Bill James 's research began with an attempt to solve one famous unsolved crime , the Villisca axe murders , in which a family of eight was slaughtered in Villisca , Iowa on the night of June 9 , 1912 . James suspected a possible serial killer , found some similar crimes , and brought on Rachel McCarthy James who found more . McCarthy James was originally hired as a research assistant , but by her own estimate wrote roughly ten percent of the book and thus was credited as a co-author
Villisca axe murders
Villisca axe murders
The Man from the Train