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Deadly Divorces: Twelve True Stories of Marriages that Ended in Murder
What makes a model father murder his estranged wife, then go on TV pleading for her to come home? How does a devoted wife and mother walk into a beauty salon and shoot her ex-husband's pregnant lover in cold blood?
No one ever knows what really goes on behind the closed doors of a marriage in freefall. The people in this book weren't born evil, but in the heat of a relationship break-up, all restraint melted and violent passions spiraled out of control.
The most basic of emotions are involved in these stories of spouses who have gone to extreme lengths to rid themselves of their partners.
No one ever knows what really goes on behind the closed doors of a marriage in freefall. The people in this book weren't born evil, but in the heat of a relationship break-up, all restraint melted and violent passions spiraled out of control.
The most basic of emotions are involved in these stories of spouses who have gone to extreme lengths to rid themselves of their partners.
- GenresNonfictionTrue Crime
261 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2007
9 people are currently reading
102 people want to read
About the author
Tammy Cohen
23 books451 followersTammy Cohen (who was previously published under her formal name Tamar Cohen) is a freelance journalist. A late starter to fiction - and to other things besides - she has now written four novels. The Mistress's Revenge, The War of the Wives, and Someone Else's Wedding. The Broken was her first pyschological thriller, followed by Dying for Christmas. Her brand new hardback novel, First One Missing is out now.
She lives in North London with her partner and three (nearly) grown children, plus one very badly behaved dog.
She lives in North London with her partner and three (nearly) grown children, plus one very badly behaved dog.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
July 17, 2013
Having read this book, anyone who has had a happy marriage should be even more grateful ... for if things had not turned out right, who knows what might have happened.
In all of these cases there is a third party involved and the love that was originally in the marriage drifts away and is often superseded by intense hate. This leads to thoughts of getting rid of a former husband or wife and consequently a murder is committed.
In this selection the murders are not all committed by men, women also demonstrate what the love/hate relationship can do to a once rational and loving and caring person.
It is a light read but a sometimes disturbing one.
In all of these cases there is a third party involved and the love that was originally in the marriage drifts away and is often superseded by intense hate. This leads to thoughts of getting rid of a former husband or wife and consequently a murder is committed.
In this selection the murders are not all committed by men, women also demonstrate what the love/hate relationship can do to a once rational and loving and caring person.
It is a light read but a sometimes disturbing one.
May 18, 2021
Mind boggling
This book would make you wary of ever getting married! Very well written and really enjoyed reading it. I recommend you sit down with a strong whisky and enjoy
This book would make you wary of ever getting married! Very well written and really enjoyed reading it. I recommend you sit down with a strong whisky and enjoy
September 26, 2015
This non-fiction true crime book contains twelve stories of what can happen when a marriage breaks down. As such I don’t recommend it to anyone going through divorce, or contemplating it! For everyone else this is a fascinating look at the worst case scenario.
I am a big fan of Tammy Cohen’s fictional books, especially the element of humour that laces the pages, this aspect is necessarily missing from this book, which was penned before these were published. The twelve stories within this book which was published in 2007, come from the late 90s early 2000s from both sides of the Atlantic and with both sexes being the perpetrator.
To give you a flavour the first crime in the book is that of an English woman who murdered her ex-husband’s lover, to be specific she shot her at the salon she ran in a quiet English town. With the information gleaned from the trial and reporting at the time Tammy seeks to give the reasons behind the killing, looking at the state of mind of the murderer in the weeks and months leading up to the shooting. It is a sad tale, as are all the stories in this book, it is hard to contemplate that two people, who once swore to love each other forever, can be driven to a state of outright hate which leads to the ultimate act of revenge.
This isn’t a terribly in-depth book, to really understand the motives of each and everyone of the crimes would have meant that this book was far too long, it does however give an insight into this type of crime. You may, as I did, remember some of the horrific acts committed in the name of love! Unfortunately as I worked through the book (in the space of a day) it did feel a little repetitive purely because this type of crime is typically committed by a person who feels that they have been wronged and they want to destroy the person that they feel has destroyed their life.
I have to admit some of the tales recounted, will stay with me for some time, as the perpetrators will have learned as they live with their actions for the rest of their lives.
I am a big fan of Tammy Cohen’s fictional books, especially the element of humour that laces the pages, this aspect is necessarily missing from this book, which was penned before these were published. The twelve stories within this book which was published in 2007, come from the late 90s early 2000s from both sides of the Atlantic and with both sexes being the perpetrator.
To give you a flavour the first crime in the book is that of an English woman who murdered her ex-husband’s lover, to be specific she shot her at the salon she ran in a quiet English town. With the information gleaned from the trial and reporting at the time Tammy seeks to give the reasons behind the killing, looking at the state of mind of the murderer in the weeks and months leading up to the shooting. It is a sad tale, as are all the stories in this book, it is hard to contemplate that two people, who once swore to love each other forever, can be driven to a state of outright hate which leads to the ultimate act of revenge.
This isn’t a terribly in-depth book, to really understand the motives of each and everyone of the crimes would have meant that this book was far too long, it does however give an insight into this type of crime. You may, as I did, remember some of the horrific acts committed in the name of love! Unfortunately as I worked through the book (in the space of a day) it did feel a little repetitive purely because this type of crime is typically committed by a person who feels that they have been wronged and they want to destroy the person that they feel has destroyed their life.
I have to admit some of the tales recounted, will stay with me for some time, as the perpetrators will have learned as they live with their actions for the rest of their lives.
December 9, 2014
The first few stories were ok. Overall the stories are represented in a gossipy way and after the first three or so the author presents judgements upon the persons involved. Add that to the fact her grammar is atrocious, ensured that I could barely finish the book. The subject matter is interesting but a better presentation of facts and much less fantasy supposition would have improved this greatly.
March 31, 2013
The title tells you the type of book this is. It's nothing special, just a bit of entertainment.
February 28, 2016
I read the first two short stories... mildly entertaining if it's the only book you have to read I guess..
I didn't enjoy them enough to continue.
I didn't enjoy them enough to continue.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews