Book Review - In The Name of the Children by Jeffrey L. Rinek and Marilee Strong

*I have received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for a review.

In a conscious effort to read books outside my comfort zone, I chose to read In The Name of the Children by Jeffrey L. Rinek and Marilee Strong. Jeffrey Rinek is a former FBI agent working in the missing and murdered children’s section of the department. This true crime memoir is not something I would normally pick up. In fact, it’s something I normally avoid. This story is about Rinek’s time at the FBI following some of the cases that most made an impression on society or him. Rinek shares heart-breaking and harrowing stories about the literal scum of the Earth. There are stories of eye-opening betrayals, parents who lack love towards their children, manipulations, and also the story of the emotional strain it caused him over the years. There were moments that made me angry and also well up with tears. This is Rinek’s apology letter to his family for the way his role affected them, and a love letter to the FBI for the relationships he has made and the lessons he is learned. Told through the writing of Marilee Strong, this book has a strong identity sure to move anyone who chooses to read it.

Strong has carefully constructed the writing to convey Rinek’s mournful tone. It is clear that this individual is in pain over what he has witnessed over the years. It is written with so much emotion, and it captures the feelings of all the people who cross into the stories. I appreciated the look into the FBI and the way it had changed over Rinek’s time there. The evolution of technology will never cease to baffle me, and the way it has affected these cases is nothing short of a miracle. Rinek could easily tell the story of his glories, but humility remains as he carefully shares stories of failure as well as when he was kicked off a case. A unique aspect to the novel is the attention paid to one particular (monumental case) which included pictures (not gory).

I feel closer to Rinek after reading this novel. His interrogation technique involves opening up to the people he is interrogating. He gets personal with them to gain their trust, and the novel is reflective of that technique. The beginning starts with his personal biography before it sets into the heavy cases. We, as readers, feel like we know Rinek, and we start to open up our minds and emotions to the story he has to tell. I have to give this a 4/5 for Rinek’s touching stories and Strong’s precise and ingenious writing technique. This book was published on July 17 of this year.