When married forty-two-year-old Troy LaFerrara seeks casual sex through an advertisement on Craigslist, he agrees to meet eighteen-year-old newly married mother of one, Miranda Barbour, in November 2013. She offers him ‘companionship’ in exchange for money and as he travels to meet her, he never for one moment thinks that their half-hour of fun could ever turn deadly.Yet that is exactly what happens.There are enough twists and turns in this true crime story that will have you second-guessing each fact as it is presented.Did Miranda kill Troy LaFerrara or was it her husband, Elyette Barbour? Was Miranda the serial killer she professed to be or was she just a liar on a grand scale? Can one believe anything the Barbours say happened that night?If you enjoy reading true crime books by Ann Rule, you will enjoy these books written by the bestselling author, Kathryn McMaster. Her research is meticulous and she presents the story in an unbiased manner.
Kathryn graduated from the University of Natal, Durban in 1980 with a double degree in English Literature and Psychology. The following year she completed her teaching diploma, and later on a TESOL diploma through Trinity College, London to teach English to adults as a second language. For the majority of her working life she worked in Education, both in the classroom, and in management. She is a co-founder of www.onestopfiction.com a website for both authors and readers for free and discounted books.
Kathryn is a writer of true crime and true crime fact-fiction. Her earlier books written as true crime fact-fiction transport you to a different era. She crafts stories around murders in the USA or unsolved murders of the Victorian and Edwardian eras highlighting poor policing practices with a rudimentary knowledge of Forensic Science that allowed the guilty to walk free, and the innocent to hang.
Kathryn’s books are further enhanced by her in-depth knowledge and training in Psychology, Criminal Profiling and a partial Masters of Forensic Science (Investigation) which she draws on to analyze each crime in the Afterword.
She has long had a fascination with crime and the criminal mind, looking at the ‘why’ rather than the ‘how’.
Her first true crime book was as best seller and was entitled “Who Killed Little Johnny Gill?”
This book covers the shocking murder and mutilation of an eight-year old boy in Bradford, England. The murder was so heinous that it was thought, at one stage, to have been the work of Jack the Ripper.
Kathryn continues to write from her 200 year old stone farmhouse in the beautiful and wild Casentino Valley, Tuscany.
"𝐒𝐞𝐥𝐟-𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐒𝐚𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐭" 𝐌𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐫 For anyone that doesn't know who this infamous couple is, they created Craigslist ads and lured men with the promise of sex via messages exchanged then Miranda Barbour murdered one man with the help of her husband Elytte Barbour. Miranda Barbour (from Alaska) was the instigator of the premeditated crime, with the help of her husband Elytte who is vulnerable, naive, too trusting of the wrong type of people and a people pleaser, so he was a willing participant. Miranda Barbour is now infamous for claiming to be a "self-proclaimed Satanist" that was supposedly in a Satanic cult or Coven & a serial killer but there is no evidence to back that up at all, so she is a delusional, mentally ill, attention-seeking, manipulative, coercive, pathological liar, fantasist & a opportunistic, greedy murderer. Elytte was a willing participant, he could have said no & not helped Miranda but he didn't do that he chose to participate & help her, so he is guilty by association. The victim should be remembered & respected. The author signed the copy of the book that I have, thank you. This is a short book, so anyone could read the whole book in one day. I can't believe how blasé Miranda's mother was about her uncle sexually abusing her and her sibling. How/why is that not something a parent should/would be concerned or worried about? It's disgusting & disturbing, people are sick perverts.
Elytte & Miranda met in (2013) they both liked each other and got married. They are both into a kink known as (bloodplay) they would probably like the (knife play kink/fetish) as well. Their relationship is sadomasochistic with elements of a interest in the occult/witchcraft & a interest in Satanism/Satanic beliefs. Satanism is about you being your own God or Goddesses, deifying or worshipping yourself, it is religious/spiritual freedom, it's about embracing your shadow self, your primal, animalistic, hedonistic self. It's not for everyone for a reason, it depends what resonates with you spiritually, but it is religious, spiritual and sexual freedom/liberation. Nothing they did or claimed to do was Satanic, they are not genuine authentic Satanists either. In some ways Elytte and Miranda are perfect for each other, but they are also a negative influence on each other as well. They enable each others bad habits or self-destructive behaviour, codependent tendencies that they have for each other. Elytte is a paranoid schizophrenic that has auditory & visual hallucinations, when he described his visual hallucination that he named Isaac their description reminds me of the American Actor James Dean. Miranda has her own mental health issues such as depression, ADHD, schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorder, she is already self-destructive and engages in self-destructive behaviour such as self-harm. They created the Craigslist Ad to lure, entice a potential victim, the people they chose to kill together was Troy LaFerrara. A married man that posted Craigslist Ads looking for casual sex, or as he described "companionship" from women & he paid for their time/company. Elytte was hiding under a blanket the day of the murder of Troy LaFerrara, they waited to meet Troy in their car, once he was in the car, Miranda gave the signal phrase they both agreed upon but Elytte failed to respond several times, until Miranda hit his knee & he sprung up from under the blanket and used a Tv cable to strangle Troy LaFerrara with, while Miranda stabbed Troy LaFerrara 20 times (this is overkill, not self-defence) It is a cruel, sadistic, unprovoked, merciless, unnecessary premeditated murder a "𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐥𝐥-𝐊𝐢𝐥𝐥" for kicks. The fact the murderous couple went to a Red Robin restaurant and acted like nothing happened, proves they are emotional sadists, psychopaths, they don't ever express any emotion except when they are angry like most narcissists behave. I believe that Elytte was verbally/emotionally manipulated, coerced, love bombed, gaslighted by Miranda, since even her father said that she was very manipulative, which says a lot about her as a person and in terms of her personality and how she treated people in general like they are a pawn, a possession to be owned, controlled, manipulated for her own benefit, for her needs to be met. After being arrested & confessing to the murder of Troy LaFerrara, this is when Miranda's manipulative, pathological lies are exposed as just that a fantasists' boastful, fantastical lies. Miranda claimed to be a "self-proclaimed Satanist" and supposedly a serial killer but the police never found any evidence of this so, it was just thought of as fabricated lies, because Miranda is a attention-seeking, manipulative, coercive, pathological liar, mentally ill, fantasist. Was Miranda really a prostitute? Was her s0-called Pimp/cult leader friend or boyfriend in a so-called Satanic cult or Satanic Coven even a real person? Did she really have a swastika carved into the back of her neck, or did she really have the name of her Pimp Forest branded on her thigh like she claimed? I think if Forest is a real person that he should have been questioned, since he could give valuable testimony, evidence, or information about Miranda & Elytte. Miranda & Elytte may have thought that they got away with the murder of Troy LaFerrara by strangling and stabbing him to death, stealing his wallet, then dumping his corpse in a alleyway, but Troy phone lead the police to them. They went to a Red Robin restaurant after the murder and acted like nothing happened. A phone number registered to Elytte that was mostly used by Miranda was the last phone number to contact Troy LaFerrara, which disproves their so-called alibis of being somewhere else at the time they met Troy LaFerrara in-person and murdered him in their car. Elytte strangled Troy while Miranda stabbed him 20 times (which is overkill not self-defence) so they are both guilty of murder in the first degree. They would be seen on the local area CCTV cameras, Elytte is seen on camera in a local shop buying cleaning supplies, they used bleach in their car to clean the bloodstain, but if the police used Luminol forensic spray then traces of blood would be visible with a ultraviolet light and it would glow blue under the ultraviolet light. Since Troy was stabbed 20 times there would be a lot of blood stains. There is no way for them to get out of this without being convicted and found guilty of first degree murder because they are both guilty of murder. By the time they both confess to the murder and their motivation or reasons for doing it, they both give conflicting statements, in my opinion this makes their confessions unreliable, or not trustworthy confessions. People lie all the time, they will confess to something they didn't do for attention sometimes, or agree to a plea bargain to get a lighter sentence so they they don't have to testify in court and admit what they did. During the time the police questioned both Miranda and Elytte both seem nonchalant, matter-of-fact, not concerned, anxious, not nervous or questioned why they were being questioned by the police about the murder of Troy LaFerrara. Elytte talked about the murder as if it was a mundane, ordinary and everyday occurrence. Miranda made up a story about Troy LeFerrara aggressively groping her against her will and she supposedly stabbed him, in self-defense which isn't true, but she is attempting to justify why she murdered Troy LaFerrara. The way Elytte describes Miranda's interactions with married, lonely & unhappy married men sounds like a Sugar Daddy-Sugar Baby arrangement, or Sugar Daddy-Sugar Baby relationship, it's for companionship & there isn't always a sexual component/context to the arrangement. Elytte is going along with her made up story of self-defense, until the real scenario of what actually happened is revealed. Miranda's confession is questionable