A rip in Heaven vs Severed: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Case studies, True Crime, Murder
A rip in Heaven
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It was a headline story in the New York Times and USA Today. It was covered by Court TV and profiled on the Ricki Lake Show. Now, here is the intimate memoir of a shocking crime and its aftermath...one family's…
Severed
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The Black Dahlia murder hit post-War Los Angeles like a bombshell . . . an impenetrable mystery—the haunting crown jewel of LAPD’s “unsolved” murders. Even before her savage death, beautiful 22-year-old Elizabeth Short,…
Side by side
The verdict
- Readers rate A rip in Heaven highest: A rip in Heaven 4.2 · Severed 3.7.
- A rip in Heaven has the widest readership — 15222 ratings behind its score.
- Severed runs the darker storyline; A rip in Heaven stays the lighter read.
How to choose
Scores by source
| A rip in Heaven | Severed | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | 4.2 (15222) | 3.7 (1785) |
| Hardcover | 4.7 (6) | 3.0 (1) |
| Google Books | 5.0 (1) | 4.0 (1) |
| Apple Books | 4.0 (362) | 4.0 (23) |
Reception
| A rip in Heaven | Severed | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 15222 | 1785 |
| Editions | 6 | 5 |
| Film adaptations | — | 1 |
| Want to read | — | 2133 |
| Reading it now | — | 117 |
| Written reviews | — | 125 |
| Wikipedia attention | — | 83 |
| Pages | 302 | 237 |
Questions readers ask
Which is rated higher: A rip in Heaven or Severed?
A rip in Heaven has the higher combined reader rating across sources (A rip in Heaven 4.2/5, Severed 3.7/5).
Which is shorter to read: A rip in Heaven or Severed?
Severed is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: Severed (237 pages, ≈ 4 h 23 m); A rip in Heaven (302 pages, ≈ 5 h 36 m).
Which is harder to read: A rip in Heaven or Severed?
Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — A rip in Heaven: Moderate; Severed: Moderate.