New in True Crime
- Home
- Books & More
- Recommended Reading
- New in True Crime
Like many of us, Harper Lee was fascinated by shocking cases of murder. The case of Reverend Willie Maxwell nearly became another of her great works. In this book, Cep explores the case and what happened to Lee’s story.
The British Museum of Natural History was once home to an impressive collection of rare bird specimens. In 2009, hundreds of them disappeared into the night. But how did an American flute player come to commit such a crime?
Journalist Michelle McNamara pursued the case of the Golden State Killer, whose sadistic crimes shocked California for more than ten years. Long after he disappeared, she began re-examining the facts, pulling the case closer together and further into her life.
The Troubles, a period of conflict in Northern Ireland, touched many lives. In 1972, ten children watched as their mother was taken away from them, never to be seen again. More than thirty years later, her body is found, reminding everyone of the damage done.
The 1975 disappearance of the Lyons sisters from a Washington, DC mall became a cold case. But in 2013, a detective reviewing the file noticed that a witness sketch matched the face of a troubled teen who had given police a tip that led nowhere.
Chicago’s high rate of gun violence and deaths is well known. So what exactly is going on? Author Alex Kotlowitz set out in the summer of 2013 to answer that very question by following the lives and stories of those whose lives have been changed forever by the violence in their midst.
What began as a bank robbery left three people dead, twenty wounded, downed a police helicopter, and destroyed thirty-two police vehicles. Led by a religious extremist, five young men in California robbed a bank, made a getaway, went on trial, and changed law enforcement in America.
Aaron Hernandez emerged as a talented player in the NFL in 2010. In 2013, he was charged with the murder of his fiancée’s sister’s boyfriend. His 2017 death in prison was ruled a suicide. James Patterson recounts this shocking case fresh from the headlines.
Anthony Ray Hinton was convicted of two murders he didn’t commit. Left moldering in solitary on death row for almost 30 years, he nonetheless was able to find the fortitude not only to outlast his time in prison, but to thrive outside of it.
When Frank Oldfield became a Post Office Inspector in 1899 the Black Hand had had their run of things for years, extorting money and terrorizing immigrant communities. But with the right tip, Inspector Oldfield broke through where local and other federal forces could not, leading to the first federal trial against international organized crime.
The oft-told tale of Al Capone and Eliot Ness is revisited in this expansive volume. Popular with the public because of Prohibition, any goodwill felt for Capone dissipated after the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre. In came Ness, whose Untouchable team would stop at nothing to bring him down.
In the spring of 1992, Exxon executive Sidney Reso was taken from his car in a driveway in Morristown. The back and forth with the kidnappers, who demanded one of the largest ransoms in US history, left both local authorities and the FBI struggling.
During his time as the head of the Gambino crime family, John Gotti built himself an empire. But he didn’t do it alone. Explore the lives of the men who would do it all for the good of the family.
When Sherri Rasmussen was found murdered in her home, police pursued the theory that it had all begun as a burglary gone wrong. But her parents knew that one of her husband’s exes was an LAPD officer. Years later, the case long cold, DNA testing prompted the reopening of the case.
The Calabrian mafia is one of the richest and most powerful examples of an organized crime syndicate in the world. Run on machismo, its women are treated as bargaining chips and chattel. After one wife turned witness is killed, one prosecutor sees these women as her best way of taking on the syndicate.
Emmett Till’s story is one that still resonates today. His mother Mamie wanted to be sure that no one would ever forget what was done to her child. Author Elliot Gorn explores why this case made headlines in its day, and why it still matters to us now.
Larry Nassar’s crimes against Olympic gymnasts are well known. But they were not his only victims. Scores of other girls whose names are not familiar suffered at his hands. This book recounts their stories; the abuse they faced, the warnings they gave, but ultimately the courage they all possess.
Congressman Daniel Sickles and his lovely young wife Teresa are the toast of antebellum Washington, DC society. But his frequent travels leave Teresa home alone, with only her husband’s friend Philip Barton Key to escort her. Their affair would end in tragedy, and the trial that followed would usher in a new defense for murder.
Known for his bestselling Millennium series, Stieg Larsson’s work as a journalist has been largely overlooked by international audiences. But one of his unfinished projects was a deep dive into the 1986 assassination of Swedish prime minister Olof Palme, a crime that remains unsolved to this day.
Before the 2016 Pulse shooting, the 1973 Up Stairs Lounge fire was the deadliest attack against LGBT people in American history. Unsolved to this day, this book recounts the lives of those in the club as well as the aftermath of the tragedy.
Copyright © 1996-2022 Ocean County Library. All Rights Reserved.Disclaimer