because she was luring me into meeting her with the promise of sex, but her real intention was premeditated murder. Troy LaFerrara was already married, but regularly made Craigslist Ads to seeking companionship & sex from various other women, he talked to strippers, prostitutes, so his intention was for sex, so is he did try to inappropriately grope Miranda then she murdering Troy LaFerrara would have been believable but that's not how things turned out, what they both did Troy LaFerrara was disgusting, unnecessary and underserved. Both Miranda & Elytte both act unrepentant, show no remorse, empathy, respect or any sympathy for or towards their victim, Elytte especially seems happy, boastful, proud about what he did as if it's something to brag about, his behaviour exhibits signs of psychopathy. They are both cold, callous, emotional detached, don't feel empathy at all, it's very narcissistic, both talked about the murder of Troy LaFerrara in a nonchalant, matter-of-fact and casual, dismissive way, as if what they are talking about is ordinary or a every day occurance. Since they stole Troy's wallet the motivation for his murder is deemed as financial greed/gain, and premeditated murder since they "always wanted to kill someone together" Miranda continues to make more and more elaborate, unbelievable fabricated, fantastical lies such as being possessed and "Super Miranda" taking control of her and supposedly murdering (22 people) but she supposedly stop counting after her (22nd victim) Miranda's husband believed her, he knew about Miranda's uncle molesting & raping miranda & her Sister when they were very young, he totally believed that she was capable of being a serial killer. She supposedly marked a knife after every murder, but no such knife exists and there is no evidence that she ever went to the American states that she said she supposedly murdered people, tere is not evidence of anyone (aged 12-13) murdering anyone. One of the most pieces of evidence is the Church of Satan declaring that she has absolutely no affiliation to them, and they have never seen or spoken to her either in any capacity ever. Even they thinks she is a delusional, pathological liar, the FBI dubt her because they don't even believe her, so both says a lot about how verbally/emotionally manipulative, coercive she is for her own gain, attention and for the purpose of creating drama, chaos on purpose, because some people thrive on the chaos that they create. I am really happy that the part of the book that said about the Church of Satan explains that Satanists are atheists, they don't condone animal abuse, torture, or sacrifice, the same applies to people as well, they don't condone murder, they never have. I wish people understand this about Satanism, Satanists and the difference between a Satanist & a devil-worshipper because they are not the same at all! Both originally pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder, but they both later decided to change their pleas to guilty instead which would grant them a harsher sentence, but they would or could avoid the death penalty. Elytte is just as manipulative as Miranda, he attempted to gain sympathy by apologizing for his part in the murder of Troy LaFerrara, but he doesn't feel any empathy, sympathy or respect for the victim or for his family members at all, it is feigned so-called remorse, regret, because he is proud of what he did hence why he got has the teardrop tattoo below his eye which signifies that your a murderer and proud of it. He was proud of what he did, so during his confession of murder, when he was being interviewed about the murder of Troy LaFerrara he was bragging & boastful, like he was happy about it. The way he talked about the murder was very calm, casual, emotionally detached like he didn't really care what people thought about him or how he was perceived by people in general. The confessions, feigned ignorance of the murder or of the murder victim, the fabricated lies, then feigning feeling any remorse, regret sympathy or empathy for the victim or their family members is a façade, a ploy to gain your sympathy, which they don't deserve at all. Stereotypically their relationship is starting to fall apart & they are turning against each other, both are willing to testify against the other in a attempt to past off the majority of the blame for the murder onto them like they had no involvement at all when they did, they were they the day of the murder and they participated, they were a willing participant, not a innocent shocked bystander that reported the murder to the police like the woman that reported the seeing the corpse of Troy LaFerrara did. There is no way that either of them wouldn't be convicted for first-degree, premeditated murder, aggravated assault and robbery for stealing the victim's wallet & money. Also for after the murder, Elytte buying cleaning supplies and helping his wife Miranda to clean up the crime scene, take the victim's wallet & money then dispose of his corpse in a alleyway. The murder itself, isn't well planned, it is sloppy and they seemed to murder Troy LaFerrara on a whim because they felt like doing it and due to being opportunistic, greedy murderers. Troy Laferrara was there under false pretenses due to Miranda selling sex via messages that were exchanged between them, Troy was looking for companionship & sex, so he would have been eager to meet Miranda. They always wanted to kill people together as a couple and after a few missed opportunities and failed attempts, they finally got what they wanted. For a couple that originally would do anything for each other now it seems like they hate or blame the other person for the situation they are in, the consequences they are now both facing for their own behaviour which they are at fault for. If Miranda Barbour wasn't trying to gain publicity, then why did she contact a reporter while she was incarcerated, to tell the reporter about supposedly being a "self-proclaimed" Satanist & serial killer? She admitted that it was made up and that she did manipulate Elytte, I truly believe that he loves Miranda genuinely and if they didn't meet then none of this would have happened. Miranda could have let a family member adopt her daughter and helped her to take care of her daughter, she didn't need to murder anyone, just so she could remove herself and Elytte from her life forever. Her motivation for a senseless horrific murder doesn't make sense, but in her mind, she did it to protect her daughter.
𝐓𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠: Miranda & her sister, were molested & raped by their uncle he is a predatory, incestuous, peadophile. It is explained that he made a book about abusing children that encouraged fathers, uncles, grandparents to molest their family members. This might be triggering, upsetting or disturbing for some people to read. I wasn't sure until now how to put bold text in my book reviews, but I will include trigger warnings, for true crime books that I have read, especially if it includes animal & child abuse, since not everyone is okay with reading about that which is understandable.
I read this book via an Amazon KINDLE Unlimited down.
For those of you who have never read a True Crime Book by this author, Kathryn McMaster, you will find, as I have, the uniqueness of her writing style which adds to the authenticity of each story she writes. Being a devotee of this genre, I find to hard to find authors who can write these stories in a manner which gives each story the justice it deserves.
All of this author’s endeavors, like the five book series she’s written so far about kids who kill, have been are fraught with thoroughly research information which includes interviews with various parties involved with different aspects of the crime involved, and then written in manner that’s devoid of any bias and keeps readers intrigued while the story unfolds as they read each carefully orchestrated page, taking them through the events leading up to the crime, the crime itself, culminating with its final outcome regarding the parties involved.
In the end, Ms. McMaster, once again has her readers wondering how anyone, and in this case of Miranda Barbour [and husband] can commit such a heartless inhumane deed to another human being. Perhaps one of the factors which might help make this author’s writing a touch better than many others of this genre, is that she’s a woman while the vast majority of authors for this genre are males.
For giving her readers and myself, a very informative and intriguing reading experience regarding a rather unsavory topic, I’ve given Ms. McMaster 5 STARS for this True Crime endeavor.
I’m glad that after some time passed, Miranda finally came forward with the truth – as dubious as it was – because throughout all of the back and forth story changing, it was obvious that both she and Elytte were lying on a grand scale.
Elytte may have started out as an ok guy before meeting Miranda, but I believe he was brought down by a mixture of factors: low IQ, low self-esteem, mental illness exacerbated by drugs, and a borderline obsessive love for Miranda. Miranda was a manipulative, pathological liar that also suffered from mental illness made worse by drug use. She was cunning and conniving, but I don’t believe she felt the same for Elytte as he did for her, not by a long shot. He seemed to just be a means to an end. But like her mother said, the murder was “so sloppy”. They were bound to get caught and they got the sentencing they deserved.
Also, too much blame was being placed on Miranda’s mother, IMO. There are plenty of kids raised by neglectful parents who don’t grow up to be prostituting murderers, including Miranda’s own sister, who also blamed the way Miranda turned out on their mother. And not to do any victim blaming or shaming, but this wasn’t the 50s, 60s, or 70s. Meeting up with random, total strangers to have sex in a practically abandoned house? To some small degree, Troy LaFerrara was courting trouble.
Why? A question asked time and again when someone is killed, but especially when the crime is a so-called thrill-kill. Or in other words killing a random stranger for the fun / excitement / thrill of killing. Sometimes it isn't a stranger, but a convenient victim known and accessible to the killer(s). Regardless of relationship to the victim the murderer is still senseless. The killer(s) can't even always answer the question of why themselves.
What Kathryn McMaster has done is taken such a crime and shown us there was no Why that made sense. She showed two very damaged murderers who unfortunately got together and made each other worse. A bizarre and remorseless crime was committed. The victim was no saint, but he didn't deserve what happened to him.
The tale as told by McMasters shows you how someone's upbringing can make them a good person or a bad person in the form of siblings raised in the same terrible environment. This is a story that peels back the layers that reveal the horrible underbelly of the lives people, both children and adults have lived and what it turned them into.
Another great book from Kathryn McMaster! The facts are concisely laid out, leading up to the crime and its aftermath. McMaster is good at extrapolating as much detail as possible and creating a story that keeps the reader intrigued. As with the Kids Who Kill series, it's hard to comprehend how these people can commit such brutal crimes. The case is complicated by Miranda claiming to have killed many more people, as part of a Satanic cult, but McMaster presents the details in her unique way, giving you plenty to think about. Having read all the books in the Kids Who Kill series, I look forward to continuing with this series too. Highly recommend!
Kathryn McMaster does it again! Ms. McMaster has a unique way of laying out the facts without bias and yet keeping the story a page-turner for the reader. Her books show what an incredible thing the human mind is and how terrifying it can be when it goes to the dark side. I have read all of Ms. McMaster's true crime books and I'm never disappointed. Looking forward to more books in this series. Highly recommended.
I have read all the books in this author's "Kid's Who Kill" series and they are pretty good. It looks like she is starting g a new set of books about killer couples. There are a lot of them out there so she should have plenty of material. This book is short but that keeps it from being weighed down by filler or unnecessary facts. I look forward to reading more books in this series.