Aftermath, Inc.: The Book

Update on Linda Twyman

2007-11-27T11:47:00.000-08:00

The last full chapter of Aftermath, Inc. ("Cold") is partially devoted to the unsolved murder of a 43-year-old Evanston travel agent named Linda Twyman. My efforts to get information on the case from the Evanston Police Department yielded nothing. ("It's an open investigation," the laughably tight-lipped public information officer repeated over and over.) Part of the reason for the lack of progress in the investigation was the sluggishness of the Evanston cops. A year and a half after the Nov. 27, 2005 murder, the police department still had not received DNA analysis from evidence collected at the scene. Tight-lipped = incompetent? I don't know, but I'd be unwilling to impart information, too, if in doing so my total ineffectiveness was on display for the public (and, more to the point, Twyman's relatives) to see.
Now, two years after Twyman's death, there is still no progress. Every year, the Chicago Tribune runs an update story. Here are excerpts from the depressing one from this year:
Evanston cops mine for clues to 2005 slaying
By Brian Cox
November 26, 2007
After two years of searching for a woman's killer, Evanston police say patience and routine are the keys to turning up a vital clue in the brutal murder.
Linda Twyman, 43, was found lying in a pool of blood near the back door of her ground-floor apartment in the 1100 block of Ashland Avenue on the night of Nov. 27, 2005, after police were called to the building by a neighbor who heard a woman screaming.
Authorities haven't made an arrest, but the investigation is active, said Evanston Deputy Chief Joseph Bellino. Police are hoping that someone with information will come forward as the second anniversary of the killing nears, he said.
"We'd like to hear anything that they might have heard, even if they think it's insignificant," he said. "We would rather be the judge of the information and its value so we can see how it may match up with other information we have."
Two detectives and a supervisor are still working the case, Bellino said, and police have interviewed more than 50 people and sent hundreds of pieces of potential evidence to the Illinois State Police crime lab for forensic analysis. Investigators routinely question suspects in other crimes about the slaying in the hope that information they glean will turn up new leads, he said.

I guess that's the M.O. of the Evanston PD: strictly limit responses to media that might give publicity to the case, all while "hoping" that some leads turn up.

Praise for Aftermath, Inc.

2007-08-17T08:41:00.000-07:00

“A crime classic.”
Jason Kersten, author of Journal of the Dead

“An interesting, quick-moving book that gives the reader a true glimpse into the world of murder and mayhem.”
Stephen McCaskill, CSB: Crime Scene Blog

“Violence on steroids...a funny and oddly soothing guide to Aftermath, Inc., a company that cleans up the gore at crime scenes after the police have finished with them.”
Anne Stephenson, Arizona Republic

“...Utterly absorbing and interesting. A unique look at investigations and what happens after. It proves that truth really is stranger than fiction... While I wouldn’t want to do what Reavill did, I sure was fascinated reading about it.”
Jon Jordan, Crime Spree magazine

“...a fascinating read... Gil Reavill leaves no gory detail untold, no victim or clean-up technician unprofiled, and he does it all with a certain morbid flair."
Jessa Crispin, Bookslut

“I enjoyed this book... Believe it or not, it occasionally made me laugh. If you’re curious-but-not-dainty, a true-crime fan, or if you believe that TV is a real representation of life, Aftermath, Inc. is a book you’ll be dying to read.”
Terri Schlichenmeyer, syndicated newspaper book review column

When Aftermath concentrates on pure reporting, it is gold. Reavill is a self-deprecating narrator.... His descriptions stem from a sharp eye for the smallest detail...Reavill's reportage and curious nature allow for an emotional heft....When CSI goes home, much of the real work begins, and Reavill's ability to show just how far-reaching and important this work is makes Aftermath, Inc. a fascinating read.
Sarah Weinman, Philadelphia Enquirer

The Aftermath boys on the Today Show

2007-05-25T21:08:00.001-07:00

I Know What I Did Last Summer

2007-05-16T11:55:00.001-07:00

What I Did Last Summer from DirtyWriter on Vimeo

The Origins of Aftermath, Inc. (The Book)

2007-05-07T16:00:00.000-07:00

First Reviews

2007-05-07T09:26:00.000-07:00

Publishing industry trade mags have posted the first notices for Aftermath, Inc.: Cleaning Up After CSI Goes Home.

