Jesse James Hollywood grew up in L.A.'s upscale West Hills with every imaginable privilege. By the age of 19, he owned a spacious house, a tricked-out car, a closet full of designer clothes. His lifestyle of drinking, partying and getting high was bankrolled by his chosen career: drug dealing. In 2000, Ben Markowitz, another teen from a 'good family', found himself with a dope tab he couldn't pay. A standoff between dealer and druggie exploded when Hollywood, along with William Skidmore and Jesse Rugge, both 20, spotted Ben's brother, Nick, 15, walking near his parents' home. Witnesses saw the three men attack Nick, then shove him into a van and drive off. But assault and kidnapping were only the beginning...On the last night of Nick's life, he was taken to an isolated area outside Santa Barbara known as the Lizard's Mouth. There, he was shot to death and buried in a shallow grave. But the story was far from over. Because mastermind Jesse James, like his namesake, knew how to run and hide. With his handsome face at the top of the FBI's Most Wanted list, he lived in luxury until the long arm of the law reached out to pull him back home for justice...
I'm the author of sixteen true-crime books. SHATTERED INNOCENCE, the story of Jaycee Lee Dugard is certainly one of the most incredible cases I've written about. Not only the fact that Jaycee and her daughters endured such primitive conditions in the secret compound, but the fact that Phillip Garrido was able to con the justice system for so long. SHATTERED INNOCENCE looks at the story in its entirety from many different angles.
I've traveled all over the American West in researching my books, and they span from the moutains of Wyoming to the sunny beaches of Southern California. From the ranchlands of New Mexico to the fog-shrouded Olympic Peninsula of Washington state.
I'm also the author of four e-books on Kindle - NIGHTMARE IN PARADISE, THE CAMPGROUND KILLER, THE CUTTING EDGE and DEATH IN THE VALLEY, which is a fictional mystery set in 19th century Yosemite.
Here are the true-crime books I've written:
ROPE BURNS
SAVAGE
LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON
DANGEROUS ATTRACTION
MARRIED TO MURDER
KILL OR BE KILLED
UNHOLY SACRIFICE
DEADFALL
MONSTER SLAYER
KILLER DAD
DRIVEN TO MURDER
LUST TO KILL
RIVERS OF BLOOD
MOST WANTED KILLER
BLOOD FRENZY
SHATTERED INNOCENCE
