Not a Very Good Murderer

by Ronan Farrow

Part true crime thriller, part captivating character study, Not a Very Good Murderer is a fascinating exploration of what it takes to uncover the truth and what it means to keep it buried. Learn more and listen on March 20, 2025.

Listening length: 4 hrs and 17 mins

Genres: Audiobook, Nonfiction, True Crime, Crime, Biography, History, Mystery

190 pages, Audible Audio

First published March 20, 2025

About the author

Ronan Farrow is a contributing writer to The New Yorker, where his investigative reporting has won the Pulitzer Prize for public service, the National Magazine Award, and the George Polk Award, among other honors. He previously worked as an anchor and investigative reporter at MSNBC and NBC News, with his print commentary and reporting appearing in publications including the Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, and the Washington Post.

Before his career in journalism, he served as a State Department official in Afghanistan and Pakistan. He is also the author of the New York Times bestseller War on Peace: The End of Diplomacy and the Decline of American Influence. Farrow has been named one of Time Magazine's 100 Most Influential People and one of GQ's Men of the Year. He is a graduate of Yale Law School and a member of the New York Bar. He recently completed a Ph.D. in political science at Oxford University, where he studied as a Rhodes Scholar. He lives in New York.

(source: Amazon)

Reviews

[Lucy Gilmore · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is definitely more of a podcast than an audiobook, but if Goodreads says I can count it toward my 2025 Reading Challenge goals, I'm counting it!

[Natalie Kapuler · Rating 1 out of 5]

I love Ronan Farrow, but now is not the time to spend so much time with obnoxious, racist, absolutely bonkers Trump voter. I recognize the importance of it, but this is not for me. Living with the protogonist intimately in my ears made feel icky in my soul.

[Chrissie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this wonderfully bonkers at the start, but by the end I just had huge compassion for this woman's children.

I also now realise that I still do not know if any murders were actually planned!

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I gave it a 4 because I love to deep dive on something random too, and that's kind of what happened here, and it became quite an interesting dive. Anything involving the complexities of life and the unraveling of a situation that seems one way and then turns, interests me.

[amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

[Patty Matty · Rating 1 out of 5]

The premise of the book is intriguing but the protagonist is a bust. I hate stupid people and she is one. I love Rowan’s writing btw but my advice is to not waste your time with this.

[All Things Liz · Rating 2 out of 5]

This audio read was kind of like a podcast/docuseries. It was kind of bland for me. Not suspenseful enough. But I trucked through it as I was working on projects around the house over the course of two days. It's not very memorable either.

[Mickey B · Rating 4 out of 5]

There’s a cluster in this b…

Fascinating character study for the curious, if you love Wikipedia rabbit holes, this is for you.

[Terry · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a short audio “book” available thru Audible. It is created like a podcast. It is not for everyone, but I enjoyed it. Why?
- Ronan Farrow created it and is the voice guiding the listener along. I respect his previous investigative reports.
-I admit I have greedily watched 🍿many (scripted) soap opera-like series over the years. You know the ones about very wealthy women who drink too much, wear expensive jewelry, gossip, behave inappropriately, and harm relationships with their husbands and children. This “book” included all of that and a true crime mystery!

[McKell]

I DNFed this one. It’s so dry, and I really have no desire to keep listening. TBH I’ve already forgotten when was even discussed in the first half of the book. We’re simply listening to a journalist discuss their process while also explaining that we basically have learned nothing about the case to which he is referring

[Tara Cignarella · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a Very Good Murderer by Ronan Faroow
Audio Version
Overall Grade: B
Information: B
Writing/Organization: B
Narration: A-
Best Aspect: A new and interesting story to me, good for a podcast format.
Worst Aspect: Short and basic.
Recommend: Yes.
Free with Audible

[Hadley Leviner · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this. Cece is an interesting character. No way my husband would still be with me if I had thought or asked for something to try to kill him. Viagra is wild lol. This was such a good listen.

[Heather Graham · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actual rating 2.5 rounded up. Note: profanity

[Darcey 👍 · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Katherine Lincoln · Rating 3 out of 5]

Audible. Interviewing a rich crazy drunk lady.

[Danielle Seals · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is more a podcast than an actual book. Very dry and I didn’t feel it really went anywhere. Not as suspenseful or as intriguing as the summary blurb leads.

[Alexandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Very entertaining.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

That was one wild ride. It was also kind of poignant in how it resonated on a personal level in some ways with Ronan Farrow.

[Chloe Pope · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m so disappointed that I didn’t love this as I was so excited for it.

I just don’t see the point in this being told, it felt like we started at point A and ended at point A

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unique in that it’s a podcast put together as if it’s an audiobook. Doane is a fantastic character study and I like Farrow’s journalistic style.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an investigative podcast and not a traditional book. Really good

[Shannon Ferguson · Rating 2 out of 5]

This lady was seriously unhinged. I enjoyed learning her steps, but there was no real plot. The author made a valiant attempt to wrap things in a “how does a journalist vet the credibility of a source” jacket, but it was thin. Still… whoa.

[Ginny Carr · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a very good book/podcast about Not a Very Good Murderer. Ronan Farrow picks on an obviously mentally ill woman. Many times he brings up political extremism and privilege as the cause of her issues. Ronan, Hello! You were raised in a privileged home (the offspring of Woody Allen and Mia Farrow) and you sound like a political extremist yourself. Please do better! This podcast turned book is boring as hell. Listened on Audible and was thankful that I could listen to the last couple of hours on 2.0 speed because I happen to be one of those people that must finish a book, no matter how bad!

[Heather R · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ronan Farrow seems to be a good writer with a nice podcast voice, and the production was very well done, but this one failed abysmally for me for the inescapable fact of its terrible subject. I guess you really can’t make a silk purse out of an alcoholic, narcissistic, downright unlikeable sow’s ear after all.

[Maine Colonial · Rating 5 out of 5]

What if I told you this is the most interesting podcast you’ll ever hear about journalistic fact checking? OK, it isn’t really about fact-checking, but that’s where it starts. About 10 years ago, long-ago Miss Arizona Cece Doane (her current married surname) claimed that Joe Biden made an improper sexual advance to her. Ronan Farrow called her as part of vetting the story, and that led to many long phone calls and meetings, often instigated by Cece herself.

I’d estimate that half or more of this podcast consists of Farrow talking to Cece and, secondarily, her husband, a retired police chief, an ex-husband, and one of her daughters, with somewhat less than half consisting of Farrow’s commentary and analysis. I’m sure it was no surprise to Farrow that Cece lived in Paradise Valley, AZ, a wealthy, conservative community, or that Cece subscribes to pretty much all of the Fox News views of this country. But it must have felt increasingly bizarre to find out how much her former husband and daughters hate her, that she was ostensibly the victim of a high-value armed burglary, that she claims to have been a mistress of Nelson Rockefeller when she was in her 20s and he was finishing up as New York and becoming Vice President, that she was investigated by police in connection with a claim that she planned to murder her husband with Viagra (he had a heart problem), and that now, 20 years later, she still lives with him. The podcast title comes from her scoffing remark about the attempted-murder claims.

It’s amazing the self-reflection Farrow gets from Cece, especially considering she believes that CNN stands for Communist News Network and that his former employer, MSNBC, is somewhere to the left of that. I was sometimes awestruck at his ability to stay on an even keel, even in those moments when Cece became vituperative, even threatening, about the subjects of her fraught relationships, her alcoholic blackouts, and the claims about her. But his approach pays off; he gets so much more out of her than I would ever expect. At the same time, he reveals how much fear is what drives the hatefulness of so many Fox News watchers. He almost makes you feel sorry for Cece—until you remember everyone who is harmed by her views and actions.

I don’t listen to a lot of podcasts, but this one really grabbed me.

[Louisa with an A · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5
This is very clearly a podcast but I’m behind on my reading challenge and goodreads is letting me count it so here we are.

I went into this not knowing who Ronan Farrow was and left it… still not knowing who he was fully. Not until I just looked him up. I think it was for the best that I didn’t know who he was while listening to this because it probably would have skewed views on it all.
I still don’t really know what I listened to; I thought I was going to be uncovering if this lady – Cece Doane – tried to kill of her two husbands. Instead, I got teased with a murder plot and ended up with some batshit crazy woman who seemed self-important and refused to confront her own failings. Blaming memory loss and mental illness. She would talk in circles and wasn’t really called out on it – that was portrayed to the audience at least. At the start it is prefaced that Ronan Farrow was instead going to use these interviews as an “insight” to how investigative journalists vet and determine if their sources are trustworthy and truthful. But I think that would have been better to put in the blurb too.
For those wondering my thoughts on if Cece is trustworthy and truthful – no. Not in any way shape or form. And whether this is because she has legitimate memory loss, she can’t bare to face the truth, or if she is just straight up a bald-face lie doesn’t really matter in the end.

The last episode or so, one of Cece daughter’s is introduced and while I sympathise with her and that her upbringing must have been difficult, I don’t think everything she added was necessary. She definitely used a lot of therapy talk. It felt to me that she used this platform to bolster her own beliefs and promote that Cece is damaged and has damaged her. Very minimal of what was used of her interviews added context to Cece.

Overall, this wasn’t underwhelming because I didn’t have many thoughts or hopes going into this, but I definitely think this could have been a more interesting visual documentary. It did seem a bit of an odd move to give an incredibly privileged woman with some controversial opinions and thoughts a platform. Especially someone who by her own words can’t even seem to remember half her life.

[Ally Marov · Rating 3 out of 5]

’In this wild, genre-bending audio documentary, New York Times best-selling author and Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter Ronan Farrow dives deep into the strange and storied life of high-society socialite and former Miss Arizona Celia (Cece) Doane.

As a well-to-do ex-beauty queen in the 1970s, Cece had no trouble attracting husbands. She did appear to have some trouble getting rid of them, though. Under seemingly perpetual investigation for attempted murder plots against two of her spouses, she has been a "person of interest" to Arizona law enforcement for decades but never arrested. Did she actually conspire to have her husbands killed? And if so, how has she managed to elude detectives for so many years?…

Part true crime thriller, part captivating character study, Not a Very Good Murderer is a fascinating exploration of what it takes to uncover the truth and what it means to keep it buried’.

✨3 stars✨
⚠️TRIGGER WARNINGS BEFORE YOU READ THIS BOOK/REVIEW: attempted murder, home invasion, house fire, physical assault, alcoholism, child abuse⚠️

Alexa, play Lifestyles Of The Rich and Famous by Good Charlotte 😂

Decided to listen to this on a whim while having a squiz through the Audible Plus catalogue.

I found this to be quite enjoyable and quick to listen. The interviews Farrow conducted were interesting and kept me on my toes.

As for whether or not I believe CeCe Doane is telling the truth about trying to kill her ex husband, the home invasion, and not remembering abusing her two daughters… it’s one of those things that you have to take with a grain of salt.

Overall, if you want something quick to listen to while doing stuff around the house, running errands, or just want to know some behind the scenes of what goes on with the rich and famous… this is perfect 🌻✨

[Kelly Conrad · Rating 3 out of 5]

I adore Ronan, but I don’t know how he found such a deep well of patience for this disaster of a woman. The gravelly-whine of her voice started to really grate on me towards the end…not to mention the cruelty, ignorance, willful denial, putrid privilege and narcissism that her voice constantly spewed.

It just made me sick how the rich elite are often so isolated from the world that it makes it easy for them to believe what is spoon fed them and making them so susceptible to fear-based disillusion. The gross-ness of it compounded by the fact that the elite rarely have to pay any consequences for their actions because of the power money has. Ick, fear & money—the cause of so much suffering in this world, and her life is a perfect example of that.

I found myself so proud of her daughter Sara for working through all of her mother’s manipulation and abuse so bravely and seeming like she is almost to a place of healing.

Ceci’s husband is a true piece of work. What dirt must she have on him for him to stick around as her lap dog? Ronan even says that when a question is too hard for her, dude will chime in. She is no precious flower, Mr. Ceci, STFU, and let her handle her own bullshit! Need we remind you that she was accused of plotting to kill with Viagra, the article about it entitled “Die Hard” (which I, of course, thought was a riot)!

But man, it made me respect Ronan even more—his journalistic integrity hit a new high for me, as his ability to stick to the facts, not get drawn in, even by her insults, and maintain a hardline on his interview rules despite her push back was truly something to behold.

[Mboconnor31 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who knew? Ronan Farrow does a podcast and this one involves a deep dive into the disturbing life and times of one former Miss Arizona 1971. Her name is Celia Doane. And she is from Paradise Valley, Arizona. Her family was from Chicago and their wealth was from the furniture business.

Why? During the presidential election for Biden’s presidency in 2021, stories came out about him being a predator. Apparently, Celia Doane, “CeCe,” a woman steeped in the Fox News world of conspiracy theories, made multiple social media posts, claiming she had relations with Biden, as well as Nelson Rockefeller. This is the origin and where Ronan Farrow’s interest in the rabbit hole descent begins.

What? You wind through a world filled with extravagant wealth, booze and narcissism. Sadly, two young girls are mixed in to the lives of the protagonist and two of four husbands involved. Here is a CeCe quote: “I spent more time thinking about the color of a car, than I did about the person who I was going to marry.”

Where? The girls grow up and appear to be admirable survivors but the mother stays limited to her Pinot Grigio drinking starting early in the day and life of related “black-outs.”

It left me wondering if this not expectable results for our current world wrapped up in shallowness and unbridled materialism. And, oh, did I mention, CeCe makes literal news headlines for attempted murder of her husband, who is still loyal and her enabling ever supportive husband, at least, during time of this podcast, and as the story devolves another husband claims something similar. Hence, the title: Not a Very Good Murderer.

[Terry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Though I initially picked this up because I had never read anything (aside from the odd article) by him and wanted to get a taste for his journalistic style, I really enjoyed it. Really, he was as much of the main character as Cece or Jim and I appreciated him walking through the process of interviewing and vetting his subjects. It is nice to know that we have journalists of his quality out in the world, even if I fear he is more of an exception than the norm nowadays.

More of a podcast than a proper book, it doesn't go that deep into any particular topic outside of figuring out if Cece was a person he could use as a source in other writing. Many people have commented on the politics surrounding his subjects which is impossible to avoid but not really the main point of the story. If anything, some readers/listeners will be upset in the framing of sources of misinformation discussed in the last chapter while others will be upset it doesn't go further.