Curated True Crime #6: Contract to Kill

I’ll admit, I’ve listened to *a lot* of true crime, and *Contract to Kill* still managed to unsettle me in fresh ways. The cases Malton selects aren’t just about money changing hands—they’re about the *arrogance* of assuming you can game the system. One standout segment dissects a woman who hired her hairdresser to kill her husband, then attended his funeral veiled in black, sobbing for the cameras. The audiobook’s pacing is relentless; Malton doesn’t waste time on tangential details, which keeps the tension high but occasionally leaves you wishing for deeper psychological analysis of the masterminds. Is it greed? Narcissism? The book hints but doesn’t always dig. Greg Sisco’s performance is a masterclass in less-is-more narration. His voice has a news-anchor precision that makes the absurdities land harder—like when he deadpans, *“The hitman, it turned out, was an undercover cop,”* after pages of a would-be widow’s meticulous planning. My only critique: the production’s minimalist approach sometimes feels *too* sparse. A few strategic sound cues (a dial tone, a prison door clanging) could’ve heightened the immersion, especially in the shorter chapters. Still, the lack of frills forces you to confront the banality of these crimes, and that’s what makes it stick. If you’re tired of true crime that romanticizes killers, this is the antidote—cold, clear, and brutally efficient.