5 comments about Deadly American Beauty (St. Martin's True Crime Library).

1. I was engrossed in this story from the minute I started reading it. I found it so amazing, looking at the pictures of this beautiful young girl, that Kristin Rossum could be with no conscience and so cold-blooded. As much as true crime repels us, it still is something you want to read because you just can't believe people do these things. Kristin's husband is portrayed as such a sweet, loving guy and how she murdered him was ruthless; it was overkill. I totally believe she was guilty, although she professes to this day she is innocent. I think she is a compulsive liar who actually started, at some point, believing her own lies. Her drug of choice was methamphetamine and I'm sure it heightened her imagination and determination to get rid of her husband so she could be with her lover. I say, get a divorce if you want out that bad. If you love true crime stories, you will love this book.



2. This was a great read that you could not put down. It went in to details that suspense never left the story. Nothing was dragged out it was written perfectly.It tells the Story of Kristen Rossum all through her life and after she murdered her Beautiful husband Greg DeVillers.So sad and just a very selfish woman Kristen was. Why did she go wrong? her parents gave her so much in life.She was driven to succeed at a young age with so much help and family support.So things that went on in her childhood when she started using drugs and could never stop then leading to murder leaves so many questions open that she will never answer.
   
   Just such a sad situation that should have never happened. To take away Greg's life And Greg's family will always live in pain from this.In the book I never saw her show remorse for this nor did I hear that her parents shoes remorse for Greg's family.



3. This is by no means a great book, but the story is so riveting it more than makes up for the mediocre writing skills of John Glatt. Kristin Rossum seemed to have it all: beauty, brains, a good job, a loving husband. That she chose to throw it all away by because of a drug addiction and an ill-fated affair (where is Michael Robertson these days, by the way? I hope he's in jail too) is mind-boggling to me and, I'm sure, to her family. Even though it's clear to me that Rossum indeed killed Greg and there's nothing in the world that could ever justify that, I was surprised to found myself feeling sorry for the beautiful young woman who ruined so many lives, including her own.



4. I will admit, I am not one to read true crime books, so I maybe off the mark in this review, but overall I was not too happy with this book. I never felt like I really knew the people (they almost seemed stiff or cardboardy, for a lack of a better word) and the author seemed to repeat a lot of information, in an effort to make it a longer book, I guess. I think he could have cut out much of the repeats and cut the length down quite a bit.
   
   I also question the phrase "almost perfect murder" because honestly, Kristin was so hyped up on meth when she killed her husband, she wasn't thinking straight at all. To buy the rose at Vons with a debit card instead of cash, and then also use her Vons store discount card to boot, was nothing short of completely retarded. Her stories varied by the moment, and she freely admitted to lying. This was supposed to be the great master mind behind the "almost perfect murder"? Maybe she was smart when she wasn't high, but that didn't seem to happen very often.
   
   If you're a huge fan of true crime books, and can't find anything else to read, you can pick this one up at the library, but otherwise I'd say skip it and spend your time reading something interesting. This author seems very interested in hype and sensationalism, and not much else.



5. This was really the best book I've read for awhile. Great detail. It like yiou're there seeing things happen. Not too much focus on one thing to the point of that it got boring.

5 comments about Unbridled Rage.

1. This was a fast read, the author handled this sad story with delicate care, it is a testimony that eventually whether you believe it or not what comes around goes around.



2. If you grew up in metropolitan Chicago you are aware of the events covered in this story. Your eyes have glazed over countless news stories and telecasts, all of which served to confuse you more than help you. O'Shea has superbly connected the dots of crime stories more complex than the collective Dashielle Hammett. Terrifying that it is non-fiction.



3. Gene O'Shea has done a remarkable job in telling how two ATF agents solved a heralded Chicago murder mystery 40 years after the killings. Chicago was shocked in 1955 when the naked bodies of three young boys were found in a ditch in a forest preserve. An incredible effort on the part of police and investigative authorities for years was unable to solve this horrible crime. It took two outstanding agents, John Rotunno and Jim Grady, through intensive investigation to crack this "cold case." O'Shea has detailed a most interesting summary of just how these agressive agents turned up enough evidence to convict horseman Kenneth Hansen. His book is a fascinating read. This worthy story would make a top-notch movie...



