Ripple

Such an emotional roller coaster. This true crime will stay with you for a long time. Very well written it tells you of a crime that happened a long time ago and how new insight opens the case up again to reveal interesting aspects of the case.

It was really well written and if you enjoy reading true crime, then you must read this book!!

This was a fairly quick read about a fascinating case from back in the 1980s. It was well handled by the author with much sensitivity to the family of the victim, as the author was a family friend who grew up in that same area. Even the paranormal aspect of this case was believably expressed, which I found quite compelling. A well written true crime book that’s not your typical formula. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

YOO!

I mainly picked this up for the book cover but god DANG this was such a fun ride! It was great curling up in my bed while doing online school and just getting sucked into the characters’ world and their relationships

Wow! What an emotional rollercoaster this was.
I am so grateful that Jim Cosgrove shared this story with the world.
It is an emotive, haunting, compelling, tragic, stoical and almost unbelievable story, and I felt as though I was along with Jim for the entire journey.
The writing is exceptionally good.
An easy 4 plus star rating from me, I don’t think anything will top how good this book is for a long while.

Jim Cosgrove’s book Ripple is a thoughtfully written and detailed account of the life and tragic death of Frank McGonigle. The author grew up in the same Kansas community as Frank, knew his family, and ultimately became involved in helping to uncover information about his murder.

Jim has documented this true crime narrative in a way that makes the reader feel like they are accompanying him on his journey of discovery. His attention to detail and wonderfully evocative descriptions of people, places and the emotional aspects of his odyssey are engaging and often poignant. The fortuitous meeting and relationship with Carol an energy reader is a fascinating and thought-provoking aspect of the story. Jim Cosgrove shares many personal insights while navigating his investigation of Frank’s story and imparts many deep and penetrating pearls of wisdom in concluding his book. Over the course of the many years it took to investigate and write the book, the author’s personal attitudes and mindset about the events and people surrounding Frank McGonigle’s life and death matured, and his reflections offer a sensitive and compassionate view applied to that experience and life in general. I found this a particularly strong, unexpected, and satisfying outcome.

Ripple is a captivating and worthwhile read and I would highly recommend it to others.

Thank you to NetGalley and Steerforth Press for an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Jim Cosgrove’s book Ripple is about a personal journey he took to better understand the circumstances surrounding the disappearance and murder of a family friend from his childhood. The author’s personal account and interviews with family members and potential witnesses give the reader a touching and intimate look at a family’s grief and how their loss changed their dynamic. Rather than a book dramatizing the thoughts and actions of a killer, Jim Cosgrove’s connection with the family and his quest to find the truth is respectful and easy to follow. The author goes into this search as a regular person, he doesn’t have special privileges or access to lawyers, but he uses his investigative skills to track down available information and living witnesses to piece together an account of what happened in the best way anyone could if they took the time that he did. The author’s open-mindedness to spirituality gives this story a unique twist to other true crime type novels and as a Dead fan could relate to the victim, a few parts gave me goose bumps. I recommend.

Full review to come on Goodreads and Amazon. Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for a review copy.

Journalist Jim Cosgrove takes us on the journey with him as he investigates an unsolved case from the 1980s. When Frank Mcgonigle left his family’s home, he was never heard from again. Cosgrove took a personal interest since he knew the family and as he delves deeper into Frank’s disappearance, his friendship with the family grows. I thought this book was very respectfully written, not only to the victim and his family but also the suspects. Cosgrove was able to somehow show both the light and darkness in all of these people, showing how complex human beings can be, while taking the reader on a long and winding road to get to the truth. The first part of the book was a little slow, as the groundwork was laid, but once the second part started I couldn’t put this book down. Even the paranormal/psychic aspect that helped solve this case was fascinating and touching. I don’t read a lot of nonfiction but I do love a good true crime story. This book reminded me quite a bit of a true crime show that my husband and I love called “Mindhunter” - I could just see it unfolding in a similar way. Thanks to Netgalley, Jim Cosgrove and Penguin Randomhouse for the copy to review. This book releases April 5, 2022 and my review will also be posted to my Instagram blog books_by_the_bottle shortly.

