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Trusting Evil
In the summer of 1966, Richard Franklin Speck, a twenty-two year old Ordinary Seaman, waiting for a berth aboard a merchant ship, murdered eight student nurses inside a townhouse in South Chicago, shocking the surrounding hardworking, religious community to its very core. Twenty years later, Carly Rocket and her business partner, Mike Holtzer, find themselves inside Stateville Correctional Facility hired to cast extras for a Hollywood movie. Unbeknownst to her, Speck is one of Stateville’s inmates. His infamous murders took place only blocks from her childhood home leaving her with deep emotional wounds. Discovering that Speck is enjoying his life behind bars, Carly is outraged and conspires with a guard to make a video tape of Speck’s uninhibited life in an attempt to change prison regulations. But it backfires, and suddenly Carly finds herself in danger of becoming Speck’s ninth victim.
316 pages, Paperback
First published January 24, 2012
33 people are currently reading
244 people want to read
About the author
Mary Leo
71 books39 followersUSA Today bestselling author, Mary Leo, writes small-town, swoon-worthy, sexy romance with enough humor to give you a giggle or two. She loves Italian food, a bubbly flute of Prosecco, meeting her fabulous readers, the company of other writers, and a cup of hot tea every morning. She's a city girl who adores a small town. When she's not writing, she's reading or binging on a great comedy series.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
December 16, 2015
This was a great book and mostly based on fact. Spookily I started reading on July 14th, the 46th anniversary of the terrible murders of Richard Speck of eight nurses in Chicago.
The book's author lived around the corner from the townhouse where they died and her life was clearly affected by the awful atrocity going on so nearby.
The book is about a girl who grew up in the area too and she's now a partner in a film extras company. They need some real-life prisoners for a film so head off to where Speck is incarcerated. She's horrified to learn that he lives a life of luxury really and is a trustee in the prison and pretty much does as he pleases. She resolves to ensure that she is going to expose this state of affairs but it's a risky thing to take on.
Throughout the book there are passages written as each murdered nurse too which make touching reading.
There were some errors in the book, noticeably referring to Shoots and Ladders the game which was a crashing error !!
It's one I'd recommend, though......
The book's author lived around the corner from the townhouse where they died and her life was clearly affected by the awful atrocity going on so nearby.
The book is about a girl who grew up in the area too and she's now a partner in a film extras company. They need some real-life prisoners for a film so head off to where Speck is incarcerated. She's horrified to learn that he lives a life of luxury really and is a trustee in the prison and pretty much does as he pleases. She resolves to ensure that she is going to expose this state of affairs but it's a risky thing to take on.
Throughout the book there are passages written as each murdered nurse too which make touching reading.
There were some errors in the book, noticeably referring to Shoots and Ladders the game which was a crashing error !!
It's one I'd recommend, though......
September 13, 2019
Excellent Read
I was young when this happened living in Louisville KY. I heard my parents discussing it.
It really brought home to me the facts of the case which I had never known.
What a brave woman you were! Richard Speck was definitely evil.
Glad you were able to find happiness.
I was young when this happened living in Louisville KY. I heard my parents discussing it.
It really brought home to me the facts of the case which I had never known.
What a brave woman you were! Richard Speck was definitely evil.
Glad you were able to find happiness.
June 17, 2019
Girls innocence misjudged a man
Young girls live innocently, thinking a man was someone else that turned out being a killer. This man appears in one girls life years later. Revenge or let life go on.
Young girls live innocently, thinking a man was someone else that turned out being a killer. This man appears in one girls life years later. Revenge or let life go on.
December 11, 2021
Excellent read!! So sad that it's based on a true story.
September 15, 2013
Wow! This is a hard book to review for me.
I was a young girl in the 60's, younger than Carly was when evil entered her young life.
I can go back in time in so many parts of this story, not the bad bits but the good old days that were full of day dreams and using your imagination when life was simple, innocent, trusting...
What happened to Carly could only effect you in years to come in the worst possible way, you'd be scarred for life.
This is one of these books that made me thankful for all the comforting memories of the little girl I still am inside,
what Carly experienced would nip that in the bud pretty fast...
You meet a hard nosed woman in the beginning and as you get thru the pages you finally find the vulnerable little girl hidden underneath.
Not only has this book stirred up emotions in me because of what I can relate to but also for what I can't relate to as well.
Fantastic book based on fact, graphic raw truth.
I was a young girl in the 60's, younger than Carly was when evil entered her young life.
I can go back in time in so many parts of this story, not the bad bits but the good old days that were full of day dreams and using your imagination when life was simple, innocent, trusting...
What happened to Carly could only effect you in years to come in the worst possible way, you'd be scarred for life.
This is one of these books that made me thankful for all the comforting memories of the little girl I still am inside,
what Carly experienced would nip that in the bud pretty fast...
You meet a hard nosed woman in the beginning and as you get thru the pages you finally find the vulnerable little girl hidden underneath.
Not only has this book stirred up emotions in me because of what I can relate to but also for what I can't relate to as well.
Fantastic book based on fact, graphic raw truth.
January 17, 2017
Quest for Richard Speck
The book was very thought provoking as it reflected the truth about the liberties that prisoners had at Statesville. It is a crime in itself that someone like Richard Speck had the liberties that he had in the prison. He was a mass murderer who's life was better in prison than outside. I remember when the tapes of this travesty were released to the public and the outcry that went along with it.
It was an interesting concept to have the story written from the point of view of a little girl, now a woman, who had seen Speck the night of the killings. Now, as an adult she is faced with coming into contact with the man she has grown to hate. There were so many different potential outcomes from the meeting of the two that I was disappointed in the ending. It just was not believable and left me disappointed.
The book was very thought provoking as it reflected the truth about the liberties that prisoners had at Statesville. It is a crime in itself that someone like Richard Speck had the liberties that he had in the prison. He was a mass murderer who's life was better in prison than outside. I remember when the tapes of this travesty were released to the public and the outcry that went along with it.
It was an interesting concept to have the story written from the point of view of a little girl, now a woman, who had seen Speck the night of the killings. Now, as an adult she is faced with coming into contact with the man she has grown to hate. There were so many different potential outcomes from the meeting of the two that I was disappointed in the ending. It just was not believable and left me disappointed.
January 9, 2014
Trusting Evil (by Mary Leo)
Carly Rocket and Mike Holtzer are filming a movie in Stateville Correctional Facility outside of Chicago. She finds that notorious killer Richard Speck is housed there. He killed eight nurses in the South Chicago neighborhood where Carly grew up. Memories of the 1966 murders are haunting her and they decide to film the "good life" Richard has in prison. Little does she know her life is in danger.
A fantastic thriller. I grew up in Chicago and do remember the murders. I loved the way a bit of fact was thrown into the story. I also felt the blending of 1966 events with the 1980's events (where the story took place) flowed perfectly. I highly recommend to thriller/murder lovers.
Carly Rocket and Mike Holtzer are filming a movie in Stateville Correctional Facility outside of Chicago. She finds that notorious killer Richard Speck is housed there. He killed eight nurses in the South Chicago neighborhood where Carly grew up. Memories of the 1966 murders are haunting her and they decide to film the "good life" Richard has in prison. Little does she know her life is in danger.
A fantastic thriller. I grew up in Chicago and do remember the murders. I loved the way a bit of fact was thrown into the story. I also felt the blending of 1966 events with the 1980's events (where the story took place) flowed perfectly. I highly recommend to thriller/murder lovers.
March 1, 2013
I always like to read stories that are written based on actual facts. I enjoyed this book, however there were times that the flashbacks became redundant. Especially the ones dealing with Carly and her friends obsessing over the Beatles. I guess, in a way, they were integral to delving into Carly's psychosis, but it made a very difficult reading experience because I would wander mentally as soon as I realized a passage was going to describe more Beatle mania. I kind of wish the ending had been different too. To me, it didn't seem like the murderer got his "due"...
March 18, 2016
This book is based on an actual event. 8 student nurses murdered and a young woman struggling with the trauma and guilt she experienced living only a few blocks from the scene. Carly was 14 at the time and saw things that she felt as she got older if she had told it might have saved them. This is a powerful story but it jumps from decade to decade and for me made it hard to follow.
April 18, 2012
Mary Leo is well written,you will get caughtup with the characters,in the mist of the murders you have an love story.Trusting Evil is a haunting and chilling story.the more you read the more you cant put it down,and i dont like reading True Story,so coming from me ,this is a good read
February 24, 2013
Clever blend of history and fiction. A little slow-going at times. The intermingling of the story's present day and the past was well-done. I liked the special passages that were from the point-of-view of the nurses Richard Speck murdered in Chicago.
January 12, 2014
Gripping, as I was the same age as the main character in the book in 1966 and live not too far from the South Chicago neighborhood where Speck murdered 8 student nurses. Very relatable for me, and I found I could not put this well-written book down.
October 16, 2016
This book is based on Richard Speck who killed 8 nurses in 1966. I remember this since I was working in Chicago when the news came on. Carly tells the story. She was 14 and saw the police taking the girls out on stretchers. Mary Leo, the author, wrote a great book.
April 25, 2012
A truly good read based in reality, with all of the details. I especially loved the characters who are as flawed as real humans.
June 11, 2012
A little hard to get into, but all in all, it was good.
June 22, 2012
After reading this book, I would probably not read any others by this author. Far too slow and never really goes anywhere. Curious about the true story it was based on.
May 31, 2013
TOTALLY AWESOME!!!! One of the best freebie books Ever!Just can't say enough about this book. Get it you will love it I promise.
January 8, 2014
what a fantastic read! grabbed my attention from beginning to end. very well written.
August 14, 2012
Spine-tingling page-turner. Start it early in the day because you won't be able to put it down!
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews