Lost and Found
LISK: Long Island Serial Killer review
Production company – Mopac audio/Glassbox
Rating – 
I’ve become something of a true crime fanatic since I started spending inordinate amounts of time listening to podcasts. Originally, it was a genre that I would avoid, but with so many great shows I swiftly became a convert. In fact, I would say that true crime takes up over half of my total listening time nowadays.
This one is no different. So let’s take a trip to the other side of Long Island. Maybe not geographically distant from the high life of the Hamptons, but a million miles away in other ways.
You may also notice that I am a day late posting this. Or not, you may have just stumbled across this site not knowing the protocol I try to stick to. The reason is, I have been very busy with my band recently, and also rather ill. So I literally ran out of time on Sunday. But here it is anyway. Better late then never eh? I hope so…
So what’s it about?
We start the story following a frantic phone call in May 2010, and a disappearance. Police in the area of Oak Beach in Long Island receive a call from Escort Shannan Gilbert. She’s seemingly in danger, but not making much sense, and apparently she’s running from something. Or someone. She’s never seen again.
The following spring, a police training team in Gilgo Beach discovers the bones of a female. Then they discover three more. The so-called “Gilgo Four” spark an investigation into a possible serial killer that has so far been operating unknown to police. We also get a name. LISK or the Long Island Serial Killer.
From there “the game is afoot” as Sherlock would say. There is a very real hunt to catch this mysterious killer before they claim another victim. The only problem seems to be whether the police actually want to catch the killer.
Is it any good?
The first two series are a brilliant investigation into the existence of a serial killer. There are many threads that are picked at, lots of red herrings too. I guarantee that there will be people discussed in the early episodes that you will be convinced are the killer, only to have your theories shot down.
As series three begins, we are confronted with the revelation that an arrest has been made. From that point, the story is split between revealing the killer, and investigating just why the police did such a bad job of solving the case.
So much new evidence comes to light, it’s frankly staggering why it took so long to catch this person. Unless you listen to lots of true crime podcasts, and the ineptitude and corruption of the police won’t come as much after a surprise at all.
Final thoughts
This is an epic investigation. The podcast started four years ago, so there are plenty of episodes to binge on. This is by no means the only “real time” true crime podcast. The Idaho Massacre, Bone Valley, and Lost Hills also fit this bill. There is something different about LISK through.
I really can’t recommend this show highly enough. You’ll love it if you’re a true crime fanatic, but it’s a great entry point into the genre if, like me, you never really gave shows like these a chance.
You can get LISK here:
For more great reviews, I recommend GreatPods