Invisible Darkness: The Strange Case Of Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka

This has to be the one true crime book that has stayed branded in my mind out of 40 years reading true crime. It was the meeting of these two people that created a perfect storm. This was so well written and such a compelling and terrible story that it was hard to put down and impossible to forget.

I have to say, every review here urged me even further toward buying this book, so I finally did and I don't regret one second spent on reading it either. Absolutely wonderful. I have been a true crime buff ever since I was around 11-12 years old, when I used my allowance each week to purchase True Detective magazines, True Crime Story magazines, True Story magazines, etc.... I read the first magazine and I was hooked totally. As I grew up, I went on to books, instead of just magazines, and I must say, I probably couldn't stop if I wanted to, I don't think..ha! This couple is absolutely disgusting and what they did, absolutely horrible. Of course, we have had worse here in the US, but maybe that is what drew me to this story, that it actually happened somewhere else besides in the USA. No, we aren't the only country to have such gruesome murders, or killers. These people deserve to spend the rest of their lives in prison, never to see freedom again, and this includes Karla. I cannot believe that it is possible she could get out early. She best be afraid, from what I have read about all of this, and her case. She probably won't be very safe after all they have done, just to be honest!! She should be scared stiff. Not only that, I have no doubt that she is a true crazy, sick-o, and would probably do this again if she hooked up with someone like herself again. She should never be allowed to leave prison, in my opinion, and is just as guilty as Paul. 100%!! I highly recommend this book and can hardly wait to read the others on this case. I plan to get the hard cover edition with all the photo's also.

The story of the monstrous Paul Bernardo and his disgusting and self-serving psychopathic wife Karla Homolka is enough to gag a maggot and send readers screaming for a series of scalding showers. The story itself is so nauseating, so repulsive, that it almost begs the question of why anyone would even want to write it down.Nevertheless, if you can stomach the facts of the case (and many will not be able to do so) this is a well-written, clear and disinterested piece of reporting. I don't remember when I have been as repelled by a couple of perps as by these two. Particularly engaging is the elegant frou-frou wedding in upscale Niagara-on-the-Lake, which Homolka forced on her parents even as they grieved the death of their young daughter whom the bride and groom had killed just months before in one of their squirrely, drug-fueled sex games.

Although I couldn't set this book aside without wanting to read more, it's not for the faint of heart. The details can be quite graphic at times, which was not exactly necessary to tell this horrific story, but it definately put into context how truly psycopathic Paul Bernardo and Karla Holmoka are. What really amazed me is the fact that neither of them is remorseful for what they did to those poor young girls. Mr. Williams does seem to focus more on Karla in this book, which lets us see that she may have been the true mastermind of all the crimes commited, but I would have liked to have read more on Paul as well. The only possible complaint that I could have about this story is that sometimes Mr. Williams jumped around with some details and also there were too many names associated with this case to keep straight. I was astounded that the police could "bungle" the investigations so badly, maybe those three girls would be alive today if Paul Bernardo was stopped earlier than he had been. I can't quite comprehend why the police settled themselves on facts which proved to be incorrect. It's as if they walked around with blinders on instead of meticulously checking out every piece of evidence. This is absolutely worth the read and it shows the great injustice served to all the victims of the sick minds of Paul and Karla. They should rot in jail, and I'm not talking about "country clubish", I'm talking about hard time in general population. Let's see how long they survive there!

I have now finished the 3rd and final story on this very derranged couple... I very much liked this book because I think it tells the truth about Karla more than the other 2 books, which i also liked...Karla was not a victim, there is no one in this universe that can make you do the kinds of horrific acts that Karla did along side her sicko husband, unless you weren't from the same mind frame, I still after reading 3 books can not believe what she did to her sister let alone all the other girls...The fact that she allowed Paul to even think he could violate Tammy and gave him permission acting in concert with him brings total chills down my spine and in each book there was never any remorse..Paul deserves the electric chair, but Karla if i were a prosecutor i would try and find every reason to renege that deal they made her and keep her behind bars and if that parole system in canada allows her to get out before her due date that would be an all time sin...When the time was right she told all when it suited her. How her parents could even look at her is beyond me she had everything to do with her sisters death if not more ...Anyway this book is realy good well written !

There are many photos in this updated version of Stephen Williams' excellent true crime book. The photos, showing the ostensibly "charming couple," illustrate how deceiving "looks" can be. This is an engrossing but stomache-churning account of the Canadian gruesome duo - with abundant detail. Details such as: Karla's favourite book was American Psycho. But in Mr. Williams' book, one also learns that, although more publicized, the United States of America isn't the only country with psychos!