If You Tell: A True Story of Murder, Family Secrets, and the Unbreakable Bond of Sisterhood

8.5⭐️ - rounded down for Bookclubs This was a wild read. I listen to a lot of true crime and somehow I’d never heard of this case so this was a fascinating read. Shelly Knotek might be one of the most psychotic people I’ve ever heard of. I could not wrap my head around how she could be even half as crazy as she was. How anyone can treat another human being, let alone their own children, the way that she did was just unfathomable. The worst thing for me was that she was always horrible and continued to get away with it. Sometimes these psychopaths go under the radar but Shelly was always psychotic and the fact no one was able to stop her was devastating. I thoroughly enjoyed the way Nikki, Sami and Tori’s story was told. It was creative and story-like, yet realistic and factual and it was done very well.

Yowza! People are deranged. A fascinating read that still has me shaking my head in disbelief.

Well written, but difficult to read because of the horrific and devastating truth of the subject and its reality. I almost stopped reading a few times because of how horrific the subject matter was, but kept telling myself if the victims lived through this situation the least I can do is read their story as they didn’t have the choice to put the book down when it became too much for them.

A rough read, due to the incredible torture described. But I was disappointed that the book wasn't as well written as Mr. Olsen's fiction novels. It almost seemed as though someone else had written the book. If you want the truth about how abusive parents can be, I'll recommend this book. If you want a taut, superbly written mystery, I'll happily recommend any of his other books!

Very well written. Very descriptive and comes with a trigger warning!