Beyond Evil - Inside the Twisted Mind of Ian Huntley Paperback – 4 Aug. 2022

I remember the Soham murders and the horror of it all and have read about the dreadful circumstances of that day. Our whole household was caught up in the unfolding daily news and we waited with fear as the two badger setts were excavated praying they weren't the graves of the two little girls.This book was chilling. I knew that Ian Huntley was a special kind of monster to do what he did but, his coldness and faux sincerity, when helping to search for the children, really came to life in the pages of this book. I have heard people being called evil....well, this creature is the epitome of evil.The author describes a scene where Huntley actually said to Holly Wells' father, while pretending to search for her, "I'm sorry. I didn't know it was your daughter" What did he mean?Sorry he had killed her as he knew her father or sorry you are going through this?How could he? Face to face with the child's father! The sheer evil of the man is jaw dropping.The author does a superb job of bringing Huntley's mindset to life...not sure this is a good thing as it certainly shows how normal and everyday people these monsters appear to us. I would recommend this book to anybody who wants to get a glimpse into the mind of Ian Huntley and what brought him to that tragic day in Soham. It is not an easy read in view of the content and I can't say I enjoyed it for that reason but, it gives an insight into why those two beautiful little girls are not with us today.They were victims of anger, arrogance and evil. How dare he.

We were abroad when Huntley & Carr were arrested and we never knew a lot of the facts surrounding the case. When people talked about it, I realised that there was so much that I was ignorant of.I notice that someone has commented under a review asking why anyone would want to read such a book. I was not sure myself if I wanted to read a book about such a terrible case and it took me a significant amount of time to overcome that reluctance. Having done so I can say that the author handles the matter sensitively and, frankly, reading this book is in my opinion no more distasteful than reading newspaper reports at the time. And, coincidentally, I write this on the weekend that someone has been arrested in connection with poor Mikaeel Kular's disappearance (the three year old who vanished from his home in Edinburgh) - the headlines in the tabloid press today have been more sensational than anything in this book. In additiion, reading a book means that you are more likely to be better informed than reading the story piecemeal in the media.I was initially put off buying the book due to some of the negative reviews e.g. that it was like reading a tabloid newspaper. I did not get that impression at all even though it is written by a Daily Mirror journalist. I imagine that when you write for your employer, there are certain expectations on you; when you write for yourself, you write in your own style.Earlier this month there was a programme on TV about people who lied on camera about the crimes that they had committed - it included interviews with/police appeals by Stuart Hazell, Karen Matthews and Ian Huntley. Ian Huntley's interviews were filmed before he was arrested and while the search for Holly & Jessica was still on. It was helpful to know the background to those interviews due to this book. Similarly, the programme touched on Maxine Carr - it was helpful to know what she did and precisely how she was caught due to this book.

Who can forget that haunting photograph of two smiling, happy junior school classmates wearing Manchester United shirts on the day of a family barbecue? A photograph taken just hours before they would be no more, victims of some dark and still unknown fate.I think Nathan Yates has done an excellent job in recounting the Soham murders and the two-week period in 2002 when one of Britain's most harrowing child-murder cases gripped the world. I disagree with almost every one of the one-star reviewer's criticisms of this admirable true crime book.Yates has told the sad story without resorting to hyperbole. The reader sees for himself how this tragedy has destroyed two loving families and left behind four heartbroken parents. These two girls (who went out without telling their parents where they were going) are not constantly called innocent little angels; nor does Yates demonise Huntley and his accomplice, Carr. The reader is left to make up his own mind about the protagonists - and, paradoxically, it is that very lack of mawkishness on the author's part - showing, not telling - which magnifies the tragedy of the Soham story.Perhaps the most controversial chapter is the one dealing with the girls' deaths; another reviewer has criticized Yates for speculation since there was no forensic evidence in the heavily cleansed murder-house and Huntley has never confessed; but, in fact, all of Yates's speculations are quite reasonably derived from Huntley's known behaviour, the telling half-truths mixed with his untruths, and those revealed by Carr also.Yates has researched his book thoroughly. This is not just a mish-mash of the contemporary press reports. Clearly those close to the protagonists have been interviewed and quoted extensively. The author provides copious background on Huntley, Carr, the girls and their families, and even the polarised communities which spawned such very different people. It is also a telling portrait of a police investigation and public response to a case of this magnitude. This is truly a book to make the reader cry.

I've been in Soham for work for the last week so decided to read more about the murders. Found out that they took place 30 seconds from where I was. The story and timeline is shocking. Huntleys behaviour was abhorrent and Carrs alibi of being with him whilst being in the arms of another man on Grimsby was appalling.What those girls went through was nothing short of horrific. This book doesn't hold back with details but does treat the girls sensitively.Worth the read

This book was well written and captured my full attention throughout the whole read highly recommended of you like true crime.

Ian Huntley murdered two young girls out for a walk. This story explains how and why it happened, in a very factual, banal, and yet strangely intoxicating way. The author was apparently part of the media during the subsequent investigation and search. As such, we get to hear his own impressions of the murderer and his accomplice, and how his impressions of the perpetrator evolved. Worth the time this book must serve as a modicum of peace for the victims family and friends in terms of setting the record straight. I'd give it 4.5/5 if I could.

Used the book to write a paper and it turned out to be one of the best sources of true information.

This was a well written account of an awful crime that is beyond comprehension. I thought it was handled well. I knew only a little about this crime as it was barely covered in Australia. Well worth the time and money.

reading now. Good book