My take on: Then No One Can Have Her

TV shows like Snapped, 48 Hours, Lockup, and just about anything on Investigation ID are extremely addicting for me. True-crime novels are right up my alley. Although, I must confess that books by the late Ann Rule were always at the top of my list. But.....Caitlin Rother has become one of my favorites too.

Rother's latest book, Then No One Can Have Her, is a deep dive into the July 2008 murder of Carol Kennedy, a divorced mother of two. The obvious suspect was her ex-husband Steven DeMocker.

Why him? Isn't that a little too easy? Sometimes the most obvious answer is the correct one. I don't think I'm spoiling anything by saying that Steve DeMocker is a murder. This book is a detailed, well-researched account of the events leading up to Carol's murder and the years after that it took to bring him to trial.

Some parts of this book were so hard, and at the same time so infuriating to read. Carol was bludgeoned to death. The details were stomach-churning. This woman suffered in her final moments. The infuriating part was Steve's behavior after the fact. His narcissism comes through loud and clear in the book. There wasn't a whole lot of empathy on his part, even for his own daughters Katie and Charlotte. He showed no emotion while his grieving daughters eulogized their mother. Steve's own speech at the funeral was not about Carol but himself. His "alibi" was also just a little too convenient, a sudden bike ride on the night of the murder. A bike ride on a trail which no one saw him. A bike ride that resulted in scratches on his body. A bike ride that was suspiciously near Carol's home. A bike ride that resulted in a flat tire. A bike ride in which his cellphone was mysteriously turned off for several hours. 

There's so much that pointed to Steve's guilt. He owned a set of golf clubs, which were consistent with the suspected murder weapon. Yet it would take years before a trial got underway. Changes in Steve's defense team and changes behind the bench led to delay after delay. Where's good old Steve these days? I think everyone can guess.

Where do people like Steve DeMocker come from? Why do they do what they do? What gives them the right to be judge, jury, and executioner over innocent people? It's hard to know or even comprehend. But writers, like Caitlin Rother, are doing a good job to bring light to these cases. This one is worth a read.

Rating: Give it a try

Note: I received a copy of the book from the publisher (Kensington Publishing) as part of a blog tour.