The Murder of Jennyann: A Shocking True Crime Story

by Rod Kackley

Not every woman is meant to be a mother.

The Murder of A Shocking True Crime Story pulls back the curtain on a horrific crime that shook rural Georgia in the early 1980s—and nearly slipped through the cracks forever.

Children in one family were dying -- one by one -- every time Earl went to see his lover, Stanley.

Everyone said it was coincidence. Everyone looked the other way.

But the truth was far more Martha Ann, their mother, smothered each child by lying on top of them—silent, deliberate murders carried out in the shadows of family shame.

And it was Earl and his lover Stanley—the very ones who triggered the killings—who kept pushing until someone listened.

One Atlanta newspaper reporter and a determined state police detective refused to let it go. Where institutions failed, they stepped in—digging past red tape, uncovering buried records, and chasing a truth no one wanted to face.

In this newly enhanced edition of Mommy Deadliest, veteran crime writer Rod Kackley exposes not just a monstrous act of maternal betrayal, but the broken systems that allowed it to happen—and the two unlikely heroes who made sure justice was done.

Told with chilling detail and deep compassion, this true crime account asks a haunting If they hadn’t stepped up, would anyone have?

Perfect for fans of If You Tell, The Cases That Haunt Us, and Shattered Innocence, this story will stay with you long after the final page.

84 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 6, 2024

About the author

I quit my job to write. That’s how much love writing. It’s also an indication of how utterly frustrated I was with my life as a middle manager in a national corporation. Mid-life crisis? No, I don’t think so. It’s more that I saw the finish line approaching more rapidly than I expected thirty years before.

What I am is what I write.

The characters in the St. Isidore Collection, the people who live in this town I have created in my mind, all contain some thread of me. Let’s be honest. I write what I know. And I know the frustration of listening to the millennials at work talk about their plans for the next thirty years, and suddenly realizing I don’t have thirty years left.

For Henry Branson, the protagonist in the short story, Revenge is Best Served Bloody, you’ll see that thread taken to its extreme.

Adam King, a central player in Wicked Revenge: Book 2 From the St.Isidore Collection is a middle-aged guy who quit his job to follow his dream and open a bookstore.

Bree, the protagonist in A Wicked Plan: Book 1 From the St. Isidore Collection is not a middle-aged woman. She’s a teenager. But Bree already feels the frustration that people more than twice her age experience. She feels like others are holding her back and Bree is willing to do whatever it takes to get them out of her way.

There are others in St. Isidore, who only want to love and be loved. They believe the fantasy and are willing whatever they have to do to make it come true.

Beth is the perfect example of that. She is a supporting player in A Wicked Plan, but a central character in Wicked Revenge. Beth loves Bree. She wants Bree. All Beth wants is for Bree to want and adore her. Then Beth finds out Bree is cheating on her with Melinda. What do you think Beth does?

What would you do?

And then there is Tim. Destined to become St. Isidore's most celebrated criminal, all he wants is to be loved. Does he have to kill all the women who reject him?

I see myself in all of my friends in St. Isidore. Well, maybe not Tim, but most of them. Hopefully, you will too.

Welcome to the St. Isidore Collection. It's more than a series of dark, realistic and sometimes supernatural, paranormal, noir fiction.

The St. Isidore Collection is a community. Want to be our neighbor?

Rod

Reviews

[Pauline Perez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting Story

I enjoyed the story, one I hadn't heard of. The author couldn't possibly know every thought, expression, feeling & action Ann experienced. Yet he writes this book like a sensationalized play by play romance novel. Mr. Kackley embellished every thought the characters had .

[jeannette Dooley · Rating 5 out of 5]

jean38no

A true story of the murder of Jennyann by her mother. It’s unbelievable that a mother would actually deliberately kill their own child. The jury on her trial apparently thought so as she was found guilty of murder . The author tries to delve into the mind of this woman. It appears she really let no one in to her inner thoughts . I think the district attorney was right. I think she was low functioning. At the time she lived people didn’t really pay attention to those things especially about women. As long as the women could cook, clean , take care of the kids no one noticed a women in deep depression. A women wracked with insecurities and anxieties . She wasn’t rich so she was just an ordinary woman. So afraid of losing her husband that she would commit horrible crimes. If she had lived now she probably would have received the help she needed ! Thank the author for a good read. Qqqqqqqqqqqqq

[Kellee · Rating 1 out of 5]

The Murder of Jennyann: A Shocking True Crime Story

The book seemed to not know what it was meant to be. Was this a true crime story? Or were we reading Ann's diary? Do we really know what she was thinking at those precise moments? The book seemed to tell us she was guilty and then seemed to change its mind. I finished the book because it wasn't long and came away with not much knowledge on what happened.

[PinkAmy loves books, cats and naps · Rating 4 out of 5]

Munchausen’s Syndrome by proxy.

This was my first audiobook ready by AI. Aside from a few mispronunciations, it was surprisingly well done. I wouldn’t have known it was AI. I’ve heard some readers sound more mechanical than this version. I do think audiobook producers should listen for mistakes and correct them.

[Sandra Burns · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really interesting read.

This young woman, got married. Several times, actually.
She had four children.
Each one of them died. The autopsy said was SIDS.
The truth, was more horrible than anyone expected.