What do you think?
Rate this book
Pure Evil - How Tracie Andrews murdered my son, decieved the nation and sentenced me to a life of pain and misery
On December 1st, 1996, Lee Harvey was stabbed 42 times in a frenzied knife attack. His girlfriend, Tracie Andrews, claimed he had been murdered in a road rage attack and, days later, appeared at a press conference making an emotional appeal for witnesses to the crime. During the days following the attack, the horrific truth about what really happened that night became apparent. It was Tracie who had killed Lee and then tried to cover her tracks with a web of lies. In this compelling and harrowing book, Maureen shares the turmoil of a bereaved mother trying to come to terms with the brutal murder of her son while at the same time fighting to bring his killer, who she had welcomed into her home, to justice. She also reveals little-known facts about the investigation and speaks of how her shattered family came through their grief and began to rebuild their lives.
290 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 28, 2007
36 people are currently reading
238 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
September 27, 2009
Some people think this is a page turner, well not to me. It was hard to read because of the way the mother wrote. her son was so good, and did nothing wrong and I do not believe that. Also she said she rather had it the way around. that he had murdered Tracey. Wondering if she would have been asking for the deaths sentence then. If she thinks that she should not hate Tracey's parents but of course she does. What annoyed me also was her negative attitude even towards people, her family that were helping them. it was too much, blablabla. She wanted peace.
Another thing i noticed was that she let her daughter deal with a lot of the stuff while she ran away for it. Of course I feel for this mother, cause it is a moms worst nightmare, but if I'd known this book was written by a mother I would not have bought it. Too one sided.
Another thing i noticed was that she let her daughter deal with a lot of the stuff while she ran away for it. Of course I feel for this mother, cause it is a moms worst nightmare, but if I'd known this book was written by a mother I would not have bought it. Too one sided.
January 25, 2024
I read this many years ago when I was totally into reading true crime books... this book was shocking...how this woman did what she did to her boyfriend then sat in front of the cameras at a press conference and told her pack of lies I will never know...I'm just glad she got her comeuppance and went to jail... Tracie Andrews was one Pure Evil B***h.
February 27, 2019
A really good read, it’s a heartbreaking story and whilst I sympathise with Maureen, then her son was no angel and it could have easily been Tracie Andrews on the receiving end of Lee’s temper, rather than the other way about.
I got a sense that nobody would have been good enough for Maureen’s children, Lee seemed like a typical ‘mummy’s boy’ who could do no wrong!
I got a sense that nobody would have been good enough for Maureen’s children, Lee seemed like a typical ‘mummy’s boy’ who could do no wrong!
March 5, 2016
This book is very one sided however I found It ok
July 23, 2019
Tough read but the victims mother covered the truth exceptionally well
March 27, 2015
On the one hand, there's almost nothing in the world that is more understandable than a mother's grief at losing her child, in the sense that even if you haven't gone through it, you can imagine how unbelievably life-changing and painful it is. That is what this book is about. More than any run of the mill true crime book that details a case and all its major players from killer to detective, this is a book about grief. And so part of me understands why Maureen Harvey is so angry, why she thinks the way she does, and why she takes the opportunity in writing this book to get her revenge in her words.
On the other hand, there is only so much one can take of someone being so... whatever it is Maureen Harvey is here. Though I understand that Tracie Andrews is responsible for killing Lee Harvey, reading the story from the point of view of the victim's mother, which carries a lot of bias... it was like slogging through mud. Not only do I think that there is more to the story, I frankly think that Maureen Harvey could have laid off a bit on taking every opportunity to slut shame Tracie or call her a name every other paragraph. Do I think Tracie is a good person? No. But what does her history with other men have to do with her status as a killer? What does most of what Maureen writes about have to do with Tracie as a killer? Paint her as a killer and the reader gets the point. Maureen just goes overboard.
More than that, I started to get really sick of this about 3/4 of the way through when she started going on and on about petitioning the British government to reinstate the death penalty. I am staunchly anti-death penalty as anybody who knows me knows, and to be honest, I think 99% of people who are pro-death penalty do not understand why it is ineffective or why effective sentencing is important at all. I can understand her push for a life sentence to mean life (and I frankly think it's ridiculous that Tracie is able to walk free now), and in a way I get why she would want the death penalty, but Maureen Harvey is so one-track minded here that she constantly misses the great big forest for the trees.
I hope the Harvey family has found some peace all these years later, and I hope that whatever Tracie is doing now with her, she is constantly thinking about what she did. But I could've done with a far less biased book.
On the other hand, there is only so much one can take of someone being so... whatever it is Maureen Harvey is here. Though I understand that Tracie Andrews is responsible for killing Lee Harvey, reading the story from the point of view of the victim's mother, which carries a lot of bias... it was like slogging through mud. Not only do I think that there is more to the story, I frankly think that Maureen Harvey could have laid off a bit on taking every opportunity to slut shame Tracie or call her a name every other paragraph. Do I think Tracie is a good person? No. But what does her history with other men have to do with her status as a killer? What does most of what Maureen writes about have to do with Tracie as a killer? Paint her as a killer and the reader gets the point. Maureen just goes overboard.
More than that, I started to get really sick of this about 3/4 of the way through when she started going on and on about petitioning the British government to reinstate the death penalty. I am staunchly anti-death penalty as anybody who knows me knows, and to be honest, I think 99% of people who are pro-death penalty do not understand why it is ineffective or why effective sentencing is important at all. I can understand her push for a life sentence to mean life (and I frankly think it's ridiculous that Tracie is able to walk free now), and in a way I get why she would want the death penalty, but Maureen Harvey is so one-track minded here that she constantly misses the great big forest for the trees.
I hope the Harvey family has found some peace all these years later, and I hope that whatever Tracie is doing now with her, she is constantly thinking about what she did. But I could've done with a far less biased book.
February 19, 2021
Very raw book by Maureen Harvey about her son and the cataclysmic events which led to his murder at the hands of his long-term girlfriend Tracie Andrews. The story is much more complex than at first suspected. Andrews and Maureen's son Lee Harvey had a tumultuous relationship categorized by controlling behavior and frequent breakups. But it was clear that the attention-seeking Tracie had a volcanic temper. Nobody could have foreseen that on December 1, 1996, that Andrews would stab her boyfriend 42 times after an angry altercation. What followed was a fabricated story that fired the public's imagination but quickly fell apart when her lies were exposed. The book is simply written and engaging with raw emotion by a grieving mother who does not hold back. There is no pretense at forgiveness or compromise from a strong Midlands woman who naturally regards Tracie Andrews as a demon. It's well written and engrossing and one hopes that the Harvey family have found some peace in their loss but one suspects that the hole that Lee Harvey left behind can never be filled. Tracie Andrews has since left jail.
June 4, 2013
Goodness me what can I say. If Maureen Harvey wrote this in an attempt to get the reader on her side, then she needs to rethink her tactic. It is clearly written by a very bitter woman who has no shame. She does not have a nice word to say about anyone including her own husband, family and friends!
It was only riveting in the same vein as hearing your neighbours have an juicy argument and eavesdropping.
On a last note... Maureen expresses her disgust at Tracie making money out her son's death by getting a film/ book deal. The only person to have made any money publicly flogging well, pretty much anyone that came into contact with her, is Maureen as far as I can see.
It was only riveting in the same vein as hearing your neighbours have an juicy argument and eavesdropping.
On a last note... Maureen expresses her disgust at Tracie making money out her son's death by getting a film/ book deal. The only person to have made any money publicly flogging well, pretty much anyone that came into contact with her, is Maureen as far as I can see.
March 16, 2019
I loved how honest the author was and how she never gave up the fight. Very brave
January 27, 2024
What a sociopath Tracie Andrews is!
October 11, 2018
Two hundred pages of vitriol from the murder victim's Mother towards the perpetrator.
Doesn't really cover the police investigation, or trial in great detail but is based on pure emotion. I understand the anger at what happened and maybe she feels justice wasn't served but some of the passages such as when she laughs cause Tracie has put on weight in prison go a bit far.
I wasn't expecting the book to be impartial but according to Lee's mum Lee was a saint and Tracie pure evil. We know things are not always that simple.
Don't know how much she got paid for the book but has cashed in on her own misery maybe? I can't find any mention in the book about proceeds going elsewhere.
She certainly does not want anyone to forgot TA and what she did. I can kind of understand that, but the book wasn't about Tracie, or even about Lee. It is about Maureen. And not even especially well written. Some passages did not feel as they were from the heart but felt forced. She enjoyed Tracie's prison misery a little too much.
Incidentally Tracie Andrews got married very recently to a night club bouncer in Cornwall. Why he wants to marry such a mentalist is anyone's guess.
Doesn't really cover the police investigation, or trial in great detail but is based on pure emotion. I understand the anger at what happened and maybe she feels justice wasn't served but some of the passages such as when she laughs cause Tracie has put on weight in prison go a bit far.
I wasn't expecting the book to be impartial but according to Lee's mum Lee was a saint and Tracie pure evil. We know things are not always that simple.
Don't know how much she got paid for the book but has cashed in on her own misery maybe? I can't find any mention in the book about proceeds going elsewhere.
She certainly does not want anyone to forgot TA and what she did. I can kind of understand that, but the book wasn't about Tracie, or even about Lee. It is about Maureen. And not even especially well written. Some passages did not feel as they were from the heart but felt forced. She enjoyed Tracie's prison misery a little too much.
Incidentally Tracie Andrews got married very recently to a night club bouncer in Cornwall. Why he wants to marry such a mentalist is anyone's guess.
April 11, 2025
Other reviewers have made the valid point that this book is biased. However Tracie Andrews has told her side of the story to the press - and her victim's mother is perfectly entitled to vent. Maureen Harvey has been told so many times to shut up and move on, but no amount of virtue-signalling, guilt-tripping and gaslighting can erase the fact that her son, Lee, was viciously murdered and the killer lied, concocted a story that insulted the intelligence of everyone who heard it and even pretended to grieve along with his family.
Maureen's candour is refreshing in these Woke times. Her catty comments on Tracie's clothes and make-up have some critics reaching for the smelling salts, but I would argue that they are essential elements of the character description of the killer - and of her relationship with her boyfriend.
As a mother who had lost her son. Maureen is within her rights to be "bitter" (as the sanctimonious hand-wringers would describe her natural, healthy anger). No one has the right to tell her how not to feel, or what not to say.
Maureen's candour is refreshing in these Woke times. Her catty comments on Tracie's clothes and make-up have some critics reaching for the smelling salts, but I would argue that they are essential elements of the character description of the killer - and of her relationship with her boyfriend.
As a mother who had lost her son. Maureen is within her rights to be "bitter" (as the sanctimonious hand-wringers would describe her natural, healthy anger). No one has the right to tell her how not to feel, or what not to say.
May 11, 2018
Bitch
I read This story so heart breaking what families go through its terrible .my aunt's brother got off at the a bridge in Glasgow cause he had not enough money to cover the whole taxi fare so he took a short cut home only to be stopped by a thug and asked him for money he explained he had none and had to get out taxi early cause he only had so much it did not stop this person stabbing him and he died .it's awful how someone could just snuff out someone's life .my thoughts are with all victims families .
I read This story so heart breaking what families go through its terrible .my aunt's brother got off at the a bridge in Glasgow cause he had not enough money to cover the whole taxi fare so he took a short cut home only to be stopped by a thug and asked him for money he explained he had none and had to get out taxi early cause he only had so much it did not stop this person stabbing him and he died .it's awful how someone could just snuff out someone's life .my thoughts are with all victims families .
November 21, 2017
A difficult book to read and not particularly enjoyable, which I suppose it the whole point.
I'm glad I read it though as I remember the case and seeing the killer on television - live.
Not a book I would want to read a second time and the writing was of the standard I expected - highly charged, simply tells the story from the victim's mother's harrowing point of view, so consequently, I was glad to reach the end.
I'm glad I read it though as I remember the case and seeing the killer on television - live.
Not a book I would want to read a second time and the writing was of the standard I expected - highly charged, simply tells the story from the victim's mother's harrowing point of view, so consequently, I was glad to reach the end.
June 18, 2018
Very moving
A very honest and moving account of how Lee Harvey's family dealt with their son's death, and watched Tracie Andrsws' bogus story unravel.
A very honest and moving account of how Lee Harvey's family dealt with their son's death, and watched Tracie Andrsws' bogus story unravel.
November 28, 2018
Thought provoking
An amazingly well written book about a terrible event that no family should go through i hope they get the help they deserve and need
An amazingly well written book about a terrible event that no family should go through i hope they get the help they deserve and need
April 10, 2020
An insight of what happened the night of Lees murder how tracie tried to cover it up and how Lees parents are in a constant battle to keep tracie where she is
February 24, 2021
Heartbreaking read but enjoyed the book.
September 20, 2021
A fascinating insight to the life during and after a murder for the family left behind, the struggles they went through and still go through years after the death
January 7, 2022
Loved the way Maureen couldn't resist getting a dig in at Tracie at every opportunity. Genuine and heartfelt; I wasn't expecting anything but her point of view so my expectations were met
October 14, 2022
Really good read, absolutely terrible what she did and she was twisted from the start, even shows some evidence pictures in the book.
October 4, 2024
This was compelling ad heartbreaking read - well written with an interesting and unique viewpoint from the murdered son's mother.
May 11, 2020
I don't no
December 23, 2023
This is a good account of this murder. It is very chilling how she murdered her partner and the deceitful way she tried to cover it up. More chilling when you realise that she is now free to live her life and how another life was just wiped out and a family left to suffer forever.
February 16, 2011
I remember watching Tracie Andrews on TV and thinking at the time that she had done the attack. What a nasty woman. And how brave have been Lee's parents. Such a heart-rending read.
Back Cover Blurb:
On 1st December 1996, 25-year-old Lee Harvey was stabbed 42 times in a frenzied knife attack. His girlfriend, Tracie Andrews, claimed he had been murdered in a road-rage attack and, days later, appeared at a press conference making an emotional appeal for witnesses to the crime. During the days following the attack, the horrific truth about what really happened that night became apparent; it was Tracie who had killed Lee and then tried to cover her tracks with a web of lies.
Lee was a good-looking, happy young man with a bright future ahead of him. Tracie Andrews appeared to be an attractive, lively blonde and, at first, their relationship seemed to be a happy one. But soon, Tracie's true nature began to reveal itself and she became jealous, possessive and even violent. Soon enough, the relationship became volatile and self-destructive.
On that cold winter night in 1996, Maureen Harvey heard the devastating news that every parent prays they will never have to hear - her child was dead. As events unfolded and the reality of what Tracie had done took hold, Maureen was forced to come to terms with the fact that the woman with whom she had initially shared her grief was in fact the perpetrator of this horrific crime.
Back Cover Blurb:
On 1st December 1996, 25-year-old Lee Harvey was stabbed 42 times in a frenzied knife attack. His girlfriend, Tracie Andrews, claimed he had been murdered in a road-rage attack and, days later, appeared at a press conference making an emotional appeal for witnesses to the crime. During the days following the attack, the horrific truth about what really happened that night became apparent; it was Tracie who had killed Lee and then tried to cover her tracks with a web of lies.
Lee was a good-looking, happy young man with a bright future ahead of him. Tracie Andrews appeared to be an attractive, lively blonde and, at first, their relationship seemed to be a happy one. But soon, Tracie's true nature began to reveal itself and she became jealous, possessive and even violent. Soon enough, the relationship became volatile and self-destructive.
On that cold winter night in 1996, Maureen Harvey heard the devastating news that every parent prays they will never have to hear - her child was dead. As events unfolded and the reality of what Tracie had done took hold, Maureen was forced to come to terms with the fact that the woman with whom she had initially shared her grief was in fact the perpetrator of this horrific crime.
January 6, 2012
This woman is exactly what the title of the book is...pure evil. It was a riveting read which kept me hooked from the very first page. An absolutely sick and sadistic crime, also a massively high-profile case, it was unbelievable that this twisted woman lied so pathologically in an attempt to cover up what she had done. I would recommend to anyone to read this book, especially if interested in true crimes.
August 5, 2013
Interesting read about the cold blooded murder of Lee Harvey by his girlfriend Tracie Andrews.
Written by Lee's mother, her distress and grief is really apparent however her bitterness towards Tracie does not endear the reader to feel sympathy/empathy towards Maureen.
Obviously I cannot even begin to understand how it feels but the way Maureen writes about Tracie makes the book very one sided although I guess I should have known that seeing that it is written by the victims mother.
Written by Lee's mother, her distress and grief is really apparent however her bitterness towards Tracie does not endear the reader to feel sympathy/empathy towards Maureen.
Obviously I cannot even begin to understand how it feels but the way Maureen writes about Tracie makes the book very one sided although I guess I should have known that seeing that it is written by the victims mother.
March 30, 2016
Dreadful
Tracie does sound like a nasty piece of work to say the least, although biased, you can understand Lee's mother's hatred in what she writes about Tracie. I am not sure Lee was as perfect as his mother says, the book would have been better written by someone more neutral to get a more balanced view. But I do sincerely wish Lee's family peace and hope they can move on.
Tracie does sound like a nasty piece of work to say the least, although biased, you can understand Lee's mother's hatred in what she writes about Tracie. I am not sure Lee was as perfect as his mother says, the book would have been better written by someone more neutral to get a more balanced view. But I do sincerely wish Lee's family peace and hope they can move on.
June 17, 2012
I was glad I read this, I am interested to know what makes people do what they do. trouble is it brought home to me yet again how wrong our legal system is. Yeah, she went to prison but FOURTEEN years, it's just NOT long enough. Is she fit to join society? it's a waiting game, Do I care? well, yes, I would have liked her to stay in prison.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews