A Rip in Heaven: A Memoir of Murder and Its Aftermath

Not all, but most of us have grown up with fond memories of family gatherings - whether frequent or infrequent, with cousins near in age whom we admired or admired us, all of the good times thought about during the course of our daily lives. For this family, happiness and normal life as they knew it came to a sudden hault as a horror they never expected unfolded before them. Read this book. The author is able to give you a true account of what really went on because she is the sister of one of the victims, Tom and cousin to the other two victims, Julie and Robin. This story will give you an idea of how the justice system can sometimes work under pressure to solve a murder case. Eventually the truth comes out but a lot of people can go through a living hell before that happens. After I read a true crime story, I try to find as much information as possible regarding the case, written by other sources. I was sickened by some of the information I found fighting for the lives of those convicted of this horrific crime. That is just a personal opinion though. You will get to know the deceased through this book, and perhaps question your higher power on why such valuable lives are taken in such a violent way. I felt I came to know the victims as if I'd gone to school with them. I never knew them but I miss them.

The author takes a very personal story about the murder of her cousins and produces a a well-written book that honors their memory. The story is interesting and Ms. Cummins tightly versed book keeps your interest with no overdone or lingering sections often found in books. She is a very talented writer who should have a long and brillant career in the writing field.

It was a good idea when Jeanine Cummins decided to write this very informative and true story of what happened to her cousins on the awful night during Spring break on the Chain of Rocks Bridge in St. Louis. It is one thing to hear the media views and what you see on the television, but this however, is an heartfelt account told by the Jeanine `Tink' Cummins. She tells us of the day-to-day agony of what these families went through during the investigations, and how this trial affected their lives. Not only for the girls who were thrown off the bridge, but for poor Tom Cummins as well, who at first was held as a suspect. I felt every bit of pain that I imagined he and his family suffered, but I was glad for the wonderful tribute that Tink paid to her cousins enlightening the truth of the principles that Julie and Robin Kerry stood for. Jeanine Cummins did a great job with this story for the people who never got to hear the real truth. Reviewed by Heather Marshall Negahdar (SUGAR-CANE 03/01/05)

So much of what we see in the media today sensationalizes the brutality of crime and in some sense celebrates the monsters who commit them. The stories become about them, and the victims and their families are all too quickly forgotten.Thanks to Jeanine Cummins, we get an insightful look into one family's ordeal, their struggle to come to terms with the sensation that rose up around the case and how the media focuses all too often on the criminals.But at its heart, this is a loving tribute to her lost cousins, Robin and Julie. This book serves, beautifully, in taking their story and remembering truly what has been lost. For over a decade, the focus has been on the bad guys who she portrays quite evenly given her closeness to the subject matter. Now the story has been take back as a fitting memoir to her cousins, told with an insight into what it means to be victimized that we could all stand to learn from.

Tink (Cummins) did an outstanding job of documenting a terrible event and the aftermath that affects the victims and their families. She invites the readers into her tight-knit family with open arms and once you are in the family circle, her vivid description of this horrific night and the years that follow consumes you. This book is a great eye opener for all of those "psycho-killer" followers (American Justice or Cold Case Files viewers) and gives a very balanced and poiniant perspective on the people who matter -- the victims.