Review: Death on the River by Diane Fanning

Title: Death on the River

Author: Diane Fanning

Published: April 2019, St. Martin’s True Crime

Format: Paperback, 304 pages

Source: Publisher

Summary: 

It seemed like the
perfect romantic afternoon: a kayaking trip for two on the Hudson River.
But it ended in tragedy when Angelika Graswald called 911 to report
that her fiancé, Vincent Viafore, had fallen into the choppy frigid
waters. Authorities assumed it was an accident, but when the bereft
bride-to-be posted videos of herself doing cartwheels on social media
shortly before Vincent’s body was found, suspicions of murder rose to
the surface.

After hours of questioning, Graswald made several
shocking admissions. She said she felt “trapped” and fed up with
Viafore’s “demanding” sexual lifestyle: the nightlife, the strip clubs,
the three-ways. “I wanted him dead,” she had said, even though she
insisted that she didn’t kill him. But as more lurid details
emerged—including a $250,000 life insurance policy—a killer question
remained: Did Graswald remove the plug of her fiancé’s boat and knock
away his paddle as he sank?

My thoughts: I remember when this happened…so when this book showed up in my mailbox, unexpectedly, I was pleasantly surprised. I don’t read a lot of true crime books, but I couldn’t wait to read this one and once I started it, I had a hard time putting it down.

I used to live not too far from where this all happened, so I vaguely remember the news coverage when this incident first occurred and Vincent was still presumed missing. Of course, his body was later found, and to be honest, I lost track of what ended up happening with the case, so I was psyched to have this book fill in the gaps for me. And what a crazy turn of events it ended up taking! 

I have to admit that while I never did see any of the Dateline or Twenty/Twenty interviews – I do plan on tracking them down soon! – I did have my suspicions of Angelika from what little coverage I did see. I remember that she just seemed off and boy did this book prove that! Diane Fanning does a great job proving such an intimate picture not only of the victim, Vincent Viafore, but we get to see a pretty incredible picture of just who Angelika Graswald really is.

This book is incredibly readable – it actually reads like fiction and I had to keep reminding myself that this was real life! If all true crime books read like this one, I am definitely going to be reading more of them.