I enjoyed this story, it was well written, had good narrative and good pacing and the characters were well developed and relatable. I read this quickly and would definitely recommend it

This is one of the best true crime books I've read. The author, Jim Cosgrove (known to many families across the globe as children's entertainer "Mr Stinky Feet"), handles this murder case with sensitivity and respect. You get right in the trenches with him as he interviews Frank McGonigle's family members, friends, and others in Frank's circle. Cosgrove shares dreams and anecdotes, including his interactions with "energy reader" Carol Williams, that are weirdly uncanny. I really appreciated how peaceful and hauntingly beautiful the conclusion of this book is. I recommend this one to any true crime aficionado, especially those interested in Kansas City crime.

Many thanks to Netgalley for my e-arc.

Omg what a epic book! New to me authors and I for sure will share this with others! I would love to read more by this author and give this way more than five stars here! Excellent!

3.5 stars

I believe a family never gets over the loss of a child or a sibling. It is a tragedy that effects them for the rest of their lives.

For the McGonigle family, the disappearance of their twenty six year old son, Frank, left them heartsick and always wondering. They spent years searching for Frank a die hard Grateful Dead lover to the point of even going to concerts hoping to find him. They continually wondered what drove their shy sensitive son to leave without a good bye. The large Catholic family questioned themselves over the years. They were a loud boisterous lot so the fact that Frank often felt out of it might be the cause of his unhappiness, but to not know was a torment that drove the family continually.

For journalist Jim Cosgrove, a friend of the family as well, it was a lifelong search for Frank and who the killer might be which went on for many years only to be resumed twenty-five years later. It drove him and was always there at the back of his mind.

For some residents of Murrells Inlet., they continued wondering who was that boy found shot dead in the woods. It would be nine years until the answer to that question was solved.

This was an interesting true story of family thrown into turmoil, questioning themselves, searching the faces of every one who resembled Frank, hoping for the best. It was also a story of a determined storyteller, even assisted by a woman, Carol Williams, who is able to perceive and see things that others can't.

It is a story of persistence of not letting go when something drives you always.

Thank you to Jim Cosgrove, Steerforth, and NetGalley for a copy of this story due out April 5, 2022

True Crime and Nonfiction are not my norm at all, but something about this title got my attention so I checked it out. It was quite an interesting read, but it was a bit of a slow start that was hard for me to get into at first until I switched my focus/perspective and the narrative changed then it got more engaging for me.
Some of what's different with having read this story is that I'm used to reading fantasy and other fiction and always saying this was such a great story and I loved it, but it's hard to say that about this one. The reason it's hard to say that about this is because it's true crime and real life. I don't think a boy in the woods being murdered and having to solve the mystery of his death and how it affects his family and others are great the same way fiction is great. I don't love reading about murder and the pain and unresolved situations, but I do love that this mystery was solved with this particular boy's death.
This is well-written and keeps you interested and invested to discover the answers along with the investigative journalist. I found it intriguing to read about how the solution to the mystery unfolded and what it revealed about the people and the family members as they went through talking about it and figuring things out. It is a sad and hard thing to read about those that have a hard time in life and find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time and lose their life for it. There are a few different aspects shown and talked about about how they approach things when investigating this boy, Frank's murder, first with the normal approaches and then with the unique with the psychic and those involved sharing their spiritual and other types of experiences relating to Frank and his death when they felt like they were being lead to answers or having some sort of communication sent to them by him from the other side. The investigation and journey to find answers take on a life of its own and when they find the answers they're right where they thought they were but others had been trying to hide the answers from view. The thing is even though they find the answers and solve the murder/death of Frank, there are still a lot of unanswered questions and unknowns. In the end, there's always more than one victim in these kinds of situations and it's a hard thing to have to deal with and face, but Frank's family had a good outlook on things and the experience of talking through things helped them all to break down some walls and find ways to talk and work on becoming closer to one another in their family.
If you're a fan of true crime and figuring out mysteries and what makes others tick or the like then make sure to take a look at this one and read it. Thanks to NetGalley and Steerforth Press for letting me read and review this enlightening story. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Review of Ripple by Jim Cosgrove

I am obsessed with true crime so I knew I had to have this one when my friend Elvina mentioned it was on NetGalley. I really enjoyed it and it was a quick read. It wasn’t heavy on the crime aspect but really discussed the victim as well as his family and the author’s personal quest to find out the truth. It also focuses a lot on the geographic area of Murrell’s Inlet/Georgetown county SC. It tells the story of the last there, the residents and the culture. Overall I found it really interesting and a good read.

