Rating: 
Summary: Book Full of Yawns
Review: Book Full of Yawns
What makes for a quality true crime book is not just good writing (although good writing compensates for many weaknesses in the story) but one or more of many important components: a compelling mystery or riveting plot, accessible and likable victim(s), despicable or at least interesting villains, and often a well developed history and sense of place. In Ann Rule's 2003 offering, Heart Full of Lies, all but one of these ingredients is sorely lacking in this listless and tedious narrative that was both a chore and a disappointment to me as an admirer and patron of Ms. Rule's work. The only explanation I can deduce for this author's surprising nosedive into substandard is that she must have gotten involved in this case after the trial, and committed to writing the book before she rolled up her pant legs and waded out to what would be extremely shallow, flat, and sterile waters that represented the lives of the main characters of this story.Of the 379 pages in this book, roughly half of them are redundant repetition of the same tired manipulative meanderings of the murdering wife, Liysa DeWitt's(plus three married surnames) attempts via electronic mail, feigned or self-inflicted injuries, unsupported allegations and other trumped up histrionics to demonstrate to her friends, family and acquaintances that she was a battered spouse. The fact that so many of her friends, who were themselves professionals and worldly individuals, believed her stories lends support to my continuing observation that people are very naive and terribly ignorant about the ubiquitous problem of domestic violence. The more you know about domestic violence, the more readily you can identify the signs, and after initial investigation, the perpetration of a fraud by a disturbed individual with a sinister agenda. Ms. Rule frequently describes Liysa as a "devoted mother" and a "brilliant writer," but shows absolutely no documentation or anecdotal support for either. We see no examples of Liysa's prolific writing: her countless journals, screenplays, story outlines or voluminous correspondence, perhaps because the author was unable to secure permission to publish any of them. Considering Liysa, in the 37 years before she was incarcerated, never had a single thing published or made a dime writing, I find it difficult to believe she was all that great, especially without sampling her wares. With regard to Liysa's wonderful parenting skills, this was a woman with no sense of boundaries whatsoever, and typical of the Narcissistic mother, her children were vicarious personifications of herself. She was so entrenched in their lives, she breast fed them until they were over four years old, home schooled them, never let them visit any of the grandparents, dragged them on airplanes from Oregon to Hawaii, and moved them to various homes like luggage. She went to such great lengths to make her sons so utterly dependent on her, that when she was jailed for the murder of her husband (the second child's father) her eldest son, who was about ten, suffered from post traumatic stress and was incapacitated for months. I don't think that a woman who deliberately denies her children the skills for self-sufficiency deserves to be called a "devoted mother." Sick, yes. And what about the victim, Chris Northon? Do we learn anything about him in this book that makes us care about what happened to him? Do we like him? Are we outraged by his murder? Not really. Christ Northon is portrayed as one-dimensional, generically agreeable, and bland as a salt-less cracker. Here is a man who at 40 allows the mousy, twice-divorced, barefoot, skinny Liysa seduce him out of bachelorhood into fatherhood and marriage, with about as much (...) appeal as a pair of tube socks. We learn little from the author about Chris's dreams and goals, and instead are privy to a long list of his recreational interests such as camping, hiking, skiing and surfing. He and Liysa shared a home in both Oregon and Hawaii, and he was a pilot for Hawaiian airlines. His childhood was happy, his parents normal, and what he ever saw in Liysa remains the only real mystery in this story. The most interesting parts of the book, and where Ms. Rule shines, is in her descriptions of Hawaii, and of the people and landscape of the area in which the Northon's lived. Otherwise, she struggles to keep your interest. Even the final "Perry Mason" moment during the trial, after which a plea bargain is made and the jury sent home, dies on the vine when we are left hanging over what incriminating information was extracted from Liysa's computer that forced her attorneys to renegotiate her plea. Thus, we are denied even a good trial to read after the painful page turning prior. As a rule (pun intended) I recommend Ann Rule, and have thoroughly enjoyed many of her books. However, Heart Full of Lies proved to be frustrating, predictable, repetitious, and without the juicy fleshing out of characters we have come to expect from the skillful masters of true crime genre. The book did not elicit any passion for its victim or perpetrator, and strained the elements of credibility that this insipid, obsessive-compulsive, habitual lying, self-absorbed, hedonistic woman had such persuasive and charismatic powers that she fooled virtually everyone she knew.
Rating: 
Summary: Like 'True Detective'
Review: Because the author was unable to speak to either of the principals in this story, it sometimes reads like a "True Detective" mag; everything second- or third-hand. You can kinda tell that Ann was uncomfortable speaking with the relatives of both "Chris" and "Liysa". Her constant assertations that Liysa was such an "incredible," "loving," "perfect," mother certainly wars with Liysa's personality as revealed in the book and is really sickening after a while. How could Liysa be the queen of every group she belonged to while everyone in Chris' world detested her? Life just doesn't work that way. Ann needs to get real.
Rating: 
Summary: A good read
Review: Ann Rule has done a good job of giving extensive evidence as to why Liysa Northon is a menace to society. Scary woman! I hate to tell her relatives (dad's review is on here, too), but Liysa didn't have the *right* to end Chris's life. She had MANY chances to leave, but she didn't, because she was "afraid" of a guy who is well known as mild mannered and friendly. Liysa's writing is a clear window into her soul and she has some real problems. It'd be great if someone from Liysa's family would admit that rather than try to paint her as an unknowing, innocent victim. Liysa is deathly afraid of her husband, yet wants to go to a secluded area with him for the weekend?? Uh, ok. Liysa claims that Chris put a knife to Bjorn's throat, so she leaves, AND COMES BACK? Things don't add up here. No matter how many interviews Ann could have conducted with Liysa's relatives, it wouldn't change the stark facts at hand. Liysa is a manipulator, and she's got her own family in her clutches. The extent to which Liysa accuses those around her of being criminals or drug dealers is scary. In her world, she's the only normal/sane/law-abiding one. I have read a few of Ann's books, and while this book might not make my list of favorites, she has certainly presented an interesting glimpse into a Liysa's disturbed mind. The only annoyance I had with this book is Rule's tendency to repeat information in different parts of the book.
Rating: 
Summary: Miss Rule is simply the best!
Review: I was fortunate enough to have received this book from a dear friend as a Xmas present.I have all of Ann's books but no one has ever bought one for me. I had no idea that Ann had a book out, and was absolutely excited when I realized that she was the author. Her writing is always on point. She takes you through the lives of all who are intimately involved, and you can't help but feel that you were in Oregon, Hawaii, and Washington. The horror of it all is that this is a TRUE STORY regardless of how one feels about Ann's ability to tell the story, it happened. She does not play favoritism in telling her story. I found it hard to believe that Chris was such a doper taking coke, popping pills, and alcoholic of the worst kind, and still be an exemplary Pilot @ Hawaiian Airlines. Lisa (Lisya) took great pleasure in making sure that NO ONE ever blabbed to Chris about the horror he put her through because she was LYING!, and had he found out about the lies, I'm sure he would have divorced the Monster and quite possibly still be alive. She is a sick, manipulating beast who didn't deserve a plea bargain. Her histrionics hopefully will not cast doubt on true victims of domestic violence. She was no victim at all. Chris(may his soul rest in peace), Nick, Bjorn and Papako are the true victims here.
Rating:
Summary: superbly balanced
Review: Ann Rule writes in her afterword to "Heart Full of Lies:"
"My last four books have been about women who were("were" is italicized) abused, killed or nearly killed by someone who promised to love them and care for them, and I have long been a strong advocate and contributor to domestic violence support groups. So I had to struggle with my own preconceptions and prejudices as I began my research." Rule performed the research in her usual meticulous, exhaustive style, guided by both the facts and her own intuitive, expert insights derived from her long experience of investigating crimes. "Heart Full of Lies" emerges as a finely balanced look at the Oregon murder of Chris Northon, a Hawaiian Airlines pilot. His gifted, ambitious, troubled wife Liysa was accused of the crime. The case includes a large number or people who passionately defend Liysa and believe her account, that she was a victim of domestic abuse and feared for her own life and the lives of her two young sons; and another large group of people who, just as firmly, see Liysa as a cold-blooded killer. It is her own words, found on the hard drive of a computer she reported "stolen" but actually had placed in the possession of friends, that convict Liysa. A prolific e-mailer, obssessive journal-keeper, and would-be screenwriter, Liysa poured out into words, her feelings about Chris and her plans to rid herself of him. In addition to the computer evidence, Rule reconstructs the murder scene with the common-sense, familiar police-procedure evidence. For example, she points out that when Liysa shows up at a friend's house, after driving for four hours away from the campground where the struggles occured, she is still wet and bedraggled. In the October night chill, she surely would have turned up the heat in her Ford Explorer, and her clothes would have dried. The only reasonable inference is, to win sympathy for her story, Liysa re-doused herself somewhere near her friend's house. From this and from many other facts of the scene, Rule comes to the undeniable conclusion that Liysa did indeed murder her husband. Rule's latest book is sure to please her existing legions of readers as well as draw in new ones. Highly recommended!
