Redbone: Money, Malice, and Murder in Atlanta

As a voracious reader of true crime, I am often disappointed. Many books in this genre seem overly dense and technical and others seem to ignore the facts completely. Ron Stodghill's book is the best of both worlds. It's satisfying, giving the readers details and clever observations AND it's entertaining enough to take to the beach. I am beyond impressed by Mr. Stodghill. I look forward to reading more of his work. I plan on giving this book as a gift to my true crime reading friends.

While the 1996 Olympics placed Atlanta on a world stage, someone murdered forty-one years old ACCESS, Inc. computer consulting firm CEO Lance Herndon. Besides his once successful firm that was suffering from financial troubles, the victim was considered a star player amongst the affluent African-American jet set. Herndon was known to have quite the sexual appetite especially for "redbones" petite, light-skinned black women. One of his redbones, Dionne Baugh, was convicted of killing him as the prosecution pointed out that she became outraged after they had sex because she learned he was not going to help her in court with a charge of trespassing at his home; so while he was sleeping, she killed him. This is an interesting true crime book because of its close look at the power of affluent blacks in the New South. Thus the background and the victim come across three dimensional especially his sultan like behavior towards his harem. Though Herndon's convicted killer seems to nebulous except for her temper and court date motive, Ron Stodghill provides a solid entry that true crime readers will appreciate. Harriet Klausner

Think you need to head towards the fiction section to get a great read this year. Think again! With a visually explosive cover that immediately draws your eyes into picking up this book and reading the flap, Redbone literally walked me through the meaning of those three little words screaming across the front. "Money, Malice and Murder." Mr. Stodghill's easy flowing storytelling with just the right pinch of metaphors, help tell the story that revenge is colorblind. Black, white, rich or poor, betrayal can come back and truly bite you in the ass! The courtroom scenes read like a Grisham novel. It's also a definite read if you are a big fan of the Scott Turow and the James Patterson sect. Looking for a good crime thriller? Give this one a shot! It most definitely didn't disappoint.

If you like suspense, intrigue, and a real thriller, then this book is for you. It is well written and a very interesting story. It held my attention the whole time I never wanted to put the book down. I think this would make a great movie. Sex, Drama, Money and Power it just screams big screen movie. I would recommend this book especially if you like crime and drama. Get this book and tell all your friends!!

A wonderfully written and wonderfully researched book. For anyone interested in a gripping, take-it-to the-beach tale, Stodghill's account of murder, intrigue, money, betrayal, sexual hijinks and the workings of Atlanta's old and new communities, Redbone won't disappoint. From start to finish this is a non-fiction account that reads like a novel. It is layered with intersecting storylines that take you into unexplored or underexamined worlds. Loved it!!!!