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Missing Wives, Missing Lives
When a wife goes missing, her husband is often the prime suspect in her disappearance. But what happens when she is never found? These are the true stories of thirty missing women.
Fascinated by missing persons reports and cold cases for as long as she can remember, JJ Slate's debut true crime book highlights true stories of wives that have mysteriously vanished, presumably at the hands of their husbands. Countless cases like these have played out under the public spotlight, and many of them have been solved after the wife's remains have eventually been found. But some of these women remain missing years later, denying the families their right to bury their loved one. Many of these families continue the gruesome search for the remains of their daughter, granddaughter, sister, aunt, or mother years, even decades, later.
Missing Wives, Missing Lives focuses on thirty unique cases in which the wife has never been found and the undying efforts of her family as they continue the painful search to bring her home. The book covers decades old cases, such as Jeanette Zapata, who has been missing since 1976, to more recent and widely known cases, such as Stacy Peterson, who has been missing since 2007. Keeping these women's stories alive may be the key to solving the mystery and bringing them home to their families. Someone out there knows something.
Fascinated by missing persons reports and cold cases for as long as she can remember, JJ Slate's debut true crime book highlights true stories of wives that have mysteriously vanished, presumably at the hands of their husbands. Countless cases like these have played out under the public spotlight, and many of them have been solved after the wife's remains have eventually been found. But some of these women remain missing years later, denying the families their right to bury their loved one. Many of these families continue the gruesome search for the remains of their daughter, granddaughter, sister, aunt, or mother years, even decades, later.
Missing Wives, Missing Lives focuses on thirty unique cases in which the wife has never been found and the undying efforts of her family as they continue the painful search to bring her home. The book covers decades old cases, such as Jeanette Zapata, who has been missing since 1976, to more recent and widely known cases, such as Stacy Peterson, who has been missing since 2007. Keeping these women's stories alive may be the key to solving the mystery and bringing them home to their families. Someone out there knows something.
200 pages, Paperback
First published June 16, 2014
76 people are currently reading
257 people want to read
About the author
J.J. Slate
8 books17 followersJJ Slate has been writing in some capacity for most of her life. Born in Massachusetts, she has always been fascinated with true crime stories, especially missing persons and cold cases. JJ currently lives with her husband in New England.
Check out RJ Parker's "Serial Killers Abridged." JJ wrote the final case file in the book, a summary of the Long Island Serial Killer case.
JJ is currently working on two books due to publish in 2014:
"Missing Wives, Missing Lives": Set to publish June 16, 2014, JJ's debut true crime book is a compilation of true cases about wives that have gone missing.
"Social Media Monsters: Internet Killers": JJ Slate and RJ Parker are co-authoring this book that highlights cases of killers who use social media to locate and lure their victims. Publishing in Fall 2014.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
April 1, 2020
Creepy
Honestly, I would AND wouldn't love to be in the head of one of these psychopaths. What pushes them to do this? Some reading that makes me look at every make differently
Honestly, I would AND wouldn't love to be in the head of one of these psychopaths. What pushes them to do this? Some reading that makes me look at every make differently
September 15, 2014
Speaking as a person who basically writes about missing people for a living, this book is really good. All the women the author writes about have two things in common: they all disappeared and were never found, and they were all almost certainly murdered by their respective husbands. The author describes in detail and in a readable fashion the background of the woman and her marriage, her disappearance and the aftermath, and in spite of the similarities in the stories, there are enough differences that the book avoids being repetitive.
I would highly recommend this book to people interested in the topic, and wouldn't mind reading a sequel. It's a sad fact that there are more than enough unfortunate women to fill many books like this one.
I would highly recommend this book to people interested in the topic, and wouldn't mind reading a sequel. It's a sad fact that there are more than enough unfortunate women to fill many books like this one.
July 2, 2014
This book is an emotional look into the cases of missing women. The author did an outstanding job of putting all of the need to know information into words and keeping the readers attention throughout each case.
I found myself at times wondering how so much information was missed throughout the investigations but then I had to take a step back and understand that not all of the evidence against the suspect was something the investigators could work with.
This is a very emotional read. If you are a true crime reader then this book will be just for you.
I found myself at times wondering how so much information was missed throughout the investigations but then I had to take a step back and understand that not all of the evidence against the suspect was something the investigators could work with.
This is a very emotional read. If you are a true crime reader then this book will be just for you.
July 20, 2014
Wonderful
Wonderful
Many of these short little kindle crime books are just tossed together. yet, each of these short stories on missing women are well written and organized. my only complaint is it wasn't longer. great work!
