Mom Said Kill

Mom Said Kill follows a very precise time line. We follow the case event by event, from the investigation to the final outcome, and each new step sets in motion more debates,arguments, and efforts to unravel what "really" happened. Barer paints a good picture of the kind victim who maybe "saw it coming" but did nothing to stop it -- a guy who was too trusting, to ready to forgive, and way too generous to the wrong people. This story gave me the creeps, but it made me think about things I hadn't really thought about before. Mom Said Kill is a very good true crime book, and Burl Barer has a smooth writing style. If you like true crime, you will like this book.

Burl Barer's latest true crime book "Mom Said Kill" is another example of his superior talent. This case is terribly sad, with so many more victims that just Mr. Heiman - Jerry's mother, his children, the youngest of the Opel children and from my POV Heather Opel as well. He brings up social issues such as the handling of juvenile crime in our society as well as (obviously) parenting methodolgies and how they can impact the lives and futures of our children. Highly recommended.

I have been criticized for writing what appears to be book reports and spoiling murder mysteries. Unfortunately, the true crime books are all about real people and the truth is out there regarding the circumstances of their crimes. The title says a lot about the Barbara Opel case who is also a prime candidate for the worst mother in the world regarding the Jerry Heineman case in Everett, Washington. Burl Barer is an excellent true crime reporter who prefers to write about crimes that don't always get much media attention. Maybe because this group of characters would be more appropriate on the Jerry Springer Show than anywhere else. Barbara Opel is quite a manipulator, con-artist, and quie frightening to her own children. Her case is one on par with Diane Downs easily involving a murder for rich scheme which backfired so badly that it is almost laughable except for the victims involved. Barbara Opel robbed her children of a lot more than just a normal, stable childhood and loving environment. She brought them into this world to use them in her own schemes for quick money no matter who it hurts. After all, she allowed her thirteen year old daughter, Heather, to have sex in her own home with a seventeen year old boy who she recruited for her crime. This case reminds me of the Gertrude Baniszewski case in Indiana where she used the neighborhood kids to torture her young boarder. Fortunately, Barbara Opel was never bright enough to carry out the scheme herself but used her own children which should have been taken away by the state children's services long before they were harmed not only physically, psychologically, emotionally, and sexually by their own mother. I recommend reading this true crime book because most of the books out there are repetitive and redundant with the same stories that you are actually comparing which writer is better at grasping the whole story. Burl Barer doesn't write about those cases but writes about the familiar environment of Washington state.