Teach Me to Kill: The Shocking True Story of the Pamela Smart Murder Case

by Stephen Sawicki

With a New Introduction By the Author
On the evening of May 1,1990, in Derry, New Hampshire, two teenage boys lay in wait for a young insurance salesman named Gregory Smart to return home from work. When he did, they ambushed him. One held Gregory by the hair, while the other fired a single close-range shot from a .38-caliber handgun into the victim's skull, killing him instantly. As the police investigation unfolded, it soon became clear that Pamela Smart, the victim's wife of less than a year, was behind the murder. Investigators found that she had sexually manipulated 16-year-old Billy Flynn, who in turn enlisted his friends, into committing the killing. Aired on live television, the Pamela Smart murder case mesmerized the nation, and the world. Originally published in 1991, Teach Me to Kill is an in-depth look at the case, which continues to draw widespread media attention. Author Stephen Sawicki , a correspondent for People magazine, was the only national reporter to cover the case from start to finish. His reporting includes in-depth interviews with the police, prosecutors, defense lawyers, friends, family members, classmates, and Pamela Smart herself. The book also provides a new introduction by the author.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, Crime

333 pages, Paperback

Published May 11, 2019

Reviews

[Sue Ellen Melo · Rating 5 out of 5]

For a lot of my life, one of my hobbies has been following murder cases. I was especially into this from the time I was a teenager into my early30s. The Pamela Smart case was one I especially remember following as at the time I was living just over the New Hampshire border in Beverly MA so the story was front and center on all the local radio and TV stations. I couldn’t get over how this woman minipulated these kids all for her own ends and she clearly would have been willing to let them take the fall and get away cleaan if it weren’t for the persistance of the police and prosecutors. This book does a great job giving you a clear sense of who Greg and Pam Smart were then taking the reader through the eventss that led up the murder, the arrests of Pamela Smart, Billy Flynn, and his friends and the trial itself. The reporter is throrough and even handed in his writing, leaving it to the reader to form their own conclusions about MS. Smart’s guilt or innocense.

[Scarlett Griffin · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a retired teacher of teens, I am horrified beyond words!

From almost the beginning of this true story, I was repulsed by the behavior of Pammy Smart. She is the worst in the category of sociopaths in that she manipulated young immature impressionable teens to do her dirty work. This behavior after she used withholding sex to threaten young boys to kill. Worst of all, her use of sex to bribe them is disgusting, especially for a trained individual who is trusted around young people. The only reason I finished the book is so I would know she paid for her heartless behavior. I wonder why red flags among her superiors didn’t smell a rat! As a retired teacher, she makes me shudder. I dedicated my 30 year career encouraging youngsters to rise to their greatest potential. Instead, Pammy brought down destruction on everyone she impacted. I hope she never sees freedom!

[Ashley N. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a little addicted to the Snapped true crime documentaries lately, and recently watched the one on Pamela Smart. I remembered her case was the inspiration for the book & movie To Die For. I grabbed this book as my one free checkout/month from kindle prime. As expected, and not a bad thing, it was a tawdry mess. The narrative was rather hackneyed, and the ebook formatting was poor (frequent one sentence paragraphs, every paragraph was indented halfway across the page). Still, entertaining for what it was.

[yourlittlereader · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was incredible, as a fan of true crime, this book gave me the perfect in depth view on Pamela's case. Stephan is a great writer and he explains the story really nicely. I also loved how he added pictures for the public as part of the book as the story was being told to get a more visual picture. Not many authors do that either. The transcripts and interviews were throughly done and I couldn't put this book down. This book really made me think especially in the end about society and the likes of criminals. Highly recommended.

[Michelle Marquez · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I hadn't followed this case, I wouldn't believe it to be true!

To me this was a 5 star book! I followed this case in the press back when it was all actually happening and I found this to be an accurate and detailed account of what really happened here. I always felt like Pam Smart was guilty and I haven't changed my mind with time. This is a great book for anyone who loves to read about salacious and unbelievable true crime.

[Sandy Saunders · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book years ago so I was happy to see that an “old” book had made it to Kindle.
It is an intriguing story simply for the fact that the main characters were all so young, including Pamela Smart who at aged 23 enticed her 15 year old lover to murder her husband. That alone is bad enough but it gets worse as more young boys are roped into the murder of man whose only crime was to marry Pamela.
The story has a lot of details and was well researched and written.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a book! A murder occurs in New Hampshire by two delinquent boys. As the story unfolds, his wife of less than a year is the major suspect. The book moves quickly and will keep the reader on the edge of their seat. I can't imagine the depth of one's mind to plan a murder, much less one's husband. I read until late at night on this one.

[Jennifer Gardner · Rating 2 out of 5]

would have liked more details. tons of typos

interesting enough but good lord this book needs an editor. i also was interested in the relationship between billy and pam (how it started, the dynamics of it, the psychology behind an adult seeking a relationship with someone underage) and found this book to be a bit lacking in this aspect.

[Christa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ever since listening to a podcast on this case I was ENTHRALLED and needed to know everything possible. Boy was it a wild ride.. minus the spelling errors littered throughout this book, I enjoyed it and thought it covered Pamela’s story and case well (the trial is a must watch though), including things I hadn’t even known about before.

High recommend for true crime fans ✨

[Shannon Schulte · Rating 4 out of 5]

Teach Me To Kill

Lots of grammatical errors. The author also likes to use big words I've never even heard of to make himself sound smart or something I guess. Other than that good read.

[Kerry Cavanaugh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful delivered book.

Written so well that I flew through the book as it moved in a fast exciting pace. A true crime buff's must read!

[Stephanie Coffman · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good book, very informative but I had trouble getting past the spelling and grammar mistakes.

[Jillian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I appreciate the deep background provided on all the main characters so you can understand their personality and why they act they way they do. It’s a good read and I highly recommend to true crime fans.