Quick synopsis: A journalist turned author Jim makes it his mission to investigate and write about the disappearance and murder of a family friend named Frank in 1982. They were from Kansas City but Frank was murdered in SC and no one knows why. He finds much resistance from the locals more than 10
years later when trying to find out the truth regarding the crime.

Big thank you to @netgalley for the copy of this one. I can’t wait to discuss it with my @theyearofnetgalley crew!

As a fan of true crime investigations, I found this book super interesting and surprised that I hadn’t heard of it previously. I appreciated the journalist’s connection to the family and how he felt that this was a story that needed to be told.

I really enjoy reading true crime, this book is absolutely brilliant! The research is thoroughly done, the story is told with sensitivity and the author is respectful to Frank’s family.
I would recommend that lovers of true crime read this book!

I sincerely appreciate the opportunity to read this wonderful book, thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A compelling true crime story reuniting a murdered young man with the family that he was missing from 10 years after his death. I was engaged from beginning to end and the entire story was very interesting, and this is from someone who is not normally interested in true crime stories.

This book gives such an important message. You really never know what someone is feeling or what they go through when a loved one is missing. You never know how you will react until you are in that position. I had no idea some of the things people have to deal with. The author does a wonderful job telling the story and I would absolutely recommend it.

I enjoyed reading through this book. There were a lot of unique perspectives brought by the author, who had a tangible relationship to the family, due to his brothers friendships with some of the older McGonigle boys.

When Frank left home, his family thought that he would be back. But when days turned into weeks, then months, and finally years - the dread of what had happened to their son and brother was beyond the pale. They hoped that he was out looking for his fame and fortune, trying to make something of his life. But the hard truth was that he had been murdered, and was known as "The Boy in the Woods." As the case unfolds and the pieces started coming together, there was a lot of mistakes uncovered, the blunders of a small police office, and the mastermind that most likely got away with murder. As the family continued their search for answers, Jim started looking into the case, hoping to bring some closure. Instead, he found even more than he was looking for - and while the answers might not ever be known fully, there are enough inferences to draw from to figure out who was involved, and what most likely happened.

This was an interesting read, and an overall great book. I enjoyed reading through this one.

Being from Iowa and it's promixity to Kansas City plus my love of true crime novels and I was sold! This book did not disappoint, I loved learning Frank's story and how connected the author is to his family. While, I wish that the mystery had been solved definitively, I think it's telling that many of the main suspects didn't live well into old age.

I have not been to South Carolina but the descirptions were so vivid, I feel like I have been. The flow of the book is perfect and I hope to read more from this author.

Thank you @netgalley for the advanced reader copy!

A very intriguing true crime book. I was not that familiar with the case and feel like my mind is blown a little by reading this book. Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for an ARC.

I had never heard of this case before..Having the Author *personally involved* makes this more of a memoir read about true crime than a cut n cold true crime read , which I enjoy alot.. unless of course the lines between what happened and what they believe happen blur... cases of missing people are always heart wrenching... Writing about someone you know who is missing is a hard thing to do.. I enjoyed his narrative and how much he made me feel for the family.. Great read all in all :)

This book details a family's search for their missing son and a journalist's attempt to help them find answers. Frank McGonigle left his home in Kansas City, Missouri in 1982 and was never heard from again. This book describes what was discovered about Frank nine years after his disappearance. It was absolutely fascinating. I highly recommend it to other readers who enjoy mysteries.

A true crime book that delivers! Following a case for a long time, the author delivers to the reader his experience in a very well written book. It kept me hooked and wanting to keep reading in one sitting.

Journalist Jim Cosgrove gives a detailed account of his decades-long investigation into the unsolved case of
"boy into woods", Frank McGonigle whose body was discovered in a wooded area at Murrells Inlet in the 1980s.

I had not heard of this case before so it was very enlightening. Any cold case investigation is definitelv not an easv one and the author did an excellent job in trying to find out what happened to Frank, a family friend from his childhood. We read about his interviews with Frank's family, friends, and the people living in that community, including the author's interactions with psychic or energy reader Carol.
The author shares this story with compassion, care and respect and his own part of the investigation was unique and mesmerizing. It certainly made it more personal. The author also did a wonderful job in capturing the sense of time and place, as well as the unique character of the KC neighborhoods involved.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for sending a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.