Publishers Weekly:
In this grisly, swaggering tale of gut-churning crime scenes and the men who clean them up after the forensics team is done, veteran true crime scribe Reavill (Beyond All Reason: My Life with Susan Smith) holds nothing back. From descriptions of crimes ("The fusillade of bullets tore through Johnson's body.... Blood, bits of flesh and bone fragments exploded everywhere") to hepatitis C "bleed-outs" ("All four walls of the bathroom looked like someone had taken a blood hose and turned it on them"), Reavill grabs the reader by the throat and doesn't let go. He follows the techs from Aftermath, Inc.-a bioremediation outfit in suburban Chicago-as they make the rounds of shotgun suicides, multiple murders and meth lab cleanups; dealing not only with the gross-out of the work but trying to stay sane doing it. While some black humor seeps in around the edges, Reavill mostly depicts a cadre of low-key, hardworking men doing a horrible job with respect and compassion. The narrative pace flags a bit in the last 50 pages when Reavill tries to connect Aftermath's work with larger moral issues, but otherwise, if anything can get CSI watchers to flip off the tube and pick up a book, this is it.

Kirkus Reviews:
After a grisly crime scene has been investigated by a small army of detectives, coroners and CSIs, who cleans up the mess?
Journalist Reavill (Smut, 2005, etc.) answers that intriguing, if rather disturbing, question. He spent a number of months with the crew of Aftermath, a "bioremediation" service established in a moment of entrepreneurial inspiration by friends Tim Reifsteck and Chris Wilson, who happened upon a gruesome murder scene and asked themselves that very question. The answer, at that point, was: sometimes concerned church groups, but usually the bereaved family members of the deceased. Reifsteck and Wilson saw an opportunity to create a market while helping people, and Aftermath was born. Reavill actually worked alongside Aftermath teams cleaning up after murders, suicides and "unattended deaths"—isolated elderly people who often go days or weeks before their corpses are discovered. The technical aspects of Aftermath's work—how do you get blood out of subflooring? What becomes of the "biomatter" (a hauntingly clinical term) that remains after the body has been
removed? What are the hazards of working with human tissues and fluids that have been violently splattered over walls, rugs, furniture?—are simultaneously fascinating, disgusting and subtly disturbing, as living people with all of their eccentricities and passions and regrets are reduced to a thorny waste-removal problem. Reavill's metaphysical musings on this last point seem rather pro forma, but he presents the hard-to-take information skillfully and with grace, and he offers a sober appraisal of the nature of violent crime. Tangents on Chicago's unbelievably violent history, the legacy of serial killers in the popular imagination and the history of forensic science provide compelling and welcome digressions from the overwhelmingly grim business of Aftermath.
For those drawn to the dark side of human experience (and equipped with strong stomachs), morbidly fascinating stuff and an essential addition to any True Crime reader's library.

My agent, Paul Bresnick, responded to the PW review with a getting-to-the-heart-of-it comment: "Question is: CAN anything get CSI watchers to flip off the tube?"

Bookseller Chick Interveiw

2007-05-07T08:28:00.000-07:00

Bookseller Chick, a cool site by a woman actually in the biz, features a Q&A with a book giveaway. Be in it to win it HERE.

Sample Reading

2007-05-07T08:25:00.000-07:00

guy blows brain out while wife sleeps in alcoholic stupor... from Aftermath Guy on Vimeo

CLEWS Author Interview

2007-05-07T08:09:00.000-07:00

Go to Laura James's great crime blog, CLEWS: The Historic True Crime Blog for a quick Q&A about Aftermath, Inc. In her intro to the interview, James dishes up one of the best true-crime fun facts I've ever run across, about the century-old Lizzie Borden murders. I wish I had known about it during my research for the book! Check it out: CLEWS.

CSB Review: "An Interesting, Quick-Moving Book That Gives the Reader a True Glimpse Into the World of Murder and Mayhem"

2007-04-13T22:15:00.001-07:00

Stephen McCaskill (all crime bloggers should have the word "kill" in their names) of CSB: Crime Scene Blog has posted his review of Aftermath, Inc. here.

First Day on the Job

2007-04-13T22:11:00.001-07:00

Spy in the House of Death

2007-04-13T22:10:00.000-07:00

Aftermath Mix

2007-04-13T22:09:00.001-07:00

Gil: As a lagniappe to sales reps, I burned and distributed fifty CDs with a custom tracklist made up of songs I cited, whistled or mentioned in passing in Aftermath, Inc.: Cleaning Up After CSI Goes Home (forthcoming in May from Gotham/Penguin USA). Here's the annotated playlist for the disc, which got stuck inside and destroyed the Mazda CD players of Penguin USA sales representatives all over the country. I never heard if the reps liked the mix, but I creamed coming up with it.

