Final Affair (Berkley True Crime) [Mass Market Paperback]

Frank McAdams (Author), Tim Carney (Author)

Book Description

Series: Berkley True Crime | Publication Date: January 8, 2002

When Janet Overton died from "unexplained causes," no one in her Orange County community suspected foul play. But a year later, Sheriff's Investigator Tim Carney sensed something amiss in this so-called "nothing case"-and uncovered the shocking truth about Dr. Richard Overton's past.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Berkley (January 8, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0425183084
• ISBN-13: 978-0425183083
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,549,876 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Workmanlike, solid police procedural true crime, July 5, 2003

By 

A Customer - See all my reviews

This review is from: Final Affair (Berkley True Crime) (Mass Market Paperback)

This is literally the only police procedural true crime book I've ever read. The book begins with the strange death of Janet Overton, a popular school trustee, which was ultimately classified as a death from natural causes. The case was filed as an open coroner's case, and that was where it languished until Investigator Timothy Carney [one of the book's co-authors] opened a file in his desk drawer on the first day of his new job as a homicide investigator.

The remainder of the book details Carney and his partner's dogged, almost obsessive pursuit of what they are sure was a murder by cyanide and of Richard Overton, the victim's husband, who they become convinced is the murderer and who is also revealed to be a classic antisocial personality or sociopath. Carney and his partner meet and overcome each obstacle that arises during the investigation, knowing that if they fail at any step along the way, the case will be over. Carney becomes relentess in his research and preparation, and ultimately, the case must go before a homicide panel [a group of attorneys each with substantial experience trying homicide cases] before the District Attorney's office will proceed to a grand jury. Carney wins, the case goes before a grand jury, and Overton is arrested. The book ends with his arrest.

The ending of the books is one of its faults. Overton was tried twice [the first trial resulted in a hung jury] and the only information about the trials were two sentences in an Epilogue at the end of the book. This case is bizarre and the evidence is so strange I was curious for some details about what a jury thought or about how the case was tried. This book also needed more details about Richard Overton and the development of his sociopathy. The book is well organized and structured, but the writing is plodding.

Overall, this is a worthwhile book, but it could have been better.

16 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Final Affair, March 14, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Final Affair (Berkley True Crime) (Mass Market Paperback)

I shared office space with Jan Overton while she was on the school board in Dana Point, California. We had many arguments about school funding.

Jan told me several times about having a key to a boat. At the time I didn't think much about it. Later events demonstrated the importance of those comments.

At an office picnic my wife and I met Jan's husband. Our instant reaction was comparable to meeting a character from Frankenstein.

While I was in the hospital recovering from surgery, Jan sent me a box of chocolates. They appeared as though they had partially melted in the summer heat, and then solidified again.

After reading the book you will understand why I feel lucky that my wife and I did not eat those chocolates!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars More insight needed, November 10, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Final Affair (Berkley True Crime) (Mass Market Paperback)

Although this book is an fascinating look into the world of a homicide detective, it needed far more insight into Richard Overton's relationship with his wife. The book explains that early on in their marriage, Jan Overton knew her husband poisoned his first wife. She heard him confess to police. The book just glosses over this scene making no further mention of Jan's reaction to the disturbing information. The author gives no reason why Jan stayed with her husband many long years until her death. Was Jan Overton crippled by low self-esteem or mental illness? Why would she stay with a diabolic man? Was there more to the story? Like her husband, it seems she lived a double life. She was an outgoing school official with a terrible marital secret which tragically became her demise. Their relationship begs for more explanation and insight. This is where the book falls short.