Book picks similar to
Sins of the Brother: The Definitive Story of Ivan Milat and the Backpacker Murders by Mark Whittaker
true-crime
non-fiction
crime
australian-authors
First Degree Rage
Paula May - 2020
The key suspect is a police officer in NC. It is written by Paula May, who was the lead detective in the case.
Conviction: The Untold Story of Putting Jodi Arias Behind Bars
Juan Martínez - 2016
What emerged was a story wrought with sex, manipulation, and deceit that stunned the public at every turn. Arias, always playing the wronged and innocent woman, changed her story continually as her bizarre behavior surrounding the crime and its aftermath came to light. Unwavering, Arias and her defense team continued to play off the salacious details of the case, until she was finally found guilty and—controversially—sentenced to life behind bars.Now, speaking openly for the first time, prosecutor Juan Martinez will unearth new details from the investigation that were never revealed at trial, exploring key facts from the case and the pieces of evidence he chose to keep close to the vest. Throughout the trials, his bullish and unfaltering prosecution strategy was both commended and criticized, and in his book, Martinez will illuminate the unique tactics he utilized in this case and how they lead to a successful conviction, and-for the first time-discuss how he felt losing the death penalty sentence he’d pursued for years.Going beyond the news reports, Martinez will explore the truth behind the multiple facades of Jodi Arias. Sparring with her from across the stand, Martinez came to know Arias like no one else could, dissecting what it took for a seemingly normal girl to become a deluded, cunning, and unrepentant murderer.With new stories from behind the scenes of the trial and Martinez’s own take on his defendant, the book takes you inside the mind of Jodi Arias like never before. Complete with 16 pages of photos from the case and trial, this book is the definitive account of the case that shocked America.
Public Enemies: America's Greatest Crime Wave and the Birth of the FBI, 1933-34
Bryan Burrough - 2004
Edgar Hoover’s FBI to tell the full story—for the first time—of the most spectacular crime wave in American history, the two-year battle between the young Hoover and the assortment of criminals who became national icons: John Dillinger, Machine Gun Kelly, Bonnie and Clyde, Baby Face Nelson, Pretty Boy Floyd, and the Barkers. In an epic feat of storytelling and drawing on a remarkable amount of newly available material on all the major figures involved, Burrough reveals a web of interconnections within the vast American underworld and demonstrates how Hoover’s G-men overcame their early fumbles to secure the FBI’s rise to power.
When Rabbit Howls
Truddi Chase - 1987
What surfaced was terrifying: she was inhabited by 'the Troops'-92 individual personalities. This groundbreaking true story is made all the more extraordinary in that it was written by the Troops themselves. What they reveal is a spellbinding descent into a personal hell-and an ultimate deliverance for the woman they became.
Honeymoon Dive: The Real Story of the Tragic Honeymoon Death of Tina Watson
Lindsay Simpson - 2010
But that picture was to tell a desperate story. In the lower right-hand corner of the shot, Tina Watson's lifeless body lies 25 metres down on the ocean floor, her arms outstretched, reaching upwards. This is the photograph which shocked millions across Australia and the US.How could this young woman have died, a mere seven minutes into her dive, when Gabe Watson, her diving buddy and husband of only eleven days, was a certified rescue diver? How could such an experienced diver have panicked and abandoned his new wife to her fate, as he later told police? As the tragedy unfolded and witnesses came forward, disturbing evidence mounted that something more sinister might have occurred. Could Gabe Watson have murdered Tina?This is the captivating mystery at the heart of this true-life thriller, as Lindsay Simpson and Jennifer Cooke cover two continents to discover the real story.
Ned Kelly: A Short Life
Ian Jones - 1995
Ned Kelly emerges as a man who hated conflict yet never escaped it. A thorough account of a most remarkable life. Author Biography: As an historical writer, IAN JONES has written for television and film, his work including THE SULLIVANS, AGAINST THE WIND, THE LAST OUTLAW and THE LIGHTHORSEMEN.
Vampire Killer: A Terrifying True Story of Psychosis, Mutilation and Murder (Ryan Green's True Crime)
Ryan Green - 2020
His pregnant wife, Teresa (22), was nowhere to be seen. The radio was still playing and there were some peculiar stains on the carpet. Wallin nervously followed the stains to his bedroom and encountered a scene so chilling that it would haunt him for the rest of his life. Teresa had been sexually assaulted and mutilated. She was also missing body parts and large volumes of blood. Four days later, the Sacramento Police Department were called to a home approximately a mile away from the Wallin residence. They were not prepared for the horror that awaited them. Daniel Meredith (56) and Jason Miroth (6) were shot multiple times. Evelyn Miroth (38) was disfigured, disembowelled and abused like Teresa. She was also missing body parts and large quantities of blood. David Ferreira (2), who Evelyn was babysitting, was nowhere to be seen and likely in the hands of the deranged mass murderer. It was official, Sacramento had a blood-thirsty serial killer in their midst. The FBI and local police were under no doubt that he would kill again and that his crimes would continue to escalate if not apprehended immediately. Vampire Killer is a gripping account of Richard Chase, and one of the most gruesome true crime stories in California’s history. Ryan Green’s riveting narrative draws the reader into the real-live horror experienced by the victims and has all the elements of a classic thriller. CAUTION: This book contains descriptive accounts of abuse and violence. If you are especially sensitive to this material, it might be advisable not to read any further.
Sleepers
Lorenzo Carcaterra - 1995
out-of-town hit man who spends the night after a local contract is completed. 2. A juvenile sentenced to serve any period longer than nine months in a state-managed facility.This is the story of four young boys. Four lifelong friends.Intelligent, fun-loving, wise beyond their years, they are inseparable. Their potential is unlimited, but they are content to live within the closed world of New York City's Hell's Kitchen. And to play as many pranks as they can on the denizens of the street. They never get caught. And they know they never will. Until one disastrous summer afternoon.On that day, what begins as a harmless scheme goes horribly wrong. And the four find themselves facing a year's imprisonment in the Wilkinson Home for Boys. The oldest of them is fifteen, the youngest twelve. What happens to them over the course of that year -- brutal beatings, unimaginable humiliation -- will change their lives forever. Years later, one becomes a lawyer. One a reporter. And two have grown up to be murderers, professional hit men. For all of them, the pain and fear of Wilkinson still rages within. Only one thing can erase it. Revenge. To exact it, they will twist the legal system. Commandeer the courtroom for their agenda. Use the wiles they observed on the streets, the violence they learned at Wilkinson. If they get caught this time, they only have one thing left to lose: their lives.SLEEPERS is the extraordinary true story of four men who take the law into their own hands. It is a searing portrait of a system gone awry and of the people -- some innocent, some not so innocent -- who must suffer the consequences. At the heart of SLEEPERS is a sensational murder trial that ultimately gives devastating, yet exhilarating, proof of street justice and truly defines the meaning of loyalty and love between friends. Told with great humor and compassion, even at its most harrowing, SLEEPERS is an unforgettable reading experience.
Steve & Me
Terri Irwin - 2007
Leaving behind her wildlife rescue work in Oregon, Terri traveled to Australia, and there, at a small wildlife park, she met and fell in love with a tall, blond force of nature named Steve Irwin. They were married in less than a year, and Terri eagerly joined in Steve's conservation work. The footage filmed on their crocodile-trapping honeymoon became the first episode of T"he Crocodile Hunter, " and together, Steve and Terri began to change the world. In "Steve & Me, " Terri recounts the unforgettable adventures they shared -- wrangling venomous snakes, saving deadly crocodiles from poachers, swimming among humpback whales. A uniquely gifted naturalist, Steve was first and foremost a wildlife warrior dedicated to rescuing endangered animals -- especially his beloved crocs -- and educating everyone he could reach about the importance of conservation. In the hit TV shows that continue to be broadcast worldwide, Steve's enthusiasm lives on, bringing little-known and often-feared species to light as he reveals and revels in the wonders of our planet.With grace, wit, and candor, Terri Irwin portrays her husband as he really was -- a devoted family man, a fervently dedicated environmentalist, a modest bloke who spoke to millions on behalf of those who could not speak for themselves. "Steve & Me" is a nonstop adventure, a real-life love story, and a fitting tribute to a man adored by all those whose lives he touched, written by the woman who knew and loved him best of all.
Bundy:The Deliberate Stranger
Richard W. Larsen - 1980
NOW REISSUED. Richard W. Larsen’s expose, based on first-hand conversations with the killer himself, remains the granddaddy Bundy book of them all – even inspiring a hit miniseries, starring Mark Harmon, that riveted America for weeks. Now BUNDY: THE DELIBERATE STRANGER returns to mark the 30th anniversary of the execution of America’s most famous serial killer. Between 1974 and 1978 a series of brutal sex slayings claimed the lives of nearly forty innocent young women and left a trail of blood that stretched from Seattle, Washington to Tallahassee, Florida...a trail that seemed to lead to Ted Bundy. But Theodore Robert Bundy is an unlikely looking murderer. A handsome, articulate former law student, Bundy looks more like a candidate for public office than for Death Row. But in July 1979, 32-year-old Bundy was sentenced to the electric chair for bludgeoning to death two Florida coeds. And Bundy is suspected by police of being responsible for as many as 36 murders, spanning four years and four states. Larsen, who knew Ted Bundy well before he ever fell under suspicion for murder – when Bundy was a rising star in Washington State politics helping to re-elect Governor Daniel Evans – interviewed Bundy extensively in writing the definitive account of his story. In 1975, when Bundy was released on bail after his first arrest – a kidnapping charge in Utah – it was Larsen who met him at the door of the police headquarters and spend the day with him, and Larsen who lent Bundy his car after dinner so he could go out on the town that night, catching himself on the verge of parting joke – “Ted, I’d just as soon not read in the morning paper that some girl mysteriously disappeared in a Gremlin” In BUNDY: THE DELIBERATE STRANGER, Larsen brings his masterful reporting and writing skills to bear on one of the most chilling, true crime stories in U.S. history. From the moment the first young woman disappears under mysterious circumstances, you are caught up in a cumulatively tense and gripping drama. Larsen has captured it all: the anguish of the parents, the frustration of the police, the horror of discovery, the growing suspicions and mounting evidence pointing to “all-American” Ted, the drama of his arrest, his incredible escapes – one from prison, one from a courthouse – his recaptures and the sensational, televised Florida murder trial at which Bundy conducted his own defense. And through it all, the enigmatic figure of Ted Bundy – the deliberate stranger – known by the author as well as he will ever be known by any person. At once an exciting, fast-paced thriller, and a dazzling, unsentimental dissection of a cold-blooded killer, BUNDY: A DELIBERATE STRANGER is a true crime classic
The Company She Keeps
Georgia Durante - 1998
The author describes her connection to the Mafia, which began during her childhood in Rochester, New York, and the years of abuse and fear before she was able to escape from the darkness.
A Love To Die For
Patricia Springer - 2000
Suddenly, Christa turned on Colleen, accusing her of flirting with her boyfriend. Then, the words turned to shocking blows. An enraged Christa used a box knife to cut her rival's throat and a mini meat cleaver to inflict more havoc. Half-naked, Colleen crawled through her own blood begging for her life. In the middle of the hour-long assault, a satanic symbol was carved in the dying girl's chest. And when Christa was finally done, she took a piece of Colleen's skull as a macabre souvenir. What were the dark forces that drove angelic faced Christa to commit such a savage murder and become the youngest woman ever to be put on Death Row? In this shocking expose of a case that stunned the nation, Patricia Springer takes us through a horrifying crime scene and into the heart and mind of a murderess who killed for love-and would die for it, too.
Criminal Shadows: Inside The Mind Of The Serial Killer
David Canter - 1992
This book looks at offender profiling that helps the police to identify and track individual criminals by the nature of their crime.
Salvation Creek
Susan Duncan - 2006
Editor of two top-selling women's magazines, a happy marriage, a jetsetting lifestyle covering stories from New York to Greenland, the world was her oyster. But when her beloved husband and brother die within three days of each other, her glittering life shatters. In shock, she zips on her work face, climbs back into her high heels and soldiers on - until one morning eighteen months later, when she simply can't get out of bed. Heartbreaking, funny and searingly honest, Salvation Creek is the story of a woman who found the courage not only to begin again but to beat the odds in her own battle for survival and find a new life - and love - in a tiny waterside idyll cut off from the outside world.Combining all the sweeping, rollercoaster style of a bestselling novel with the very best - and most inspiring - human interest story, Salvation Creek is a tour-de-force that will stay with the reader long after she has turned the last page.
Shallow Graves: The Hunt for the New Bedford Highway Serial Killer
Maureen Boyle - 2017
In Shallow Graves, investigative reporter Maureen Boyle tells the story of a case that has haunted New England for thirty years. The Crimes: The skeletal remains of nine of the women, aged nineteen to thirty-six, were discovered near highways around New Bedford. Some had clearly been strangled, others were so badly decomposed that police were left to guess how they had died. The Victims: All the missing women had led troubled lives of drug addiction, prostitution, and domestic violence, including Nancy Paiva, whose sister was a hard-working employee of the City of New Bedford, and Debra Greenlaw DeMello, who came from a solidly middle-class family but fell into drugs and abusive relationships. In a bizarre twist, Paiva’s clothes were found near DeMello’s body. The Investigators: Massachusetts state troopers Maryann Dill and Jose Gonsalves were the two constants in a complex cast of city, county, and state cops and prosecutors. They knew the victims, the suspects, and the drug-and-crime-riddled streets of New Bedford. They were present at the beginning of the case and they stayed to the bitter end. The Suspects: Kenneth Ponte, a New Bedford attorney and deputy sheriff with an appetite for drugs and prostitutes, landed in the investigative crosshairs from the start. He was indicted by a grand jury in the murder of one of the victims, but those charges were later dropped. Anthony DeGrazia was a loner who appeared to fit the classic serial-killer profile: horrific childhood abuse, charming, charismatic, but prone to bursts of violence. He hunted prostitutes in the city by night and served at a Catholic church by day. Which of these two was the real killer? Or was it someone else entirely? Maureen Boyle first broke the story in 1988 and stayed with it for decades. In Shallow Graves she spins a riveting narrative about the crimes, the victims, the hunt for the killers, and the search for justice, all played out against the backdrop of an increasingly impoverished community beset by drugs and crime. Drawing on more than one hundred interviews, along with police reports, first-person accounts, and field reporting both during the killings and more recently, Shallow Graves brings the reader behind the scenes of the investigation, onto the streets of the city, and into the homes of the families still hoping for answers.