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Missing ... and Presumed Dead
The true story of a bizarre case in Myrtle Beach, and the trials that followed a young woman's disappearance, by the bestselling author of Better Off Dead.
On a cold Southern night in 2013, under a full moon, twenty-year-old Heather Elvis parked her car at a boat ramp along the Intracoastal Waterway and was never seen again.
The disappearance of the beautiful, vivacious hostess at a popular Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, restaurant made international headlines and triggered a sweeping high-stakes investigation that exposed a twisted web of deception, betrayal, sexual obsession, police corruption, and revenge. But Heather's body was never located. A series of sensational trials involving a handsome restaurant coworker and his Disneyland-obsessed wife resulted in shocking verdicts--but no body--as her family desperately sought closure and fought for justice, and a resort town struggled to regain calm. This is the full compelling story from a renowned author of true crime.
On a cold Southern night in 2013, under a full moon, twenty-year-old Heather Elvis parked her car at a boat ramp along the Intracoastal Waterway and was never seen again.
The disappearance of the beautiful, vivacious hostess at a popular Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, restaurant made international headlines and triggered a sweeping high-stakes investigation that exposed a twisted web of deception, betrayal, sexual obsession, police corruption, and revenge. But Heather's body was never located. A series of sensational trials involving a handsome restaurant coworker and his Disneyland-obsessed wife resulted in shocking verdicts--but no body--as her family desperately sought closure and fought for justice, and a resort town struggled to regain calm. This is the full compelling story from a renowned author of true crime.
276 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 5, 2019
601 people are currently reading
829 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
November 11, 2019
A sad true crime story about a 20 year old young woman, Heather Elvis, who went missing in Horry County, South Carolina in December 2013 in the wee hours of the morning. This story touches me for several reasons, having family in the Horry County area who have been affected by crime. Add to that, my father happened to die under strange circumstances in Horry County, South Carolina in 1997 at a business we had there. All of that is enough to put me off the area to begin with, and I didn’t realize this book was set there in Horry County, but so be it. If you want a crazy story, this is for you. The place is already the Devil’s Triangle for me.
I had noticed several years ago that there were already a handful of true crime books that just happened to be situated in Horry County, and Conway in particular as I’ve read true crime through the years. One book, for example is An Hour To Kill by Dale Hudson. Mr. Hudson himself was also found dead in the Great Pee Dee River in 2009 under mysterious circumstances.
I read this eARC and mostly enjoyed it. I’m hoping some of the grammar gets cleaned up before publication. There were some spotty issues with missing words, etc. I think many true crime fans would like the story, very twisty. Advance electronic review copy was provided by NetGalley, author Michael Fleeman, and the publisher.
First published on my WordPress blog which can be seen here:
https://wordpress.com/post/bookblog20...
I had noticed several years ago that there were already a handful of true crime books that just happened to be situated in Horry County, and Conway in particular as I’ve read true crime through the years. One book, for example is An Hour To Kill by Dale Hudson. Mr. Hudson himself was also found dead in the Great Pee Dee River in 2009 under mysterious circumstances.
I read this eARC and mostly enjoyed it. I’m hoping some of the grammar gets cleaned up before publication. There were some spotty issues with missing words, etc. I think many true crime fans would like the story, very twisty. Advance electronic review copy was provided by NetGalley, author Michael Fleeman, and the publisher.
First published on my WordPress blog which can be seen here:
https://wordpress.com/post/bookblog20...
November 7, 2022
I’m not sure what happened here. Michael Fleeman was one of my favorite true crime authors in the past but this book is a total disaster. It is very poorly written and clearly was not edited at all. There are many, many typos and grammatical errors making it difficult to read. How does a publisher accept this?
There was very little background information about the victim. Heather Elvis, and her family. The story mostly covers the various court trials of the perpetrators with almost incomprehensible dialog from the trial transcripts. There is a lot of repetition and very little of interest. The afterword actually contains the most interesting information. Painful to read but it was short and I decided to quickly finish it today after setting it aside for awhile. Im sure there is some reason why they published such a crappy book but I can’t figure it out. I hope this entire genre doesn’t end up going down the tubes. I’ve read a few bad ones in the past year but this was the worst.
There was very little background information about the victim. Heather Elvis, and her family. The story mostly covers the various court trials of the perpetrators with almost incomprehensible dialog from the trial transcripts. There is a lot of repetition and very little of interest. The afterword actually contains the most interesting information. Painful to read but it was short and I decided to quickly finish it today after setting it aside for awhile. Im sure there is some reason why they published such a crappy book but I can’t figure it out. I hope this entire genre doesn’t end up going down the tubes. I’ve read a few bad ones in the past year but this was the worst.
July 14, 2025
Interesting
Well researched and written book but horribly edited. Scores of missing or extra words that any editor or beta reader would have found. That's disappointing.
Well researched and written book but horribly edited. Scores of missing or extra words that any editor or beta reader would have found. That's disappointing.
November 27, 2019
This book definitely held my interest, though the resolution (or lack of one) was a mark against it.
February 15, 2020
Missing...and Presumed Dead
By: Michael Fleeman
This is a true crime disappearance of twenty year old Heather Elvis. When she first went missing most people feel like she is a perfect innocent young girl. As time and
investigation go by it's shown she was more worldly and hd been involved with a married man almost twice her age.
Several of the police officers were found to be corrupt. That had an effect on the retrial of Sydney Moore after the first hung jury. The second trial delivered a
conviction for him on kidnapping charges. Tammy Moore went on trial for kidnapping and conspiracy.They both ended up in prison but not for murder. I hope the Elvis
family will someday find peace.
The police arrest the man she was involved with and his wife. They tried them separately.
The narration was well done. Kelly Ryan Wilmoth did OK, but seemed he would stumble here and there with a mispronunciation. His voice was good for this genre.
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
By: Michael Fleeman
This is a true crime disappearance of twenty year old Heather Elvis. When she first went missing most people feel like she is a perfect innocent young girl. As time and
investigation go by it's shown she was more worldly and hd been involved with a married man almost twice her age.
Several of the police officers were found to be corrupt. That had an effect on the retrial of Sydney Moore after the first hung jury. The second trial delivered a
conviction for him on kidnapping charges. Tammy Moore went on trial for kidnapping and conspiracy.They both ended up in prison but not for murder. I hope the Elvis
family will someday find peace.
The police arrest the man she was involved with and his wife. They tried them separately.
The narration was well done. Kelly Ryan Wilmoth did OK, but seemed he would stumble here and there with a mispronunciation. His voice was good for this genre.
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
May 8, 2020
An incomplete book
What a scam! I have read hundreds of true crime books, many by this author, but this one is different. When I had read approximately 83-84% of the book "Missing...and Presumed Dead" it suddenly ended and began a second book. I thought that I had a lot more to read! Unfortunately, the second book was one that I had already read and I was not interested in reading it AGAIN! When I choose the books that I want to buy, the number of pages the book has is one thing I look for because I don't want to pay full price for books that have fewer pages. This one did not note that approximately 15% of the book was another book and one that I had already read. I would NOT have purchased it if the review had been honest. I will no longer buy books by this author. It could be the same scam.
What a scam! I have read hundreds of true crime books, many by this author, but this one is different. When I had read approximately 83-84% of the book "Missing...and Presumed Dead" it suddenly ended and began a second book. I thought that I had a lot more to read! Unfortunately, the second book was one that I had already read and I was not interested in reading it AGAIN! When I choose the books that I want to buy, the number of pages the book has is one thing I look for because I don't want to pay full price for books that have fewer pages. This one did not note that approximately 15% of the book was another book and one that I had already read. I would NOT have purchased it if the review had been honest. I will no longer buy books by this author. It could be the same scam.
February 26, 2020
Missing… and Presumed Dead writen by Michael Fleeman & narrated by Kelly Ryan Wilmoth. This book tells the story of 20-year-old Heather Elvis going missing. I must admit after listening to this book I googled the case and couldn’t believe I never heard about it. The narrator did an okay job and the book was spot on with the articles I came across during my google search. For the most part I felt like I was listening to a documentary. This book hit me as an eye opener, it made me feel like calling to check on my relatives. I can’t imagine what the Elvis family went through and I hope one day they find peace. I received this book via promo and that has no influence on my review of this book.
February 24, 2025
3.5 stars. This was such an interesting true crime case. A 20 year old woman named Heather Elvis goes missing from South Carolina. The case grabbed all my interest and in some ways this book was very good in bringing the key players to life. However, a slightly lower score from me as there were some obvious flaws. There were a couple of spelling errors early on and there was often something confusing about the text. Long passages would lose me and I would find my attention drift. Other parts were worded in ways that I found hard to follow. I found it ended abruptly. This aside, it was a decent true crime read about an intriguing case with some very slippery characters.
February 22, 2020
Tragic missing case
I'm giving this book a 1 star because the chronic typos, incomplete sentences and incorrect grammar mistakes are very plentiful and distracting. I don't understand how in this day and time a book is published in this condition. I highlighted a lot of them and reported for corrections. I'm not sure if they actually fix anything. The story is tragic and heartbreaking. I'm glad the two killers are locked up and hope they never get out. Yes Heather holds responsibility too but not for her death. I wish her parents could get closure.
I'm giving this book a 1 star because the chronic typos, incomplete sentences and incorrect grammar mistakes are very plentiful and distracting. I don't understand how in this day and time a book is published in this condition. I highlighted a lot of them and reported for corrections. I'm not sure if they actually fix anything. The story is tragic and heartbreaking. I'm glad the two killers are locked up and hope they never get out. Yes Heather holds responsibility too but not for her death. I wish her parents could get closure.
December 28, 2019
This true crime story centers around Heather Elvis. Heather's car is found at the Peachtree boat landing in December of 2013. Heather has gone missing. Heather has a somewhat questionable lifestyle, which plays a part in trying to solve her disappearance. I found the story interesting along with the trial and evidence presented. I have been a juror on a "Attempted Murder" case, so it is interesting to see how the two sides present their evidence, or lack of. Interesting read.
January 2, 2020
It was an interesting read, but I would have preferred to have more of a background about Heather and her life leading up to her disappearance/murder. Also, at the end it seemed more thrown together at the end of the last chapter and in the afterword... I would have preferred it to have been more broken apart and detailed. I don't recall if I won this as an ARC or in the published format so I don't know if this would have been addressed or not.
January 8, 2020
This is a true crime story about Heather whose car was found. She has gone missing and they are trying to figure out what happened. She did have a somewhat questionable lifestyle which plats a part in this mystery. It was interesting to see both sides of the story. Some of the information was drawn out and I found myself skimming some of the paragraphs. It was an interesting story, and I did enjoy it. But I feel some of it could have been edited better.
October 9, 2021
I received this in a Giveaway. Heather Elvis disappeared one night and was never heard from again. There were suspects and suspicions, but what happened that night? This followed the story about the information and trials connected to the disappearance. There were mistakes in the book and I thought it could have grabbed your attention a little more.
January 16, 2022
Written as a true crime podcast. The legal proceedings are presented chronologically, but much of the rest of the book is presented by following certain persons. This makes the timeline a bit confusing.
I think this would have been better written as a narrative.
Spoiler alert -- the best evidence is left for the Afterword.
I think this would have been better written as a narrative.
Spoiler alert -- the best evidence is left for the Afterword.
May 24, 2023
Complex & Fascinating Missing Person Case!!!
What a challenging and complicated Missing Person case!! The facts are laid out clearly and intensely and the reader is able to follow the case right alongside the participants…. Sooo many twists and secrets in this one!!! LOVED IT!!!:-)
What a challenging and complicated Missing Person case!! The facts are laid out clearly and intensely and the reader is able to follow the case right alongside the participants…. Sooo many twists and secrets in this one!!! LOVED IT!!!:-)
January 14, 2024
Heather’s story reminds me so much of myself at that age, and perhaps that’s why I find myself consuming all the information I can about her story and this case. I hope one day she gets real justice and her family can find closure and peace.
For the author’s writing, there are several noticeable typos, errors, and inaccuracies based on the court discovery materials.
For the author’s writing, there are several noticeable typos, errors, and inaccuracies based on the court discovery materials.
September 10, 2024
Tells the story with lots of grammatical errors
I greatly appreciate this author's passion, you can tell he wanted to get Heather's story out there and advocate for her case.
That being said, there are many errors not only in spelling, but in grammar as well.
If you can get past those, it definitely tells the information accurately.
I greatly appreciate this author's passion, you can tell he wanted to get Heather's story out there and advocate for her case.
That being said, there are many errors not only in spelling, but in grammar as well.
If you can get past those, it definitely tells the information accurately.
January 15, 2020
Very well written but at the risk of sounding gruel and heartless, the "turn off" for me was that fact that none of the people in the book, even including the victim, possessed no redeeming qualities. Other readers may not feel this way - just my opinion.
March 2, 2020
Way too many grammatical errors
This book sounded interesting but it was not well written. The extreme amount of grammatical errors and missing words made it very distracting and a very slow read.
This book sounded interesting but it was not well written. The extreme amount of grammatical errors and missing words made it very distracting and a very slow read.
September 26, 2021
Where is Heather Elvis?
I was intrigued by this book when I saw it happened in SC, the state where I live. The case of Heather Elvis remains a mystery still. Was she kidnapped and murdered? I think so, but it wasn't proven.
I was intrigued by this book when I saw it happened in SC, the state where I live. The case of Heather Elvis remains a mystery still. Was she kidnapped and murdered? I think so, but it wasn't proven.
September 15, 2022
audible:I remember this case.This book was good, It was very repetitive though and could have been much shorter.The narration was unbearable.I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
March 24, 2025
Interesting, but tedious
True Crime is always going to be a risky area, you have good writers but no great writers like Capote.
The reality of the situation redeems this problem in my view, as is the case in Missing…and presumed Dead.
True Crime is always going to be a risky area, you have good writers but no great writers like Capote.
The reality of the situation redeems this problem in my view, as is the case in Missing…and presumed Dead.
Want to read
December 24, 2019***goodreads giveaway***
Review coming soon
Review coming soon
December 24, 2019
Very good
One of the better true crime books I’ve read. Very well researched and well written, I would recommend for true crime fans
One of the better true crime books I’ve read. Very well researched and well written, I would recommend for true crime fans
October 17, 2022
Well written true crime. Reads like a thriller.
January 16, 2024
Loved it!
I'm from SC and remember these events well. Mr Freeman did a great job of telling the story while injecting public opinion into the situation.
.
I'm from SC and remember these events well. Mr Freeman did a great job of telling the story while injecting public opinion into the situation.
.
January 4, 2025
An interesting book but I found it confusing and hard to follow
October 15, 2025
Good stoty
To many typos and missing words throughout this book. I feel it wasn't edited properly and therefore difficult to read.
To many typos and missing words throughout this book. I feel it wasn't edited properly and therefore difficult to read.
November 12, 2025
Heartbreaking
I read alot ALOT of true crime. This one has my heart broken. I sincerly hope one day there will be a new final chapter added, I really do.
I read alot ALOT of true crime. This one has my heart broken. I sincerly hope one day there will be a new final chapter added, I really do.
August 16, 2021
Interesting case and book. There are some grammatical errors and the court proceedings took up more than necessary, as is typical, but it does detract from a true crime book in my opinion.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews