After finishing my second book of the year, Evidence of Love: A True Story of Passion and Death in the Suburbs, I thought to myself: am I really diving into the true-crime literary world? And what better way to take the plunge than to read about a gruesome murder that took place in a safe, Texan suburb?
Now, before I get into the nitty-gritty, and twisted book review I want to take a moment to talk about my January reads. The whole idea of having a booklist for this year would not have happened without my boyfriend gifting me true-crime novels. Onto the review!
Candy Montgomery and Betty Gore lived in small Texas suburbs during the 1980s, where they both attended church, had daughters that were best friends, and had husbands working at the same tech companies. On June 30th, 1980 housewife Betty Gore was murdered in her own home with an ax. The tragic and brutal murder left people in shock and were left to wonder who could commit such a vile act.
Left to wonder, the police department discovered the last person to see Betty Gore alive - Candy Montgomery. The shock continued, and as her story delved into something much deeper, there would lead to national headlines. What could cause such a turn of events?
Well, if you must know, it involves Candy Montgomery and a secret she desperately tries to hide. She pleads self-defense when charged with the murder of Betty Gore, and this trial reached the national level. To know more, read the novel!
John Bloom and Jim Atkinson took on the challenge of writing Candy Montgomery and Betty Gore's last movements leading up to the murder. They bring the lives of both women to the surface with their writing and description of how two small-town girls ended up in the same small-town Church. Their talents came together to publish the hauntingly true story of the murder of Betty Gore.
John Irving Bloom, known by his stage name Joe Bob Briggs, is a well-known film critic, talented writer, and comic performer. His most recent appearance is performing as the host of The Last DriveIn on Shudder from 2018 to the present. The talents of Bloom are highly recommended to check out!
Jim Atkinson, meanwhile, is an award-winning true-crime writer and journalist of 40 years. Writing for newspapers, magazines, and television, Atkinson is well known for his founding editor of Texas Monthly for 30 years. He is in the works of writing his latest novel in Santa Fe and his The View From Nowhere is famous for its hilarity of the greatest bars for hard drinking in the country. Check him out!
Thanks for reading!
Until next time,
Riss Reviews
The picture is from: https://books.apple.com/us/book/evidence-of-love/id1180840838
P.S. Be on the lookout for my third review (soon)!