Aftermath (The Intro) Dr. Dre
Edited down to just the shock-and-awe opener ("Welcome to the Aftermath...").
Murder She Wrote Chaka Demus & Pliers
Melodic, jaunty reggae, with an insanely catchy chorus that unfortunately calls to mind the image of Angela Lansbury in the Sunday evening TV show of the same title. Book reference to one of the epigraphs to Chapter Six ("Every Unhappy Family"):"And if you tease the ragamuffin, gal, you gonna get kill."
Catch a Wave The Beach Boys
Book reference to the "vomit waves" that occur in hospitals, airplanes and teen drinking parties, in Chapter Four ("The Human Stain").
The Book of Love The Monotones
The theme song of Chapter Six, juxtaposing the doo-wop bromides of the Monotones with the spectacular violence of real-life families.
I’m Not Afraid to Die Willie Nelson & Gillian Welch
No specific book reference. I just like the song. I'm thinking of writing an answer song, though, to indicate that Yes I am indeed so terrified to die it gives me the stinging piss-shivers.
River Deep, Mountain High Tina Turner
Book reference from Chaper Two ("Wisconsin Death Drive"): "The news somehow made me think less of my fellow humans, like the fact that Ike and Tina’s 'River Deep, Mountain High' never climbed past number forty on the pop charts. What’s wrong with you people? Don’t you recognize a classic when you encounter one?" The proofreader later queried me on the attribution, pointing out that Ike had nothing to do with the song, and that in fact Phil Spector explicitly barred him from the studio. Point taken. But his name's on it, anyway.
Keep on the Sunny Side The Carter Family
Book reference in Chapter Two. Mother Maybelle wrote it, the Carter Family sang it, and my own mother lived it.
Angel from Montgomery John Prine
One the epgraphs ("There’s flies in the kitchen, I can hear ‘em there buzzing") from Chapter Two.
Sweet Home Chicago Robert Johnson
A fudge. The book reference comes at the end of Chapter Eleven ("The Left Hand of God"), but I used the demotic (and awful) Blues Brothers version of the song, just to get the quote: “'Look there, brother baby,' ran the riff on Robert Johnson’s 'Sweet Home Chicago,' 'and you'll see what I have seen.'”
Jesus Just Left Chicago ZZ Top
Book reference in Chapter Twelve ("Cold"), quoting the chorus: “Jesus just left Chicago and he's bound for New Orleans.”
Mr. Tambourine Man The Beau Brummels
Book reference to one of the epigraphs of Chapter Twelve. My favorite cover of the song, maybe, or else the Gregory Isaacs reggae version.
Aria, “Ich habe genug…” Bach Lorraine Hunt Lieberson
No particular book reference. During Peter Seller's production in Berlin, Hunt Lieberson sang this aria from a hospital bed, hooked up to IV's. An alternate cut on some copies of the CD: Hunt Lieberson's Theodora aria, from act one: "Angels, ever bright and fair." Different air, but the sentiment is the same. Get me out of this life, pronto.

Origins of Aftermath, Inc. (the Company)

2007-04-13T16:14:00.000-07:00

Ye Olde Kit Bag

2007-04-12T17:17:00.000-07:00

"From Ryan and Dave I learned to bring along a gym bag to every job, packed with spare clothes. I chose lightweight exercise garments that would be comfortable under the steamy haz-mat suits. My respirator belonged in the bag, too, although it never seemed to be there when I wanted it, and I packed a pair of running shoes that I used only on jobs. The whole idea was to leave as much of the job behind in the bag as possible, so as not to foul my ExtendedStay nest, or cross-contaminate my life in general." (From Chapter 7, "The Destroying Angel")

Here's a listing of the contents of my kit bag, the small, red-and-black Adidas sports duffel I purchased at the Sports Authority in Naperville, Illinois to tote my gear and personal stuff to and from Aftermath jobs.

1 pair Puma running shoes
3 pair non-latex rubber gloves
2 pair latex gloves
1 reporter's notebook
1 cherry Chapstick
1 crime scene photo, marked "LaGrange Suicide"
1 container, Axe Apollo bodyspray
1 DVD, "Loose Change"
1 DVD, "The Talented Mr. Ripley"
1 Maxim magazine, August 2006
1 Aftermath keychain
1 bottle, Ageless vitamin supplement
1 Canon PowerShot s400 digital camera
1 Sony M-630V microcassette tape recorder
1 copy graphic book, "Warts & All" by the Friedman Bros.
1 Koss S-66 stereo headphones
1 3m brand respirator, 6800 model, size medium, with a full clear-acrylic face-piece
1 package respirator replacement filters
1 Maglight
1 Purell hand sanitizer