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To Die For: The Shocking True Story of Serial Killer Dana Sue Gray |
Customer Rating: 
Sales Rank: 166771
Available from Amazon |
$6.99 |
<div>Impeccably dressed, meticulously neat, Dana Sue Gray spared no expense on herself. Dropping thousands of dollars on a shopping binge or a luxurious day spa was nothing out of the ordinary for Dana-nor for many wealthy women. But Dana wasn't wealthy-she was an unemployed nurse. She was also a serial murderess, who preyed upon elderly women, violently killed them, then used their credit cards to embark on wild, post-murder spending sprees.
Women serial killers are rare-there are only 36 documented cases-and those, like Dana Sue Gray, who murder so brutally that veteran police officers are shaken by the bloodiness of the crime scene, are even rarer. Now, in an exposé as shocking and fascinating as its subject matter, author Kathy Braidhill explores the stunning story of Dana Sue Gray, one of the most dangerous, deadly, and disturbed women in history.
If you are a reader of Ann Rule's and/or Kathryn Casey's books, this one will be a huge disappointment. The story of Dana Sue Gray is interesting. How an extreme need to shop would motivate this young woman to kill elderly women, is fascinating. But the writer does a poor job in explaining most of the questions one has about a female serial killer.
The books starts very slowly and is so redundant. The author goes over the same material several times, and jumps around in the story so that it becomes confusing. And like many crime writers, he seems to think readers are more interested in the law enforcement officials than in the subject of the book. I would rather read about the background of the subject and don't necessarily want to know so much about the investigators.
The author moves quickly over some of the murders, then backtracks later to describe them in more detail. He waits until the last 1/3 of the book before he delves into the childhood, upbringing, and character of Dana Sue Gray. At that point, the book becomes more interesting and easier to read, but that section is way too short compared to the amount of time he spent on the investigators. It's almost as if he just stuck the chapter together the same way he wrote them, with no editing involved.
The author leaves the reader wondering if another book has been written by a different author. One that may explain more about Dana's motives and whether it was remorse that changed her plea to guilty or if it was to avoid the death penalty. A lot of questions go unanswered. However, her life behind bars is detailed and I appreciated that glimpse into prison life. How female prisoners create beauty products out of the sparse materials they have access to, is quite imaginative!
As a prolific crime story reader, this one is at the bottom of my list. I also ordered several other books at the same time and after reading this one, was happy to delve into a Kathryn Casey book where the story flows, is about the main subject with only minor references to law enforcement, and tries to understand/explain what motivates the killer.
There are so many other great books about true crime. I would skip this one or try to find it at the library. Don't waste your money.
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