4. Atf John Rotunno's many, many lies are promoted in this book. ATF John Rotunno is a pathiological liar! Gene O'Shea attempts to make John Rotunno and himself wealthy and great men by solving the Helen Brach murder with countless lies. The truth of the ATF's con has been exposed all over the internet! Just take a look and see the ATF caught in one of their biggest blunders ever! How did the author become Illinois Gaming Commissioner? Please tell us if John Rotunno got you this job?
   
   This book is shameful because innocent people have been lied about by ATF John Rotunno! ( The truth will set you free!)



5. 
   Unbridled Rage is the story of the solving of the 40 year old muder of three young boys in Chicago. Along the way, the author, Gene O'Shea, touches on a number of other murders connected to the notorious Silas Jayne gang in Chicago. The story is fascinating and the writing is just excellent. For example there are courtroom scenes where necessary to advance the story, but these scenes which in the hands or lesser writers can be numbingly boring, are brief and relevant. O'Shea writes as a reporter presenting a clear narrative, rather than as a cheerleader, which unfortunately is an all too common phenonmenon in true crime writing. He remains as non-judgemental as anyone could, given the nauseating nature of the crime, and of the personal make-up, which O'Shea explores in interesting depth, of the murderer. The time frames of this book range from 1955 to the early 21st century. This could have become difficult to follow, but at the start of each chapter, O'Shea lists the dates covered in that particular chapter.
   A very strong effort.

No comments about The Lurking Devil of Murder.

5 comments about Summer Wind: Thomas Capano and the Murder of Anne Marie Fahey.

1. I read this book after reading Ann Rule's "And Never Let Her Go". I was actually very glad that I had read her book first, because had I not I would not have understood anything about the background of the people involved, which this book did not go into. It was gripping and definately readable but it just sort of covered the story from the time Capano murdered Anne Marie through the trial. If a person just wants an overall view of the case, this would be the book. But if you want more details and more information into the lives and background of these people, I would recommend Rule's book.



2. I started this book in Las Vegas in August ... and I couldn't stop myself from reading. It took me three days (with all the distractions the Venetian has to offer). Anastasia's style was wonderfully blunt. I knew the outcome going in, yet I couldn't wait to turn the next page and read how this author laid it out for me. An incredible story that could've been handled like so many of those "O.J." books ... but it wasn't. Incredibly well done. Bravo, Mr. Anastasia. You have a way with words ...



3. This book ranks right up there with HELTER SKELTER in my favorite true-crime books. I live in Philadelphia, just a stone's throw from Delaware, the locale of the story, and I heard plenty about the Anne Marie Fahey case at the time it happened.

   TSW is the story of gubernatorial secretary Anne Marie Fahey and Tom Capano, a high-powered attorney with political aspirations and connections. This is a story of appearances. To all observations, Anne Marie was vivacious and fun-loving; what wasn't readily apparent was the fact that she was a troubled young woman with eating and emotional disorders that stemmed from a dysfunctional upbringing. Tom was Delaware royalty, the scion of a wealthy Italian-American family who had the brains to take the Capanos to new levels both politically and socially. To all who knew him, he was the biggest mover and shaker in the state. What wasn't readily apparent was the fact that he was a manipulative, obsessive lothario who preyed upon helpless, insecure women.

   You will be glued to this book as you read how Capano literally tried to get away with murder and the anguish the Fahey family experienced as all attempts to locate their sister were in vain. The culmination came with the incriminating discovery of the cooler and the decree of the death penalty, which Capano appeals to this very day.




