Customer Reviews

Washed in the Blood

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Shelly gets it right. I was Betty's best friend at Odessa High School in 1961--the one she planned to room with at Indiana University. Shelly captures her vivacious, funny, manipulative and melodramatic personality. Yes, Betty slept around. She traded sex for attention and the brief illusion that guys cared about her. And if she had lived, she would have been a flower child in the 60's, run off to Haight-Ashbury with Bob Dylan or taken off her clothes in "Hair" on Broadway, and we'd be bragging about "knowing her when"!

There WAS a booster club around Mack--his "supporters", who turned Mack into their personal misunderstod celebrity. Shelly did a fine job presenting the enigma that was Mack Herring. To this day no one knows WHY Mack did it.

My relationship with Enid Woodward was different from Betty's. Ms. Woodward was wonderful to me--one of the few encouraging, positive people after the murder. She gave me hope. Shelly didn't get it wrong for Betty, but in my opinion, she was also victim who was caught up in the whirlwind.

Those of us who lived through this experience were never the same after. For a little while Shelly brought the Betty I knew back to life. The book captured those days in chilling detail and confirmed my experiences and conclusions about the murder. Thanks Shelly, for doing such a great job. Sorry you've taken so much heat for speaking out, but for what it's worth, I appreciate it. You got it right.
Gayle Guffey Ross

Shelton Williams has written a personal account of the "Kiss and Kill" murder case and life Odessa, Texas in 1962. In a book that's hard to put down, Shelly opens his soul, as not many have the courage to do, to tell the story of the murder of his 17-year-old cousin. He asked the questions never asked, why was she murdered, did she want to die and why was her killer set free? It is a sensitive and telling piece on growing up in Odessa and how this famed murder case made some fortunes and shaped the lives of others, including his own.

This is a fascinating story that vividly paints the picture of growing up in the 1950's West Texas. Shelton Williams sensitively tells the tale of his cousin's dramatic life. If you are a fan of Ann Rule or Larry McMurtry, this would definitely be worth your time.

A disturbing, sad, quirky, true tale- mainly biographical that pulls you in and holds you to the end. Set mainly in working class West Texas in the late 60's, it tells the story of a dysfunctional family struggling with demons of their own making and with those thrust on them by religiosity, the environment and the times. To be different from the norm meant heart-breaking ostracism and isolation. For Shelly's cousin, it meant her mysterious death at 17. A West Texas '60's story but more than that it is a story about universal questions and truths. Compact, understated, minimalist writing style with strong underlying warm feeling tones

Washed In The Blood is a must read not only for West Texans, but for all who seek to understand the fascinating life and death of Elizabeth J. Williams. This is the first book I've read in years that I couldn't put down until I reached the last page. Regardless of what you already know about the "Kiss and Kill Murder", Washed In The Blood will thrill and excite you as you as the author takes you inside the personal life and death of a beautiful girl who's life ended too soon.

It's all Shelly! I grew up at this time and in this place. My friend Shelly Williams opens his heart to the world as he shares his truth of being in this West Texas world. If we transformed these real people to today's world, could this tragic event happen? I think not, but you be the judge. Pick up the book; you won't stop reading until you get to the final page!

This book tells a story from the author's first-hand vantage point. It does not condemn the killer nor whitewash the victim. It reaches for a personal testimony that reflects on the events, the place, and the times that he experienced in the 1960s. That the story is incomplete and that the mystery surrounding the Kiss and Kill Murder is still unfathomable make the retelling all the more compelling. The current meaning of the victim's death is much more important than any debate about the events of 1962. Washed in the Blood shows how the girl's story inspires and cautions students to this very day. Betty Williams' life and her death, therefore, had meaning. I had to tell that story.
Shelton Williams

When I found out about this book, via the Texas Monthly article, I could neither believe it, nor wait to get it.
I was blown away by the article, as it was about my family, and referenced a book written by a relative I did not know. Betty, had she lived, would have been my Aunt - her mother is my Grandmother. I've always only known Betty as a picture on the wall of my grandparents room. So I bought the book. This story was shocking and intriguing in terms of information on my family and its roots...both my parents came from Odessa, and my father also played for Permian. I don't know how interesting anyone else would find this story if they didn't have a personal connection to the location or the people. The story moves at a weird, choppy pace, has little information on the actual crime and doesn't have any answers. None of that bothers me, personally, as I wasn't looking for a "thriller", but for a description of this event that shaped my Grandparents, hence my parents, hence me. What it does have is a beautiful, tragic picture of typical teenage angst gone too far...she's like a female James Dean. Thanks for filling in some blanks...
Eric M. Jones

I remember hearing about this case when I was just a kid of 10. So, when Pam mentioned she knew Shelly, the author, I asked to read it.
Shelton does a wonderful job describing the murder and the societal structure which I feel in some ways lead to the murder and the killer getting off scot free. Haven't we proven the rich can get away with murder.
In those days the men were the bread winners and the wives had to put up with their petty tyrant husbands screwing around on them. And the kids walked on eggshells trying to keep daddy happy.
When I graduated 10 years after the murder it was the same in the high schools. The rich kids hung with the rich kids. The poor with the poor. And if you crossed the line you dated on the sly and couldn't be seen in public places, been there done that.
Though we will never know what Betty really wanted I doubt it was to end the way it did. I feel she was a typical teen who got sucked into the drama of everyday life and could see no a way out of her situation.
It is a good thing that someone (Shelly) finally came to the defense of Betty's reputation. Thank God times have changed (somewhat) and things are more equal between the sexes.

I was very close to some of the people in this case and after some trepidation picked up "Washed in the Blood." I couldn't put it down. Mack Herring pulled the trigger yet it is more of an indictment of families that don't work as well as growing up in Odessa, Texas in the 50's & 60's. It is also a book of hope in that Betty Williams still "lives" in the hearts and minds of a lot of people.

If you grew up in West Texas at that time or are close to somone who did, or locked into a point of view in regard to this case, please do yourself a favor and read this book.