A TANGLED WEB
By Leslie Rule
I’ve been a fan of Ann Rule‘s true crime stories most of my adult life, and I’ve read them all, I believe. I’ve missed her distinctive writing style and her books since her death a few years ago. So I was immediately intrigued when I saw that her daughter, Leslie Rule, had taken up the true crime writing mantle with A Tangled Web. I wasn’t disappointed.
A Tangled Web tells the story of Shanna Golyar, a twisted, jealous woman who, for years, piled lie upon lie and wove them all together to fool her lover, Dave Kroupa, and many others, including those in law enforcement. She never believed that at some point, her lies and fantastical stories would be her undoing.
Dave Kroupa met Shanna on a dating website, and was instantly drawn to her. However, Dave wasn’t looking for a relationship, just a fun time, and he made it clear to her that he would continue to see other women. After the first couple of dates, Shanna became extremely possessive, and despite Dave’s continued insistence that he was seeing other women, she still managed to dig her claws in deep enough for him to continue to see her, as well.
Shanna set multiple crazy schemes in place, involving thousands of emails and texts, pretending to be other women, including Dave’s ex-wife. One woman she became obsessed with was Cari Farver, whom Dave had dated for only two weeks.
The book details Shanna’s psychotic behavior, which eventually led to Cari’s murder, and her cover-ups through phishing, texting and emailing.
I enjoyed reading what felt almost like another Ann Rule true crime saga.
Thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Books and Citadel for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
4 stars
House of Black and Blue 