Alex Murdaugh has been in the news lately and I thought that I would read another book that took us through what is shaping up to be his first trial, written by James Lasdun, a New Yorker journalist from England who takes us through his journey through the South to research this book.
As you may, or may not know, this family was royalty in the Low Country of South Carolina for over 100 years. They were among the powerful civil attorneys and prosecutors in their area. But that all came crashing down when Alex is alleged to have killed his wife, Maggie, and son Paul. This was just the tip of the iceberg as he was purchasing drugs and embezzling millions of dollars from his personal injury clients. Violence of this magnitude is absolutely unfathomable - he literally shot his son's head off. One of the hardest parts of the evidence for him was video from Paul's phone that puts him at the kennels with them minutes before the homicides are supposed to have occurred (and his corresponding lies - he wasn't there according to him).
Lasdun does a masterful job of researching this book and meticulously unwinding the twine of Alex's lies. He is also masterful in his portrayal of Alex - he essentially makes Alex out to be the kind of sociopathic manipulator that would rob you blind in a heartbeat while pretending to be your best friend. That being said, it didn't really add much to what has already been written about this case.
Definitely worth the read and I'm looking forward to the next trial.
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