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Choking in Fear
Small-town Indiana seems the perfect place for a boy to grow up, and Mike McCarty loved his life in Waveland as a police officer's son. At the tender age of nine, however, his quiet community is shocked by a horrivic crime---a family's murder in their own home. For the first time, Mike knows real fear. Years later, long after the killers are jailed, Mike remains haunted by the evil deed. Although a police officer like his father, Mike feels impotent in the face of the murder and knows he must confront the memory head-on. Take part in Mike's journey as he uncovers links between abusive relationships and crime and finds a way to make his own life a tool for change.
292 pages, Paperback
First published February 9, 2004
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
May 17, 2014
A true-murder case I'd never heard of so the ringleader luckily didn't end up as famous as the headcase he wanted to emulate-Charles Manson, as his crimes were known over in the US but over here in the UK he remains a nobody which is good.
It was interesting reading it as the author had been affected so deeply by it being only nine at the time. I remember a murder when I was around the same age over here that I never forgot as a youngster, either....I'm pretty sure it used to give me nightmares, too.
However, it so nearly could have been Mike and his family that were murdered that night as things transpired. Horrible to think of all those lads killed like that and their mum laying there with them. Just an appalling thing to have happened.
I've only given it 3 stars because I almost packed it in a lot of times because it's full of mistakes. I had a clue in the Foreword when it was written Forward. I should have maybe given up then as they only serve to annoy the hell out of me !! Coarse turned into course, buy used where but was meant to be, gray and not grey, grabbled/grabbed, gown/grown, medal/metal, the/that, then Abbott was spelled that way and Abbot on one page and the same with Jeffrey and Jeffery, mooring was used in place of morning, perused and not pursued and were and not wore then streak and not steak. Just staggering carelessness. Most annoying was near the end when he describes Greg as Betty's stepson....that's pretty unforgiveable.
Another big gripe was the use (or not) of apostrophes. The whole way through the book the author used Spencer's when he meant Spencers' yet at times he'd used apostrophes properly in plural use so it was beyond annoying that he persisted with that particular mistake right to the very end.
Then there was lost punctuation, then punctuation where it wasn't needed...a real pity more care wasn't taken to get this proofread and edited properly.
It was interesting reading it as the author had been affected so deeply by it being only nine at the time. I remember a murder when I was around the same age over here that I never forgot as a youngster, either....I'm pretty sure it used to give me nightmares, too.
However, it so nearly could have been Mike and his family that were murdered that night as things transpired. Horrible to think of all those lads killed like that and their mum laying there with them. Just an appalling thing to have happened.
I've only given it 3 stars because I almost packed it in a lot of times because it's full of mistakes. I had a clue in the Foreword when it was written Forward. I should have maybe given up then as they only serve to annoy the hell out of me !! Coarse turned into course, buy used where but was meant to be, gray and not grey, grabbled/grabbed, gown/grown, medal/metal, the/that, then Abbott was spelled that way and Abbot on one page and the same with Jeffrey and Jeffery, mooring was used in place of morning, perused and not pursued and were and not wore then streak and not steak. Just staggering carelessness. Most annoying was near the end when he describes Greg as Betty's stepson....that's pretty unforgiveable.
Another big gripe was the use (or not) of apostrophes. The whole way through the book the author used Spencer's when he meant Spencers' yet at times he'd used apostrophes properly in plural use so it was beyond annoying that he persisted with that particular mistake right to the very end.
Then there was lost punctuation, then punctuation where it wasn't needed...a real pity more care wasn't taken to get this proofread and edited properly.
March 3, 2017
Great
Love reading first hand accounts of true stories. I just recently moved to the tri state area & this story was on the local news. I decided to get the book & read more about it.
Love reading first hand accounts of true stories. I just recently moved to the tri state area & this story was on the local news. I decided to get the book & read more about it.
June 23, 2019
Writing was kind of choppy, but considering the author is a police officer, not a writer... Interesting account of the events that had our small town in fear and shock 40 years ago.
May 14, 2014
I did not know what to make of this book at first. Was it a memoir? A murder accounting? By the time I finished it I came to the conclusion that anyone who has never worked in the field of child protection should consider this a "must read." At least the last part is a pulling together of themes regarding how we create sociopaths through not intervening in domestic problems.
As a retired child protection worker I was impressed with his observations as to the harm done to the young and how we can disrupt the home to prison or school to prison pipeline through prevention rather than attempting to control problems later. This is not an attempt to excuse criminal behaviors, but a bird's eye view into how failure to protect the innocents (children) ends up leading to vast societal problems later.
The author is meticulous and there are few misspellings as he presents the memories of a brutal murder through his eyes as a child. At certain points where it seemed the pacing was plodding I skimmed and probably missed some of how he transformed from an impish kid to a police officer, but I still got it that he made it. Faster pacing would have helped, I believe as I had to fight off the impulse to stop reading about ¾ of the way through. However, I had the feeling there was a golden nugget at the end and hung on for it. Glad I did.
As a retired child protection worker I was impressed with his observations as to the harm done to the young and how we can disrupt the home to prison or school to prison pipeline through prevention rather than attempting to control problems later. This is not an attempt to excuse criminal behaviors, but a bird's eye view into how failure to protect the innocents (children) ends up leading to vast societal problems later.
The author is meticulous and there are few misspellings as he presents the memories of a brutal murder through his eyes as a child. At certain points where it seemed the pacing was plodding I skimmed and probably missed some of how he transformed from an impish kid to a police officer, but I still got it that he made it. Faster pacing would have helped, I believe as I had to fight off the impulse to stop reading about ¾ of the way through. However, I had the feeling there was a golden nugget at the end and hung on for it. Glad I did.
July 31, 2014
Yes a lot of typos but a new & engrossing true crime book
yes the book.is replete w/ obvious grammatical & spelling errors. that said it is a new & engrossing at a true crime. it starts like an excerpt of stand by me then drops into interviews w/ a most heinous murderer. it never answers the basic question of the book; nature nurture; but it is a naive & overreaching question examined by experts over the generations. perhaps one of the biggest failings is the author should've acknowledged his inability early on w/o leading his readers down the primitive path. the answer will not be so easily revealed; especially not by young men caught up in the crime. had they had this insight it likely wouldn't happen. Yet despite the failings, the book.is a good read and are delightful look at an age old dilemma. the subject of my doctorate as I.am survivor of child abuse of the worst kind. I reignited the book specifically t he authors relating of his childhood. I wish I had shared it w/ him.
yes the book.is replete w/ obvious grammatical & spelling errors. that said it is a new & engrossing at a true crime. it starts like an excerpt of stand by me then drops into interviews w/ a most heinous murderer. it never answers the basic question of the book; nature nurture; but it is a naive & overreaching question examined by experts over the generations. perhaps one of the biggest failings is the author should've acknowledged his inability early on w/o leading his readers down the primitive path. the answer will not be so easily revealed; especially not by young men caught up in the crime. had they had this insight it likely wouldn't happen. Yet despite the failings, the book.is a good read and are delightful look at an age old dilemma. the subject of my doctorate as I.am survivor of child abuse of the worst kind. I reignited the book specifically t he authors relating of his childhood. I wish I had shared it w/ him.
June 30, 2016
Fascinating memoir about a horrifying mass killing in smalltown Indiana, not far from where I grew up. McCarty captures the mindset of being a nine-year-old who knows something terrible has happened and fears it could happen to him--a legitimate fear given that his father was a state trooper who had previous run-ins with two of the killers. He also takes a very humanist approach to crime, noting that while true evil is rare, there are, sadly, factors that make impressionable young men cross the line and perform unbelievable heinous crimes.
Choking in Fear is riveting despite a handful of grating editorial gaffes. I recommend it.
Choking in Fear is riveting despite a handful of grating editorial gaffes. I recommend it.
July 21, 2024
I understand why he wrote this book. Reading it affected me because I grew up very close to this area and wondered how my parents did such a good job of hiding this story from me. As I read it I also wondered if I drove those same backroads just a few years later without a clue as to the gruesomeness that occurred. I can’t even imagine being right in the middle of it with a father investigating. It is both a true crime and a memoir. Yes, spelling errors drive me insane so an editor would have been beneficial. But I overlooked them to the pain and the true heart of the story to give it 4 stars. There was a lot of bravery in writing a book that impacted his life so much.
August 18, 2014
True murder
True murder
This book was written from another perception of a mass murder.The author put a lot of time and thought into this book and you can tell how it personally affected him. I really enjoyed it.
True murder
This book was written from another perception of a mass murder.The author put a lot of time and thought into this book and you can tell how it personally affected him. I really enjoyed it.
May 21, 2015
fascinating
Interesting story and compelling account of a completely senseless act in a small town. The authors quest to understand why makes for interesting reading
Interesting story and compelling account of a completely senseless act in a small town. The authors quest to understand why makes for interesting reading
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews