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Charmer: The True Story of Robert Reldan - Rapist, Murderer and Millionaire -- And the Women Who Fell Victim to His Allure
When prison inmate Robert Reldan's aunt died and left him an $8.9 million trust fund, Arthur and Barbara Reeve, parents of murder victim Susan Reeve, acted to deprive Reldan of the funds that could gain him freedom on parole. The Reeves ultimately got an unheard of $10 million judgment against their's daughter's killer, effectively stripping the man known as America's richest inmate. Soon after Susan's murder, the Reeves set up a scholarship fund in her name and the killer's money is currently used in that fund which helps to educate young men and women. The Charmer embraces the hunt to bring a Susan killer to justice and then the chase of a lifetime by one family determined to give their slain daughter a voice, decades after she was silenced.
- GenresTrue Crime
364 pages, ebook
First published January 1, 2011
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
April 6, 2013
Finally finished it. It was dry reading if you know what I mean, but very interesting so I had to keep reading, although sometimes it felt like I had been reading this book for weeks. The writing was good, don't get me wrong. I would try another book by this author. This story is very interesting. Very annoying to read of all the mistrials.
I sometimes wonder about the US judging system. This must cost so much money. Is there not a better way? Same with the appeals and the death penalty. When as the last person that died because of his crimes by way of the death penalty? How much do all those appeals cost?
Not sure what to give this book. 3 stars will do cause 4 I give to a book I really enjoy and this sometimes felt like a struggle. Weirdly I know, I do recommend to read it, although try to lend it from the library or if you have a kindle, download a sample first.
I sometimes wonder about the US judging system. This must cost so much money. Is there not a better way? Same with the appeals and the death penalty. When as the last person that died because of his crimes by way of the death penalty? How much do all those appeals cost?
Not sure what to give this book. 3 stars will do cause 4 I give to a book I really enjoy and this sometimes felt like a struggle. Weirdly I know, I do recommend to read it, although try to lend it from the library or if you have a kindle, download a sample first.
January 15, 2016
I cannot believe how long it took to finally get this man (I use the term loosely) behind bars where he belongs. Fascinating story. A must read in my opinion if only to prove that good does prevail in the end; no matter how wealthy you are...
April 23, 2013
I received a review copy of "The Charmer: The True Story of Robert Reldan - Rapist, Murderer and Millionaire -- and the Women who Fell Victim to his Allure" by Richard Muti and Charles Buckley. I looked forward to it since I enjoy reading out and researching older crimes. This is one I had vaguely heard of, but had not heard the details. This book provided an in-depth look at Robert Reldan,a sociopath who was clean cut, good-looking, and quite the charmer. In fact, so much the charmer that he was able to get out of actually paying the consequences for many violent crimes before he was even an adult, and then even as adult. That is, until he killed 2 young women.
This book is very well-written and explains the crime justice system, step-by-step, making it easy for anyone not familiar with the criminal justice system to understand. It shows that it does not run perfectly, but in most cases, justice is served, as it is in the end here. It is a compelling story, and done very well in this book. The book was hard to put down, and I carried it around quite a bit until I was done. My emotions ran high, especially seeing this clearly sociopathic man getting away with violence time and time again. It was unbelievable to me that his own parents and family could not see that he was such a danger to society, even to the point of ignoring clear signs. He was a convicted sex offender, yet they believed he would never hurt anyone. In my opinion, they need to shoulder some of the blame for the 2 murders and even some of his violence offenses, including rapes. It is good to know that he is and should be in prison for the rest of is life.
Another interesting aspect of case was that Reldan's wealthy aunt left him millions in her will, even though he tried to have her murdered and he was in prison for the murders of 2 young women. However, the parents of one of the victims, Susan Reeve, sued him and won $10 million, so that he could not benefit from her will and live a comfortable life inside of the prison. They have set up scholarships with the money so that others could get an education. They also oppose any chance Reldan has of gaining parole, and have even set it up with an attorney to represent them at his next parole if they are not alive. Currently, Reldan is 72 years old. I doubt he will make it to his next parole hearing or be paroled. It is widely known in NJ, especially with the parole board and corrections, that he is a dangerous person and should not ever be paroled.
This was a great book and I highly recommend it. It is a great case study of how charming a sociopath can be and how he fooled so many people, not just his family. He fooled a psychiatrist, a parole board, a prison guard and a parole officer, just to name a few.
This book is very well-written and explains the crime justice system, step-by-step, making it easy for anyone not familiar with the criminal justice system to understand. It shows that it does not run perfectly, but in most cases, justice is served, as it is in the end here. It is a compelling story, and done very well in this book. The book was hard to put down, and I carried it around quite a bit until I was done. My emotions ran high, especially seeing this clearly sociopathic man getting away with violence time and time again. It was unbelievable to me that his own parents and family could not see that he was such a danger to society, even to the point of ignoring clear signs. He was a convicted sex offender, yet they believed he would never hurt anyone. In my opinion, they need to shoulder some of the blame for the 2 murders and even some of his violence offenses, including rapes. It is good to know that he is and should be in prison for the rest of is life.
Another interesting aspect of case was that Reldan's wealthy aunt left him millions in her will, even though he tried to have her murdered and he was in prison for the murders of 2 young women. However, the parents of one of the victims, Susan Reeve, sued him and won $10 million, so that he could not benefit from her will and live a comfortable life inside of the prison. They have set up scholarships with the money so that others could get an education. They also oppose any chance Reldan has of gaining parole, and have even set it up with an attorney to represent them at his next parole if they are not alive. Currently, Reldan is 72 years old. I doubt he will make it to his next parole hearing or be paroled. It is widely known in NJ, especially with the parole board and corrections, that he is a dangerous person and should not ever be paroled.
This was a great book and I highly recommend it. It is a great case study of how charming a sociopath can be and how he fooled so many people, not just his family. He fooled a psychiatrist, a parole board, a prison guard and a parole officer, just to name a few.
December 7, 2018
Comprehensive to a fault, this book steers is through the bizarre trials of psychopath rapist/robber/kidnapper/murderer Robert Reldan and highlights the cracks in the system allowing him to be unsentenced for 10 years after his last murder.
Densely packed with courtroom procedures and codes and writs, the reader gets bogged down slogging through the swamp of sidebars and appeals processes—-But is given almost no insight whatsoever into Reldan’s childhood and family life. We’re handed a teenage mugger as the central focus of this book in chapter 1, and that’s as far back into his past as we go. I was left with more questions about Reldan than I had when I started, but I’ve had ALL my questions answered by New Jersey court procedures.
Densely packed with courtroom procedures and codes and writs, the reader gets bogged down slogging through the swamp of sidebars and appeals processes—-But is given almost no insight whatsoever into Reldan’s childhood and family life. We’re handed a teenage mugger as the central focus of this book in chapter 1, and that’s as far back into his past as we go. I was left with more questions about Reldan than I had when I started, but I’ve had ALL my questions answered by New Jersey court procedures.
October 23, 2014
Good description of Robert Reldan. A N.J. thief and murderer. In depth retelling of the details of his many appearances in court.
October 19, 2023
If you’re from northern New Jersey, you’ll recognize a lot of these locations. Excellent court room account. You’ll be amazed you never heard of this monster.
February 24, 2013
this is a must if you lived in BC. Couldn't put it down.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews