Dora Reads: crime

Showing posts with label crime. Show all posts

Sunday 2 July 2023

Nerd Church - Internet Pitchforks: The Cases of Elisa Lam and Nicola Bulley

Title: Internet Pitchforks. Sub-title: The Cases of Elisa Lam and Nicola Bulley

Warning: this post discusses sensitive topics, including but not limited to - missing people, unexplained death, accidental death and drowning, murder, internet harrassment, mental health problems

Links may also contain distressing content.

Disclaimer time: I am not any sort of scientific, legal, sociological, or psychological expert. I'm a chick with an internet connection.

Friday Fics Fix - Needy Lesnicki: In the Wind and On the Run

'But the lies were out there, circulating, and were made into a movie, which is a really mixed blessing. Let’s pretend this narration is over the title crawl, and cut to our heroine...'

'Fics Fix!' with purple background and white lightning bolt shape

This week's fic is based on the amazing staple of Sapphic culture that is Jennifer's Body.

Jennifer's Body is a 2009 cult-classic unapologetically Queer horror film.

I love it, and, yes, I've rec'd fics on it before. Jennifer's Body fic authors write some interesting stuff!

Nerd Church - Of Tigers And Men: 'A Killing In Tiger Bay' and The Cardiff Five

Warning: this post discusses a murder case, and related themes such as blood and violence.

It also discusses racism, institutional racism, miscarriages of justice, wrongful conviction, borderline torture, and police corruption.

There are brief references to sex work and drugs.

The name Lynette White is one that’s known all over Wales.

Because of what happened to her, and what happened to five innocent men after her death.

Sadly her life is often brushed over, eclipsed by the crimes of the police officers who were supposed to investigate her murder – police officers who couldn’t even manage to spell ‘Lynette’ correctly when they told the press her name.

'Of Tigers And Men: 'A Killing In Tiger Bay' and The Cardiff Five' against a grey stone background

Lynette White, a 20 year old White woman who had been working as a sex worker in the docklands area of Cardiff, was found dead on 14th February 1988.

She had been brutally and viciously murdered.

An eye-witness had seen a White man, covered in blood, leaving the flat where Lynette’s body was found on the night she was killed.

She thought he was injured, so had asked if he was alright or if he needed help. He told her he was fine, had just hurt his hand, and said someone was coming to pick him up, so she left it there.

After Lynette was found, the eye-witness told the police what she’d seen, and described the man.

This was almost certainly Jeffrey Gafoor – Lynette’s murderer.

Modern DNA evidence proves that his blood was present at the murder scene, it was through a partial match on the DNA database that police eventually tracked him down.

Jeffrey Gafoor plead guilty to the murder of Lynette White in 2003.

...But the police arrested five men for the murder of Lynette White in November 1988, with the trial starting in 1989.

The Cardiff Five were put on trial for the murder of Lynette White, and the Cardiff Three were wrongfully convicted of her murder.

It was one of the biggest miscarriages of justice the UK has ever seen.

Friday Fics Fix - Pride Fics Fest: The Queer Umbrella (Academy)

Yes, it's June! Which means that here on Dora Reads I stop pretending that fanfiction is anything other than Queer af, and go all-out with my Pride Fics Fest.

What better way to kick off this year's Pride Fics Fest than with superhero TV show The Umbrella Academy (TUA)?

TUA is super Queer (pun very definitely intended,) and more than willing to give us two canonically Queer main characters in our superhero family ensemble.

Because this is fanfiction, I'll be looking at IDs which are both canon and not canon.

Nerd Church - How I Use True Crime Media To Boost My Mental Health (Yes, Really)

(Warning: this post discusses true crime, and though it avoids details of murders, it does reference various topics surrounding true crime. This post also discusses Depression/Anxiety.

Any links to other websites may have further details of true crime, though I've tried to avoid anything graphic; I am not responsible for the content on these sites.)

'How I Use True Crime Media To Boost My Mental Health (Yes, Really)' with a notebook and magnifying glass

I find true crime media weirdly helpful with combatting the affects of my mental health problems.

I put true crime shows on the TV sometimes in the evening, to wind down before falling asleep.

I clamour to Netflix true crime to calm my Anxiety.

I watch true crime docs or YouTube videos while I'm working to help me concentrate.

Nerd Church - The Serpent and Herman Knippenberg

(Warning: this post discusses the details of a real-life crime, as such it contains details of murder, drugging, and a serial killer)

This week, I finished watching the eight-part BBC series The Serpent.

Starring Jenna Coleman, Billy Howle, and Tahar Rahim, The Serpent is a drama based on the real story of a serial killer preying on tourists in a variety of countries along the Asian hippie-trail during the 1970s.

It's an excellent series, even though it’s not exactly easy viewing.

'The Serpent and Herman Knippenberg' against a green patterned background

This blogpost is gonna have a few SPOILERS for The Serpent series, OK?

SPOILERS, SPOILERS, SPOILERS!!!!

Don't say I didn't warn you!

Friday Fics Fix - Pride Fics Fest: Fics With Trans+ Characters

It's another Friday in June my dearest nerdlets, which means that it's another instalment in my Pride Fics Fest - and this time we're gonna look at fics with Trans+ main characters.

Fanfiction is here to support our Trans and Non-Binary siblings!

Fanfiction can be a place where Trans+/NB+ people can find the kind of representation that is largely not present in mainstream media.

Friday Fics Fix - Cops and Ghosties

'“I’m just saying if you’re so desperate to help people, you could have been a fireman. What they lack in brutality they make up for with sex appeal and basic levels of empathy.”

“Can’t stop murderers with a hose.”

“Not with that attitude.” Klaus shrugged...'

Confession time: I haven't finished reading this week's fic! *gasps*

#BadBookBlogger #FangirlingSins

In my defence, this b**ch is over 300 pages, and I'm on the last chapter!

But if I don't get this post written now, then I know it ain't gonna happen. (Your girl is gonna face-plant the laptop keyboard if she keeps this up. #RestAndRechargeTime)

Nerd Church - The Dilemma of Morally Dubious Media (Ft. American Psycho, Game of Thrones and Harry Potter)

Warning: this post discusses morally dubious media, including but not limited to: rape, murder, incest, general violence.

'First learn the rules then break them' written on a chalk board

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

American Psycho is about a serial killer that takes pleasure in raping and killing women in the most horrible ways, and the narrative goes into gratuitous detail about it.

Do I have your attention? Buckle up, dearest nerdlets!

No matter what, there is always gonna be media - books, films, TV series, whatever - that is kinda dubious on the ol' morality front.

Is that ok? Is that something we should be consuming? Is that something that people should be creating?

And if it isn't, is that something that we should be supressing?

Should we be, to put it bluntly, censoring it?

Really Mini-Reviews! - The Refugees by Viet Thanh Nguyen and The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories by Ken Liu

'Really Mini-Reviews' title image, with title images for The Refugees, and The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories, inset. Stacked books icon in bottom-right corner

I have two reviews for stunning collections of short stories by Asian-American writers for you today dear nerdlets!

Check out my reviews of The Refugees by Viet Thanh Nguyen, and The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories by Ken Liu:

Month in Review(s) - July 2018

Where did July go?!

Like... I know sometimes time goes quick, but really?!

July title image with funky grape and banana shapes

I think it's the heat.

I spent most of the month slouching around the house, trying to cool down, and being a generally not-nice person to be around.

Me + heat = grump monster! Lol.