In the Name of Love

And Other True Cases (Ann Rule's Crime Files, Book 4)

By: Ann Rule

Narrated by: Laural Merlington

Inside a circle of trusted friends...one was a killer.

Jerry Harris was a self-made California millionaire who, at age forty-four, had it all: booming businesses, yachts, a mansion, a beautiful wife, and a voice to rival Elvis. No one who knew this well-liked, generous man could make sense of his sudden disappearance one autumn night. On a final phone call to his brother from his Mercedes, Jerry breathed a muffled oath - then the line went dead. For Jerry's wife, Susan, it was just the beginning of an unwavering, eight-year search for the truth behind her husband's vanishing. Through exclusive access to an FBI agent inside the investigation, Ann Rule unmasks a man driven by malevolence and hidden jealousy to destroy Jerry Harris' magnificent business empire. She expertly profiles a criminal mind that stopped at nothing in a scheme of greed and violence. With the riveting power of a Greek tragedy, Rule reveals the dark underside of an all-American success story, and a wife's ultimate triumph of justice in the name of love. Including other unforgettable accounts of true crime, this is Ann Rule at her chilling best.

©1998 Ann Rule (P)2013 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Chilling Wake-up Call

Where does In the Name of Love rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Somewhere in the upper 1/3

Who was your favorite character and why?

There was no favorite character- - the star was the author for assembling a book from so many facts and making it live.

What does Laural Merlington bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Cannot say

What’s the most interesting tidbit you’ve picked up from this book?

General facts about the Harris family.

Any additional comments?

I was a paperboy and deliverd the Palo Alto Times evening newspaper to the Harris family. I played little league and went to school with Steven Bonilla. I did not learn of the murder of Jerry Harris until maybe 8 years after it had happened so to read this book and have everything brought in such a way that it seemed like just yesterday was marvelous. I have a sense of grief for all involved in this story. It is so unfortunate that Jerry Harris had to die; so unfortunate that people had to take a man's life for money and ego reasons. The book is a reminder that one must trust one's gut all the time. The one time you ignore it could be the last.

Live anything by Ann Rule

Ann rule never disappoints ,all her books are top notch , and this is no exception . Ann Rule is always my go-to choice when I cannot decide what to read /listen to .

Shocking

These are some very sad stories that touched me. I had not know of any of them. The first one just broke my heart, along with the last one. They are all well written and interesting.

The narrator did a great job, her normal voice is very pleasant and her character voices are very nice. There were no repeating of words, no background noise and no volume change. She really pulled me in giving me a very entertaining listen that had me hooked from the start.

Great book and narrator

I can see why Ann Rule is so popular in this genre. The stories in this book really pulled me in. The narrator is great too.

Worth a credit

I love all Ann Rule’s books and I love this narrator. Definitely worth the credit.

good book

well narrated not to fast not to slow. I enjoyed the stories very much really interesting.

OK

This was ok, but jumped around a bit without warning. What I found quite chilling was the casual response from the law officers in charge of the case.

Not one of her best.

While Jerry and Sue’s story was a tragic one, there was far too much irrelevant detail. A couple of anecdotes would have sufficed to paint a portrait of the soulless Bonilla. But the endless descriptions of every detail caused me to fast forward often. Also, and this is a recurring theme in Rule’s books, she describes all the characters as beautiful or handsome, and intelligent and charming. Some of them are just average people judging by photos online so it gets a bit tiresome. The Jerry and Sue story makes up the majority of this book. The four short stories following were okay but not needed.

Don't waste your money!

Would you try another book from Ann Rule and/or Laural Merlington?

Yes they are both my favorites author and narrator.

What three words best describe Laural Merlington’s voice?

Wonderful, Soothing, Talented

Any additional comments?

I can appreciate Ann Rule writing about cases back in the early days. Book 3 and 4 just don't seem on-point. Volumes 1 and 2 were good but she lost it there for a little bit but came back with a vengeance in later volumes. She must of found her niche. Ann Rule is the queen of her genre.

Mix of stories

In general, though I like Ann Rule stories, I believe that she invokes too much artistic license in writing her stories. At points she spends pages and pages describing what a victim was thinking, the emotions she was going through, what the weather was like on a particular day, the colors of the leaves, etc. ad nauseum. I kept thinking, “Just the facts, ma’am.” There were also some politically charged chapters in a story or two that were seriously misplaced (felt randomly dropped into this book). Wasn’t sure what the point was of those. But many of the short stories I had not heard before, and I enjoyed those. Narrator was good.