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Monster
In the 25th anniversary of this true crime masterpiece, acclaimed author Steve Jackson recounts the intriguing pursuit and long awaited conviction of a charismatic, monstrous psychopath.
On a snowy winter evening in 1982, twenty-one-year-old Mary Brown accepted a ride from a handsome stranger in the resort town of Breckenridge, Colorado. What followed was a nightmare of unspeakable cruelty. Miraculously, Mary survived her horrific ordeal, but the true depths of her attacker’s malevolence were yet to be revealed. For him, the violence had only just begun.
After ten years in prison, Tom Luther was released a far more vicious criminal. Often compared to Ted Bundy, Luther cut a deadly swath from the Rockies to West Virginia, luring a chain of women into the black hole of his murderous vision.
One cop was obsessed with catching this brutal killer--and pinning at least one Colorado murder on him. But as Luther led Detective Scott Richardson through a maze of lies and deception, the stakes began to rise. From the Rockies to West Virginia, young women were coming face to face with a murderous monster raging out of control. And none of them were coming out alive.
In this gripping true crime masterpiece, acclaimed author Steve Jackson recounts the intriguing pursuit and long-awaited conviction of a charismatic, monstrous psychopath. By delving deep into the heart of true evil, Jackson offers valuable lessons on what makes violent predators tick, and what can be done to limit their relentless toll on society.
On a snowy winter evening in 1982, twenty-one-year-old Mary Brown accepted a ride from a handsome stranger in the resort town of Breckenridge, Colorado. What followed was a nightmare of unspeakable cruelty. Miraculously, Mary survived her horrific ordeal, but the true depths of her attacker’s malevolence were yet to be revealed. For him, the violence had only just begun.
After ten years in prison, Tom Luther was released a far more vicious criminal. Often compared to Ted Bundy, Luther cut a deadly swath from the Rockies to West Virginia, luring a chain of women into the black hole of his murderous vision.
One cop was obsessed with catching this brutal killer--and pinning at least one Colorado murder on him. But as Luther led Detective Scott Richardson through a maze of lies and deception, the stakes began to rise. From the Rockies to West Virginia, young women were coming face to face with a murderous monster raging out of control. And none of them were coming out alive.
In this gripping true crime masterpiece, acclaimed author Steve Jackson recounts the intriguing pursuit and long-awaited conviction of a charismatic, monstrous psychopath. By delving deep into the heart of true evil, Jackson offers valuable lessons on what makes violent predators tick, and what can be done to limit their relentless toll on society.
576 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1998
666 people are currently reading
5,797 people want to read
About the author
Steve Jackson
18books203followers“He writes with both muscle and heart”—New York Times bestselling author Gregg Olsen
New York Times bestselling author and award-winning journalist Steve Jackson has written ten non-fiction books in true crime, history and biography genres; he has also written fourteen crime fiction thrillers for the long-running and Times bestselling "Butch Karp Series" in collaboration with former New York assistant district attorney Robert K. Tanenbaum.
He is currently in the process of writing three more contracted non-fiction books: ALL SECURE (Hachette), FINDING ANASTASIA (Potomac) and SAVING ANNIE (WildBlue Press), as well as working on a sequel to his bestseller NO STONE UNTURNED. He is also finishing a novel, ISLAND OF WOMEN. The publishers of his previous books include: HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, Pinnacle, Atrium, De Capo, and WildBlue Press.
Steve is also the co-owner of indie publisher WildBlue Press (wildbluepress.com) with partner Michael Cordova. As of July 2018, WildBlue Press will have published more than 75 books by fifty authors in true crime, crime fiction, romance, history, current events, memoir and business genres after less than four years in business. Many of these books have become award-winning bestsellers, and several have been optioned for film and television productions.
The company is rapidly expanding both the number of authors and titles, and will be moving into other genres in the Summer and Fall of 2018.
His first non-fiction book, MONSTER, a true crime, was published in October 1998 and within two weeks became a New York Times bestseller. In 2003, his World War II dramatic narrative, LUCKY LADY, received The Colorado Book Award, best biography/history, from the Colorado Center for the Book; Lucky Lady was also the runner-up that year for the Admiral Samuel Morrison Naval History Award.
In June 2013, Jackson joined forensic investigative team NecroSearch International (the group featured in NO STONE UNTURNED) searching for the remains of the Grand Duke Mikhail Romanov in Perm, Russia as part of his research for an upcoming dramatic narrative history FINDING ANASTASIA.
Honored with NecroSearch membership in 2014, he and the team returned to Russia to continue the search in 2015, 2016, 2017 and will return to conclude their search in June 2018.
Born in 1955, Jackson grew up in Hawaii and Colorado. He graduated in 1979 from Colorado State University with a BA in Journalism.
A newspaper journalist for 25 years, he worked in locales as varied as Montana, Hawaii, Guam, Micronesia, Indonesia, Indiana, Washington D.C., Florida, Oregon and Colorado. During his career with newspapers, he received numerous national and regional awards for feature writing and investigative reporting.
Outside of writing, his interests include backpacking, fly fishing, skiing, guitar, reading, softball, music, wine, beer and spending time with his family and friends.
New York Times bestselling author and award-winning journalist Steve Jackson has written ten non-fiction books in true crime, history and biography genres; he has also written fourteen crime fiction thrillers for the long-running and Times bestselling "Butch Karp Series" in collaboration with former New York assistant district attorney Robert K. Tanenbaum.
He is currently in the process of writing three more contracted non-fiction books: ALL SECURE (Hachette), FINDING ANASTASIA (Potomac) and SAVING ANNIE (WildBlue Press), as well as working on a sequel to his bestseller NO STONE UNTURNED. He is also finishing a novel, ISLAND OF WOMEN. The publishers of his previous books include: HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, Pinnacle, Atrium, De Capo, and WildBlue Press.
Steve is also the co-owner of indie publisher WildBlue Press (wildbluepress.com) with partner Michael Cordova. As of July 2018, WildBlue Press will have published more than 75 books by fifty authors in true crime, crime fiction, romance, history, current events, memoir and business genres after less than four years in business. Many of these books have become award-winning bestsellers, and several have been optioned for film and television productions.
The company is rapidly expanding both the number of authors and titles, and will be moving into other genres in the Summer and Fall of 2018.
His first non-fiction book, MONSTER, a true crime, was published in October 1998 and within two weeks became a New York Times bestseller. In 2003, his World War II dramatic narrative, LUCKY LADY, received The Colorado Book Award, best biography/history, from the Colorado Center for the Book; Lucky Lady was also the runner-up that year for the Admiral Samuel Morrison Naval History Award.
In June 2013, Jackson joined forensic investigative team NecroSearch International (the group featured in NO STONE UNTURNED) searching for the remains of the Grand Duke Mikhail Romanov in Perm, Russia as part of his research for an upcoming dramatic narrative history FINDING ANASTASIA.
Honored with NecroSearch membership in 2014, he and the team returned to Russia to continue the search in 2015, 2016, 2017 and will return to conclude their search in June 2018.
Born in 1955, Jackson grew up in Hawaii and Colorado. He graduated in 1979 from Colorado State University with a BA in Journalism.
A newspaper journalist for 25 years, he worked in locales as varied as Montana, Hawaii, Guam, Micronesia, Indonesia, Indiana, Washington D.C., Florida, Oregon and Colorado. During his career with newspapers, he received numerous national and regional awards for feature writing and investigative reporting.
Outside of writing, his interests include backpacking, fly fishing, skiing, guitar, reading, softball, music, wine, beer and spending time with his family and friends.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 281 reviews
October 13, 2020
Audio 5 Stars
Story....4.25 Stars
Story....4.25 Stars
October 22, 2015
I'm sorry Ann Rule, but this is the best true crime book I've ever read. At the center of the story is Thomas Luther. He was first convicted in the early 1980's for a violent sexual assault and was later convicted in the 1990's for murder and another violent assault/attempted murder. He is, however, suspected of killing at least 5 women and assaulting many others. The author does a great job of detailing how hard it is to catch and convict someone like Luther. I felt the frustration of Det. Scott Richardson, the lead detective on the 1990's murder case, as he navigated Luther's past crimes, the misguided loyalty of his criminal friends, and the bizarre, sad relationship with his girlfriend, Deborah. Those interested in the legal aspects of the case will appreciate the details about Colorado's mandatory release law that was challenged specifically because of Luther, the changes in rape law after demands from victims, and the unusual jury situation during his murder trial. It does get a bit repetitive in parts, -1 star, but still a great, fascinating read overall.
August 19, 2021
I have been watching Dateline since day one (29 years and ongoing!) and continue watching, reading and listening to true crime stories all the time. I had never heard of Tom Luther! This was a fascinating story of a particularly sadistic serial killer who behaved in ways that beg comparison to Ted Bundy. Seemingly kind and charismatic, Luther turned into a monster when confronted with petite brunettes who reminded him of his abusive mother. There's a lot to unpack in this long book, and the author does a thorough job. So thorough, in fact, that it does become a bit repetitive in places. Particularly when recounting Luther's girlfriend, Debra Snider's, history and interviews. I tried very much to empathize with this woman who knew everything he did and kept standing by her man time and time again. Ugh. No luck.The book can be graphic in places, therefore triggering to some, however, I appreciated that the author pulled no punches the way many do when discussing violent sexual attacks. There was no innuendo about "sexual assault" or "abuse". All the details were clearly explained in brutally clear and honest language. Maybe it's not easy to read or listen to, but that's exactly how it should be to make sure the reader understands the true horror of what these poor women went through. The narrator is great. For such a thoroughly researched piece of work, told in an interesting way, this book deserves 5 stars for sure.
April 28, 2022
Story 4/5
Narration 5/5
Narration 5/5
October 19, 2014
This was VERY well researched indeed and I enjoyed it a great deal, though some silly mistakes cost it one star for me. Especially as the author's revisited it some years after original publication and I'd have hoped others may have spotted them and passed them on to correct. Most were words dropped from sentences like of/as/a/to and some spelling mistakes-like Gacey and not Gacy, accent and not accentuate, chargrined and not chagrinned, giris and not girls, occassion not occasion, imporant not important, drown not down.....not good. Then one person was Will on one page and Joe the next. There were apostrophe errors as well so editing is sloppy.
That aside, I'll certainly look for more in this genre by him as he does a really good job. I saw reviews mentioning repetition but it was a long book and in a few instances it was handy and saved me flicking back and forth.
I'd never heard of Thomas Luther and his awful crimes before so all credit to Mr Jackson for telling us all about him and also for ensuring Mary, Heather and Cher won't be forgotten. A huge salute to Scott Richardson and all he did to bring Luther to justice, too. He really went over and above the call of duty. The passages about the funeral arrangements had me in tears...I had a lot of time for Southy Healey too. Most of those Luther associated were as big a liars as he is but Southy came good. I thought Deb was a flake and her husband a saint for putting up with her. I lost patience with her just reading about her.
The Footloose story mention was interesting so Googled it but it says it was based around a place called Elmore City in Chicago and not Purdy in Missouri which was disappointing.
I wondered about the 2 girls murdered in the Colorado mountains as killers don't usually kill then revert to letting one get away as Luther did so I am not sure I believe he also killed them. The author also mentioned Bobby Jo at one point saying the irony wasn't lost on investigators but it was on me !! Wagner's gun was also referred to at one point and however hard I went back and looked I still never figured out who THAT was !!
I'm pleased there was a postscript to the story and I really liked the author's final words in the book-so very true.
That aside, I'll certainly look for more in this genre by him as he does a really good job. I saw reviews mentioning repetition but it was a long book and in a few instances it was handy and saved me flicking back and forth.
I'd never heard of Thomas Luther and his awful crimes before so all credit to Mr Jackson for telling us all about him and also for ensuring Mary, Heather and Cher won't be forgotten. A huge salute to Scott Richardson and all he did to bring Luther to justice, too. He really went over and above the call of duty. The passages about the funeral arrangements had me in tears...I had a lot of time for Southy Healey too. Most of those Luther associated were as big a liars as he is but Southy came good. I thought Deb was a flake and her husband a saint for putting up with her. I lost patience with her just reading about her.
The Footloose story mention was interesting so Googled it but it says it was based around a place called Elmore City in Chicago and not Purdy in Missouri which was disappointing.
I wondered about the 2 girls murdered in the Colorado mountains as killers don't usually kill then revert to letting one get away as Luther did so I am not sure I believe he also killed them. The author also mentioned Bobby Jo at one point saying the irony wasn't lost on investigators but it was on me !! Wagner's gun was also referred to at one point and however hard I went back and looked I still never figured out who THAT was !!
I'm pleased there was a postscript to the story and I really liked the author's final words in the book-so very true.
October 14, 2014
Feels like I have been reading this book for ages and looking back I think I did. I purchased this on October 1 and probably started reading the day after and I have just read half of it.
I really enjoy the book but I do think it is very slow but that is perhaps because you read about all the talks the detective had with for instance the Snyder woman.
(O I cannot stand her. The author is very nice about her but that does not change how I see her. To me she is just as bad as women who let their children be abused by men they date mainly because they do not want the man to leave them.
This Snyder woman is constantly looking for excuses but it all boils down to if he is nice to her she will not say a word to the cops about his involvement in killing of other women, but o boy if he is not.Those moments she does not know how fast she can run to tell the cops more.
She does not really feel for the victims at all. She can say she does but her actions speak louder than her words.
It is all about me me me. Not sure if I can read another 250 pages of his and her bull.
What I do like is that I am still exited cause I do not know what it is that will get the serial killer to be jailed. That is a big plus and I wish many other authors would take this book as an example.
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Finished this 4 or 5 days ago.
I had made many notes and was going to write a review when noticed something.
Was looking this book up on amazon and what did I see but a review of mine about this book written in 2003!!
I was shocked because normally if I have read a book I just know. You'll get the feeling hey I know this already but this time I did not have a feeling of familiarity at all.
I gave it 4 stars on amazon back then. I think I would have given it 3 now to be honest.
I felt badly about it cause the author befriended me on facebook not that long ago but I have to still be able to be honest about books and this is not the best book.
It is just way too long and too repetitive as I said before but I did really like it because i was so engrossed in the story.
Once I had finished I immediately started to read Bogeyman but it is probably me but that book does not grab me as this one did.
I really enjoy the book but I do think it is very slow but that is perhaps because you read about all the talks the detective had with for instance the Snyder woman.
(O I cannot stand her. The author is very nice about her but that does not change how I see her. To me she is just as bad as women who let their children be abused by men they date mainly because they do not want the man to leave them.
This Snyder woman is constantly looking for excuses but it all boils down to if he is nice to her she will not say a word to the cops about his involvement in killing of other women, but o boy if he is not.Those moments she does not know how fast she can run to tell the cops more.
She does not really feel for the victims at all. She can say she does but her actions speak louder than her words.
It is all about me me me. Not sure if I can read another 250 pages of his and her bull.
What I do like is that I am still exited cause I do not know what it is that will get the serial killer to be jailed. That is a big plus and I wish many other authors would take this book as an example.
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Finished this 4 or 5 days ago.
I had made many notes and was going to write a review when noticed something.
Was looking this book up on amazon and what did I see but a review of mine about this book written in 2003!!
I was shocked because normally if I have read a book I just know. You'll get the feeling hey I know this already but this time I did not have a feeling of familiarity at all.
I gave it 4 stars on amazon back then. I think I would have given it 3 now to be honest.
I felt badly about it cause the author befriended me on facebook not that long ago but I have to still be able to be honest about books and this is not the best book.
It is just way too long and too repetitive as I said before but I did really like it because i was so engrossed in the story.
Once I had finished I immediately started to read Bogeyman but it is probably me but that book does not grab me as this one did.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 31, 2014
True crime is one of my favorite genres, and I've read many of these types of books. And "Monster" is a perfect example of why. This is a fascinating and horrifying glimpse inside the mind of a man, Tom Luther, who hates women. He is a narcissistic sociopath who will never be safe on the street, and will never be rehabilitated. The author also does a thorough job of talking to everyone affected by this man...his girlfriend who knows he is evil but loves him anyway, his victims who lived and the families of the victims who died. His circle of friends who were all criminal element but still judged Luther to be a picture of true evil that needed to be brought to justice. We become deeply familiar with the detective who sacrificed everything to bring this guy down, and was dedicated to returning one of Luther's victims back to her family so they could have closure.
Because the book was written with so much depth, it did seem to repeat things and felt circular now and again. I don't really think it is due to poor writing, it is just that the case was so complicated. Because of this, I considered rating the book four stars. However, I think the true test of a good book is whether it messes with my emotions. And I certainly felt all the feelings with this one. It is impossible not to LOATHE this man, and cry for his innocent victims. At one point, when I was reading about one juror in Luther's trial who did not follow the law (I won't go into detail because you really have to read it to believe it) I actually screamed in frustration.
This was a Kindle deal, and why I bought it. I had heard nothing about it beforehand. I am usually leery about buying a true crime on Kindle, because I need pictures, but they were included for a change. Plus of course I did quite a bit of Googling. Highly recommended.
Because the book was written with so much depth, it did seem to repeat things and felt circular now and again. I don't really think it is due to poor writing, it is just that the case was so complicated. Because of this, I considered rating the book four stars. However, I think the true test of a good book is whether it messes with my emotions. And I certainly felt all the feelings with this one. It is impossible not to LOATHE this man, and cry for his innocent victims. At one point, when I was reading about one juror in Luther's trial who did not follow the law (I won't go into detail because you really have to read it to believe it) I actually screamed in frustration.
This was a Kindle deal, and why I bought it. I had heard nothing about it beforehand. I am usually leery about buying a true crime on Kindle, because I need pictures, but they were included for a change. Plus of course I did quite a bit of Googling. Highly recommended.
January 12, 2015
This was a very interesting read.
I have a tendency to not read the synopsis carefully on books that are in my queue. I don't want to know much - I'd rather let the story unfold. Well, I saw the 'serial killer' in this one, and grabbed it.
After reading about half of it, and enjoying it although thinking at times that it seemed like there was almost too much mundane detail given, I found pictures. Oh my goodness! This was a true story! I really had no idea, until I found mugshots and such. Then I understood all the detail, although the story moved along well.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, although I don't usually read non-fiction. I would recommend it to anyone who has a penchant for serial killer books.
I have a tendency to not read the synopsis carefully on books that are in my queue. I don't want to know much - I'd rather let the story unfold. Well, I saw the 'serial killer' in this one, and grabbed it.
After reading about half of it, and enjoying it although thinking at times that it seemed like there was almost too much mundane detail given, I found pictures. Oh my goodness! This was a true story! I really had no idea, until I found mugshots and such. Then I understood all the detail, although the story moved along well.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, although I don't usually read non-fiction. I would recommend it to anyone who has a penchant for serial killer books.
January 22, 2024
This was a gripping true crime account of a monster and the police chase that slowly unfolded. The details of this case almost made me put this book down at first as it felt too horrible, too violent, too sadistic. I just didn’t think it was my type of book and something that I wanted to persevere with.
I am so glad something made me read on as this really is a noteworthy true crime book. The singleminded persistence of the lead detective- the dog with a bone that just would not let up, was redemptive and a light against the dark. This was a real life cat and mouse. A despicable monster and the man that eventually brought him down.
5 stars.
I am so glad something made me read on as this really is a noteworthy true crime book. The singleminded persistence of the lead detective- the dog with a bone that just would not let up, was redemptive and a light against the dark. This was a real life cat and mouse. A despicable monster and the man that eventually brought him down.
5 stars.
August 23, 2013
Absolutely fascinating peek into not only the mind of serial killer Tom Luther, but the rationalizations and denials used by his friends, family, and (most troubling) his girlfriend, Deb Snider. Intense to watch the case unfold from multiple points of view, heavy on the detectives obsessed with getting Luther off the streets & behind bars where he belongs. Not a forensics-heavy book. Jackson's writing is taut and unassuming, rightfully letting the details take center stage. Recommended 18+ with trigger warnings.
August 28, 2014
Jackson's book is an absolute must-read for fans of true-crime. It's definitely right up there with another recent favorite of mine, The Darkest Night, by Ron Franscell. While the case is based in Colorado, Jackson's book takes you all across the United States. You can't help but feel like you're in a cabin, on a snow-banked mountain near Breckenridge or standing alongside the team of police officers carrying out another frustrating body search.
January 15, 2021
Really good true crime. What a world we live in... carried on just a bit too long so it lost one star.
May 14, 2021
**5 stars**
A fantastic read!
One of the best true crime novels that I have read. I love how indepth this book goes looking into Tom Luther and the man who put him away!
A fantastic read!
One of the best true crime novels that I have read. I love how indepth this book goes looking into Tom Luther and the man who put him away!
August 8, 2020
Well chosen title. This is a very in depth view of the lengths to which one dedicated (some would say obsessive) detective goes to find a missing woman's remains and bring her killer to justice. It's both troubling and infuriating. Reader Alert for some graphic descriptions.
December 13, 2014
This is the best true crime book I've read in a long time. This guy really is a monster, a woman's worst enemy. This is what happens when the justice system is too lenient and sets free men who have no conscience, who have nothing but hate and contempt for women. It took a while for me to get through it, but only because of personal issues. This man belongs in jail, and that's where he is now. He has practically no chance of ever getting out. Thank God for that! This man attacked women for no reason, no warning, he raped them, usually with foreign objects, and then killed them. He is a disgusting excuse for a human being. If you like true crime, get this book, and lock your doors.
October 11, 2020
5+++++++++ STARS 🥳 One of the best true crime books I’ve read and I’ve read a lot of them. This book & the crimes are so complex and twisted I’m not even going to try & touch on it. This dude is pure evil. I’ve never heard of him or this book, I bought it on a whim. Which is crazy because this book is phenomenal. Kevin Pierce narrates and as far as I’m concerned he can narrate every true crime book ever made. I had chills a few times while reading this which almost never happens to me. I don’t love big books but I was riveted for all 19 hours. Don’t miss this one friends! It’s going on my favorites shelf and I’m off to purchase another Steve Jackson book 🏃♀�
June 25, 2015
Too long winded
This book is about an interesting subject and I wanted to read it but it felt I had to travel a very long and winding road to get somewhere I could have gotten in less than half the time. I don't need to know how often the people involved changed socks or when they went to bed, I just wanted the story.
This book is about an interesting subject and I wanted to read it but it felt I had to travel a very long and winding road to get somewhere I could have gotten in less than half the time. I don't need to know how often the people involved changed socks or when they went to bed, I just wanted the story.
September 30, 2013
Jackson style makes you feel that you know what was really going on the characters. There is a lot of detail but never felt boring.
October 31, 2021
Read as kindle book - with 2013 update. 684 pages.
Excellent true crime book. Tom Luther was a serial rapist & murderer in the Colorado area, and maybe in other parts of the country (West Virginia, Vermont, Pennsylvania - pretty much wherever we happened to live).
The main focus of the case is the rape & murder of Cher Elder in March 1993 in a small town outside of Denver. A determined police officer named Scott Richardson relentlessly pursues every lead when Cher goes missing, eventually determining that foul play is involved, and he does not rest until he find Cher and brings the culprit to justice.
The sordid story brings in a host of characters, none of whom have had an easy life. But a few have managed to rise above their circumstances, while others are inveterate liars, thieves and drug addicts. It does become apparent - to the police investigators and to the reader - that Tom Luther fits the serial murderer profile and was the likely killer of Cher Elder. His past is littered with a trail of missing women, rape convictions, and other 'red flags'. He brutally raped, assaulted and nearly killed a woman years before - and served over 11 years in prison for that attack. He was suspected in other disappearances - although the cases of Schnee and Oberholtzer, discussed here, were not associated with him (ruled out via 2013 DNA tests) and have just recently been solved via DNA genealogy databases.
The investigation of Cher's murder was detailed and determined. The trial was not as favorable to the victim. The judge excluded the defendant's prior actions / prison record, even though it was material to the motivation. The defendant was portrayed as a Boy Scout while the witnesses - many of whom were friends or associates - were all liars, thieves and felons. The jury panel included a woman whose actions resulted in a miscarriage of justice - while Luther was convicted, it was of a lesser charge. It appears that the woman was morally opposed to the death penalty and covered up her degree of opposition.
Luther is - like Bundy or other serial murderers - an attractive sociopath, a "monster in sheep's clothing." He had the "ability to be [a] chameleon, changing to blend into the environment and appear non-threatening." He is the worst sort of society and the only way to deal with this sort of monster is to kill him or lock him up for the remainder of his life. His type cannot be allowed to roam among the rest of us. As one of his victims stated, "the monsters who scare me most wear the disguise of ordinary people."
Excellent true crime book. Tom Luther was a serial rapist & murderer in the Colorado area, and maybe in other parts of the country (West Virginia, Vermont, Pennsylvania - pretty much wherever we happened to live).
The main focus of the case is the rape & murder of Cher Elder in March 1993 in a small town outside of Denver. A determined police officer named Scott Richardson relentlessly pursues every lead when Cher goes missing, eventually determining that foul play is involved, and he does not rest until he find Cher and brings the culprit to justice.
The sordid story brings in a host of characters, none of whom have had an easy life. But a few have managed to rise above their circumstances, while others are inveterate liars, thieves and drug addicts. It does become apparent - to the police investigators and to the reader - that Tom Luther fits the serial murderer profile and was the likely killer of Cher Elder. His past is littered with a trail of missing women, rape convictions, and other 'red flags'. He brutally raped, assaulted and nearly killed a woman years before - and served over 11 years in prison for that attack. He was suspected in other disappearances - although the cases of Schnee and Oberholtzer, discussed here, were not associated with him (ruled out via 2013 DNA tests) and have just recently been solved via DNA genealogy databases.
The investigation of Cher's murder was detailed and determined. The trial was not as favorable to the victim. The judge excluded the defendant's prior actions / prison record, even though it was material to the motivation. The defendant was portrayed as a Boy Scout while the witnesses - many of whom were friends or associates - were all liars, thieves and felons. The jury panel included a woman whose actions resulted in a miscarriage of justice - while Luther was convicted, it was of a lesser charge. It appears that the woman was morally opposed to the death penalty and covered up her degree of opposition.
Luther is - like Bundy or other serial murderers - an attractive sociopath, a "monster in sheep's clothing." He had the "ability to be [a] chameleon, changing to blend into the environment and appear non-threatening." He is the worst sort of society and the only way to deal with this sort of monster is to kill him or lock him up for the remainder of his life. His type cannot be allowed to roam among the rest of us. As one of his victims stated, "the monsters who scare me most wear the disguise of ordinary people."
August 12, 2024
3.5 stars.
Good book. Except the authors rambles on and on about some things, repeats himself often. He writes dialogue badly and when quoting verbal and written texts, includes [sic] when the speaker misspeaks. Irritating
He also completely distorts the legal system, jury responsibilities, lawyers choice of jury, and defense attorneys.
Good book. Except the authors rambles on and on about some things, repeats himself often. He writes dialogue badly and when quoting verbal and written texts, includes [sic] when the speaker misspeaks. Irritating
He also completely distorts the legal system, jury responsibilities, lawyers choice of jury, and defense attorneys.
September 27, 2015
3.5 stars
This was an interesting book because I grew up in Colorado and remember some of the events described. I don't remember much of the Cher Elder case specifically, but I do remember lot of the peripheral cases mentioned during the course of the investigation. I'm also VERY familiar with the locations where a lot of the events occurred, so that added a dimension to the story for me.
That said, there were times when the writing really annoyed me. It really needed to be edited for clarity, and the author rambled and repeated himself quite a bit, which made the pacing really drag at points.
The other thing that bothered me was the author's descriptions of the court proceedings and defense attorneys in general. This is a personal pet peeve of mine, since I am a female criminal defense attorney. The language he chose to describe Luther's attorneys really bothers me - he insinuates that defense lawyers are all just trying to turn murderers loose on the streets to kill more innocent people, which couldn't be farther from the truth. Our job is to test the evidence, to make sure that the state does its job and proves the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, because without that check, the power of the state is very easy to abuse. His descriptions of the female attorneys as either meek pushovers (Leslie Hansen, Byron Eerebout's public defender) or strident bitches (Lauren Cleaver, Luther's primary defense attorney), while male attorneys were described as "professorial" (Mike Enwall, the male half of Luther's trial team), really rubbed me the wrong way. Seems like yet again the saying is true, everyone hates a lawyer (especially a criminal defense lawyer) until you're the one that needs one.
The commentary on the court system was also pretty biased. I know it's the cool thing to be "tough on crime" and that this was a horrible crime, but the system works. Yes, the 12th juror didn't follow the judge's order not to discuss the case with anyone, and that's not good - there's no excuse for that behavior. BUT, the fault for her being on the jury rested with the prosecutors, who decided they disliked her death penalty answers less than the answers of the next two jurors. That's putting the cart before the horse guys - the priority should be getting the conviction, not the penalty phase. She gave them MAJOR red flags in jury selection and they should have bounced her based on her answers. There's no way I would have picked her if I was the prosecutor, since she couldn't even get the standard of "beyond a reasonable doubt" correct.
Overall, this was an interesting read and I liked it, even though some of it was a hard slog.
This was an interesting book because I grew up in Colorado and remember some of the events described. I don't remember much of the Cher Elder case specifically, but I do remember lot of the peripheral cases mentioned during the course of the investigation. I'm also VERY familiar with the locations where a lot of the events occurred, so that added a dimension to the story for me.
That said, there were times when the writing really annoyed me. It really needed to be edited for clarity, and the author rambled and repeated himself quite a bit, which made the pacing really drag at points.
The other thing that bothered me was the author's descriptions of the court proceedings and defense attorneys in general. This is a personal pet peeve of mine, since I am a female criminal defense attorney. The language he chose to describe Luther's attorneys really bothers me - he insinuates that defense lawyers are all just trying to turn murderers loose on the streets to kill more innocent people, which couldn't be farther from the truth. Our job is to test the evidence, to make sure that the state does its job and proves the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, because without that check, the power of the state is very easy to abuse. His descriptions of the female attorneys as either meek pushovers (Leslie Hansen, Byron Eerebout's public defender) or strident bitches (Lauren Cleaver, Luther's primary defense attorney), while male attorneys were described as "professorial" (Mike Enwall, the male half of Luther's trial team), really rubbed me the wrong way. Seems like yet again the saying is true, everyone hates a lawyer (especially a criminal defense lawyer) until you're the one that needs one.
The commentary on the court system was also pretty biased. I know it's the cool thing to be "tough on crime" and that this was a horrible crime, but the system works. Yes, the 12th juror didn't follow the judge's order not to discuss the case with anyone, and that's not good - there's no excuse for that behavior. BUT, the fault for her being on the jury rested with the prosecutors, who decided they disliked her death penalty answers less than the answers of the next two jurors. That's putting the cart before the horse guys - the priority should be getting the conviction, not the penalty phase. She gave them MAJOR red flags in jury selection and they should have bounced her based on her answers. There's no way I would have picked her if I was the prosecutor, since she couldn't even get the standard of "beyond a reasonable doubt" correct.
Overall, this was an interesting read and I liked it, even though some of it was a hard slog.
October 4, 2021
Excellent, though the level of details made it a little difficult at times to keep things straight
10/4/2021 Update:
Luther has been strongly suspected, as is discussed and speculated about in this book, in the Breckenridge murders of Barbara Oberholtzer And Annette Schnee. There's now been an arrest in these 39-year-old murders. Alan Lee Phillips.
"Alan Lee Phillips. Phillips hadn’t been on the police’s radar throughout the investigation, but he wasn’t a stranger. Phillips was actually in contact with the police on precisely the same night as the murders.
On January 6, 1982, Phillips� truck became stranded in a snowdrift off of a nearby mountain pass. Phillips flashed SOS using his headlights, as there was no other way out. It happened by chance that a Jefferson County Sheriff was on an airline flight overhead. The sheriff called the flight crew, who were able to radio for help.
Phillips had a large, bruised face and was somewhat intoxicated when law enforcement arrived. Phillips claimed that he was drunk and had pulled off the road to relieve himself. He claimed that he was blinded by snow and had to smash his face against his truck. Phillips was then dismissed by officers who didn’t yet know of the double murder earlier that night. They said Phillips was lucky to be still alive. His name has not been linked to the crimes for 38 years.
In February 2021, officers finally arrested Phillips for the kidnapping, assault, and murder of both women. Phillips was ordered to stand trial by a Park County Judge earlier this month. "
10/4/2021 Update:
Luther has been strongly suspected, as is discussed and speculated about in this book, in the Breckenridge murders of Barbara Oberholtzer And Annette Schnee. There's now been an arrest in these 39-year-old murders. Alan Lee Phillips.
"Alan Lee Phillips. Phillips hadn’t been on the police’s radar throughout the investigation, but he wasn’t a stranger. Phillips was actually in contact with the police on precisely the same night as the murders.
On January 6, 1982, Phillips� truck became stranded in a snowdrift off of a nearby mountain pass. Phillips flashed SOS using his headlights, as there was no other way out. It happened by chance that a Jefferson County Sheriff was on an airline flight overhead. The sheriff called the flight crew, who were able to radio for help.
Phillips had a large, bruised face and was somewhat intoxicated when law enforcement arrived. Phillips claimed that he was drunk and had pulled off the road to relieve himself. He claimed that he was blinded by snow and had to smash his face against his truck. Phillips was then dismissed by officers who didn’t yet know of the double murder earlier that night. They said Phillips was lucky to be still alive. His name has not been linked to the crimes for 38 years.
In February 2021, officers finally arrested Phillips for the kidnapping, assault, and murder of both women. Phillips was ordered to stand trial by a Park County Judge earlier this month. "
November 19, 2021
Monster by Steve Jackson, Audible release narrated by Kevin Pierce.
It is very lively crime fiction. I even would guess that it is how it is in the real world of our daily existences. How many murderers, rapists are freely walking around and repeating their crimes over and over again for decades.
Listening to this audiobook was as if a flash of refreshing water to my calm and comfortable being. Dangerous situations might be just around the corner. Broken car? Call for service help, call your family, friends. Be aware that people who stop to help might think about how to insult, rape or murder you. None of the victims realises that they have been chosen cause the monster only had shown these evil eyes of his during the whole appearance was of a friendly and chatty handy for helping.
Deborah Spinder is the character who I liked the most. Despite the personal demons and struggling in battle with depression, and wish to die, she finds the courage to vocalise the truth. However, telling things, she experienced living with a monster. The monster that had never shown her his monster face to her. The monster that helped her hold on to life while visualising her death. She did not care whether she lived or died. Even then, when she was sure that the monster would kill her, she never tensed a muscle.
On the contrary, innocent and young, vividly happy with life, girls are disappearing. Those splendid natures died brutally from the hands of a monster. It takes nearly a decade to narrow down the situation, prove the guilty and prevent a serial killer. And the serial killer was on the loose.
It is very lively crime fiction. I even would guess that it is how it is in the real world of our daily existences. How many murderers, rapists are freely walking around and repeating their crimes over and over again for decades.
Listening to this audiobook was as if a flash of refreshing water to my calm and comfortable being. Dangerous situations might be just around the corner. Broken car? Call for service help, call your family, friends. Be aware that people who stop to help might think about how to insult, rape or murder you. None of the victims realises that they have been chosen cause the monster only had shown these evil eyes of his during the whole appearance was of a friendly and chatty handy for helping.
Deborah Spinder is the character who I liked the most. Despite the personal demons and struggling in battle with depression, and wish to die, she finds the courage to vocalise the truth. However, telling things, she experienced living with a monster. The monster that had never shown her his monster face to her. The monster that helped her hold on to life while visualising her death. She did not care whether she lived or died. Even then, when she was sure that the monster would kill her, she never tensed a muscle.
On the contrary, innocent and young, vividly happy with life, girls are disappearing. Those splendid natures died brutally from the hands of a monster. It takes nearly a decade to narrow down the situation, prove the guilty and prevent a serial killer. And the serial killer was on the loose.
October 12, 2014
Very well written. Jackson brings the main victim alive. I found myself missing the life Cher should have had. But Luther had so many victims. His girlfriend, Snyder was the main victim I had a problem with. I kept wondering what was wrong with the husband she had. My heart really went out to him. I just really wanted to slap some sense into her. But it's always easy to tell others how to behave when you're on the outside looking in. I really would have been happier with a death penalty ending. Especially if the manner of death had been three bullets put randomly into a six shooter and fired into the back of his head Russian Rulette style. An eye for an eye.
August 28, 2015
Great story. Horribly written.
Could have been. That is all I can say. Tragic story and could have been a wonderful powerful story of what makes someone tick and destroy. Instead it's the same over and over again.. Author repeats himself constantly and laces the prose w hyperbole and overly dramatic words.
Could have been. That is all I can say. Tragic story and could have been a wonderful powerful story of what makes someone tick and destroy. Instead it's the same over and over again.. Author repeats himself constantly and laces the prose w hyperbole and overly dramatic words.
August 25, 2023
I saw another review that put it best, this is a 7 hour story in a 17 hour book. I found some parts really interesting and engaging, but there is a very long middle section that covers nearly every conversation ever had between the main detective and everyone else that just drags. I guess I just don't need that level of detail in my true crime.
June 29, 2018
This was a great true crime book as it read like a novel. It was quite long, but there was alot to explain. This monster's girlfriend (Debra Snider) is the biggest idiot I've ever read about. I wanted to scream.
November 29, 2020
Overall: 3.5 stars. A well-written true crime story with lots of research that becomes a little bogged down in the details.
This was a well-written true crime book that really focused in on the personalities surrounding the killer: the victims and their families, the survivors, his girlfriend, and the investigators. A unique story in contrast to your “typical� true crime tale: the book centers on an investigation where the police are pretty sure they know who kidnapped and murdered the victims, but they can’t find the bodies to prove there was a crime (rather than the reverse where you have bodies but no known culprit). Thus, the book mostly delves deep into the multi-year investigation of suspect Tom Luther. This is both the book’s strength and its weakness: the author did a fantastic job of researching and recreating in great detail the conversations and interviews between the police and the suspects. I have to applaud that dedication to detail, but the sameness of the interviews after pages and pages and years and years becomes a bit tedious (no doubt it was for the real-life investigators too).
I also enjoyed the author’s attention to the emotions of the story, giving a fair bit of page time to the survivors and victims and their emotional trauma from the crimes.
This was a well-written true crime book that really focused in on the personalities surrounding the killer: the victims and their families, the survivors, his girlfriend, and the investigators. A unique story in contrast to your “typical� true crime tale: the book centers on an investigation where the police are pretty sure they know who kidnapped and murdered the victims, but they can’t find the bodies to prove there was a crime (rather than the reverse where you have bodies but no known culprit). Thus, the book mostly delves deep into the multi-year investigation of suspect Tom Luther. This is both the book’s strength and its weakness: the author did a fantastic job of researching and recreating in great detail the conversations and interviews between the police and the suspects. I have to applaud that dedication to detail, but the sameness of the interviews after pages and pages and years and years becomes a bit tedious (no doubt it was for the real-life investigators too).
I also enjoyed the author’s attention to the emotions of the story, giving a fair bit of page time to the survivors and victims and their emotional trauma from the crimes.
December 4, 2008
Steve Jackson's research for his book Monster must have been exhausting. He describes events spanning from 1982 to 1998 in convincing detail. The subject of this book is Thomas Luther, a complicated and sociopathic man who raped, assaulted, and sometimes killed a series of women between Colorado and West Virginia.
Of course, the book jacket uses "includes 12 pages of shocking photos!" as a selling point. I nearly put it back on the shelf; I hate that. (Were the photos shocking? Nah.) I doubt that's Jackson's fault, though, so I won't hold it against him.
The story begins in the middle. It's 1993 and the bright future of 20-year-old Cher Elder has been extinguished somewhere in the mountains of Colorado. Lakewood Detective Scott Richardson is on the trail of a suspect, an ex-con named Tom Luther. Chapter two jumps back to Breckenridge 1982, when two young women disappeared within hours of each other. Annette Kay Schnee was last seen alive hitchhiking along Highway 9, trying to get back to her cabin in Breckenridge. Bobbi Jo Oberholtzer was also last seen hitchhiking on Highway 9, later that evening.
Bobbi Jo's body was discovered the next afternoon. She'd died of exposure and blood loss. The cheery 29-year-old had a flex-cuff (those plastic cuffs cops use) on one wrist and had been shot once.
Annette's body was not found until 1982, when an 11-year-old boy discovered her deep in the woods, facedown in a stream. She had been shot once, in the back.
No one has ever been charged with the murder Bobbi Jo and Annette, but Jackson leans heavily towards Tom Luther. And he supports that with some good evidence: Luther was in the area, and Luther had a history of vicious attacks against women.
Back to Cher Elder. Detective Richardson spent two years tracking down evidence against Luther and trying to get the players in this drama to reveal where Luther had buried her.
He finally succeeded and in January 1995, Cher's body was recovered from a shallow grave in the Arapaho National Forest.
Luther was indicted in March 1995 by a Jefferson County grand jury. Jackson follows the trial and while the investigation was interesting, the dynamics of the trial really opened my eyes to how The System works.
District Attorney Dave Thomas sought a death penalty conviction for Luther. But while 11 jurors voted to convict Luther of first-degree murder, a 12th evidently refused to even discuss it and held out for second-degree murder.
In People v. Lewis, 676 P.2d 682 (Colo. 1984), the Supreme Court determined that when a jury is deadlocked over the degree of guilt, rather than declare a mistrial, a judge could direct the jury to return a conviction on the lesser charge, in this case second-degree murder.
The 11 jurists were furious with the 12th; the second-degree murder finding left Jefferson County District Judge Christopher Munch with no option to impose the death penalty. He did, however, give Luther 48 years, the maximum penalty for second-degree murder.
Jackson found a good story and clearly did some meticulous research. For that, I recommend the book. His execution, however, was less than stellar, and I don't think this would be a fair review if I didn't point out a few things that struck me as a reader.
First, it's obvious that a lot of Jackson's information came from recorded and transcribed interviews. That's a great source and I have no problem with it. What I did have a problem with was:
Luther laughed, "Nah. I can't trip like that no more. What the police did wasn't right. But two wrongs don't make a right. I still have little "stinges' [sic] of anger, but I can't grow personally if I keep trippin' on how to blow up Summit County."
"Anything you want to add, Tom? For policemen?"
"Yeah, go find the real criminals," he said, "and do what you have to do to them instead of some guy who's a first-time offender and has got a whole bunch of problems. Everybody arrested for a violent crime doesn't need to go to jail-that's what the public wants, but you have to look and see what the "outcast" [sic] of that is going to be."
Those [sic]s are Jackson's, not mine. Now you see the problem? It made reading a little stilted, to say the least.
The other issue I'd take up with Jackson is his presentation of his characters. Another quote:
"Well, I don't wanna make ya mad," Richardson said sarcastically as he walked toward the car, still holding his tape recorder in his hand where it could pick up the conversation. "I've never seen such a defensive group of people over a missin' person in my life."
Luther wasn't backing down. "Well, you keep shootin' them little innuendos, you know what I mean, about us bein' defensive..."
Not only do Detective Richardson and Tom Luther speak this way, just about every person in the book is quoted using this type of language. It makes all of them sound uneducated. And while I recognize that people really do speak that way, one of the rules writers are supposed to learn early in their careers is that written dialogue rarely appears as it's truly spoken.
Droppin' the final "g" and, you know, leavin' in the pauses, makes the reader work too hard.
So that's my take on Monster.
Of course, the book jacket uses "includes 12 pages of shocking photos!" as a selling point. I nearly put it back on the shelf; I hate that. (Were the photos shocking? Nah.) I doubt that's Jackson's fault, though, so I won't hold it against him.
The story begins in the middle. It's 1993 and the bright future of 20-year-old Cher Elder has been extinguished somewhere in the mountains of Colorado. Lakewood Detective Scott Richardson is on the trail of a suspect, an ex-con named Tom Luther. Chapter two jumps back to Breckenridge 1982, when two young women disappeared within hours of each other. Annette Kay Schnee was last seen alive hitchhiking along Highway 9, trying to get back to her cabin in Breckenridge. Bobbi Jo Oberholtzer was also last seen hitchhiking on Highway 9, later that evening.
Bobbi Jo's body was discovered the next afternoon. She'd died of exposure and blood loss. The cheery 29-year-old had a flex-cuff (those plastic cuffs cops use) on one wrist and had been shot once.
Annette's body was not found until 1982, when an 11-year-old boy discovered her deep in the woods, facedown in a stream. She had been shot once, in the back.
No one has ever been charged with the murder Bobbi Jo and Annette, but Jackson leans heavily towards Tom Luther. And he supports that with some good evidence: Luther was in the area, and Luther had a history of vicious attacks against women.
Back to Cher Elder. Detective Richardson spent two years tracking down evidence against Luther and trying to get the players in this drama to reveal where Luther had buried her.
He finally succeeded and in January 1995, Cher's body was recovered from a shallow grave in the Arapaho National Forest.
Luther was indicted in March 1995 by a Jefferson County grand jury. Jackson follows the trial and while the investigation was interesting, the dynamics of the trial really opened my eyes to how The System works.
District Attorney Dave Thomas sought a death penalty conviction for Luther. But while 11 jurors voted to convict Luther of first-degree murder, a 12th evidently refused to even discuss it and held out for second-degree murder.
In People v. Lewis, 676 P.2d 682 (Colo. 1984), the Supreme Court determined that when a jury is deadlocked over the degree of guilt, rather than declare a mistrial, a judge could direct the jury to return a conviction on the lesser charge, in this case second-degree murder.
The 11 jurists were furious with the 12th; the second-degree murder finding left Jefferson County District Judge Christopher Munch with no option to impose the death penalty. He did, however, give Luther 48 years, the maximum penalty for second-degree murder.
Jackson found a good story and clearly did some meticulous research. For that, I recommend the book. His execution, however, was less than stellar, and I don't think this would be a fair review if I didn't point out a few things that struck me as a reader.
First, it's obvious that a lot of Jackson's information came from recorded and transcribed interviews. That's a great source and I have no problem with it. What I did have a problem with was:
Luther laughed, "Nah. I can't trip like that no more. What the police did wasn't right. But two wrongs don't make a right. I still have little "stinges' [sic] of anger, but I can't grow personally if I keep trippin' on how to blow up Summit County."
"Anything you want to add, Tom? For policemen?"
"Yeah, go find the real criminals," he said, "and do what you have to do to them instead of some guy who's a first-time offender and has got a whole bunch of problems. Everybody arrested for a violent crime doesn't need to go to jail-that's what the public wants, but you have to look and see what the "outcast" [sic] of that is going to be."
Those [sic]s are Jackson's, not mine. Now you see the problem? It made reading a little stilted, to say the least.
The other issue I'd take up with Jackson is his presentation of his characters. Another quote:
"Well, I don't wanna make ya mad," Richardson said sarcastically as he walked toward the car, still holding his tape recorder in his hand where it could pick up the conversation. "I've never seen such a defensive group of people over a missin' person in my life."
Luther wasn't backing down. "Well, you keep shootin' them little innuendos, you know what I mean, about us bein' defensive..."
Not only do Detective Richardson and Tom Luther speak this way, just about every person in the book is quoted using this type of language. It makes all of them sound uneducated. And while I recognize that people really do speak that way, one of the rules writers are supposed to learn early in their careers is that written dialogue rarely appears as it's truly spoken.
Droppin' the final "g" and, you know, leavin' in the pauses, makes the reader work too hard.
So that's my take on Monster.
June 18, 2021
Pretty good for true crime. The protagonist is simply a sociopathic jerk who kills women who looked like his mother.
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