'Till Death Do Us Part: Love, Marriage, and the Mind of the Killer Spouse [Hardcover]

Robi Ludwig (Author), Matt Birkbeck (Author), Larry King (Introduction), Nancy Grace (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 28, 2006

Every day six people in the United States are murdered by spouses or intimate partners. The stories of killer spouses tend to captivate us, as they beg the question of how so many seemingly normal and happy people manage to go over the edge. Indeed, every relationship presents "extreme moments" where scary feelings surface, yet what happens when those feelings turn to action?

In "Till Death Do Us Part," noted psychotherapist Dr. Robi Ludwig, along with journalist Matt Birkbeck, presents the psychological profiles of notorious killer spouses -- from Scott Peterson and Clara Harris to Rabbi Fred Neulander and Betty Broderick. Ludwig reveals ten killer personality types. These ten personality types are defined in detail and illustrated with examples from high-profile cases along with in-depth analyses of the motivations behind the murders. The ten types range from the Betrayal/Abandonment Killer (who loses control and kills from a broken heart) to the Control Killer (who micromanages every aspect of the spouse's life) and the Black Widow/Profit Killer (who kills for money).

With gripping stories and probing insight, authors Ludwig and Birkbeck examine the concept of peaceful versus violent resolution and why certain spouses believe murder is the best and only response. In an age when spousal murder is headline news, "Till Death Do Us Part" explores a phenomenon that many spouses can't help but think about at some point in their relationships -- which sheds light on the very notion of "happily ever after."

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Capitalizing on America's fascination with spousal murder, psychotherapist Ludwig details 10 "motivations and triggers," and uses real-life examples (some more famous than others) to illustrate her theories about why husbands and wives off one another. And after a slow first chapter on the history of marriage ("Why Marry?"), it's off to the homicidal races. Each chapter begins with a brief overview of the murder profile's hallmarks before delving into case studies, the first of which details a woman running over her cheating husband. That Ludwig loads her book with profiles of seemingly ordinary marriages gone violently wrong lends credence to her insistence that "most of us, whether we admit it or not, sometimes have violent, even homicidal thoughts toward our spouse." Her case studies stick to the facts and don't dwell on or sensationalize the crimes, which are told in a straightforward fashion uncommon in true crime books. An intelligent and timely book, this will please true crime readers as much as those interested in psychology.
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Review

"Our culture bears witness to a violent epidemic of spousal abuse: violent domestic outrages occur to the tune of six homicides daily and one million reported cases of physical assaults yearly. To understand and hopefully deter this domestic violence, "Till Death Do Us Part" is an invaluable resouce. It offers an expert's analysis of the psychological factors that oftentimes coalesce and are expressed violently."-- Robert K. Tanenbaum, former homicide bureau chief for the Manhattan DA's office and "New York Times" bestselling author of "Fury"

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Atria; 1st Atria Books Hardcover Ed edition (March 28, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 074327508X
• ISBN-13: 978-0743275088
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #640,629 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Wait till this one hits the Clearance racks, here's the lowdown on this:, March 20, 2007

By 

K. Corn "reviewer" (midwest, United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: 'Till Death Do Us Part: Love, Marriage, and the Mind of the Killer Spouse (Paperback)

If you are a True Crime fan, then you MAY want to buy this book but you should know something about what this book contains first, as well as the fact that the title is a bit misleading. This book isn't ONLY about the Mind of the Killer Spouse but a look at the pros and cons of love and marriage as well. If you are looking only for True Crime stories, you'll have to read a lot of theory and research along the way, much of it about marriage and why people get married, etc.

The first chapter is particularly heavy on the marriage research aspect of things, including a section about why people marry in the first place,along with such depressing details as the fact that a huge percentage of men and women (even those without murder in their hearts) are unfaithful. You have to get through that before you really start to get to specific cases of spousal murder. It is pretty dry stuff, unless you are MOSTLY interested in research about marriage.

If that doesn't dissuade you and you are willing to read about various theories in between the accounts of the various crimes, this might be worth a browse for you. But some of these cases HAVE been covered in detail before, including the one of Pamela Smart, a media services worker at school who got her much younger 15 year old lover to agree to be a hit man and murder her husband.

If you are a true crime reader, you may already be familiar with this case and others in the book. I think the Pamela Smart case was actually covered much better in the book To Die For (although it is a fictionalized version of the case) as well as the movie by the same name (starring Nicole Kidman in a tour de force performance).

In my opinion, this author needed either a better editor, proofreader or writer friend to help get rid of the drier material and hone in on the main points and focus onn the actual cases. I found this to be a pretty dull read - and that is saying a lot for a book which SHOULD be inherently pretty exciting and interesting, simply because of the subject matter. True Crime is a popular subject....but you, the reader, can do better than this one.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Mildly Interesting, November 4, 2006

By 

True Crime Buff - See all my reviews

This review is from: 'Till Death Do Us Part: Love, Marriage, and the Mind of the Killer Spouse (Hardcover)

I was given this book as a gift from my son, who knows of my interest in the subject. I read the entire book (it's a quick read!) while I was waiting to have my car serviced. One of the reviewers on this site said "I've read better." No kidding. I didn't realize what a good writer Ann Rule is until I read THIS book! Robi Ludwig should stick to looking cute on TV while giving her fluffy opinion of what makes the criminal mind work. That works better for her than actually putting those opinions down on paper. Even a ghost writer couldn't make her sound educated or literate.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Theres better out there, April 20, 2006

By 

Linda PA - See all my reviews

This review is from: 'Till Death Do Us Part: Love, Marriage, and the Mind of the Killer Spouse (Hardcover)

If youd like a really good book on this subject read Gail SaltzMD new book "Anatomy Of A Secret Life; The Psychology of Living A Lie". Dr Saltz is a regular on the Today Show and many other shows. Having read both books Dr Saltz book is by far a better book, more researched, better written and has much more interesting information.