The true story of Theresa Knorr, the twisted child abuser who murdered her daughters–with the help of her sons–told by a former New York Times reporter. In June 1985, Theresa Cross Knorr dumped her daughter Sheila’s body in California’s desolate High Sierra. She had beaten Sheila unconscious in their Sacramento apartment days earlier, then locked her in a closet to die. But this wasn’t the … die. But this wasn’t the first horrific crime she’d committed against her own children.
The previous summer, Knorr had shot Sheila’s sister Suesan, then ordered her son to dig the bullet out of the girl’s back with a knife to hide the evidence. The infection that resulted led to delirium–at which point Knorr and her two sons drove Suesan into the mountains, doused her with gasoline, and set her on fire.
It would be almost a decade before her youngest daughter, Terry Knorr Graves, revealed her mother’s history of unfathomable violence. At first, she was met with disbelief by law enforcement and even her own therapist. But eventually, the truth about her monstrous abuse emerged–and here, an award-winning journalist details the jealousy, rage, and domineering behavior that escalated into homicide and shattered a family.
A former reporter for the New York Times and Los AngelesTimes and the author of true-crime classics including Angel of Darkness, about serial killer Randy Kroft, and Blood Cold, about Robert Blake and Bonny Lee Bakley, Dennis McDougal reveals the shocking depths of depravity behind a case that made headlines across the nation.
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This book will keep you turning the pages…Hard to believe that a mother could treat her children this way! You want to get to the end to find out the mothers punishment!
Sadistic mother killing two of her children & think nothing is wrong with her actions. Damaged children for rest of their lives. At least one of the sons tried to turn his life around. Daughter who turned her in to police tried to turn her life around but unable to do so because she is too damaged mentally
A mother who makes Joan Crawford (Mommy Dearest) look like a saint.
Horror is not in movies, it’s in us!
this book was about a character so despicable I could not finish the book
A horrific true crime.
As these books go, not bad; it’s quite descriptive and appears to be thorough. The real question is whether a reader really wants the inside details on this monster of a mother.
One of the most well-written true crime books i’ve read. Doesn’t spend boring chapters listing every word of the trial. Instead just tells the story straight through beginning to end.
Hard to imagine anyone could be so horrible.
Horrifying…I cannot imagine what these children went through. Hell has a place for this woman.
Unbelievable but I know it happened. That woman should be in jail for the rest of her life.
Found this a hard read. Story is incredible
So-so writing.
Interesting and well-written account of a thoroughly twisted family.
The subject was horrible and sad.
What a crazy life some people live and get away with,!!!
No real excitement. Somewhat predictable
It was an interesting story when I saw the interview on tv, the youngest daughter having finally revealed after so many years. I imagine it must have been a tremendous undertaking to gather all that old information. A pretty unbelievable true story, I thought it could have been written a little better.
Oh my goodness. I felt so sorry for these people. Knowing that the people in the story are real… so so sad. And the author writes the story well, it’s haunting and believable and so sad that it is true.
Very detailed accounts of what their lives were like.