Always In Our Hearts: The Story Of Amy Grossberg, Brian Peterson, The Pregnancy They Hid And The Baby They Killed [Mass Market Paperback]

Doug Most (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 3, 2005

Amy Grossberg and Brian Peterson grew up in a wealthy New Jersey suburb, meeting and falling in love while still in high school, then set out for college with their classmates. But in November of their Freshman Year, the two young lovers spent a night in a Delaware motel room where, after hiding her pregnancy from her family and her friends for nine months, Amy gave birth to a baby boy. Only she and Brian knew the child even existed . . . until the next morning when the newborn's corpse turned up in the motel dumpster. The case caused a countrywide outrage, and the teenagers ended up in court, desperately fighting for their lives and ultimately against each other...

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Always in Our Hearts is an in-depth look at an unthinkable crime. Reporter Doug Most does a superb job as he explores the lives of perfect teenagers from perfect families - who made a fatal decision. True crime readers will be both shocked and saddened as they read the fascinating and tragic story of Amy Grossberg and Brian Peterson. Only Most could have written this with such searing detail." -Ann Rule, author of Small Sacrifices and The End of the Dream

"Doug Most has done a terrific job of recreating Brian and Amy's sad story. His objectivity, subtlety and eye for meaningful detail have turned an unforgettable case into an unforgettable reading experience." -Charles Brandt, former chief deputy attorney general of Delaware and author of The Right to Remain Silent

"A true-crime page-turner." -Kirkus Reviews

"Teens will be drawn to this examination of a horrific crime committed by two bright college students." -Booklist

From the Author

This case sparked a debate about how parents and their teenagers fail to communicate about sex and the dangerous consequences that can result. It also was the case that prompted states to begin passing so-called "Safe Haven" laws, permitting mothers to drop off their unwanted infants at designated safe zones like hospitals. Planned Parenthood listed this book as recommended reading for high school students, and I have traveled around speaking to high schools about the case and how the tragedy could have been avoided with one conversation.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's True Crime (May 3, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312973098
• ISBN-13: 978-0312973094
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 4.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #357,668 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not great but not awful, March 2, 2006

By 

A. Luizza (Lehigh Valley, PA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Always In Our Hearts: The Story Of Amy Grossberg, Brian Peterson, The Pregnancy They Hid And The Baby They Killed (Mass Market Paperback)

If you somewhat remember the headlines from this story and can recall the basic outline of the situation involving Amy Grossberg, Brian Peterson and the disposal of their newborn son, you will probably like this book. For those who followed the case closely and are looking for very detailed and lengthy interviews with Amy and Brian and other law officials involved in the trial, you will be disappointed. You could save yourself the $6.99 and read a few CNN archive articles and/or the case history on crimelibrary.com and get the same information that is in this book. It does have eight pages of photos, again, nothing that new that has not been recycled throughout the media for the past ten years, and in black and white as well. In sum, for hardcore true crime fans or intense followers of the case only.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Worth A Read But Very Sad, February 1, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Always In Our Hearts: The Story Of Amy Grossberg, Brian Peterson, The Pregnancy They Hid And The Baby They Killed (Mass Market Paperback)

It took me a while to get through the whole book, as I am a slower reader, but I enjoyed it a lot. As a fan of true crime, a recommend this book. It's not the best I've read, but it is a good read just the same.

You are taken into a world where the pressures of rich kids like Brian Peterson and Amy Grossberg take a turn for the worst. When Amy finds out she is pregnant by her boyfriend Brian, all she can think about is "getting rid of it." Afterall, what will her parents do? And what about her future? Unfortunately all this thought seems to cloud Amy's logical thinking, and is shown in the letters she had wrote to Brian filled with fear, depression, and just wanting the baby gone. Amy never develops any kind of bond with the baby growing inside her.

To top it off, Amy's health deteriorates, and her lack of care for her unborn child hurts her and her baby. She makes Brian keep her secret and not tell a soul. Brian, being loyal to his girlfriend, obeys, and does what he can to go see Amy and take care of her, as they attend different colleges. Amy meanwhile, denys she is pregnant despite the suspicions of her roommates.

To make a long story short, rather than go to a hospital, Brian and Amy end up going to a motel where Amy delivers their child. Amy wanted nothing more than for Brian to get rid of it, so Brian leaves the room, comes back with a garbage bag, puts the baby in the garbage bag, then throws the bag in the dumpster behind the motel.

There was much controversy and hazing stories from Amy and Brian during the questioning, trial, etc. Was the baby dead when born? If so, was the baby still alive when thrown in the dumpster? Why was there damage to the baby's head? Did they do it before Brian dumped the baby, or was the trauma caused by the throw into the dumpster? Was the baby alive when this occured, or was the baby dead already? If alive, did the head trauma kill the baby, or was it hypothermia or suffocation? Did something fall on the baby's head in the dumpster?

All these questions were gone over and over in an attempt to figure out if these two young lovers were killers, or just the innocent victims of poor judgement. It could have been easier, had one of the detectives not moved anything from the dumpster.

In the end, both served some time for the mistake that they made. After reading this book, YOU be the judge; did Brian and Amy get what they deserve? What do you think REALLY happened to the baby?

I guess the hardest part of the book was trying to keep track of all the detectives, lawyers and attorny's etc. There were a few names to memorize, and what their specific jobs were, and that kind of made the book harder to get through. But overall, enjoy the read of a very sad book, where through it all, those who cannot help themselves need someone ot stand up for them and be their voice.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very intense forensic review of the Grossberg-Peterson case, November 26, 2002

By 

David Adler "David" (Hilton Head Island, SC United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Always In Our Hearts: The Story Of Amy Grossberg, Brian Peterson, The Pregnancy They Hid And The Baby They Killed (Mass Market Paperback)

As a Jewish person with family in the same section of New Jersey that is described in the book, I can totally agree with Most's analysis of the family/school/personal situations of these two kids. Doug Most has also immersed himself into the environment he is writing about not only by covering the case from start to finish for his northern New Jersey newspaper, but also interviewing most of the investigators, attorneys, friends and families of both teenagers and attending court hearings throughout the case. He is extremely knowledgeable about the history of the case (the facts) and he presents them very well, in a concise and easy-to-read fashion. The story will hook you, and you will feel like you know these two young people and their families personally.

He also describes the forensic evidence over how the baby actually died in quite a lot of detail, which might be a little hard to understand and you will be introduced to a lot of attorneys, crime lab investigators, coroner's reports and the like. If you are into crime investigation, there is enough detail to interest you. I, however, was more drawn to the social aspects of the case. What made these kids act the way they did? Most explains that very well. You will learn what it is like to live in a posh neighborhood and having to be the very best so your parents will look better, and have to have the very best clothes and get into the best colleges so your parents can achieve status in the community. He describes how "cutthroat" high-school life is in these ritzy communities, and then you begin to see why Amy and Brian had to hide the fact that they were in trouble. "Teenage pregnancies just don't happen in our community", neighbors say. "Our kids are raised better than that." They don't want their parents to be embarrassed in the community. You learn about the decision-making process the kids go through and then you see how much of a shock people get when they see the reality of teenagers' lives. I strongly believe that every parent should read this book, especially Jewish parents, and discuss it with their kids. I say Jewish families, because after all, Amy's family is, and I think that being Jewish drives parents to "encourage" their kids to strive more for success.