Buried Secrets: Anecdotes of a Funeral Director


Harry Pope - 2017
    but you couldn’t be further from the truth, as Harry Pope reveals in this hilarious memoir of his time as a funeral director. Over the course of his career, Harry was involved in more than a few unusual incidents. In his early days, colleagues and eventually mourners broke into laughter as he somehow ended up sliding into a grave with the coffin coming to rest on top of him. Another day saw Harry get the fright of his life when he heard a knocking coming from the rear of the hearse, where no living person should have been. And as for the coffin that he just about prevented from being emptied onto the tarmac at Heathrow Airport… well, you’ll just have to buy the book! As well as these hilarious anecdotes, Harry introduces us to the hidden and often tragic world of the funeral arranger, with a look at his involvement in disasters such as the Piper Alpha oil rig, the Lockerbie bombing and the sinking of the Herald of Free Enterprise. With stories that will make you cry with tears of both sadness and laughter, this fascinating read is perfect for a wide and varied audience.

Father, Son and Return to the Pennine Way


Mark Richards - 2018
    Now comes the sequel… ‘Father, Son and Return to the Pennine Way’ picks up where Mark and Alex left off two years ago and sees them complete the last 100 miles of the Pennine Way. It’s a walk that tests them to their limits (well, one of them…) as they come close to exhaustion, even closer to being eaten alive and – armed only with a pair of shorts and a cup of tea – face-to-face with an assassin. …And, of course, they meet the inevitable cast of ‘characters.’ Barefoot Jimmy, Mr & Mrs Mad Eye, Lonesome Pete and ‘Theresa May.’ But there’s a serious side to the walk as well. It’s two years since they were last on the Pennine Way. They’re both two years older: how has their father/son relationship changed? Who’s really in charge this time? ‘Father, Son and the Pennine Way’ has been a consistent bestseller with over 130 5* reviews on Amazon. “My partner sent me to read in the spare room. All he could hear was me laughing! Would recommend this book to everyone, walkers or not.” ‘Return to the Pennine Way’ will make you laugh, smile and shed the occasional tear. You’ll be on the journey with Mark and Alex – and you won’t want it to end.

Brain Building for Achievement


Herbert N. Casson - 2013
    When thinking, remembering,implementing, impressing and quoting become inseparable tools for winning, it istime to set the brain diet right!Casson has attempted to do just that in this book, which is a complete manual tounlock the powers of your mind and open the reservoir of your potential. Use thesimple tips to pave your path to success. Build your brain strong enough to fightall odds and reach the pinnacle of success, without much ado.

Quiet Soldier: On Selection With 21 SAS


Adam Ballinger - 2016
    So what made him risk it all for the gruelling, year-long SAS Selection course, with a better than ninety per cent chance of failing to win the toughest badge in the British Army at the end of it? Over the months of combat patrols, press-ups, punishing runs and Gas! Gas! Gas!, the ordeals of Long Drag and hostile interrogation, Ballinger learnt that who you think you are and what the Army wants you to be are very different things, and the end product of Selection bears little relation to either. This vivid, often funny account of the varied characters who commit so much to training for the 'misfits regiment' is remarkable both for its unromantic authenticity, and for its objective attempt to find out why. A question, Ballinger discovered, that few, if any, in the SAS could answer.

The Murder of Rachel: A Stranger Murdered My Daughter When She Was 21. This is the Whole Story


Wanda Moran - 2007
    On the morning of New Year's Day 2003, Rachel Moran left her family’s home for a quick stop at her apartment and feed her new kittens. After not hearing from Rachel for some time, a search for her began. It was two weeks before her belongings were fished out of a nearby drain and another two weeks before her body was discovered. At some stage during that twenty minute walk, she had been abducted near her apartment and raped and murdered. This heartbreaking account details the family grief and mourning, the extensive search for the killer, and the trail that followed.

When The Legend Became Fact - The True Life of John Wayne


Richard Douglas Jensen - 2012
    With decades of research and insight, Jensen lifts the veil of public relations half-truths and exposes the reality of the man who is still, 30 years after his death, the iconic Western movie hero and hero of red state America. Jensen proves that the public John Wayne was very different from the private man, who struggled with severe alcoholism, chronic infidelity, self-esteem and personal demons that often made life hell for his wives and children. The book painstakingly recounts the triumphs and tragedies of the life of John Wayne – who rose from abject poverty to become the world’s most famous movie star – and creates a portrait of a man haunted by a childhood of abuse; a man conflicted by his own definition of masculinity; a man fighting to control his own rage and his propensity for violence; a man who committed domestic violence against all three of his wives and his children; and a man haunted by and driven to overcome his fear of failure, poverty and ridicule.

Duck Dynasty: Family Faith and Family Fun


Kevin Michael Byrne - 2013
    (Hence the “Dynasty” part of the show.)But even though they may have large homes, the Robertson brothers love hunting and fishing and proudly proclaim themselves “rednecks.”Phil was a star quarterback at Louisiana Tech but turned down the offer to play in NFL because he didn’t want to miss the duck season where he began his business and spent 25 years making duck calls from Louisiana cedar trees.The now multi-million dollar enterprise is managed by Phil’s third son Willie who is CEO of the company, while his brother Jase is the COO.Despite their wealth, they still wear camouflage prints, they hunt - shooting anything that flies or walks, they’re religious, and they’re full of subtle humor.The Robertsons are a traditional family who believe in guns and God.In the following pages you’ll get to know the family members in the Robertson family and learn why the show Duck Dynasty is watched by millions.As Willie Robertson said when asked by he believes the show is so popular – “We try to stick to our roots.We grew up not rich at all.We try to stay humble. We’ve been successful and God has blessed us. We always have a family prayer at the end of the show.”

The Marigold Story: Indira Gandhi & Others


Kumkum Chadha - 2019
    Prime Minister Indira Gandhi hated the marigold flower, although in death it was strewn all over her body; her son Sanjay Gandhi was dictatorial, but also uncommonly empathetic; Smita Patil, who was synonymous with strong, women-centric films, was deeply insecure in her personal life; Ekta Kapoor, the television czarina believes that her unabashed faith in God helped her scale heights and earn her first big bucks; and Abhinav Bindra, who won India the first Olympic gold medal in an individual event confessed how he was a laidback child with no goals in sight. Embellished with interesting nuggets, this book is a collection of fascinating profiles including, L.K. Advani, Smriti Irani, Lalu Prasad Yadav, Rajiv Gandhi, Amitabh Bachchan and Arun Jaitley. Uncommon access, being privy to confidences and, above all, a willingness to tell the story, bring alive the people behind the headlines. The Marigold Story: Indira Gandhi & Others is not a gushing account of newsmakers; if anything it captures their weaknesses; goes beyond their achievements and examines what makes these individuals distinctive and unforgettable at the same time.

Long Island’s Vanished Heiress: The Unsolved Alice Parsons Kidnapping (True Crime)


Steven Drielak - 2020
    The crime shocked the nation and was front-page news for several months. J. Edgar Hoover personally assigned his best FBI agents to the case, and within a short time, Parsons's husband and their live-in housekeeper, Anna Kupryanova, had become prime suspects. Botched ransom attempts, clashes between authorities and romantic intrigue kept the investigation mired in drama. The crime remained unsolved and has captivated Long Island audiences ever since. Former Suffolk County detective Steven C. Drielak reveals previously classified FBI documents and pieces together the mystery of the Alice Parsons kidnapping.

Elementary: The Explosive File On Scott Watson And The Disappearance Of Ben & Olivia: What Haven't They Told You?


Ian Wishart - 2016
    The book that finally cracks the case. Ben Smart. Olivia Hope. Scott Watson. Unmissable. Undeniable. Unprecedented. Unexpected. Note from author: "This book contains quotes from original police witness statements. No two witnesses ever see the crime from exactly the same angle, so differences between statements are expected. Sometimes one statement can have a crucial detail that others have missed. That's why I included what appear to be 'repetitive' statements by a number of witnesses. So you can see the overall similarities and weight of evidence, but also any unique details. Sometimes witness statements are relevant to different parts of the story, so just as in a murder trial, readers may find a statement being referred to more than once.In a crime story, the devil can be in the detail. The statements are quoted in the authentic spelling of the witness - as important legal records they don't get 'proofed'. The court trial lasted 12 weeks and involved 30,000 pages of documents. I have distilled that down to 372 pages but it is still a complex story. Think of yourself as a juror, sifting the evidence."Previous books on this case have concentrated on picking apart the police version of events given in Court. That's a legalistic technique of creating 'doubt'. I ask a different question: Forget about the court case, do the original witness statements including ones never used in court show us what happened? The answer, I suggest, is "Yes", and you are about to find out for yourself..."

The Third Gift: My Dance with the Devil (and Her Mother)


J.D. McCabe - 2020
    

A SCOTLAND YARD MURDER CASEBOOK: Classic Crime - the True Story of Nine Murders and One British Detective


Simon Lewis - 2018
    A few days later, Mahon murdered her. He cut up her body, and stored it in a trunk; parts of the body were then disposed of by being thrown out of a moving train. The Mahon case is just one of the murders which Percy Savage investigated during his thirty year career as a Scotland Yard detective. 'A Scotland Yard Murder Casebook' brings together a selection of murder cases in which Percy Savage was involved. Some of these cases were gruesome, some were tragic, some involved extraordinary twists and coincidences, and some remain unsolved. A Scotland Yard Murder Casebook will be of interest to anybody who enjoys classic true crime stories. CONTENTS HOW TO DISPOSE OF A CORPSE 1 Secrets of the Locked Bag 2 The Camberwell Triple Murder WAR AND PEACE 3 The Tragedy of Two Army Doctors SUPRISING VIOLENCE 4 The Hunt for the Police Killers 5 Murder by Moonlight THE UNSOLVED MURDER FILE 6 The Camberley Mystery 7 The Luard Case

The Perfect Crime: The Real Life Crime that Inspired Hitchcock’s Rope


Fergus Mason - 2013
    But they wanted the one thing that no amount of money could buy: life. They wanted to create the Perfect Crime--to kidnap and murder a 14-year-old boy for the thrill of getting away with murder.The crime was so horrifying that even legendary filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock took notice, and directed his version of the story: Rope. But the real story of the Rope is much more brutal and suspenseful than even Hitchcock could do justice to. Read the real history in this thrilling true crime book.