4. This is the worst of the books written on this subject. The author has a cynical, stereotypical attitude towards women and it's so annoying and so ignorant that it ruined the book. It's like "if she was with a rich, powerful guy then she was a gold-digger and well what can you expect would happen" sort of attitude. The author is the sort of man who automatically would judge a woman in the most cynical way if they happen to be involved with a powerful guy like Tom Capano. Despite the fact Anne Marie's diary actually was {at first} loaded with true affection and statements of love about Tom Capano. The author ignored a lot in order to promote his narrow-minded and ungenerous attitude. The book comes off as having been written by a fairly uneducated person, and I don't care how educated the author might actually be...because the book stinks. What he ought to know is, women can actually love in the sort of relationship Anne had with Tom. That is, before she realized how messed up he was she thought she loved him. The author would rather make chauvinistic statements than see that fact. Everyone said, Tom could be very charming and seem to take great care and interest in a woman....and so of course Anne Marie would love him for that {and I got that good, more honest info from Ann Rule's book}. Also, if Tom Capano had decided to spend money on Anne Marie, that was between the two of them...Tom wanted to do so and Anne Marie was grateful for it {during the days before disillusionment she ended up experiencing}....but the author wants you to think that's all Anne Marie cared about was money. I recommend Ann Rule's book instead. She doesn't see things in total black and white like chauvinist author George Anastasia does.



5. The Summer Wind is investigative reporting at its finest.
   George Anastasia goes behind the scenes of Delaware's Trial of the Century, uncovering the good, bad and plain out ugly of the Capano family and its golden boy Tom Capano's seriously twisted psyche.
   Capano, clever, intelligent, successful attorney and partner, and also a serial adulterer and apparently a man with little or no conscience, begins a relationship with Anne Marie Fahey, secretary to Delaware's governor. When she wants to end the relationship after several years, he is not willing to let her go and kills her, disposing her body in an ice cooler in the Atlantic, in order to keep control.
   What makes this tale of the sad Fahey-Capano case superior to other versions is Anastasia's unbiased reporting. Rather than making Fahey look like an unwitting party, he admits her faults and knowledge that she was conducting an illicit affair with a married man. He tirelessly relives Fahey and Capano's relationship, with their email correspondences and Fahey's diary entries. In this way, Fahey comes across as a real person, faults and all. He spends equal time dissecting the Capano family and, in particular, Tom's long history of lies, deceit and schemes.
   Even knowing the outcome of the trial, this book still had me eagerly turning each page - - feeling sympathy and sorrow for the Fahey family, for Tom Capano's long suffering wife and daughters and absolutely repulsion for Tom Capano himself.
   A classic case of someone having everything only to throw it all away.
   Definitely recommended over the other Capano books out there.

5 comments about Vulgar Favors: Andrew Cunanan, Gianni Versace, and the Largest Failed Manhunt in U.S. History.

1. I live in urban Minneapolis, Minnesota so I watched the Cunanen case unfold from the beginning. I am also a fan of Maureen Oarth. Her meticulous research in Vanity Fair articles carried over into this book. I was most concerned with the Minnesota aspect of the case and her work on it seemed excellent. I was less familiar with the later outstate aspects of the case by Oarth's book seems to make sense.

   Reactions of some in the gay community, who seemed to judge the book by a "political agenda" seemed to mirror the response to Randy Shilts classic book on the AIDS epidemic "And the Band Played On". Many of the worst critics of Shilts classic book were from the gay community.

   As they say, those who don't learn from history are destined to repeat it. Law enforcement and the gay community cooperation on the Cunnanen case went from excellent to horrible. In Vulgar Favors Oarth describes the extremes, and everything in the middle, in great detail. It provides a foundation on how this "odd couple" can work together better in the future.

   I recall reading somewhere that there were several gays on the books editing and publishing team and they didn't have any problem with the book and it's contents.

   I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the Cunanen case who has an open mind. Gays are like everyone else, you have to take the good with the bad. Early on the Minneapolis newspaper wouldn't even use the word "gay" to describe Andrew Cunanen even though they listed several of his lovers with obviously male names (like duhh!). The local gay press ironically, tended to be supportive of Vulgar Favors and the Vanity Fair coverage because it got coverage and awareness for local gay community issues like substance abuse and cooperation with police.

   Again I highly recommend this book.




2. Sheesh! Andrew's story is fairly absorbing as far as those of serial killers go, and Orth has collected an impressive mountain of facts about it. However, this book's shortcomings far outweigh any of its strong points:
   
   1. The text is fairly clogged with spelling errors and illiteracies of every kind. I mean, I'M embarrassed to read them, and I had nothing to do with the book!
   
   2. Why couldn't we have pictures? Because Orth didn't want to stoop to sensationalism? Then how to explain the completely inaccurate and misleading title? At no point is it ever alleged that Cunanan performed "vulgar favors" for Versace, hence I must conclude that that title was chosen only for the basest of reasons.
   
   3. There was no reason the book needed to be this long; it could have been much shorter and still effective. The author seemed unable to weed out uninteresting aspects of her story, instead dumping EVERY damn fact in her possession on us (e.g., do we really need two entire chapters on the history of the FBI's fliers?!?)
   
   4. Orth just can't seem to make the characters come alive, although she evidently suffered from no lack of rich material.
   
   5. Her prose style is mediocre and over-stylized at the same time.
   
   6. I suppose this is inevitable when writing the life of a serial killer, but here I must accuse Orth of "playing the ending" too much. What I mean is that she goes back into his life in high school (and before) reading all these sinister meanings into the most innocuous teenageisms (what high-school boy, for example, isn't a barefaced liar?). As if he'd spent his entire life preparing to go berserk and kill Versace. Brother! Only somebody with a ludicrous and gratingly shallow understanding of human nature would have slanted her facts thus.
   
   Avoid this one: A weak and forgettable effort.



3. Nine years after the crimes, this book's flaws are all the more apparent: overwritten and in desperate need of an editor's hand. The reader has to wait more than 300 pages to get to Gianni Versace. The buildup, many extraneous details about four previous murders of obscure individuals by Andrew Cunanan, while interesting in its way, is not why anyone would want to read this work. This reporter never met a detail she didn't decide to incorporate into her writing. There are reams of tedious detail about police investigations, with many gratuitous quotes by cops who are unimportant to the theme. No one really cares about the non-celebrities who preceded Versace in death at the hands of this particular psychopath.



4. It was well written for the most part, but I detected a lot of homophobia between the lines. Orth comes off as judgmental and seems to blame the victims....they deserved to be murdered because they were gay and were guilty of risky behavior (Note to Mrs. Russert: straight folks are promiscuous and do drugs, too).
   
   Orth wrote a lot of things about the victims that I don't think belonged in the book - who cares whether or not Gianni Versace had or didn't have AIDS?
   
   Andrew Cunnan's sexual orientation had nothing to do with his being a serial killer. This individual was the product of psychotic parents (SOME people should NOT reproduce) who made Andrew what he was: an overindulged, spoiled, narcissistic sociopath with an out of control ego and a huge sense of entitlement.
   
   As I said, good book for the most part but maybe the story should have been told by someone less prejudiced.
   
   And, by the way, I am a heterosexual woman.



5. Orth is the wife of Tim Russert. This is her first book, and it is very interesting. She gives all the details of the murders of Trail, Madison, Miglin, Reese, and Versace. What she describes is the unknown lifestyle of the kept men. Cunanan lived a life of lies. He was popular mainly because he picked up the tab. He dealt drugs, and when he life was collasping around him, he decided to kill his friends and associates. Whether he actually ever knew Miglin and Versace before their murders, Orth goes deeply into the lifestyles of all those involved in this story. I am normally not disposed to crime stories, but Orth does a great job of showing the national manhunt for Andrew Cunanan. The only bad thing is that there were no pictures in this detailed book.
   
   This is a great and detailed read about the national manhunt for Andrew Cunanan. The author did the legwork in uncovering everything we need to know about the characters. She assumes much, but the level of detail leads you to these assumptions about Versace and Miglin.

5 comments about Murder At Morses Pond.

1. Not being familiar with this case I found the book easy to read and understand as well as informative. Maybe if I had followed the case closely I might have had another opinion, but I think it's a good read.



2. This portrayl of the Dirk Greineder murder case is an awful piece of work that is riddled with errors and sheds no new information on the case. Author Rosencrance clearly did little more than watch the Court TV coverage of this case, read the local media accounts, and consult the trial transcripts. Beyond the local police chief and several jurors, none of the main participants in the case were interviewed and there is virtually no character development. The story line is disjointed, confusing and devoid of emotion and description. Some parts read like clinical police reports while other sections are trial transcripts run verbatim. Avoid this book at all costs as the errors are too numerous to list. It does not deserve a single star but there is no option for zero stars.



3. I read this book because I was well aware of the case and the trial and I have to disagree about there being a lot of errors. I understand that you may not like the style -- a lot of court stuff -- but it's wrong to say it's riddled with errors.



4. I have been watching for a book to be published on the Greineder case since the completion of the trial. When I saw this book, I was very excited to purchase a copy. I watched the trial from beginning to end and was quite fascinated by it. As mentioned in other reviews, the book was not what I expected. I assumed it would be a well researched story and would have new information, but I was wrong. It is written from court records, transcipts of the trial, etc., so it was just a written form of what we had seen visually via Court TV.
   Even though this was the case, I enjoyed reading it. I would have enjoyed reading it better, though, if there were more background information, character development, and input from family members, etc. Of course, I felt that the children and May's extended family would never agree to be interviewed for a book like this. They are very private people and probably felt that there would not be anything to be gained by participating in a project like this. I purchased a used copy, so I felt that I wasn't out too much. It wasn't just awful, but neither is it well researched like an Ann Rule book or other popular True Crime writers.



5. I like some trial coverage in my true crime books, but Rosencranz overdid it. All she did was use the trial transcripts basically verbatim. She did little research as far as I can tell. A little bit of info from the jurors and cops and that is it. I got tired of the constant repetition of what happened as she interviews every single cop, etc. who came to the crime scene. I had absolutely no feeling for who May and Dirk Greineder were as real people. No emotional connection, no nothing. If I had wanted to know about this crime from this angle I would have strictly read the newspapers. A total waste of paper.

5 comments about A Killer among Us (Onyx True Crime).

1. For the most part, the book is good. I found it entirely too long, though. One thing that amazed me was how the author instructed the reader how to pronounce a fairly simple name like Basile, but left it up to us to decipher Van Iseghem.
   
   Had I not had so much time invested in reading this book, I would have thrown it in the trash once I read the the biased and untrue comments about talk show host Rush Limbaugh that the author wrote.
   
   Although I'm sure Elizabeth DeCaro's family are good people, I would have liked to have less dwelling on them and a more balanced view of all of the people in her life, such as her in-laws.
   
   I'm sure they are nice, but they seemed a little overbearing to me, kind of like they're not able to cut the old apron strings and not interfere with their adult children's lives. Except that they didn't all live together, they practically reminded me of the Ewings from "Dallas."
   
   The book could have been boiled down by about 100 pages and still had the information down. I'm sure Rick was guilty of conspiracy to commit murder. He had it too well orchestrated. It was so obvious.
   
   And, was it really necessary to change the names of the DeCaro children? It took me about two minutes to find out their real names: Ricky, Jodie, Courtney, and Tony.



2. Despite the fact that women are more likely to be killed by their husbands and lovers rather than strangers is a sad fact of reality. The victim was a good woman came from a loving family who would do anything for her. Sadly, greed and her husband's own problems led to planning and killing the mother of his children by getting somebody else to do it. It's still a tragedy in St. Charles, Missouri no matter how many times this happens whether in St. Charles, St. Louis, St. Joseph, or anywhere. It's still a sad fact of life that her children will grow up without a mother around and the father is in prison for the crime and leaving many friends and relatives behind grieving for a lovely Catholic housewife who wanted to have a good marriage and raise her children to be productive adults with all her love. I can only pray that the children are surrounded by her kind and loving relatives now.



3. If you are willing to wade through reference after reference to the perfection of the victim's family, you will actually find an interesting story about Richard DeCaro and how he hired someone to kill his wife, Elizabeth Van Isghem DeCaro. Most interesting is the fact that he beat a conviction on the charge of First Degree Murder in state Court but Federal Authorities were able to avoid the Double Jeopardy Clause and try him for Conspiracy and Murder for Hire in Federal Court; subsequently receiving a conviction.
   
   The one aggravating factor of this book, however, is that repeatedly the reader is subjected to reminders of the perfection of the Van Isghems. A 458 page book could have easily been narrowed to just over 200 pages if this newspaper report turned true crime writer (Bosworth, Jr.) had simply stopped trying to paint a Norman Rockwell portrait of the Van Ishgems. In his attempt to convince us of their perfection, he fails to detail much of DeCaro's background or information his family. DeCaro's family, for the most part, is only given a fleeting glance; and that is when it paints them in a bad light.
   
   I enjoyed the story, but Bosworth will never be considered one of my favorite writers until he learns to break away from the sensationalism of newspaper and write factual true crime.



4. I read the other reviews before I read this book...and it's true, this writer is way too involved with the family of the victim-I have never been near St. Louis and know nothing of the family, but come from a large Roman Catholic family myself and believe me, no family deserves to have two "wonderfuls" before their description...certainly they did not deserve of ask for this hideous crime in any way, but I am disturbed if the writer compromised his own sense of distance to get closer to the story, which is what I am getting here. If I did not know better, would have to think this is one of those true crime books written by a bereaved family member. The story is interesting, so it is a shame that the writer chose to take this approach and/or truly "fell in love" with this family and could not maintain professional judgement or distance. The book would not have been hurt, indeed would have been far easier to read, with much less of the writer's personal feelings for the victim's family coming through in such an obvious manner.
   (Also find it startling to read of the way the matriarch of this family went to such great extremes and deceipt to ensure the children of their murdered daughter would not go into foster car; I find it unlikely that if she had not conducted such a ruse in order to get the father to sign a consent form for custody, that as the natural maternal grandparents they would not have had a chance otherwise, as this book indicates... certainly it would not have been up to the person charged of the murder at that point? Correct me if I am wrong here..)



5. While some of the other reviewers thought the depiction of the family in this case was a bit too syrupy, I didn't get that at all. I know families like that. And it is families like that which produce daughters who are prey for psychopaths: sweet, innocent, loving and giving, bright and talented...
   
   I wish the members of this family had read Sandra Brown's book "How to Spot a Dangerous Man Before You Get Involved" and that ALL women would read it, because it would certainly go a long way toward preventing such tragedies.
   
   It was obvious to me about 1/4 of the way through the book that Rick DeCaro was a psychopath and I kept waiting for the author to approach that angle, but the word sociopath was only mentioned once, toward the end, when it became SO obvious that it would have been odd to NOT mention it.
   
   It is from this angle, that I agree with some of the negative reviews that more attention should have been given to the DeCaro family. Much of the book was a blatant attempt to garner sympathy for a senseless crime when it could have been working on understanding how a creature like Rick DeCaro is born and made. Some token mention was made of the troubled background of Dan Basile, but it wasn't given any really sympathetic treatment as it should have been. I'm not excusing the crimes, I'm just saying that we need to understand social illnesses before we attempt to cure them.
   
   It is also clear that the legal system needs not only some serious re-vamping in order to prevent such tragedies as what happened in DeCaro's first trial, but the legal profession (not to mention the cops) itself needs to be educated about psychopathy - assuming they aren't psychopaths themselves! DeCaro's atty for the Federal case sure fit the profile.
   
   The only person in the whole affair who seemed to really have a clue about Rick DeCaro was Federal Prosecutor Tom Dittmeier. He seems not only to have known what he was dealing with, but how to do it.
   
   Another important thing is that there are actually TWO types of psychopaths depicted in the book: DeCaro and his hitman, Dan Basile. It is a profound example of how nature and nurture combine to produce overt and covert violence. DeCaro was actually the scarier psychopath because his nature was so hidden. He was truly "The Sociopath Next Door".
   
   At the end, we learn that, when she was a child, the victim, Elizabeth DeCaro, KNEW that there was something wrong with the man she ended up marrying - Rick DeCaro - and wrote as much to a schoolfriend in a letter. That is one of the things that Sandra Brown discusses in her book: our "red flag" systems and how to restore them to health and utilize them to avoid predators. Elizabeth had a "red flag", but she ignored it - as we are all taught to do as women and as "good Christians who do not judge others." And, as Good Christians who do not judge others, women continue to marry or associate with such men to their very great peril.
   
   And excellent object lesson for everyone, and a particularly good case for those interested in psychopathology to study.
   
   The trial transcripts that are included are invaluable to help understand just what is wrong with our system and how psychopaths so easily manipulate it and for that reason, I give a higher rating. I wouldn't have the author leave out a thing but he sure could have added a lot more perspective!

1 comments about Precious Victims (Penguin True Crime).

1. Story has been done on TLC's "Medical Detectives", which is the same show as Court TV's "Forensic Files".
   
   FROM BACK COVER:
   
   "Her story sounded suspicious from the beginning. A masked intruder brandishing a gun had broken into her rural Illinois home and kidnapped Paula Sims' newborn daughter, Loralei. Days later, the infant's remains were found in the woods. While police suspected that Paula, and possibly her husband, Robert, were responsible for their daughter's death, they had no hard evidence. More than three years later in another town, Paula, then the mother of a yuear-old son, reported that her six-week-old daughter, Heather, had been kidnapped. But this time police would not stop searching until they discovered the whole, horrifying truth: Heather had been murdered by her own mother, her body stored in the family freezer to confuse the police about the time of death and then dumped in a garbage can. This riveting account reveals the twisted sexuality and bitter hatred seething below the surface of seemingly normal family...and tells of the massive investigation and nerveshattering trial that finally brought justice to two innocent victims."

5 comments about The Mad Chopper.

1. Very few murderers have the horrendous history of Larry Singleton. Kent Allard spells out the legal prostitution of the state of California who released Singleton after he mutilated and raped beautiful 15-year-old Mary Vincent in 1978. When Singleton was paroled after serving only 8 years in prison, Californians were outraged. A small army of law enforcement officers wasted tax payer money to guard him as though he was a famous star. Eventually he moved to Florida where he knifed to death a mother during a sex act. Allard's accurate account records the horrible deeds of a monster. By memorializing Singleton's pitiful life Allard forces his readers to take a cold, hard look at our justice system. Recently victim Mary Vincent whose arms were chopped off by Singleton appeared before California Governor Grey Davis. She is a beautiful young woman who has incredible talent as an artist. She has recently married and feels optimistic about her future now that Singleton is on Florida's death row.



2. Can anyone tell me if there is additional info available on Mary Vincent, the teenaged victim of Larry Stapleton in 1978? Was there ever a book written on her attack, in addition to the mention of her ordeal in the mad chopper? I have read the Mad Chopper. Excellant writer. Straight to the point. Extremely informative. I will watch for other books by the same.



3. I didn't expect much when I picked up this book- I got a whole lot more than I bargained for.

   Larry Singleton is a strange fellow. I really liked how the book contained chapter after chapter of direct quotes taken from police interviews. The subject is grisly, but the cat and mouse game is hilarious. Larry trips himself up with lie after lie, time after time.

   You almost feel sorry for him.

   The book maintains a healthy balance, however, as we feel the pain and gain a lot of empathy, and sympathy, for his victims- especially his first.

   This was a fast read. I couldn't put it down.

   I was afraid, at first, the book might be too graphic- and too morbid- but it wasn't. It was well written and a real page turner.




4. This is a true story based on killer that I am sure few have heard about, but of the ones that have, many of them have tried to understand. This book is very well written, and recounts the many different aspects surrounding the murders commited by Lawrence Singleton through the eyes of all those invloved in the case. From what I could see the author took great care in preserving details, and made a valiant effort to leave nothing out.



5. Let's face it, the picture says a thousand words. He looks like a mad man. The book does a decent job in recollecting who perhaps done an unforgettable crime. A woman was nearly murdered but survived with artifical hands because Larry Singleton chopped them off to prevent identification but she was still alive and she survived miraculously. Years later, she would recall the crime after he was freed to roam to again and kill again. The book does a thorough job in explaining the background but we'll never know why he did the unthinkable in destroying his first victim's life who was tormented and begged for him to stay in prison. They were wrong to let him loose on the streets and now he is in prison for the rest of his life but judging from the photograph, it may not be long.

5 comments about There But For the Grace of God: Survivors of the 20th Century's Infamous Serial Killers.

1. I really enjoyed this book and I could tell that the author was passionate about his topic. I am a former CSI so it was very nice to read about the victims who do live. I have seen so many dead bodies that it was nice to see what came about of those who got a second chance. I also enjoyed the background on the cases. I am from Pensacola where Ted Bundy was (finally) caught and one of my dad's Police Academy students (David Lee) was the one who brought Bundy down. It was an easy read with a lot- while not overwhelming or boring- of background info on the cases. I would definitely recommend this book to any true crime fan who wants to read something just a little bit different.



2. The descriptions of the killings are very intenese and too vivid for someone of my character. I stopped reading the book in the second chapter because the graphic details of the murder of children left nothing for the imagination and proved to be too much for me to handle. I cannot attest to the entire book simply because I didn't want to subject my mind to those images. Not my cup of tea.



3. There but for the Grace of God are stories about survivors of the last century's most infamous serial killers like Tracy Edwards who survived Jeffrey Dahmer who was later arrested and confessed to the most horrific crimes in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. There is Kevin Bright who barely survived BTK Killer Dennis Rader who went undetected for 30 years since his sister Kathy's brutal rape and murder in Kansas. His story was the most heartbreaking. Nita Neary survived Ted Bundy because she maintained her silence during the massacre at the sorority house in Florida. She moved on with her life but recalls testifying against Bundy who also cross-examined her as well. There were survivors of Derrick Lee, the Baton Rouge serial killer, and Bobby Joe Long who killed in Hillsborough COunty, Florida. I thought it was a fast read and interesting. The author tried to fill in the gaps and explanations of each serial killer and the people who survived the attacks. He also writes about the Filipino nurse, Corazon Amaureo who got away by hiding under the bed from Richard Speck in the Crime of the Century while 8 nurses were raped and murdered in one night. Although he didn't get to interview her, her story is important even if it is through research. Rosen tries to provide biographies and backgrounds on the killers' themselves.



4. I was very sxicted to read this book. I was sadly very dissapointed that i read it. First numerous spelling errors. Many factual errors as well. The Bundy chapter was an insult. The author did very little in acutally writing any informaion on the survivors, it was more just a quik recap of certain serial killers. He aslo used this as an oppurtunity to bash the police officers on many cases. Funny how he can so easily point out the mistakes after the fact. He makes it seem as if he would have easily figured out things that they couldnt..... again after the fact. He aslo seems to make certain victims out to be people who did things the wrong way, and could have avoided their fate.
   The spelling errors are plenty to. At one point he refers to KAKA t.v., wich is wrong. Then later he correctly calls it KAKE t.v.. Written in bold lettering it stood out, and there should be no reason for the spelling error to have not been noticed.
   I bought this book hoping to learn about certain people who were lucky to ahve survived their attacker, expecially Nita Neary, and i got nothing. He did very little if any informationa bout them, and instead made it seem like he was doing them the favor of including them in his book at all.
   THe author is very arrogant, and seems to be very proud of himself. Sadly he has nothing to be proud of and should instead feel embarassed.



5. Mr.Rosen does some good things with this book. He highlights the lives of some survivors of serial killers such as Jeffrey Dahmer,Dennis Rader,David Berkowitz and even Richard Speck.
   The question of why some survive while others don't is an interesting one. He partially addresses that question.
   
   The writer vents a lot of anger at criminal profilers in the B.T.K. case and the NYPD in general regarding the "Son of Sam" case. I think it's a detriment to the book itself and in some cases he overstates the obvious, like the fact that Richard Speck was a drunk and an idiot,and two Milwaukeee police officers blundered big-time in returning an eventual victim to Dahmer.
   
   I didn't see the relevance of including transcripts of Dahmer's parents court battle over his brain and whether it would be donated to science or cremated. Speaking of cremation,what happened to Richard Speck in prison or to his body after death wasn't relevant to the subject either.
   
   Good subject matter, it's just that the author roamed unto other areas a little too much for my liking.