Secrets Can Be Murder: The Killer Next Door
The true-crime spectrum runs from lurid quickie paperbacks to insightful studies of human behavior. This book, by television commentator Velez-Mitchell, fits somewhere in between. Although its premise is intriguing (the author uses some recent high-profile cases to illuminate the reasons why people behave as they do), it's not developed with much depth. The cases she has chosen are, for the most part, familiar to readers who watch the TV news: Andrea Yates, who murdered her five children; Scott Peterson, convicted of killing his pregnant wife; Robert Durst, the wealthy eccentric accused of murder and dismemberment; Phil Spector, the music producer on trial for homicide; Robert Blake, the actor found not guilty of killing his wife. But her discussions of these cases aren't much more than recitations of the facts. Some readers might find the author's tone a little flippant, too: she may find it funny to call Andrea Yates "the mother of all baby killers," but it's doubtful many readers will. Still, for those who want a straightforward summary of recent celebrities on trial for and convicted of serious crimes, this volume will serve the purpose. Pitt, David--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.