Unmasked is the memoir of Paul Holes, retired cold-case investigator and current TV host and podcaster. The book follows the trajectory of Holes’ professional life as he moved up from simple lab worker to Chief Forensic Officer for the Contra Costa Sherriff. We hear about the piquing of his interest in cold cases and delve into some of the notorious cases he has worked on, including the notorious Golden State Killer investigation which takes up a significant chunk of the book.
Holes approaches and discusses the toll his career has taken on his mental health and family life, but ultimately this feels like a pretty shallow examination. He told us how he felt but I definitely didn’t feel it. In particular, the effects on his personal life feel so minimally explored it almost would have been better if not mentioned at all. He does repeatedly acknowledge his lack of outward emotional expression, which I suppose falls in line with the feeling of the writing.
I was concerned and displeased to see his characterization and criticism of “bleeding heart” judges and parole boards who allow offenders out of prison early. While there are certain offenders whose crimes show a clear pattern of reoffending, in an age where the public is aware of racial prejudice in policing and sentencing and the frequency of DNA exonerations of (largely POC) prisoners serving life on death row, this attitude and lack of acknowledgement really rubbed me the wrong way.
I did like hearing about the realities of a career that is highly dramatized in media, but I definitely had some issues with this book.
Holes approaches and discusses the toll his career has taken on his mental health and family life, but ultimately this feels like a pretty shallow examination. He told us how he felt but I definitely didn’t feel it. In particular, the effects on his personal life feel so minimally explored it almost would have been better if not mentioned at all. He does repeatedly acknowledge his lack of outward emotional expression, which I suppose falls in line with the feeling of the writing.
I was concerned and displeased to see his characterization and criticism of “bleeding heart” judges and parole boards who allow offenders out of prison early. While there are certain offenders whose crimes show a clear pattern of reoffending, in an age where the public is aware of racial prejudice in policing and sentencing and the frequency of DNA exonerations of (largely POC) prisoners serving life on death row, this attitude and lack of acknowledgement really rubbed me the wrong way.
I did like hearing about the realities of a career that is highly dramatized in media, but I definitely had some issues with this book.