Wonderful
Many of these short little kindle crime books are just tossed together. yet, each of these short stories on missing women are well written and organized. my only complaint is it wasn't longer. great work!
May 2, 2015
I loved it, once I started to read it I didn't want to stop, can't wait to read more the this author's true crime stories, some I know about because they were talked about on TV others I didn't know about at all.
August 3, 2014
Very emotional and interesting book about thirty women who went missing and had presumably been murdered by their husbands.. A lot of insight in the cases and the families they left behind..
January 8, 2015
Vignettes of cases where the wife has gone missing, most likely murdered by the husband. Sad.
March 15, 2015
This is a collection of stories written in the style of Max Haines. These are a brief overview of the stories of missing woman. An interesting read.
January 9, 2018
If, like me, you have an strange obsession with missing persons cases that disturbs your friends and family, you will probably enjoy this book. The book could easily be called "Murdered Wives, Missing Lives" because it's primarily a collection of stories about wives who were most likely murdered by their husbands. There were some very well known cases in this book and also some cases I'd never heard of, including a few from the UK. Each case has a short write up of a few pages that is pretty well written. There are no pictures, but of course I looked up most of the cases on the Charley Project. What was really disturbing to me was the similarities in these cases-that after a period of years (I noticed it was often somewhere between year 9 and year 15 in the relationship), these women were not only killed but probably dismembered by their husbands. Even with my professional knowledge of domestic violence, it's still mind blowing to me that a spouse can be capable of this.
October 6, 2017
I never realised so many men murdered their wives. Although most of the sorry tales in this book are from America, it does cover a couple from England and even one from very near where I live in Scotland.
Most of the reasons for the murders are the same. Husband finds a girlfriend wants rid of the wife and rather than divorce decides on murder. Usually money is involved, either the fear of the wife taking money from him in the case of divorce or, he wants to make sure he gets her money.
Pretty sordid stuff.
As the tales are much the same I found myself becoming a bit bored before the end of the book, but no less horrified at some of the violence used. I had to remind myself that these were true stories and real people
Most of the reasons for the murders are the same. Husband finds a girlfriend wants rid of the wife and rather than divorce decides on murder. Usually money is involved, either the fear of the wife taking money from him in the case of divorce or, he wants to make sure he gets her money.
Pretty sordid stuff.
As the tales are much the same I found myself becoming a bit bored before the end of the book, but no less horrified at some of the violence used. I had to remind myself that these were true stories and real people
April 17, 2018
Pretty good, I liked it.
August 12, 2018
I'm glad there are books like these to remind us not to forget.
January 19, 2015
This volume inclded some interesting true murder stories of wives "probably" killed by their charming husbands but whose bodies were never found which brings some poignancy to the book. Pretty sad all round. I was quite fascinated just how many were in Wisconsin, too !! Not a place to set up married life, it seems.
It is intriguing too how many thankfully didn't get away with the deed and were convicted regardless of the actual body having been located or not. It's good they'll do that. As it stands there were still too many who got away with it !! I like the way each story was laid out with the disappearance date and then the aftermath of each in separate chapters. The only case I'd heard of here in the UK was the Stacy Peterson one..........what a tragic family she was from. Just so sad all round for them.
I had to marvel at the sheer stupidity (or arrogance, maybe) of some of the killers. One who was caught while on the run pinching a sandwich when in his car he had $37000 cash, another who impersonated his wife via text but signing off Pixy misspelling her nickname of Pixie and another who retained the receipt for a tarpaulin he wrapped a body in from a store in a state he denied being in !!
Something I noticed I often wonder at with the USA is one case where the "bride" was only 15 when she was married. I find it staggering that's legal over there !!
I don't think I'd bother with more compiled by this author, though-the editing is pretty sloppy. I see it's published under the RJ Parker publishing umbrella and I tried one of his before and it was an utter mess. This wasn't as bad as that was but still too slapdash for me to consider bothering with any more.
Until used when into was meant, words dropped from sentences like erupted flames losing in and worked as respiratory therapist losing the a and then work per usual losing as.....annoyances.
The name Green spelt this way then inexplicably morphing into Greene, apostrophe errors (mostly with plural names which she knew the difference with as she also got it right as often as she got it wrong)specs used and not specks, sine and not since...then at one point we're told someone was reported missing 11 years later in 2003.....but she disappeared in 1990. Sheer carelessness. Oh, and publicly spelt as publically.....ouch.
It is intriguing too how many thankfully didn't get away with the deed and were convicted regardless of the actual body having been located or not. It's good they'll do that. As it stands there were still too many who got away with it !! I like the way each story was laid out with the disappearance date and then the aftermath of each in separate chapters. The only case I'd heard of here in the UK was the Stacy Peterson one..........what a tragic family she was from. Just so sad all round for them.
I had to marvel at the sheer stupidity (or arrogance, maybe) of some of the killers. One who was caught while on the run pinching a sandwich when in his car he had $37000 cash, another who impersonated his wife via text but signing off Pixy misspelling her nickname of Pixie and another who retained the receipt for a tarpaulin he wrapped a body in from a store in a state he denied being in !!
Something I noticed I often wonder at with the USA is one case where the "bride" was only 15 when she was married. I find it staggering that's legal over there !!
I don't think I'd bother with more compiled by this author, though-the editing is pretty sloppy. I see it's published under the RJ Parker publishing umbrella and I tried one of his before and it was an utter mess. This wasn't as bad as that was but still too slapdash for me to consider bothering with any more.
Until used when into was meant, words dropped from sentences like erupted flames losing in and worked as respiratory therapist losing the a and then work per usual losing as.....annoyances.
The name Green spelt this way then inexplicably morphing into Greene, apostrophe errors (mostly with plural names which she knew the difference with as she also got it right as often as she got it wrong)specs used and not specks, sine and not since...then at one point we're told someone was reported missing 11 years later in 2003.....but she disappeared in 1990. Sheer carelessness. Oh, and publicly spelt as publically.....ouch.
March 7, 2017
There's a lot of discussion these days about things that are dangerous to women--is it heart disease? Is it stress? Car accidents? Drugs? Serial killers? Trans women in bathrooms?--but it seems like one of the biggest hazards to women are the men in their lives.
This book details the cases of thirty women who vanished. Stretching back to 1976, and with cases as recent as 2007, the women featured in this book seemingly disappeared off the face of the earth, never too be seen again. For some, the legal system was able to prove a case against the men in their lives, but for others, the search for justice may never be resolved.
The amazing thing to me was the stories that the husbands gave upon their wives' disappearances. "So, you had a fight, and she just left the house--at 3am. In her pajamas. Barefoot. Without her purse, or her glasses, or her car, or her TEETH? Leaving her small dependent children behind. And you decided to say nothing for three weeks? And while she was gone you replaced your mattress and moved your girlfriend into the house?" It boggles the mind that many of them managed to get away with most likely murdering their significant others, despite there being a mountain of circumstantial evidence pointing right at them like a neon sign.
Could some of these women have run away to start new lives away from their ostensibly abusive spouses? Could some of them have been snatched off the street by a predatory stranger? Perhaps. Is it likely? No.
I'm not sure I'd recommend this book--it's not exactly a fun read. However, it is important to remember these women, and know that these are only thirty cases among thousands. According to this report from CNN (http://www.cnn.com/2013/12/06/us/dome...) an average of THREE women are murdered EVERY DAY in the United States by their intimate partners. The story this book tells is merely the tip of a terrifying iceberg.
This book details the cases of thirty women who vanished. Stretching back to 1976, and with cases as recent as 2007, the women featured in this book seemingly disappeared off the face of the earth, never too be seen again. For some, the legal system was able to prove a case against the men in their lives, but for others, the search for justice may never be resolved.
The amazing thing to me was the stories that the husbands gave upon their wives' disappearances. "So, you had a fight, and she just left the house--at 3am. In her pajamas. Barefoot. Without her purse, or her glasses, or her car, or her TEETH? Leaving her small dependent children behind. And you decided to say nothing for three weeks? And while she was gone you replaced your mattress and moved your girlfriend into the house?" It boggles the mind that many of them managed to get away with most likely murdering their significant others, despite there being a mountain of circumstantial evidence pointing right at them like a neon sign.
Could some of these women have run away to start new lives away from their ostensibly abusive spouses? Could some of them have been snatched off the street by a predatory stranger? Perhaps. Is it likely? No.
I'm not sure I'd recommend this book--it's not exactly a fun read. However, it is important to remember these women, and know that these are only thirty cases among thousands. According to this report from CNN (http://www.cnn.com/2013/12/06/us/dome...) an average of THREE women are murdered EVERY DAY in the United States by their intimate partners. The story this book tells is merely the tip of a terrifying iceberg.
October 5, 2014
When a couple makes their wedding vows there are a few outcomes. Many people live by them for the rest of their lives and, nowadays, just as many end up divorced. However, this book covers husbands that very literally ended their marriage by death and murder (or “disappearances”).
It’s astonishing just how many victims are covered throughout the course of this book. However, at the same time you get the feeling that what is covered here barely scratches the surface.
The book is very well written and covers each case study with several sections. There is a background on the life and situation of the couples, the circumstances surrounding the “disappearances” and finally the aftermath, showing what happened to the ex-husbands and result of any criminal investigation and trial. The author does a fantastic job of covering the situation in a factual and intriguing way. However, it incredibly sad to note that because bodies have never been found in these cases there are family members that are unable to grieve and move on. There are references within the book about who to contact if you do have information, but I fear that it is unlikely that any of these missing wives will ever be found.
Throughout the book there are stories of real situations that hit close to home. It is of course a desperate tragedy for the family members of these missing wives but as a documentary-style book, it is intriguing throughout and has added to my my desire to discover more about these true crimes.
It’s astonishing just how many victims are covered throughout the course of this book. However, at the same time you get the feeling that what is covered here barely scratches the surface.
The book is very well written and covers each case study with several sections. There is a background on the life and situation of the couples, the circumstances surrounding the “disappearances” and finally the aftermath, showing what happened to the ex-husbands and result of any criminal investigation and trial. The author does a fantastic job of covering the situation in a factual and intriguing way. However, it incredibly sad to note that because bodies have never been found in these cases there are family members that are unable to grieve and move on. There are references within the book about who to contact if you do have information, but I fear that it is unlikely that any of these missing wives will ever be found.
Throughout the book there are stories of real situations that hit close to home. It is of course a desperate tragedy for the family members of these missing wives but as a documentary-style book, it is intriguing throughout and has added to my my desire to discover more about these true crimes.
February 5, 2015
This book, written by a true crime blogger, goes into the details of 30 cases where wives are presumed dead, although their bodies were never found. Most of the husbands are suspected of killing their wives, and many of them who are still alive have been convicted of the murders.
The author lists all her source material (some of the cases occurred in Europe) and obviously did all the necessary research to make the information as accurate as possible. She also lists the jurisdictions and phone numbers in case anyone reading the book knows anything about the cases, so that the families involved can lay their lost family member to rest.
If nothing else, this book shows how difficult it is to really know someone well, as some of these couples were married over 25 years.
The author lists all her source material (some of the cases occurred in Europe) and obviously did all the necessary research to make the information as accurate as possible. She also lists the jurisdictions and phone numbers in case anyone reading the book knows anything about the cases, so that the families involved can lay their lost family member to rest.
If nothing else, this book shows how difficult it is to really know someone well, as some of these couples were married over 25 years.
April 3, 2016
When a woman is missing, it’s often the husband who is the prime suspect in the disappearance. Some 2,300 women go missing each day, and less than 5% of them are victims of kidnapping by a stranger.
J.J. Slate’s Missing Wives, Missing Lives is a chilling true-crime narrative of 30 cases of wives who remain missing and whose husbands are suspected of having a hand in their disappearance, and presumed murder. Some of the cases in this book go back to the 1970s, and in some, authorities have even managed to indict and convict the husband of murder, despite having no corpse. Each case, though, is a story of a family that continues to seek answers, and will chill you to your marrow.
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my unbiased review.
J.J. Slate’s Missing Wives, Missing Lives is a chilling true-crime narrative of 30 cases of wives who remain missing and whose husbands are suspected of having a hand in their disappearance, and presumed murder. Some of the cases in this book go back to the 1970s, and in some, authorities have even managed to indict and convict the husband of murder, despite having no corpse. Each case, though, is a story of a family that continues to seek answers, and will chill you to your marrow.
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my unbiased review.
November 5, 2015
This was an average book. It wasn't outstanding or even enthralling. I was hoping for more interesting stories and also more stories I knew about. Of the 30 stories in the book, I previously knew about only 2 of them. I have no idea how the author chose these stories or why. After reading this book, I wondered why I read it and why the author wrote it. The only thing they had in common is abusive husbands whose wives disappeared likely because they murdered them and the body was never found. I wouldn't recommend this book. It wasn't bad or a complete waste of time but I likely could have found better things to read with my time.
October 30, 2014
I just finished reading this book and it was great! I tells the stories of 30 wives that disappeared and may have been murdered by their husbands. Although the stories are very short the author does a great job giving the reader a very good insight as to each of the women's life and the disappearance itself. I'm looking forward to reading more books by author JJ Slate. I recommend this book to any TC reader or anyone who hasn't read anything in that genre being that the stories are short but interesting enough to capture a new True crime reader.
November 26, 2014
Interesting books.
I starting read this book because true crime is one of my favorite genres. Having come through a lot of what these missing wives went through, this book hit real close to home for me. The authors did a wonderful job of keeping to the facts. I am thankful I survived, I am so sorry for the families of the missing wives. Great solid read and I look forward to reading more from this author.
I starting read this book because true crime is one of my favorite genres. Having come through a lot of what these missing wives went through, this book hit real close to home for me. The authors did a wonderful job of keeping to the facts. I am thankful I survived, I am so sorry for the families of the missing wives. Great solid read and I look forward to reading more from this author.
February 20, 2015
Disturbing
This book is well written. It presents several cases of wives that have went missing at the hands of the person that should protect them. This is wrote case by case. Makes a person think more about how we can help a woman in a situation that she fears her life. I would recommend this book to people that are interested in the why's of a crime. It is not a book to read for enjoyment. Read and learn from it.
This book is well written. It presents several cases of wives that have went missing at the hands of the person that should protect them. This is wrote case by case. Makes a person think more about how we can help a woman in a situation that she fears her life. I would recommend this book to people that are interested in the why's of a crime. It is not a book to read for enjoyment. Read and learn from it.
March 19, 2015
Love the summary format
Once again, another great book by JJ Slate that gives me the info I want without giving me other stuff I don't.
For most cases, you are given the early history of the missing woman, how the couple met, the history of the relationship, the night she disappeared, the short history of the search, what the husband did after, the outcome (charged, found guilty, etc), and the ALWAYS a description of the woman in the hopes she can be reunited or recovered.
Once again, another great book by JJ Slate that gives me the info I want without giving me other stuff I don't.
For most cases, you are given the early history of the missing woman, how the couple met, the history of the relationship, the night she disappeared, the short history of the search, what the husband did after, the outcome (charged, found guilty, etc), and the ALWAYS a description of the woman in the hopes she can be reunited or recovered.
December 11, 2015
Interesting, but left each wanting more
I get that these were stories that were meant to be concise and to the point. However, with each story I was left with more questions and the desire of wanting to know more. Luckily, I read this on my iPad and was able to toggle between the book and Safari as I investigated more into the lives of these women and their husbands.
I get that these were stories that were meant to be concise and to the point. However, with each story I was left with more questions and the desire of wanting to know more. Luckily, I read this on my iPad and was able to toggle between the book and Safari as I investigated more into the lives of these women and their husbands.
September 12, 2016
Awesome book!
The author covers 30 cases of missing wives who have never been found. I had not heard about any of them before.
In many cases the case was prosecuted without a body but with other compelling evidence. Since no body was found and since the murderer has refused to divulge its location, we can only speculate as to what actually happened.
The author covers 30 cases of missing wives who have never been found. I had not heard about any of them before.
In many cases the case was prosecuted without a body but with other compelling evidence. Since no body was found and since the murderer has refused to divulge its location, we can only speculate as to what actually happened.
February 14, 2015
Not a real big fan of true crime, but for some reason I bought this one. Was glad I did. I loved this book and can't believe how people think they can get away with murder. This is a fast read involving many real people. I enjoyed reading it ad ended up buying this writer's other books.
April 9, 2015
Short stories
True crime buffs will enjoy. Compilation of short stories of murdered and never found wives. Some I had heard of but many I had not. Not for everyone but I enjoyed many evenings of these short but sad stories
True crime buffs will enjoy. Compilation of short stories of murdered and never found wives. Some I had heard of but many I had not. Not for everyone but I enjoyed many evenings of these short but sad stories
August 11, 2014
True crime
A compilation of missing women who were murdered by there husband's.Not a bad book but I think it should have gone into a little background detail on each case.
A compilation of missing women who were murdered by there husband's.Not a bad book but I think it should have gone into a little background detail on each case.
February 23, 2015
captivating
From the first page to the last I was at the end of my seat. Excellent book to read. Highly recommend
From the first page to the last I was at the end of my seat. Excellent book to read. Highly recommend
August 30, 2015
Very easy to read and very interesting.
October 26, 2015
Interesting.
A very interesting look at missing wives and how they end up that way and their disturbed, sick husbands who have no souls.
A very interesting look at missing wives and how they end up that way and their disturbed, sick husbands who have no souls.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews