A Death in Wichita


Book Description

With A Death in Wichita (originally published as The Wichita Divide) New York Times bestselling author Stephen Singular offers an in-depth account of the life and death of a controversial doctor, the debate that sparked his assassination, and the place where two Americas collide On May 31, 2009, Scott Roeder walked into a Wichita church, drew a pistol, and shot Dr. George Tiller at point blank range. Tiller, who was the most public practitioner of late-term abortions in America, had been a lightning rod for controversy, regularly referred to in the conservative media as "Tiller, the Baby Killer." Tiller's death was a pivotal, public murder in a war that has been raging for decades. It's a war of violently opposing ideologies, encompassing abortion, but also questions of privacy, sexuality, and religion. It's being fought in our nation's courtrooms, school and churches, on television sets, at our dinner tables, and in our bedrooms. And more and more, the key battlegrounds are in Kansas, once home to Brown vs. Board of Education and some of the bloodiest conflicts of the Civil War. A Death in Wichita is a gripping look at a cold-blooded terrorist action, two men representing opposite ideological extremes, and the region where those violent forces clash. "A disturbing, haunting journey into unrepentant hatred." - Kirkus Reviews




The Wichita Divide


Book Description

The New York Times bestselling author offers an in-depth account of the life and death of a controversial doctor, the debate that sparked his assassination, and the place where two Americas collide On May 31, 2009, Scott Roeder walked into a Wichita church, drew a pistol, and shot Dr. George Tiller at point blank range. Tiller, who was the most public practitioner of late-term abortions in America, had been a lightning rod for controversy, regularly referred to in the conservative media as “Tiller, the Baby Killer.” Tiller’s death was a pivotal, public murder in a war that has been raging for decades. It’s a war of violently opposing ideologies, encompassing abortion, but also questions of privacy, sexuality, and religion. It’s being fought in our nation’s courtrooms, school and churches, on television sets, at our dinner tables, and in our bedrooms. And more and more, the key battlegrounds are in Kansas, once home to Brown vs. Board of Education and some of the bloodiest conflicts of the Civil War. This is a gripping look at a cold-blooded terrorist action, two men representing opposite ideological extremes, and the region where those violent forces clash.




Terror in Wichita


Book Description

Everyone, it seems, missed the most obvious signs. A childhood filled with poverty, neglect, drugs, pornog-raphy, physical, mental, and sexual abuse, will invaria-bly lead to an adulthood full of greed, lust and vio-lence. No one, however, could have predicted the terror that Reginald and Jonathan Carr, two brothers in Kansas, would inflict on seven unsuspecting men and women over nine days in December 2000. The brother's crime spree included assault, car-jacking, kidnapping, robbery, rape, torture and murder. Their victims, all upstanding members of the Wichita community, were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. Terror in Wichita: A Story of One Woman's Courage and Her Will to Live, exposes the true story of Jonathan and Reginald Carr. It also reveals the insidious horrors that befell their victims, bringing to life, hour-by-hour and day-by-day, the most egregious mental and physical cruelty imaginable, even to the point of their execution-style murders. The book also tells the story of one woman's refusal to become the ultimate victim, revealing her inner strength and amazing courage. It tells of that woman's endurance and her astonishing rejection of death, at least without assurances that her torturers would be brought to justice for their heinous and cowardly acts. Terror in Wichita is a true crime story that will keep you up at night and compel you to look over your shoulder by day.




American Paper Son


Book Description

During the height of racist anti-Chinese U.S. immigration laws, illegal aliens were able to come into the States under false papers identifying them as the sons of those who had returned to China to marry and have children. American Paper Son is the story of one such Chinese immigrant who came to Wichita, Kansas, in 1935 as a thirteen-year-old "paper son" to help in his father's restaurant there. This vivid first-person account addresses significant themes in Asian American history through the lens of Wong's personal stories. Wong served in one of the all-Chinese units of the 14th Air Force in China during World War II and he discusses the impact of race and segregation on his experience. After the war he found a wife in Taishan, brought her to the US, and became involved in the government's infamous Confession program (an amnesty program for immigrants). Wong eventually became a successful real estate entrepreneur in Wichita. Rich with poignant insights into the realities of life as part of a very small Chinese American population in a Midwestern town, this memoir provides an important new view of the Asian American experience away from the West Coast. Benson Tong adds a scholarly introduction and useful annotations.




Sex-Related Homicide and Death Investigation


Book Description

Remember: Do it right the first time. You only get one chance.Vernon J. Geberth, M.S., M.P.S., 1980, Homicide and Forensic Consultant, Author of Practical Homicide Investigation and the Series Editor of Practical Aspects of Criminal and Forensic Investigations.In Practical Homicide Investigation, renowned author and investigator Vernon J. Gebert




Leaving Las Vegas


Book Description

This “brutal and unflinching” novel of fleeting love in Sin City inspired the film starring Nicholas Cage and Elizabeth Shue (Jay McInerney, author of Bright Lights, Big City). John O’Brien’s debut novel, Leaving Las Vegas, is an emotionally wrenching story of a woman who embraces life and a man who rejects it; a powerful tale of hard luck, hard drinking, and a relationship of tenderness and destruction. An avowed alcoholic, Ben drinks away his family, friends, and, finally, his job. With deliberate resolve, he burns the remnants of his life and heads for Las Vegas to end it all in the last great binge of his hopeless life. On the Strip, he picks up Sera, a prostitute, in what might have become another excess in his self-destructive jag. Instead, their chance meeting becomes a respite on the road to oblivion as they form a bond that is as mysterious as it is immutable.




Calling Up the Dead


Book Description

Herewith, six stories (with an intensity belying their leisurely length), which are set internationally and which span all ages and emotions. In them Weaver holds true to his surname by threading the human spirit poignantly, regardless of the story's setting or mood-be it comic, magical, or grotesque. He, for instance, moves us deftly from three war refugees barely into their puberty, to a talking balcony filled with releasing pity for an elderly woman, to an Asian Indian who has repatriated only to witness a patricide, to an oddly realistic "fairy tale" set in contemporary Russia. Wherever he moves us, he does so with unsettling grace. Book jacket.




The Washingtons. Volume 9


Book Description

This is the ninth volume of a comprehensive history that traces the “Presidential Line” of the Washingtons. Volume one began with the immigrant John Washington who settled in Westmoreland Co., Va., in 1657, married Anne Pope, and was the great-grandfather of President George Washington. It contained the record of their descendants for a total of seven generations. Subsequent volumes two through eight continued this family history for an additional eight generations, highlighting most notable members (volume two) and tracing lines of descent from the royalty and nobility of England and continental Europe (volume three). Volume nine collects over 8,500 descendants of the recently discovered line of William Wright (died in Franklin Co., Va., ca. 1809). It also provides briefer accounts of five other early Wright families of Virginia that have often been mentioned by researchers as close kinsmen of George Washington, including: William Wright (died in Fauquier Co., Va., ca. 1805), Frances Wright and her husband Nimrod Ashby, and William Wright (died in Greensville Co., Va., by 1827). A cumulative index will complete the series as volume ten.




Premonition


Book Description

Cary Mackin is a TV journalist who has covered crime for nearly twenty years. After losing her job she moves to a small town in Connecticut—only to get caught up in the web of a deranged serial killer. Cary has a dark secret that drives everything she does: a deep-seated, lifelong fear that one day she will be murdered. As the madman Cary stumbled upon continues to terrorize the beautiful countryside where she now resides, will her premonition come true? “Premonition…a psycho-thriller roller coaster ride that probes the dark corners of one woman’s seemingly overwhelming paranoia…or is it? From a crime and justice expert, Premonition nails every detail of the criminal mind, the hunter and the hunted. Premonition is full of twists and surprises…I love it! Bravo!” —Nancy Grace, Founder, CrimeOnline.com, Host of CrimeStories on Fox Nation, Sirius XM, and NYT Bestselling Author “My friend and colleague at Court TV, Wendy Whitman, has created a compelling psychological thriller filled with shocking twists that captivate the reader to the very end—and wanting more. Whitman takes daring literary risks with a complex character, Cary Mackin, and her haunting premonition that she will one day be murdered. Driven by her foreboding fear, Mackin deploys extraordinary investigative and forensic skills to track down the man she sees as the killer…before he strikes again—at her! Whitman weaves plot, personality, and prose in a high-octane suspense that will give you paper cuts as you quickly turn the pages. Premonition offers a gripping storyline…and a chilling chase to an ending that you never expected.” —Gregg Jarrett, Network Legal Analyst and Bestselling Author “Whitman’s debut novel is sure to be a great read for true crime fans. If there is anyone best suited to write a book about the reality of evil in this crazy world we live in, it’s Whitman. Her book is unique because although fiction, it so mirrors reality that each page hits home more and more. Having been in the criminal law arena for fifty-five years and having dealt with two notorious serial killer cases, Whitman’s novel captures all aspects of the utter insanity of the criminal mind. In this world of Covid, we all need some respite and a great book is just what the doctor ordered.” —Gerald P. Boyle, Attorney, Represented Serial Killer Jeffrey Dahmer “Chilling and original, Premonition is a brilliant debut thriller from Wendy Whitman, an insider whose deep knowledge of crime and the law has created a platform for suspenseful storytelling. Taut and fast-paced, Whitman’s tale, and her unique central character, combine to create a riveting plot that drives the story to its stunning conclusion.” —Jack Ford, Emmy and Peabody Award–Winning Journalist and Bestselling Author of Chariot on the Mountain “All of those cases on Court TV certainly permeated the mind of producer Wendy Whitman. Her book is a truly breathless thriller through every twist and turn. A stellar debut novel with a terrific female heroine!” —Rikki Klieman, Attorney and CBS News Legal Analyst “A unique psychological thriller that weaves true crime into a plot that keeps the reader captivated from the very first page. A bold, heartfelt debut novel from an author who has created one of the most complex and provocative heroines in recent memory. A perfect read sure to keep you up at night.” —Rita Cosby, Emmy-Winning TV Host and Bestselling Author of Quiet Hero “The decades of Wendy Whitman’s focus and dedication to the crime and justice genre shine through each page, as she spins the yarn in this gripping crime tale. Speaking from experience that has imbued her with personal knowledge of the inner workings of hundreds of criminal minds, she is an authoritative voice in telling crime stories…because she has lived through reporting some of the most disturbing ones in American history. Brava, Wendy!” —Ashleigh Banfield, Court TV Special Contributor and Host of Judgment with Ashleigh Banfield “Wendy Whitman’s debut novel is more than a crime story. Readers will identify with some of her protagonist’s obsessions including food choices (‘borderline vegan’) and her love for animals. Peppered throughout the book are safety tips drawn from actual cases Whitman learned from years covering criminal trials at Court TV where she rose from a producer to a programming executive. There’s something for everyone in Premonition.” —Beth Karas, Former Prosecutor and Host of Oxygen’s Snapped: Notorious “Gripping, suspenseful, and thoughtful, Premonition gives a behind the scenes look at the dangers that surround us as we go about our daily lives. If you’re looking for a crime thriller to get lost in, this is it.” —Dr. Robi Ludwig, Psychotherapist, TV Personality, and Author




West of Wichita


Book Description

This volume, which presents a "slice-of-life" on the Plains during its early settlement, adds rich detail to our understanding of the struggle for survival in a harsh landscape that tested the hardiest pioneer. Miner concentrates not only on the major economic events of the period—railroad building, Indian raids, the grasshopper invasion of 1874, the blizzard of 1886—but also on the more personal experiences equally important: building sod houses, choosing crops, filing of claims, fighting varmints, and dealing with the deaths of children on the prairie. "Magnificent. . . . A subtle and often moving account of pioneer life. . . . A truly splendid book."—Choice "Regional history at its best. . . . Many of the traditional tales of early hardships—grasshopper plagues, Indian attacks, the stress of loneliness and isolation, drought, blizzards, prairie fires, and the unaccustomed hazards of nature—are retold with vigor and a sense of immediacy. These gritty tales of pioneer persistence and stubbornness are used to illustrate the region's cyclical history of hope and despair. . . . Not the least of Miner's talents is his engaging style. Images are alive, progression of the story lively, and the analysis convincing. This first-rate book is an important addition to the history of Kansas and, more broadly, to the study of western settlement."—American Historical Review