Mortal Danger and Other True Cases by Ann Rule

Ann Rule is a True Crime author, having written for many newspapers before telling us the most interesting and horrifying cases that she covered on her newspaper beats. This particular volume, her 13th, covers cases of women who were victimized by men, either their husband, someone they loved, or someone who was just larger and stronger than they were. Rule warns female readers that they may think they can take care of themselves, but men tend to be bigger and stronger, and unless the woman reacts immediately, the male always ends up overpowering her.

The first case covers Kate Jewell, who found love with a Doctor she'd gone to for nutritional problems. Though he was already married, he divorced his wife and went to live with her. They never married, which turned out to be lucky for her- she survived her relationship with John Branden, although she lived in fear for many years after she finally got away.

John Branden was a manipulator, and someone who always had to be the most important one in the relationship. He was convinced he was smarter than everyone around him, and if someone got more attention and praise than he did, he sulked like a child. Slowly, he separated Kate from her friends and co-workers, getting terrifyingly jealous if he even suspected that a man was paying attention to Kate. When she made the decision to finally leave him, he attempted to kill her after raping her, and she managed to get away only by the slimmest of margins.

After Kate escaped the authorities tried to bring John Branden to justice, but he escaped, adopted a pseudonym, and married a woman named Turi Lee, although it wasn't a real marriage, since he refused to sign the marriage papers. There, he was soon up to his old tricks, but this relationship was destined to end in death and murder.

Then there were Brian and Bev Mauck, murdered in their home by an ex-con who was in a relationship with Brian's sister. Though they were active and athletic, both were murdered by a man who got the drop on them- and this case brought down a Republican Candidate for President, for it seems that Mitt Romney appointed the judge that had freed the man who murdered the Maucks later. Romney tried to blame the judge, but the case sank his hopes for election,

Clarence Williams was a two-time murderer, convicted for killing a woman named Laura Anne Baylis who was working as a clerk at a 7-11 under the name of Julie Costello. He'd abducted her from the store late at night and killed her, but after serving the sentence for her crime, he was convicted again by a cold case squad looking into the death of a 15 year old girl named Sarah Beth Lundquist, killed as she walked home from her bus stop late at night.

Lastly is the story of Traia Carr, a divorced woman who disappeared from her own home on a sultry Independence Day night. When her body was found in the woods by a man doing some logging, the trail of her murderer led to someone the police would never have suspected- a teenager who literally lived next door.

And rounding out the book are the stories of two women killed by men who couldn't live with the thought of someone they loved, or had loved, being with someone else. The first, a woman named Kathryn who was killed by Melvin, her ex-husband, with a shotgun blast. The second, Amelia Jaeger, who had married a Swiss man but was driven away by his jealousy and insane behavior. When she left him and moved back to America, he followed her. Her family tried to keep her safe, but her ex-husband stabbed her to death at the airport where they were making him return home.

This book is a scary and sobering look at how vulnerable women are, even in today's society where we supposedly have freedom and equality. It's not just the men you know and are in a relationship with that are a danger to you, but sometimes those you just see and are friendly to on the job or on the street. Some men don't understand that people on the job are paid to be friendly- yes, they may be friendly all the time, but no business attracts customers with surly staff, but a woman who is friendly to them makes them think she likes them, and sets up a relationship in their mind that is completely absent in reality.

What's even scarier is that some men are going to push things and think they are already in a relationship with you just because you are friendly. And if they decide that only they can have you? That's nightmare fuel right there, and all because of the consequence of being friendly. And the only way to really take care of yourself is to train yourself to react instantly- hesitation can lead to your death.

This book is a good, if frightening look at True Crime, and the sorts of things that can happen to women. But if Ann Rule's timely book can save anyone, it will have had its intended effect. Highly recommended.