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Last Call: A True Story of Love, Lust, and Murder in Queer New York
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About This Book
The gripping true story, told here for the first time, of the Last Call Killer and the gay community of New York City that he preyed upon.The Townhouse Bar, midtown, July 1992: The piano player seems to know every song ever written, the crowd belts out the lyrics to their favorites, and a man standing nearby is drinking a Scotch and water. The man strikes the piano player as forgettable.He looks bland and inconspicuous. Not at all what you think a serial killer looks like. But that's what he is, and tonight, he has his sights set on a gray haired man. He will not be his first victim.Nor will he be his last.The Last Call Killer preyed upon gay men in New York in the '80s and '90s and had all the hallmarks of the most notorious serial killers. Yet because of the sexuality of his victims, the skyhigh murder rates, and the AIDS epidemic, his murders have been almost entirely forgotten.This gripping true-crime narrative tells the story of the Last Call Killer and the decades-long chase to find him. And at the same time, it paints a portrait of his victims and a vibrant community navigating threat and resilience.
Reviews
"the author treats the victims, gay men murdered in the early 1990s, who were picked up at gay bars in New York City, with respect, describing how they shared an identity that left them vulnerable not only to a sadistic criminal but also to indifference and sometimes open hostility from those charged with solving their murders."
"While Last Call is about Rogers' crimes, the heart of the book belongs to the victims, as Elon Green takes special care to maintain their humanity and dignity in this true-crime outing."
"In addition to bestowing humanity and dignity on the victims, Green demonstrates impressive reporting chops."
"Their lives mattered, and Last Call is a testament to how homophobia shaped these men's lives and, eventually, their deaths ..."
"Green proves a conscientious crime writer."
"The observations from family members particularly moving, as they express their loss and understanding of what these men endured emotionally in having to live a secret life ..."
"Right from the beginning, Last Call: A True Story of Love, Lust, and Murder in Queer New York by Elon Green reads like the hardboiled true crime book that it is."
"Using meticulous research and engaging prose, The Last Call tells the complete stories of the men who died in these killings, giving them dignity after death and shining a light on the issues queer people faced several decades ago that still ring true today."
"I think it's a wonderful challenge to situate these stories in the larger history,' he said."
"Green's at his best in analyzing how the crimes were handled at the time, when the victims' sexual orientation led to the murders being treated less seriously."
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