed except by their families and friends. Much like the Dahmer and Gacy case, the murdered men's remains were found at the Baumeister estate far away from the gay bars that he frequented. His motive for murder was based on power but since Herb killed himself. We will never know the whole truth. His wife and children were unaware of his activities and I feel that they are victims too of his despicable crimes against men. There is this attitude today in our society where homosexual men are still expendable or not worth looking into. Regardless of their sexual orientation or their occupation, homosexual men and female prostitutes are much more likely to be killed by a serial killer but there is no outrage in the community until the killer like Herb has killed one too many. Regardless of your attitudes towards sexual orientation, nobody deserves to be murdered and forgotten or disappeared and forgotten. Baumeister's victims had families and friends who missed and loved them regardless of their sexual orientation. They wanted justice for them and Herb is gone which is a relief but also there are still many unanswered questions about his actions.

i don't even feel like wasting my time on this review....just because someone has a basic grasp of the english language doesn't mean they know how to tell a story. in one chapter, the authoresses tell one side of herb baumeister's life...pretty pristine, what a wonderkid....then in another chapter, they go on to tell another side...what a freak. and they never go into detail about either. i bet this book was written in 2 weeks. the cover of the book says he was the most prolific serial killer ever in the state of indiana, but they never proved that. if the alleged killer hadn't committed suicide, i doubt they would have ever gone to trial. pretty lame... pretty good watse of money...DON'T BUY THIS BOOK!

This book was "ok" I thought that they dragged it out, and didn't get into full detail of how the murders happened and what happened to the men that got killed. They could have went into a little more detail