The Amish Wife: Unraveling the Lies, Secrets, and Conspiracy That Let a Killer Go Free
£7.90£8.50 (-7%)
The #1 New York Times and Amazon Charts bestselling author Gregg Olsen solves a murder among the Amish and reveals the conspiracy to keep it a secret in a heartbreaking and horrifying true-crime story.
In 1977, in an Ohio Amish community, pregnant wife and mother Ida Stutzman perished during a barn fire. The coroner’s report: natural causes. Ida’s husband, Eli, was never considered a suspect. But when he eventually rejected the faith and took his son, Danny, with him, murder followed.
What really happened to Ida? The dubious circumstances of the tragic blaze were willfully ignored and Eli’s shifting narratives disregarded. Could Eli’s subsequent cross-country journey of death―including that of his own son―have been prevented if just one person came forward with what they knew about the real Eli Stutzman?
The questions haunted Gregg Olsen and Ida’s brother Daniel Gingerich for decades. At Daniel’s urging, Olsen now returns to Amish Country and to Eli’s crimes first exposed in Olsen’s Abandoned Prayers, one of which has remained a mystery until now. With the help of aging witnesses and shocking long-buried letters, Olsen finally uncovers the disturbing truth―about Ida’s murder and the conspiracy of silence and secrets that kept it hidden for forty-five years.
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Additional information
| Publisher | Thomas & Mercer (1 Jan. 2024) |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Paperback | 395 pages |
| ISBN-10 | 1542016509 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-1542016506 |
| Dimensions | 13.97 x 2.54 x 21.59 cm |
by Kindle Customer
Story jumps all over the place. Difficult to follow.
by Grace
Sorry Gregg but I found this a little boring. Going back in time. I did read the first one and really didn’t need this. Actually have read about 40% and put it to one side.
by Kindle Customer
I found this very frustrating, so many people, so many Eli’s, and Levi’s. It became a complicated jigsaw. It made me want to scream, just give the outcome of your investigation. Hence four stars , not five.
by Sally Edwards
This was an amazing firsts choice and I love a bit of true crime. However the author assumes you have read his first book on this case (abandoned something) and I haven’t so was very confused. He does recap a bit but it’s assumed you have prior knowledge which isn’t clear from the blurb.
by Mrs. Linda M. Scott
Jumped around too much and could not get away with it
by Tambok
Gregg Olsen’s big break as a top True Crime author was back in 1990 when his book “Abandoned Prayers” revealed the crimes of depraved Amish serial killer Eli Stutzman. The biggest obstacle when researching that book was the wall of silence in the Amish community ,who largely not only didn’t want to speak about Stutzman but leaned on members of their sect who were more willing to do so.
The most deafening silence was over the death of Stutzman’s wife Ida, who died before he left the Amish lifestyle and went on to live a life of debauchery and homicide.
45 years later Olsen is approached by Ida’s brother asking if he’d take another look at Ida’s death ,suggesting that with the passage of time remaining witnesses might be more willing to talk. Taking on this seemingly daunting task Olsen opens a whole can of very unpleasant worms in Amish Country.
This is an excellent read told in a stream of consciousness style,as if Gregg Olsen is telling you the tale over a few drinks in a quiet bar,albeit often not subjects you’d want to discuss while having a relaxing drink. The book shows the reality of investigative journalism, as well as successes and revelations Olsen also details the times he had doors shut in his face,the dead ends and the false trails as well as the looming publication date with no real resolution that threatens to leave the book somewhat flat,and then…………………well there’s as good a twist as in any work of crime fiction but this is real life.
An excellent read,not least because of the writing style.
by kittykat
Only just started reading it but so far it’s good .
by Funnybunny
I persevered until I’d read about 40% of the book. The theme of the book should have made for an exciting read but it was slow, boring and didn’t flow.