What do you think?
Rate this book
True Crime by Evil Killers #4
Cary Stayner: The True Story of The Yosemite Park Killer
While some would say that American serial killer Cary Stayner was influenced by family tragedy – his already-troubled family was shattered when his brother was abducted for seven years and held as a sex slave before his heroic return inspired the miniseries “I Know My First Name Is Steven” – in reality, Cary Stayner’s true crime story is much more ominous.The handsome, outdoorsy guy with a love for marijuana, nude beaches and the Sierra Nevada mountain range where he once spotted Bigfoot had been harboring fantasies of brutally killing women years before his brother’s abduction turned the Stayner family upside down.And in the annals of historical serial killers, Stayner’s story stands out, because for months he made one of the most beautiful places on earth a nightmare for women when California’s majestic Yosemite National Park became his own devil’s playground, and he finally found himself unable to control his long-suppressed urges.Because he didn’t look menacing, the man one FBI agent compared to actor Tom Laughlin in “Billy Jack” was able to gain the trust of his victims, and three vacationing women who were staying at the lodge where he lived and worked during the busy tourist season and a nature-loving teacher who help kids become stewards of the land she loved made that fatal mistake before they were savagely, sadistically murdered.The biography of serial killer Cary Stayner and his psychopathic crime spree leaves spine-tingling chills, because as far as the outside world was concerned, he was a fairly normal guy who found himself uncontrollably compelled to kill.Stayner has been on death row in California’s famed San Quentin for more than 10 years, but for the families of his victims, no punishment is just enough to make up for the vibrant lives Stayner took, making him one of the most depraved American serial killers in contemporary history.
112 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 9, 2015
55 people are currently reading
342 people want to read
About the author
Jack Rosewood
91 books146 followersI live in one of the most beautiful places in Florida, Jupiter, with my wife, two kids and our golden retriever, Vincent. I've been a full time author for the last 15 years and I wouldn't trade it against anything in the world!
My father was a journalist and wrote about some of the worst crimes you could ever imagine, and that's where my big interest from serial killers and other horrible crimes comes from. Just to hear my father talk about the evil acts of Ted Bundy as we were out fishing as a kid are some of my best memories.
My father was a journalist and wrote about some of the worst crimes you could ever imagine, and that's where my big interest from serial killers and other horrible crimes comes from. Just to hear my father talk about the evil acts of Ted Bundy as we were out fishing as a kid are some of my best memories.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
August 12, 2015
I don't usually read true-crime. I like my monsters fictional. But this book pulled at me. I can't help but wonder how the Stayner family survived all the horrible things that happened to and by their sons.
Most everyone knows the story of Stephen Stayner ... I Know My Name Is Stephen... who was abducted and kept for 7 years by a pedophile. He was returned to his family and a few years later, he was killed in a motorcycle accident.
This true crime story is about his older brother, Cary, who went on to kill 4 women in the Yosemite Park. Cary had had thoughts of killing people since he was a young boy and Stephen's homecoming only made matters worse. His parents focused all their love and protection onto the younger brother, leaving Cary to feel unloved and abandoned. His fantasies just got bigger and bigger until he decided to act.
This book follows his life as a young boy through his adult years. The reader gets to walk the behind-the-scene activities that the FBI was doing in their hunt for this mass murderer. One of the more interesting things I learned ... the FBI and hundreds of volunteers spent time searching for the first victims' car. There were 27 cars found ... all stolen ... none of them belonging to the victims.
Cary's voice is heard .. mostly spoken in a monotone. He seems to be as unsure why he did the things he did as the rest of the world. During his trial, he spoke to his victims' families and friends and apologized. Later one of those family members would comment on how sincere he had seemed.
I well remember reading about this case in the newspaper. I can remember wondering what kind of monster was loose and feeling very happy I was living in Illinois at the time.
The book is very well written, easy to follow. Brought a lot of emotions to the forefront. There were so many victims .. and not just the ones that Stayner killed.
Many thanks to the author who shared his book with me in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.
Most everyone knows the story of Stephen Stayner ... I Know My Name Is Stephen... who was abducted and kept for 7 years by a pedophile. He was returned to his family and a few years later, he was killed in a motorcycle accident.
This true crime story is about his older brother, Cary, who went on to kill 4 women in the Yosemite Park. Cary had had thoughts of killing people since he was a young boy and Stephen's homecoming only made matters worse. His parents focused all their love and protection onto the younger brother, leaving Cary to feel unloved and abandoned. His fantasies just got bigger and bigger until he decided to act.
This book follows his life as a young boy through his adult years. The reader gets to walk the behind-the-scene activities that the FBI was doing in their hunt for this mass murderer. One of the more interesting things I learned ... the FBI and hundreds of volunteers spent time searching for the first victims' car. There were 27 cars found ... all stolen ... none of them belonging to the victims.
Cary's voice is heard .. mostly spoken in a monotone. He seems to be as unsure why he did the things he did as the rest of the world. During his trial, he spoke to his victims' families and friends and apologized. Later one of those family members would comment on how sincere he had seemed.
I well remember reading about this case in the newspaper. I can remember wondering what kind of monster was loose and feeling very happy I was living in Illinois at the time.
The book is very well written, easy to follow. Brought a lot of emotions to the forefront. There were so many victims .. and not just the ones that Stayner killed.
Many thanks to the author who shared his book with me in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.
September 23, 2020
This was a great true crime book!
This was the first time that I had read anything by this author and I was impressed with his writing style. I have never heard of this killer before and he was supposedly a normal person.
Cary Stayner had everyone around him fooled letting them think he was normal until he went on his killing spree, sending shock waves through the community where he lived. This is definitely a five star read and I will be adding this author to my true crime authors.
This was the first time that I had read anything by this author and I was impressed with his writing style. I have never heard of this killer before and he was supposedly a normal person.
Cary Stayner had everyone around him fooled letting them think he was normal until he went on his killing spree, sending shock waves through the community where he lived. This is definitely a five star read and I will be adding this author to my true crime authors.
February 1, 2024
This story is fascinating and disturbing. The book is a quick read. It could have used a good editor. This book is not for everybody as it deals with brutal crimes.
December 27, 2020
Pretty good! Other than it sounds like it's read by a robot 🤖 and true crime is not my favorite genre. Interesting though!
August 27, 2015
Being a criminology student myself, this true story really does a great job in introducing readers to a killer that hid in plain sight. The novel follows the story of Cary Stayner, big brother to Stephen Stayner (child who got abducted for 7 years before escaping the grasps of a pedophile while saving another child). Cary Stayner is an ordinary person, just like most criminals. He roamed around without anyone ever noticing a slightest hint of his criminal activities. Jack Rosewood recollects the events lived by this criminal but also everyone that was in any way affected by the crimes he's committed.
I wasn't too surprised reading the story, especially about all the attempts to try and explain why Cary Stayner became a killer, all the possible criminal factors that can explain why this man chose to kill absolutely innocent people. His story unfolded to my eyes as a typical story tale killer and didn't leave me intrigued throughout the story. Putting aside the fact that I've been overwhelmed by biographies of killers because of my field of studies, I still have to stay that Jack Rosewood does a great job in presenting Cary Stayner's timeline while integrating the victims point of views. The story manages to make you wonder how a person could get themselves to do such gruesome acts and still stay calm after the fact. I didn't enjoy too much the fact that there was a lot of news reporters that were quoted. I found myself questioning the veracity of the facts and thought it took away from the emotional side of the story, especially when I think readers need to sympathize with the victims when reading about a killer more than being intrigued by a killer and his actions. The author still does a great job in giving us quotes from the victim's parents and the killer's relatives. This helps readers feel the pain and loss of the Armstrong family.
Sometimes I thought the story could've needed a little more content just to give us more details on what happened. It felt like we only had the key elements of the event and I think that takes away a little of the stories potential to keep the readers hooked. On the other hand, the structure still leaves readers interested and gives readers the opportunity to glide through the story fairly quickly in order to get the most important points of this killer's life. What was really enjoyable in this story is how you can tell that the author managed to integrate the killer's point of view only to add more insight into what happened and how it happened. The amount of research done to get the most facts into this book was also visible. I think true crime stories need a different kind for narration than what was done for this story. I think they need a narration that has a flow to keep the reader intrigued without being interrupted by different quotes from different people. Maybe short true crime stories aren't meant for me since I would prefer more details in order to understand further the criminal and his life-course. This novel still is brilliant in showing how this particular criminal might have had key events that triggered his criminal obsessions. It showed the inside of the mind of a killer who was slowly forgotten by his family. A criminal who isolated himself from others only to one day start killing to satisfy the craving he was holding in for years. A criminal that blended into the village without annoying suspecting him to be the Yosemite Park Killer.
If Cary Stayner's story interests you, this short true crime story is for you. Jack Rosewood will definitely deliver if you're looking to know what happened in Yosemite Park. In my books, this story deserves a 3.5 stars. Big thank you to the author for providing us with a copy of his book for an honest review.
Yours truly,
Lashaan
Lashaan & Trang | Bloggers and Book Reviewers
Official blog: http://bookidote.wordpress.com
I wasn't too surprised reading the story, especially about all the attempts to try and explain why Cary Stayner became a killer, all the possible criminal factors that can explain why this man chose to kill absolutely innocent people. His story unfolded to my eyes as a typical story tale killer and didn't leave me intrigued throughout the story. Putting aside the fact that I've been overwhelmed by biographies of killers because of my field of studies, I still have to stay that Jack Rosewood does a great job in presenting Cary Stayner's timeline while integrating the victims point of views. The story manages to make you wonder how a person could get themselves to do such gruesome acts and still stay calm after the fact. I didn't enjoy too much the fact that there was a lot of news reporters that were quoted. I found myself questioning the veracity of the facts and thought it took away from the emotional side of the story, especially when I think readers need to sympathize with the victims when reading about a killer more than being intrigued by a killer and his actions. The author still does a great job in giving us quotes from the victim's parents and the killer's relatives. This helps readers feel the pain and loss of the Armstrong family.
Sometimes I thought the story could've needed a little more content just to give us more details on what happened. It felt like we only had the key elements of the event and I think that takes away a little of the stories potential to keep the readers hooked. On the other hand, the structure still leaves readers interested and gives readers the opportunity to glide through the story fairly quickly in order to get the most important points of this killer's life. What was really enjoyable in this story is how you can tell that the author managed to integrate the killer's point of view only to add more insight into what happened and how it happened. The amount of research done to get the most facts into this book was also visible. I think true crime stories need a different kind for narration than what was done for this story. I think they need a narration that has a flow to keep the reader intrigued without being interrupted by different quotes from different people. Maybe short true crime stories aren't meant for me since I would prefer more details in order to understand further the criminal and his life-course. This novel still is brilliant in showing how this particular criminal might have had key events that triggered his criminal obsessions. It showed the inside of the mind of a killer who was slowly forgotten by his family. A criminal who isolated himself from others only to one day start killing to satisfy the craving he was holding in for years. A criminal that blended into the village without annoying suspecting him to be the Yosemite Park Killer.
If Cary Stayner's story interests you, this short true crime story is for you. Jack Rosewood will definitely deliver if you're looking to know what happened in Yosemite Park. In my books, this story deserves a 3.5 stars. Big thank you to the author for providing us with a copy of his book for an honest review.
Yours truly,
Lashaan
Lashaan & Trang | Bloggers and Book Reviewers
Official blog: http://bookidote.wordpress.com
August 23, 2015
CARY STAYNER: The True Story of the Yosemite Park Killer
Author: Jack Rosewood
Type of Book: eBook
Series: Historical Serial Killers and Murderers: True Crime by Evil Killers: Volume 4
Length: 71 pages
Genre: Non-Fiction, True Crime
Release Date: August 9, 2015
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars ⭐⭐⭐
* I received a free copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.
Cary Anthony Stayner was born in California to a lower-middle-class family. He had three sisters and a younger brother. His family spent summers camping at different national parks, including Yosemite which was close to their home. Cary had decent grades at school and even played on the school baseball team. Sounds like an idyllic All-American childhood, doesn't it?
So, if he grew up leading such a wonderful life, how did he end up becoming a killer?
The facade of normalcy that Cary's family portrayed to the outside world proves that you cannot always judge a book by it's cover. Cary's childhood and his family life were anything but idyllic.
Add to this multiple family tragedies, one of which received nationwide attention and you have a recipe for disaster.
Find out what caused a seemingly normal boy to turn into an evil monster by reading this short novella by Jack Rosewood.
Shortly after starting to read this book I realized that I knew of parts of the story, but had forgotten the name of the murderer. However, I definitely learned much more about this crime by reading this book than I had known previously.
There are aspects of this book that I enjoyed immensely, but there were a few minor things that (in my opinion) could have been improved.
One of the things I did not like was that some phrases were not explained. For example, in 1999 when their granddaughter Carole Sund (age 42) and their great-granddaughter Juli (age 15) along with Carole's sixteen year old exchange student, Silvina Pelosso, an Agentinian national went missing, Francis Carrington "... was called in for a three-house interview..." What the heck is a "three-house interview? This is not explained in the book.
The other issue I had with this book was that it needed an editor or proof-reader. Several paragraphs and sentences were redundant and some contained typos. For example: "told her I loved her, and slit her throat, driving the knife so deeply into her throat that her almost severed her head." I assume this was supposed to say "...he almost severed her head.", not "her."
Example 2 - "He might just as well been talking about the bogeyman." This should have said: "He might as well have been talking about the bogeyman."
Once these two issues are addressed, the book will deserve a higher rating.
Author Jack Rosewood has done a terrific job of taking a huge amount of information and condensing it to fit into only 71 pages. This makes this True Crime book a quick and easy read.
Overall I enjoyed this book and am looking forward to reading more true-crime stories by this author.
I rate this book as 3.5 out of 5 stars ⭐⭐⭐
To read more of my reviews visit http;//amiesbookreviews.wordpress.com
Author: Jack Rosewood
Type of Book: eBook
Series: Historical Serial Killers and Murderers: True Crime by Evil Killers: Volume 4
Length: 71 pages
Genre: Non-Fiction, True Crime
Release Date: August 9, 2015
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars ⭐⭐⭐
* I received a free copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.
Cary Anthony Stayner was born in California to a lower-middle-class family. He had three sisters and a younger brother. His family spent summers camping at different national parks, including Yosemite which was close to their home. Cary had decent grades at school and even played on the school baseball team. Sounds like an idyllic All-American childhood, doesn't it?
So, if he grew up leading such a wonderful life, how did he end up becoming a killer?
The facade of normalcy that Cary's family portrayed to the outside world proves that you cannot always judge a book by it's cover. Cary's childhood and his family life were anything but idyllic.
Add to this multiple family tragedies, one of which received nationwide attention and you have a recipe for disaster.
Find out what caused a seemingly normal boy to turn into an evil monster by reading this short novella by Jack Rosewood.
Shortly after starting to read this book I realized that I knew of parts of the story, but had forgotten the name of the murderer. However, I definitely learned much more about this crime by reading this book than I had known previously.
There are aspects of this book that I enjoyed immensely, but there were a few minor things that (in my opinion) could have been improved.
One of the things I did not like was that some phrases were not explained. For example, in 1999 when their granddaughter Carole Sund (age 42) and their great-granddaughter Juli (age 15) along with Carole's sixteen year old exchange student, Silvina Pelosso, an Agentinian national went missing, Francis Carrington "... was called in for a three-house interview..." What the heck is a "three-house interview? This is not explained in the book.
The other issue I had with this book was that it needed an editor or proof-reader. Several paragraphs and sentences were redundant and some contained typos. For example: "told her I loved her, and slit her throat, driving the knife so deeply into her throat that her almost severed her head." I assume this was supposed to say "...he almost severed her head.", not "her."
Example 2 - "He might just as well been talking about the bogeyman." This should have said: "He might as well have been talking about the bogeyman."
Once these two issues are addressed, the book will deserve a higher rating.
Author Jack Rosewood has done a terrific job of taking a huge amount of information and condensing it to fit into only 71 pages. This makes this True Crime book a quick and easy read.
Overall I enjoyed this book and am looking forward to reading more true-crime stories by this author.
I rate this book as 3.5 out of 5 stars ⭐⭐⭐
To read more of my reviews visit http;//amiesbookreviews.wordpress.com
August 17, 2015
"Just An Ordinary, Good Looking Guy ... Who would Suspect Him?"
This is a true story about the serial killer, Cary Anthony Stayner, born in Merced, California ... the gateway to Yosemite Park. He was raised with three sisters, and younger brother, Steven. Cary got good grades in school and played baseball after school with the community team. Early in his life he had bouts of obsessive-compulsion disorder. Psychiatric illnesses plagued his family history for two generations. He also suffered childhood trauma when Steven in 1972 was kidnapped by convicted pedophile Kenneth Parnell who kept him for seven years posing as his new dad. While the whole family focused on the missing boy, it was like Cary didn't exist. Again, when Steven was returned home, not only his family engulfed him, but the news reporters, magazine editors, and local news. Again, Cary was swept aside. Cary had a troubled mind even as a young 7-year old who, for more than a decade, fantasized about killing women. Just before a TV mini-series was released about Steven's kidnapping, Cary becomes a cold-blooded killer. This is a very well written documentary which is very riveting. There are many quotes from family members, detectives working on the case, reporters, and those who personally knew Cary, as well as Cary himself. It's amazing how those who knew Cary thought he was just an ordinary nice guy. One never really knows another. Highly recommend this short read.
This is a true story about the serial killer, Cary Anthony Stayner, born in Merced, California ... the gateway to Yosemite Park. He was raised with three sisters, and younger brother, Steven. Cary got good grades in school and played baseball after school with the community team. Early in his life he had bouts of obsessive-compulsion disorder. Psychiatric illnesses plagued his family history for two generations. He also suffered childhood trauma when Steven in 1972 was kidnapped by convicted pedophile Kenneth Parnell who kept him for seven years posing as his new dad. While the whole family focused on the missing boy, it was like Cary didn't exist. Again, when Steven was returned home, not only his family engulfed him, but the news reporters, magazine editors, and local news. Again, Cary was swept aside. Cary had a troubled mind even as a young 7-year old who, for more than a decade, fantasized about killing women. Just before a TV mini-series was released about Steven's kidnapping, Cary becomes a cold-blooded killer. This is a very well written documentary which is very riveting. There are many quotes from family members, detectives working on the case, reporters, and those who personally knew Cary, as well as Cary himself. It's amazing how those who knew Cary thought he was just an ordinary nice guy. One never really knows another. Highly recommend this short read.
September 12, 2020
Monsters walk among us.
This was a quick read. It was well written. The author has a keen insight into what makes Cary Stayner tick. On the one hand, he came across as a loner, yet a friendly and helpful guy, who liked to draw comics. Yet, on the other hand, unbeknownst to many who knew him, he had extremely violent and graphic urges that grew harder and harder to control. The descriptions of the rapes, attacks, and murders that he committed seem to be true to life and are quite graphic and hard to stomach. Yet they are necessary, so that we can gain a full picture of the sort of person that Cary Stayner was. By his own admission, it was not the abduction of his brother Steven that set him off. He said that he already had these urges long before that. Reading the book, I was so relieved that he finally got caught and jailed on death row. Even so, he shows compassion towards his own family. Maybe he wasn't 100 percent monster. This book was a very satisfying read, and I highly recommend it for fans of true crime.
This was a quick read. It was well written. The author has a keen insight into what makes Cary Stayner tick. On the one hand, he came across as a loner, yet a friendly and helpful guy, who liked to draw comics. Yet, on the other hand, unbeknownst to many who knew him, he had extremely violent and graphic urges that grew harder and harder to control. The descriptions of the rapes, attacks, and murders that he committed seem to be true to life and are quite graphic and hard to stomach. Yet they are necessary, so that we can gain a full picture of the sort of person that Cary Stayner was. By his own admission, it was not the abduction of his brother Steven that set him off. He said that he already had these urges long before that. Reading the book, I was so relieved that he finally got caught and jailed on death row. Even so, he shows compassion towards his own family. Maybe he wasn't 100 percent monster. This book was a very satisfying read, and I highly recommend it for fans of true crime.
September 2, 2025
This one chilled me—deeply. Not because of gore or shock value, but because Cary Stayner hid in plain sight. A “nice guy” working at a Yosemite motel, blending into the background, while quietly planning the most horrific acts.
Jack Rosewood delivers a fast-paced account of Stayner’s life and crimes, and while it’s not the most in-depth true crime book out there, it’s certainly compelling. I appreciated the clear writing and straightforward structure, but I found myself wanting a little more depth—especially around the psychological unraveling that led to his crimes.
What makes this story unforgettable is the devastating contrast: nature’s beauty versus humanity’s darkness. Stayner’s crimes shattered the illusion of safety in such a serene setting. It’s a short but powerful read that lingers in your thoughts long after you’ve turned the last page.
If you’re into true crime that leaves you quietly disturbed, this one’s worth checking out.
Jack Rosewood delivers a fast-paced account of Stayner’s life and crimes, and while it’s not the most in-depth true crime book out there, it’s certainly compelling. I appreciated the clear writing and straightforward structure, but I found myself wanting a little more depth—especially around the psychological unraveling that led to his crimes.
What makes this story unforgettable is the devastating contrast: nature’s beauty versus humanity’s darkness. Stayner’s crimes shattered the illusion of safety in such a serene setting. It’s a short but powerful read that lingers in your thoughts long after you’ve turned the last page.
If you’re into true crime that leaves you quietly disturbed, this one’s worth checking out.
September 15, 2022
Proofreading
I've noticed recently that books have a lot more errors than they used to. I'm not sure if this is due to laziness or poor grammar and spelling skills. In my mind there's just no excuse for it. When I pay out good money for a book I feel like I have the right to expect the author and editor to put forth sufficient effort to turn out a quality product.
One particular error in this book on page 85 I find particularly disturbing, where Russ Vorpegel, a private investigator, is referred to as a private instigator!! I'm sure Mr. Vorpegel finds it disturbing as well, to say the very least.
I've noticed recently that books have a lot more errors than they used to. I'm not sure if this is due to laziness or poor grammar and spelling skills. In my mind there's just no excuse for it. When I pay out good money for a book I feel like I have the right to expect the author and editor to put forth sufficient effort to turn out a quality product.
One particular error in this book on page 85 I find particularly disturbing, where Russ Vorpegel, a private investigator, is referred to as a private instigator!! I'm sure Mr. Vorpegel finds it disturbing as well, to say the very least.
October 3, 2023
The author writes a lot of recap books based on the facts of serial killer cases, and that's what this is. Mostly just the facts gleaned from law enforcement and media reports. Nothing wrong with that. In fact, it can be a good start to a deeper dive into a serial killer's mind, which this is not. But I downgraded to 3 stars because the narration is robotic and gets into a rhythmic pattern that becomes annoying. I began to wonder if it was recorded by a computer program, but the narrator has a name and narrates many more of Rosewood's books.
October 9, 2018
A lot of info
I have read other books by Jack Rosewood and just like his other books this book has a lot of info in it. If you like true crime books, you need to read this one
I have read other books by Jack Rosewood and just like his other books this book has a lot of info in it. If you like true crime books, you need to read this one
January 31, 2019
listened to on youtube
March 30, 2019
I enjoyed the book but there were quite a lot of grammatical errors and it was a lot smaller than expected, especially for the high price.
April 7, 2020
Interesting and sad. Not very in depth. Just an overgrown news article...which is fine for what it was.
August 3, 2023
I remember the TV movie about his younger brother. This is a horrifying account of Cary and the monster he became.
October 14, 2023
I should have taken the rating into account before starting this book. I feel like watching YouTube videos about this would have been good.
November 13, 2023
Pretty good, but kind of slim on details.
November 30, 2023
Just read the Wikipedia article. It has more information, less typos, and no Bigfoot slander.
April 30, 2024
I listened to this on audio.. I knew a bit about this guy.. TRAGIC stories this family has gone through...
January 24, 2025
Chilling
September 4, 2015
Cary Stayner: The True Story of the Yosemite Park Killer
by Jack Rosewood
Franz Kafka once said, “We ought to read only books that bite and sting us.”
I happened upon the above quote at the time that I was reading the story of Cary Stayner: The True Story of the Yosemite Park Killer by Jack Rosewood. This story truly did bite and did sting me! It is a true-crime story which follows the life of an individual from his childhood years to the end of his journey where he awaits his final encounter on death row.
Cary Stayner was a killer who hid in clear view of everyone; his colleagues, his family, society in general. It is a horrifying story of an individual who, according to many friends, neighbours and colleagues did not look like a serial killer but appeared as an ordinary, handsome, normal, likeable person. It was only in retrospect that the odd individual found Cary Stayner to be a bit of a loner, quiet and at times, even a bit scarey.
The author wrote this story in a very organized manner using precise writing and many short factual sentences. It was easy to read and easy to follow the line of incidents as they occurred. The amount of research that would have been involved in creating this story was probably very extensive and detailed so I admire the ability of the author to sift through the repetitive information and come up with a story that is so organized, complete and factual. I’ve wondered whether more detail would add to the story or whether it would detract from the style that the author used.
The author was also successful in evoking emotion from the reader. I felt deep sympathy for the families of the victims and for the family of the killer, and yet I felt deep sympathy for the killer himself. Integration of quotes from the victims’ parents, the killer’s relatives and from the killer himself, helped to create the emotion and gave the reader a look into the mind of the killer.
I believe this story would appeal to any reader of True-Crime, Crime fiction, Thriller and/or Suspense. In my opinion, it deserved a rating of 5 stars but due to the typos and grammatical errors I could only honestly give it 4 star rating. I received a copy from the author through a Goodreads connection in exchange for an honest review.
by Jack Rosewood
Franz Kafka once said, “We ought to read only books that bite and sting us.”
I happened upon the above quote at the time that I was reading the story of Cary Stayner: The True Story of the Yosemite Park Killer by Jack Rosewood. This story truly did bite and did sting me! It is a true-crime story which follows the life of an individual from his childhood years to the end of his journey where he awaits his final encounter on death row.
Cary Stayner was a killer who hid in clear view of everyone; his colleagues, his family, society in general. It is a horrifying story of an individual who, according to many friends, neighbours and colleagues did not look like a serial killer but appeared as an ordinary, handsome, normal, likeable person. It was only in retrospect that the odd individual found Cary Stayner to be a bit of a loner, quiet and at times, even a bit scarey.
The author wrote this story in a very organized manner using precise writing and many short factual sentences. It was easy to read and easy to follow the line of incidents as they occurred. The amount of research that would have been involved in creating this story was probably very extensive and detailed so I admire the ability of the author to sift through the repetitive information and come up with a story that is so organized, complete and factual. I’ve wondered whether more detail would add to the story or whether it would detract from the style that the author used.
The author was also successful in evoking emotion from the reader. I felt deep sympathy for the families of the victims and for the family of the killer, and yet I felt deep sympathy for the killer himself. Integration of quotes from the victims’ parents, the killer’s relatives and from the killer himself, helped to create the emotion and gave the reader a look into the mind of the killer.
I believe this story would appeal to any reader of True-Crime, Crime fiction, Thriller and/or Suspense. In my opinion, it deserved a rating of 5 stars but due to the typos and grammatical errors I could only honestly give it 4 star rating. I received a copy from the author through a Goodreads connection in exchange for an honest review.
February 23, 2017
simple and straightforward telling of the horrific true story.
August 14, 2015
I received a KINDLE Edition of this book from the author through a recent giveaway on LibraryThing.com and the following is my honest opinion.
Who could have thought that the majestic beauty of Yosemite National Park in California would one day serve as the backdrop for a heinous series of sexual murders? Well it did, and Cary Stayner was the culprit behind it.
The author of this book, Jack Rosewood, has skillfully taken us back through the book’s pages to a story which had gripped the nation for months. Instead of getting each bit of the story on a daily basis we’re presented with a complete detailed timeline, from the first sadistic killing of his first victim, his ultimate capture, his copping a plea deal at his first trial for the death of one of his victims, thereby avoiding an arduous trial [for his victim’s families and himself] and a possible death sentence which had been surprisingly encouraged by the mother of one of his victim, Julie Armstrong.
Luckily Cary Stayner eventually met his fate, proven guilty and sentenced to death.
In addition to this we’re given details about this depraved individual’s background and life so we can see, at least to some extent, what made this individual tick. An interesting part of this is that his younger brother, Steven, who most of us already knew about since his abduction by a pedophile and held as a sex slave for 7 years had been made into a miniseries, I Know My Name is Steven.
As an individual who has written numerous items for a community newspaper, I can understand and appreciate the efforts the author has made in putting everything into the organized and insightful manner he has; which is why I’m giving this book 5 STARS.
Who could have thought that the majestic beauty of Yosemite National Park in California would one day serve as the backdrop for a heinous series of sexual murders? Well it did, and Cary Stayner was the culprit behind it.
The author of this book, Jack Rosewood, has skillfully taken us back through the book’s pages to a story which had gripped the nation for months. Instead of getting each bit of the story on a daily basis we’re presented with a complete detailed timeline, from the first sadistic killing of his first victim, his ultimate capture, his copping a plea deal at his first trial for the death of one of his victims, thereby avoiding an arduous trial [for his victim’s families and himself] and a possible death sentence which had been surprisingly encouraged by the mother of one of his victim, Julie Armstrong.
Luckily Cary Stayner eventually met his fate, proven guilty and sentenced to death.
In addition to this we’re given details about this depraved individual’s background and life so we can see, at least to some extent, what made this individual tick. An interesting part of this is that his younger brother, Steven, who most of us already knew about since his abduction by a pedophile and held as a sex slave for 7 years had been made into a miniseries, I Know My Name is Steven.
As an individual who has written numerous items for a community newspaper, I can understand and appreciate the efforts the author has made in putting everything into the organized and insightful manner he has; which is why I’m giving this book 5 STARS.
July 31, 2022
The book was informative on the events that took place, however I feel that it was poorly written. It seems as though this was written by a beginning author or was not edited properly.
September 10, 2015
Another excellent true crime account from this author! The 4th volume in this series brings us the case of California's Cary Stayner. A seemingly 'normal' and average guy to all those who knew and worked with him. But underneath lurked something much darker. His compulsion and desire to kill started at a very young age and was never far from his thoughts.
Lots of details about the case is included - background info about the serial killer including early signs of mental illness, details about the crime, detailed victimology and who they really were as people, events that led law enforcement to the eventual capture and arrest, trial and the aftermath. A whole lot of detail balanced skillfully in so few pages!
Highly recommend this short read to all my fellow fans of True Crime, and I notice its getting recognition on a few of Facebook's true crime book clubs.
Lots of details about the case is included - background info about the serial killer including early signs of mental illness, details about the crime, detailed victimology and who they really were as people, events that led law enforcement to the eventual capture and arrest, trial and the aftermath. A whole lot of detail balanced skillfully in so few pages!
Highly recommend this short read to all my fellow fans of True Crime, and I notice its getting recognition on a few of Facebook's true crime book clubs.
August 22, 2015
I received this book as part of the Early Reviewers on LibraryThing. I liked that while it is a short and concise book, there seems to have been research done for the writing of this book. A reader is not only introduced to the killer, but also to the victims and their families. This book give a reader a glimpse inside the upbringing and thinking of the Yosemite Park Killer. While I enjoyed the narrative and getting the real story behind these murders, I could not help but notice the misspellings, typos, and grammatical errors throughout. Hopefully, these will be corrected before the final edition.
September 9, 2015
This story gives you an overview of what happened in Cary Stayner's life, but it needed more. It read more like a high school paper (complete with a couple of typos) than something giving you a history of events and biography of the man. The events recorded were interesting enough, but it lacked something in the delivery for me. If you are interested in just the facts, this book will work for you. I was given a copy of this book for my honest review.
September 8, 2015
Fast reading More like journalism than story telling
I read this in one sitting. I had a vague memory of these crimes that took place in the 1990"s i n Yosemite National Park. I am new to this genre (true crime) but found the author's examination of the events in Mr. Snyder's life that lead up to his horrific crimes. I found this to be well worth reading.
I read this in one sitting. I had a vague memory of these crimes that took place in the 1990"s i n Yosemite National Park. I am new to this genre (true crime) but found the author's examination of the events in Mr. Snyder's life that lead up to his horrific crimes. I found this to be well worth reading.
December 24, 2015
I bought this book because this case is very interesting and I was hoping it would be something new from what I have read previously. No so. This book was just a big cut and paste of quotes from various other magazines and books that have been written about this case and quotes from various people. Everything in this book I have read elsewhere. I do not recommend this book.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews