A sad story of power and corruption in small town America which is only too prevalent these days. This book makes you understand why few people trust in law enforcement and the American judicial system anymore. It made me angry, so I guess it achieved its purpose.

This story was new to me and I found this mix of power, desperation and wealth a fascinating one.
The author did an excellent job in bringing us to se beyond the scene and understand what happended
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Tangled Vines I received - excitedly - in exchange for a honest review from NetGalley.

Having followed the story of the Murdaugh family, John Glatt wrote a tight, taut nuts-and-bolts account of how bad decisions eventually sunk this privileged family.

It was detailed enough, particularly at the start when Glatt went through the family history before we got to the current crop. I felt he suited the true crime genre pretty well. It felt almost scholarly when he contextualised the crimes and how they created a knee-jerk reaction from the patriach, which only exacerbated the hard-to-believe-it's-not-fiction series of events.

While I think it could have been longer, I certainly read it like the speed of light and will happily pursue other titles by Glatt in the future.

I knew this story from the Netflix documentary, that said the book is well worth a read as I felt it delved into the family history more. Greed proved to be their downfall.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

I was fascinated by this case and the book was a straightforward factual account

This gives a very detailed history of this troubled family. It is very informative of all the crimes involved that aren't mentioned as much in thr media. I did feel better informed about the true nature of the family but it fwlt like it got to the interesting oart and then was over. Although the title mentions the murders they seemed to be more of a sidenote for the vast majority of the book. This is about the fall of the family. There could be another book focusing more on the murders. I was glad i read it as I felt more informed but you need to be aware the title is a bit misleading.
Thank you netgallery and publisher and author for this informative 4 star read

Compulsively readable true crime 🕵🏼‍♀️
Like potentially everyone I watched the Netflix Programme & was fascinated by the corruption, brutality and greed of the people involved with this case. This book gives you fascinating depth into the level of greed involved in the financial crimes involved with this case, in an accessible and balanced way. John Glatt puts you right amongst the swamps & small towns of South Carolina - written in the style of compelling crime fiction.

Thank you to @netgalley for a copy prior to UK publication on 04/01/2024 ✨

Factual account of the trial of Alex Murdaugh for the horrific murders of his wife Maggie and son Paul which is how most people outside of their locality came to hear about them. The book details how the family came to such prominence and their eventual implosion. Theres murder,corruption and addiction,I enjoyed it!

Tangled Vines by John Glatt is the fascinating true story of the Murdaugh dynasty of South Carolina from it's beginnings to its spectacular meltdown.
Since the 18th century the Murdaughs kept a Mafia-like grip on the top legal jobs in the Lowcountry area of South Carolina to the extent that their area of influence was known to locals as Murdaugh Country. Glatt's book shows that the law was seen more of a tool for the family to win influence and make money than any kind of vocation, they twisted the law to basically extort billions with the aid of friendly local juries, and family members were alleged to have been involved in Bootlegging and in later years the manufacture and distribution of drugs.
Being rich and powerful in America meant that for a very long time they were able to continue their nefarious activities while on the surface remaining pillars of society and rubbing shoulders with prominent politicians.
When their downfall came it was spectacular and this is a true story that John Grisham would have been proud to create.
John Glatt does a superb job of keeping what becomes quite a convoluted tale easy to understand ,the downfall of the Murdaughs involves a veritable labyrinth of different crimes,timelines and chains of evidence.
Well-written and engrossing.