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I've read almost all of Ann Rule's books, but this book is not up to her usual standards. There's not the usual excitement to the story (this crime is hardly worth a book) and the book is heavily padded with repetitive material. Almost every other sentence is about what a wonderful mother she was, how she lied about her husband abusing her...enough. Instead of "not being able to put it down", I couldn't wait until it was over.
Rating:
Summary: Couldn't put it down....LOVED IT!
Review: Very well written. The reviews by the DeWitts only help to solidify the facts as written by Ann Rule and give a very clear picture of mentality the DeWitt family. Waylan DeWitt should be ashamed of himself and the actions of his family. I agree with Ann, I hope Liysa wins her appeal and gets a new trial, so they can put her away for LIFE. For her children's sake if nothing else.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I'm a true crime buff, and I usually love this type of story, about a person who appears normal and even charming on the surface, but is actually a scheming sociopath. But this one just didn't do it for me. Maybe because Liysa doesn't seem all that bad until the point where she kills her husband. Sure, she seems somewhat selfish, greedy and manipulative. She's rude to her husband's family. There are indications she's mentally unbalanced. Who would fake amnesia to avoid breaking up with someone face to face? Or pursue men who've given her no encouragement for years? I kept waiting for revelations of shocking behavior.
It's interesting that Liysa seems to fit the profile of the typical male abuser (that is, a man who abuses) -- presenting a public face at odds with private behavior, always seeing the other person as at fault, and able to spin the story to that effect.
I don't doubt that there may have been violence in their marriage. The one occasion when she had her husband arrested for domestic violence indicates this. In that instance, they both had physical injuries. But it seems she exaggerated the extent of it to her friends, and presented it as all one-sided. Her husband seems to have taken on the typical role of the abused wife, embarrassed and unwilling to discuss it. If he were beating her as frequently and severely, over years, as she claimed, someone would have seen or heard it.
I believe that she just didn't find her husband to be as easy to control as the previous men in her life, this led to conflict, and she basically felt he deserved to die for his defiance.
It's interesting that her friends all believed her stories about being a victim of horrific and constant abuse at the hands of her husband. Most victims of abuse hide the situation and feel humiliated and mortified at the thought of anyone finding out. They'll claim they fell and got a black eye. But Liysa told everyone she knew. So why would she stay with a husband she claimed to feel nothing but contempt for? She was young, attractive, healthy, had a successful career and many supportive friends, owned property. She didn't need him, so why would she stay if it was that bad? She claimed she didn't want to break up the family, but she'd already been divorced twice, so that argument isn't very convincing.
This book will be of interest to people who study domestic violence, and I could see it showing up on some high school elective reading lists, in order to be fair and show that women can be abusers also. But it's just not a very enthralling story.
Rating:
Summary: Should have waited for the paper back version
Review: It almost seems like someone else wrote this book other than Ann Rule. It was not up to her standards at all. I have read every book she has written, and I know how she writes. This book is not her best work.
The editing leaves a lot to be desired as well. Some sentences don't make any sense.
Ms Rule must have had something else to do and just wanted to put this book out in a hurry.
I look forward to reading her next book though!
Rating:
Summary: Never thought I'd be giving Ms. Rule just 3 stars...
Review: Love this author, but Heart Full just doesn't cut the mustard. There is little of the fascinating prose that informed The Stranger Beside Me, Small Sacrifices or Never Let Her Go, my personal faves. Still, you have to hand it to Ann. She's gutsy for simply standing up for people who can no longer stand up for themselves. Liysa Northon is, by anyone's standards, a sociopathic killer. I have read her father's letter here, and I am very sorry that he feels he must defend her, but Dad, here's the bald truth: NEVER ONCE DID YOUR DAUGHTER EXPRESS REMORSE FOR WHAT SHE DID. There's the true meaning of a sociopath: one who has no remorse. Normal people feel badly even when they kill someone in self-defense. That's because normal people are not "geared" to kill. For them it is a horrible trauma, one that haunts them even when they have to do it, in battle or as a battered spouse. Liysa Northon is a hystrionic, self-centered narcissistic who has victimized scores of people by what she did. It is obvious that she was looking for a way to "explain" her premeditated crime. And from what others have said of her here, she has littered the landscape with broken hearts and spirits. And she killed a very good man. I hope she rots in prison, and my heart goes out to Chris Northon's parents especially. It's just such a waste what happened to their son. What I don't understand is how such a vile human being got away with so little prison time. Frankly, I think she deserves life without parole. After all, she shot Chris in cold blood - premeditated - I know I'm repeating myself, but I am just in shock over the miscarriage of the justice system in this case. And yet, Ann could have written this one better. I guess she is just pooped - but does that mean her editors can't help her out a little? Very little juice to this writing....sorry, Ann...but I will say this: as a writer myself, I wouldn't dream of allowing such lackluster work into print.
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