Sunday Synopsis

If You Tell: A True Story of Murder, Family Secrets, and the Unbreakable Bond of Sisterhood by Gregg Olsen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

As sickening as this story is, it made for compelling reading. If You Tell is based on the true story of Shelly and Dave Knotek who abused their friends and children in unimaginable ways, although the abuse was instigated by Shelly. Dave just did what he was told to do when he was home. He was away a lot due to the nature of his job.

Shelly has three daughters, Nikki, Sami, and Tori. Dave is her second husband. They also take in Dave's nephew. Later still, they take in a friend, Kathy, and still later, another friend, Ron. Not everyone survives the ordeal with Shelly. At the hands of Shelly and Dave, and sometimes at the hands of their siblings as directed by their mother, the kids and houseguests endure horrible torture, degradation, humiliation, and pain.

I have to admit I got tired of the book because it just never ended. I'm amazed that Shelly was able to get away with her crimes as long as she did. I kept thinking, "Someone will speak up," but it took a catastrophic event to make that happen. I'm very interested in going back and reading some of the news sources on this case. It's just unreal. Olsen did a great job of describing things so that you can get images in mind as you read, but this may not be something you want to imagine.

If you enjoy the true crime genre, and you aren't easily sickened by descriptions of abuse, you will like this book.
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