Maximum Harm

May 1, 2017
Investigative journalist McPhee’s (A Mob Story) latest true crime narrative takes the story of the Boston Marathon bombing to new levels with her gripping account of the explosion, the frantic search for the culprits, and the eventual trial of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. Even readers familiar with the contours of the tragedy are likely to find McPhee’s narrative terrifying and moving. But McPhee, a Boston native who was nearby at the time of the explosion, goes beyond recounting events, echoing accusations previously voiced in Masha Gessen’s 2015 The Brothers: The Road to an American Tragedy by claiming that “the federal government played a direct role in creating the monster that Tamerlan Tsarnaev became” and that the FBI’s recruitment of him as an informant led them to delay sharing vital information with the Boston police after the bombings. She argues that the U.S. government reneged on promises made to Tamerlan, “leading him to change sides” and commit this deadly act of terror. McPhee goes as far as to draw a comparison with the Whitey Bulger corruption scandal. Open-minded readers are likely to conclude that, while there remain unanswered questions about the case, this comparison is not yet warranted.