The Sting: The Undercover Operation That Caught Daniel Morcombe’s Killer


Kate Kyriacou - 2015
    An elaborately staged fake crime gang, run by a ‘Mr Big’, that lured Brett Cowan in with the promise of a hefty payout. It was the stuff of a TV crime series rather than an Australian police operation. The Sting reveals extraordinary new detail and a shocking insight into one of the country's most evil killers, and the operation that brought him down.Go behind the scenes in one of Australia’s most sensational undercover busts, including never-before-heard detail of the covert investigation, including how Cowan was slowly brainwashed into believing ‘Mr Big’.Read what Cowan’s family think of their black sheep.

The Murder of Sheree


Wayne B. Miller - 1996
    At its heart, it's a powerful and compelling account of how one of the most infamous and shocking murders in Australian history came to happen - and how justice came to be done. But it's also a forensic examination of how the crime would shatter the lives of dozens of people, some of whom had never met six-year-old Sheree Beasley. Wayne Miller's newspaper reporting on the case earned him a Walkley Award for excellence in journalism. With The Murder of Sheree he went much deeper, his enduring relationship with those most deeply affected by the murder revealing just how much devastation such a crime can cause. Miller's writing is as clear, passionate and compelling as ever, and The Murder of Sheree remains one of the finest books of its kind ever published in Australia. Brad Newsome, Fairfax Media

Prisoner 4374


A.J. Griffiths-Jones - 2015
     For more than a century, Dr. Thomas Neill Cream has been listed as a potential 'Jack the Ripper' suspect. He was a sinister character, preying on the unfortunate souls who were forced to make a living as streetwalkers in Victorian London, and ultimately led those poor women to an untimely and torturous death. These crimes eventually branded him the 'Lambeth Poisoner'. However, during the time of the heinous Ripper murders, Dr. Cream was incarcerated in Joliet Prison, Illinois. Over the decades, this fact alone has caused debate as to whether or not he deserves to be under suspicion of being the Whitechapel fiend. Was it possible that Dr. Cream bribed his way out of jail, perhaps using a doppelganger to take his place while secretly finding a passage to England with murder in mind? This fascinating book, told from the standpoint of Cream himself, explains the twisted logic behind his actions. The author has done considerable and meticulous research, tracing Cream's life from his adolescent years in Canada to his last moments on the gallows at Newgate.

Haunted: The Ghosts That Share Our World


John Pinkney - 2011
    Author-journalist John Pinkney has investigated several thousand hauntings,and this collection contains many of his most intriguing cases. Against a background of authentic photographs and artwork, Pinkney's unique book describes *The case of the newsreader who died at the microphone - then haunted his radio station for the following 25 years. *The 'asphalt apparitions' that haunt highways worldwide - prompting some authorities to install roadsigns warning living drivers. * The mansion owner who, after intense detective work, discovered her resident ghost's horrific secret.*The drowned man's face that invaded an official police photograph. *The furious phantom that shocked a million TV viewers.* Telephone calls from the tsunami dead. And much more. This enthralling book is a comprehensive survey of modern hauntings - offering authentic reports and analysis of supernatural events in the 20th and 21st centuries. ALSO by JOHN PINKNEY IN EBOOKS: Alien Airships Over Old America...The Mary Celeste Syndrome...Australia's Strangest Mysteries... A Paranormal File...Thirst: An Inheritance of Evil...The Girl Who Touched Infinity...The Key and the Fountain.

The Meaning of Our Tears: The True Story of the Lawson Family Murders of Christmas Day 1929


Trudy J. Smith - 2006
    It became one of the most mysterious stories of the century with the gruesome murder scene left intact for Depression Era tourists to visit and walk through. Sixty years later, more than could ever be imagined surfaced from interviews with the elderly friends and family of the murderer and the Lawson family tragedy was documented in this compelling 376 page collectible hard cover edition. For the first time, the author is allowing this book to be offered in ebook form. It is an unforgettable telling of a tragic crimed with the "voices" of those interviewed woven into the fabric of the book which reads like a novel. Don't miss this poignant true story of a father's twisted love.

Professor and the Coed, The: Scandal and Murder at the Ohio State University (True Crime)


Mark Gribben - 2010
    Local writer Mark Gribben reveals how Dr. James Howard Snook was captured and interrogated, including his gory confession of Theora Hix's death. During the trial, the details of the illicit love affair were so salacious that newspapers could only hint about what really led to the coed's murder and the professor's ultimate punishment. For the first time, read the full account of this astonishing story, from scandalous beginning to tragic end.

Mafia Murders: 100 Kills that Changed the Mob


M.A. Frasca - 2015
    For the Mob (as they are also known), crime was big business. Feuds between Mafia families and their associates led to Lucky Luciano, the preeminent Mob boss, creating the Commission, which to this day rules over Mob activity and disputes. Throughout the 20th century, the ruthlessness of the Mafia has been in evidence: the list of Mob victims seems endless. Mafia Hits recalls the most important executions - the rival bosses, the stool pigeons and snitches, the good cops and the dirty cops, the vicious feuds and the hit-men who lived by the gun and died by it. All are here in this fascinating tale of the American underworld.

Beaten and Left for Dead: The Story of Teri Jendusa-Nicolai


Dave Alfvin - 2017
    The Crime of the Decade in Wisconsin. WITH PHOTOS Teri Jendusa never dreamed she would marry a violent, malignant narcissist like David Larsen. But she did. Why? Simple. Larsen cleverly concealed his true nature until the marriage vows were final. David, an eventual church council president and model citizen, rapidly began to morph into a monster and sociopath, telling Teri on their wedding day, “Now, I own you.” Beaten and Left For Dead is a book about extreme marital violence, dominant control and psychological torment through the mind of the out-of-control David Larsen. It's also about survival, faith and a mother’s will to live for her children’s sake...as she faces death, face to face. This is an ideal book for women’s studies and book clubs as it looks inside a large women’s shelter, giving the reader a glimpse of a support network. The author also interviews a counselor who works with violent men with surprising results. Teri Jendusa-Nicolai continues to crusade for women’s issues to this day and currently works with a Wisconsin commission on domestic violence. EDITORIAL PRAISE "Teri Jendusa-Nicolai's story is a powerful example of the horrific lengths of barbarism a man can go to when he considers a woman his personal property. And it is, equally, an inspiring, riveting story of a woman's courage and clear thinking under the absolute worst of conditions, and of her tenacious hold to life...I am so grateful to Teri Jendusa-Nicolai and to Dave Alfvin for getting this story out to us. Don't miss it." --Lundy Bancroft, best-selling author on domestic violence, trainer, and activist on male violence against women "This book is important because it gets our message out as to what we do to help abusers change their value systems." --Maureen Manning-Rosenfeld, Clinical Professional Counselor

Lost at Thaxton: The Dramatic True Story of Virginia's Forgotten Train Wreck


Michael E. Jones - 2013
    An earthen fill that carried the railroad over the creek could not withstand the power of the rising water, and Norfolk & Western passenger train Number Two plummeted into a hole in the earth. There in the valley beneath the shadow of the towering Peaks of Otter, passengers and crew scrambled from the wreckage and water in a life-or-death struggle. The best and worst of humanity were on display in the small hours of the night, as some worked heroically to rescue those trapped in the debris while others stood by concerned only for themselves. A terrible fire ensued, and those who remained trapped were consumed by the flames. The bloodied and battered survivors suffered through four more hours of isolation and torture in the rain alongside the burning wreckage before help would finally arrive.Written and extensively researched by the great-great grandson of the railroad section master at Thaxton, Lost at Thaxton tells the forgotten true story of one of the worst railroad accidents in the history of Virginia and the people who lived and died that night.

A Nightmare in Villisca: Investigating the Haunted Axe Murder House


Richard Estep - 2020
    

Manhunt: Hunting Britain's Most Wanted Murderer


Peter Bleksley - 2020
    In the early hours of 19 June 2004, 16-year-old Liam Kelly was lured to a location in Liverpool and shot dead. The following year, another Liverpudlian, 22-year-old mother of three, Lucy Hargreaves, was shot dead in her own home. Her partner and their 2-year-old daughter escaped after the house was set alight by leaping from a first-floor bedroom window. How could Parle have evaded national and international crime investigators for so long? Who is harbouring him? Bleksley is determined to find the answers. Immersing himself in the world of serious and organised crime, he has vowed not to rest until Parle is found. Two murders, one fugitive and a hunter tracking down the target. This is the gripping true story of hunting Britain’s most wanted murderer, going behind the scenes of the hit BBC Sounds podcast, Manhunt: Finding Kevin Parle. Author, investigator, broadcaster and the former Chief on Channel 4’s hit shows Hunted and Celebrity Hunted, Peter Bleksley has lived an astonishing life since retiring as a Scotland Yard Detective, where he earned a glittering reputation as a fearless undercover cop.

Prime Suspect: The True Story of John Cannan, the Only Man the Police Want to Investigate for the Murder of Suzy Lamplugh


Christopher Berry-Dee - 1992
    After Cannan's conviction, the Lamplugh case was closed. Yet to this day, Cannan denies his involvement in the Lamplugh case and protests his innocence in the murder of Shirley Banks—his appeal has been dismissed. Drawing on the latest psychological profiling knowledge developed in America by the FBI and, most importantly, an intense three-year correspondence with Cannan, this book provides a chillingly personal and comprehensive portrait of a complex and intelligent man.

Scotland Yard Casebook


Joan Lock - 1993
     In this classic story of the early days of detection, Joan Lock tells the fascinating story of the creation of the CID, the scandal which preceded it, and the successes and failures of the new organization, including early cases such as the four murders by Ernest Southey, the ferocious outbreak of dockland killings in 1869 and the more familiar Bravo, Neill Cream and Jack the Ripper crimes. She describes Scotland Yard's gradual, if sometimes tardy, acceptance of identification and communication aids such as photography, the telegraph, telephone, Bertillon's anthropometric measurements and the fingerprint system. First World War spy and Dear John jealousy murders were followed by Roaring Twenties' swindles and the arrival of motor car bandits — which in turn led to the formation of the Flying Squad and the adoption of mobile wireless telegraphy. The introduction of women detectives is also discussed and the difficulties they experienced in establishing their place in a male dominated force. Joan Lock closes the gap between the academic police historian and the writer of popular true crime, making this book a fascinating read for crime experts and the general reader alike. Praise for Scotland Yard Casebook ‘Everyone with an interest in police history will know that Joan Lock has written a series of books notable for their perspicacity. and immaculate research. Scotland Yard Casebook is a new peak in her career, a fascinating account of the great and not-so-great detectives of a golden age. She has examined the official case files and put together a history told through the careers of policemen and giving a professional view of such dramatic events as the Turf Fraud Scandal, the Dynamite Campaign, the Jack the Ripper murders and the Anarchist outrages — side by side with stories previously ignored by historians, yet often crucial to the development of the CID. With a style that is authoritative, dispassionate and witty, Joan Lock has delivered a book of lasting importance.’ - Peter Lovesey A former nurse and policewoman, Joan Lock is the author of eleven non-fiction police/crime books, including three on Scotland Yard's First detectives. As well as writing short stories and radio plays she is also an authority on the history of the British women police officers.

Villisca


Roy Marshall - 2003
    Law enforcement officers encountered a scene of unimagined violence: eight victims, six of them children, bludgeoned to death with an ax while they slept. Everywhere there were clues. But inexperienced investigators failed, and private detectives took over. When Detective James Newton Wilkerson charged that a respected state senator had been motivated to the unthinkable by the promiscuity of his daughter-in-law, the community was drawn into a bitter and accelerating struggle between powerful men. And then a deranged and perverted minister confessed. . . .

Eyes Pried Open: Rookie FBI Agent


Vincent Sellers - 2014
    His journey is chronicled in Eyes Pried Open: Rookie FBI Agent. Readers will experience both the highs and the lows of an FBI agent working bank robbery, kidnapping, murder-for-hire cases, and border-related crimes in San Diego, California. The book's from-the-heart narrative demonstrates that the typical lifestyle of an FBI agent assigned to a violent crime squad may not be for everyone. This is the first book to be written from the fresh perspective of an agent who joined the FBI after 9/11.