Dark Son

by Denise Lang

Follows the case of Matthew Heikkila, a young man who was tried for killing his adoptive parents Richard and Dawn and who pleaded not guilty by reason of the ""Adopted Child Syndrome.""

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction

408 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published August 1, 1995

Reviews

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sad, sad story of sibling jealousy ~ I do not believe in the "Adopted Child Syndrome" as it was presented in his defense...however I do know through extensive study that adopted kids can have issues later in adult life. Overall a solid 'true crime' book.

[♥ Marlene♥ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very happy I bought this book. When reading I was quite shocked because I had never heard of this case. A very interesting case and story and a very interesting defense (to me it seems the defense can use anything to get their clients off)
I am not going to spoil it but this is a book that once done, you will look up what happened to the main players. When I did look it up I again was shocked. Very sad too.
I admit the trial is sometimes a bit long winded but I did not mind that. Thought it interesting.

Boy Was he handsome! There are pictures of him in the book that I cannot find online. I must make a photo of it and upload here but boy what a nasty piece of shit he was and I think still is)

This is the story about the middle class heikkila family in America who cannot conceive so they decide to adopt a child. This child is Matthew. Then in the process of adopting they find out she is pregnant after all so they have a boy whom they named Josh.
Apparently from very early age they noticed Matt needed more attention was always going things he should not do and a pattern evolved. He got the attention he craved so he kept on doing it to get his way.
What should have happened was mum Dawn and dad should have been strict towards him, Both on the same page but mum was letting Matthew of the hook because of the peace in the house. You now how it goes. (Alas I know because I have in my family people like Matt and people like his parents trying to help but in a way making it worse by doing that.
Some people are so selfish and narcissistic they cannot be helped. Alas that was the case here
(not yet finished this review)

[Shirley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Through his own writings we can look into the mind of a teenage killer. When a crime so senseless is committed we always ask why. How did this happen. Why did we not see this coming? We try to find answers. "Adopted Child Syndrome"? Bad seed? Something in the brain that short circuits? Sometimes an evil child can be born. A child born without that cell that keeps most of us from carrying out a fantasy so deadly. As much as we try to get answers there are times there is no answer at all. It is what it is and it shows we will never truly understand the human mind.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

True Crime books are always a little terrifying. The fact that they really happened is unsettling.
Matthew Heikkila’s story was brought to my attention because my daughter married a man with the same last name. They are but distantly related, but so it’s kind of creepy. Whether he is crazy or not, this as a truly sadistic crime. The author did a great job of writing the story, avoiding the pitfalls of many crime writers, that of too much repetition and boring details.

[Annie C · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's really sad to see that one brother can be so jealous of the other brother. So much so that he was driven to murder his parents! There were plenty of signs and yet his own parents refused to get the help he so desperately needed.

[Denise Toibes · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this while I was in high school. While some parts did get pretty boring..it was still a very good read. This book was what turned me to true crime books.

[Rita · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very intense book on teenage rage and well-written. I recommend it. A very
good read.

[Koren · Rating 3 out of 5]

The case of Matthew Heikkila, who murdered his parents and was the first person to use the excuse of "Adopted Child Syndrome' for his defense. The first half of the book was super interesting, the courtroom proceedings took up the second half of this over-400 page book, so that was pretty drawn out, but otherwise, an interesting case.

[Iphigenia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I haven't read a true crime novel in a long time. From what I remember of the format, I liked that this book didn't go way into unnecessary detail about the background of all the players involved. The format was good -- first part the crime, second part the trial, and third part the penalty phase of the trial. The use of the "adopted child syndrome" defense was interesting, although it wasn't as large a part of the book as I was expecting from reading the blurb. Where I felt this book was lacking was that it seemed to be written entirely from a study of the case files, newspaper accounts, etc., and not from personal interviews with any of the legal team, neighbors, witnesses or any of the other major or minor players involved in the story.

[Fishface · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good read on a number of different levels, even though the book seemed to drag during what should have been the most suspenseful section -- the jury's decision and the sentencing. That didn't stand in the way of my enjoying this read about a very unusual criminal case.

[Susan Beam-Gilleland · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the goriest true crime stories I have read. Glad he will never get out of jail