Book Description

This book chronicles the journey of discovery by a man who went on a quest to solve a mystery. Did his grandmother die the way he was told she had, or was she murdered? The rumor had plagued his family for almost four decades. Could the unthinkable be true, that his own grandfather might have been involved with the mysterious death of his grandmother? Along the way in his multiyear odyssey, the author discovers his family roots, his family tree, and the disturbing secrets long buried by his family. He vividly portrays the life and culture of Paducah, Kentucky, East St. Louis, Illinois, and Okeechobee, Florida, in the 1910s through the 1970s. He displays a culture and dialect of a strong breed of people that lived in rural western Kentucky in the early 1900s. He discovers extreme violence, knife fights, gunfights, bigamy, racism, thievery, bootlegging, and long-lost siblings. He discovers secrets within military and government files, unknown mental illnesses, wife-beatings, and murders. He discovers his grandfather’s World War II emprise, and the surprises it revealed. He uncovers the secrets of Freemasonry, and how it may have been involved in his grandmother’s death. He uncovers many lies from many people, and lawlessness by some in his family. The story includes attempts at a belated exhumation and autopsy to finally solve the mystery once and for all. He finally brings together all the evidence, pieces of a bizarre mystery, never before assembled by his family, to solve the enigma of his grandmother’s death. This book details the emotional pendulum experienced by a grandson on a journey to solve a riddle, and being repeatedly shocked and dumbfounded by what he found. Anne Carayon: “Great entertaining narrative! The mystery thickens as you go along! The historical and sociological backgrounds have transformed a personal sad story into a page of American Middle West history. It is also a description of what man can do to achieve his egotistical goals. That’s universal and timeless.” Deborah Schadt: “How brave it was of Dwain Tucker to put so much thought, time, and energy into looking for something he didn’t want to find! His intention to uncover evidence to disprove a family murder rumor led him to the discovery of numerous family secrets, both good and bad. “Many in Dwain Tucker’s family learned everything they knew from the school of hard knocks, and he was so honest in his portrayal of the ‘colorful’ characters in his family. His attempt at imitating the dialect used by the people of that place and time is both humorous and accurate. “Dwain has my admiration, appreciation, and gratitude for preserving a part of the Tucker family history—that if not for his perseverance would have otherwise been forever lost.”