True Crime Books

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True Crimes is a series of crime novels written by M. William Phelps which explore some of the most prolific crimes and mysteries to ever plague the United States.

“Perfect Poison”, the first novel in the series, tackles the Kristin Gilbert case from the 1990s. Kristin Gilbert was a nurse at a Veteran’s Hospital in Massachusetts who killed many of her patients.

Kristin had a charming personality that often compelled her victims to let their guard down. But she was also a sociopath who showed no qualms about sneaking into the rooms of patients and stealing their lives.

Most of the patients willingly opened their mouths and their veins to her. They watched as she administered her drugs, unaware that she would be the last person they saw. Kristin’s efforts only came to light after her fellow nurses noticed an increase in the number of deaths occurring during her shifts.

M. William Phelps’ story delves into the Kristin Gilbert case. The author provides a detailed account of the events that led to Kristin’s arrest, the strong opposition that arose from those people who refused to accept the claims against her, and the nurse’s eventual fate.

The True Crimes books are written like actual novels. The author writes cohesive stories that follow the antagonists at the heart of each story from the birth of their criminal activities to their eventual fall.

Phelps goes to great lengths to explore the mindsets, attitudes and thought processes driving his antagonists. The True Crimes novels are meticulously researched, with the author endeavoring to provide detailed facts about each case or mystery that might have escaped the reader.

The books do not always provide definitive conclusions. Some of them create room for doubt, allowing readers to determine for themselves whether or not the people accused of the crimes in question are guilty.

Even though Phelps’ stories are rooted in reality, he finds a way to inject nuance into each novel. The villains are not always evil, bloodthirsty psychopaths and the factors driving their dastardly deeds are not always nefarious.

Likewise, the heroes are not always good people. The world that the author creates is filled with many shades of gray.

M. William Phelps is a true crime aficionado. His knowledge of the subject matter has seen him make many contributions to crime dramas on television.

True Crimes Awards

I’ll Be Watching You, a novel from the True Crimes series which was published in 2008 won the New England Book Festival Award in that same year.

Best True Crimes Books

The true crimes novels have been commended for tackling difficult real-life subjects with tact and decency, with some of the best books in the series including:

Murder in the Heartland: Lisa Montgomery from Malvern, Kansas caused quite the stir when she introduced everyone she knew to a beautiful newborn. Lisa claimed that the baby was hers but some people did not believe her.

After all, the news was awash with news of a missing newborn. The horror began on a December night in 2004. A woman found her daughter, a 23-year-old girl, dead. She was lying on the floor in the living room and her unborn baby had been ripped from her womb.

The woman called 911 and, not long after, the Amber Alert for a newborn went out.

Because You Loved Me: Jeanne’s daughter was a great student. At fourteen, she was on the honor-roll and nothing could stop her from conquering every educational obstacle that came her way. But then she fell in love with an 18-year-old man she met on the internet.

Jeanne’s motherly instincts told her that her child was going astray, so she took steps to stop the disaster she knew would come.

Jeanne Dominico’s fiancé eventually found her on the kitchen floor. Someone had stabbed her more than forty times.

Other Book Series You May Like

A good series to check out is the “Crime Files” Series by Ann Rule. Ann Rule was a Seattle Policewoman. She uses her eye for detail to tell a series of true crime stories in which she unravels and reveals the facts behind some of the most disturbing murderers and killers the United States has ever seen.

You may also enjoy the “Dark Yorkshire” Series by J.M. Dalgliesh. DI Nathaniel Caslin is a police detective with more demons and skeletons in his closet than he knows what to do with. But that doesn’t stop him from solving Northern England’s most disturbing crimes.

What Is The Next Book in The Andrew Klavan Standalone Novels?

There doesn't seem to be an upcoming book in The Andrew Klavan Standalone Novels. The newest book is Mrs. White and was released on June, 16th 2015.

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