Title: Rubber Bullets: A Memoir
Author: Roni Faciane
Genre: Nonfiction/True Crime Memoir
Book Blurb:
Roni was left to fight a fight that few could win.
She filled with rage while holding her baby, now covered in bruises. Pleading prayers to a God that wouldn't protect her. Forced to push back murderous plots in her head. After all, her son and daughter relied on her training to dispense justice---not revenge. To defend her baby, she took her own beating in front of a judge and vowed to make them pay.
Five years later, she would again face that same system. This time she was a huntress of fugitives---a bounty hunter. A newfound badge of redemption propelled her into the spotlight.
Exploited, threatened and sued, she continued her mission.
But she found her biggest challenge in the case of human trafficking, the deaths of six young women, and two serial killers.
My Review:
Memoirs are an incredibly personal thing. It takes an amazing amount of bravery to put your life out for others to see. I commend this author for willing to risk the thoughts of others about her personal journey.
In reading this book, I was struck by one main idea. As readers go through this, they should consider their own choices in life. This memoir is an illustration of what choices a person makes has consequences. Not always are consequences negative but they could be. Roni has had a lifetime of choices that have paved her road in life.
That she has made it through the cauldron of her life and come out on the other side is commendable. Others faced with tough choices in life could take heart from that. The choices you make from early in life and on can impact your life for a long time. That should be the lesson that comes from this book. Think about your choices and consider the ramifications of them.
In terms of technical details, this book took a different tact. There is a strong debate about the virtues of linear or non-linear timelines. In my view, this book took the timeline, put it in a blender, mixed it on high for one minute then presented it. I didn't find the flow made a lot of sense for me.
I make it a point to overlook what I call spell check errors. When the wrong word spelled correctly is used in place of the right word that isn't worth noting to me as a reviewer. The one instance in this book cannot go by without being pointed out to the world. We just had the somber remembrance of the 20th anniversary of the savage terror attack of 9/11. The entire world came to a stop on that September morning, and we will never forget. For this book to say it was 2011 is an egregious error. An editor should have caught that, a proofreader should have caught that, a beta reader should have caught that. That kind of error cannot be made in a book.
This is a book that could evoke sadness in a reader. This book could appeal to reality show fans. This book could appeal to Dogs who hunted bounties fans. This book will appeal to fans of gritty memoirs.
TW (from the author): My book has some politically incorrect triggers, especially in today’s climate. My story includes incidents of racism, sexism, child abuse and rape. Also includes a short sex scene along with prison, bail arrests, and serial killer stories that may make the reader experience unwanted emotions. I have it listed for readers18 years and older.
My Rating: 4.5 stars
Buy it Now:
(website) Roni Faciane - Shop
(Amazon English edition)
(Smashwords English Edition)
Author Biography:
Roni Faciane is a certified life coach, and former Lipstick Bounty Hunter, who advocates for improved protections for abused children, quality police and prison reforms, decriminalization of sex work and dangers of media disinformation. After facing a lawsuit for $52 million for the arrest of a bail client turned murderer, the deaths of two women sex workers she helped to arrest, and prosecuting her daughter's abusers, Roni devoted herself to advocating for victims who are often ignored, silenced and judged by powerful entities who thrive on the pain of others for profit.
Her experience as a former bounty hunter and prison guard giver her a unique perspective on victims and criminals. She helped arrest wayward bail clients, mostly fugitives, in Southern California, but is best known for the attempted capture of Daniel Lee Duvall in 2013. A video of Roni and the owners of Lipstick Bail Bonds pursuing Duvall went viral, generating national and international attention. Duvall sued both Roni and Lipstick for $52 million. He claimed Roni blinded him with a rubber bullet during the attempt and that the women used excessive force violating his civil rights.
Following the flood of media interest in the Duvall case, Roni visited the California State Senate in Sacramento to discuss amending some of the language in the bail laws. She also met with both the Riverside County Sheriff's Department and Board Members at the Academy for the Department of Corrections to advocate for changes to training programs for bounty hunters.
A judge dismissed the lawsuit after a judge sentenced Duvall to 80 years in prison in 2017 for murdering his uncle with a fatal gunshot in 2015.
After the deaths of two women she helped locate as a bounty hunter, she began to advocate decriminalizing sex work and better monitoring and research of sex offenders. Kiana Jackson in 2013 missed a court date, forcing the bail agent to hire bounty hunters to find her. Authorities later discovered she and four others were victims of California serial killers Steven Gordon and Franc Cano. Both were homeless sex offenders required to wear GPS ankle monitors.
Roni is available for speaking engagements for victims' rights organizations. She lives in Nevada and is the mother of two children, a son, and a daughter.
Her book, Rubber Bullets, released in 2020 and the Spanish Edition in 2021.
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Reviewed by: Mr. N