DIXIE'S LAST STAND: WAS IT MURDER OR SELF-DEFENSE? Below is Carol Tilson's unedited FIVE STAR review of my true crime book, DIXIE'S LAST STAND, a soon-to-be newly published true crime feature-length book at WildBlue Press: Reviewer Carol Tilson says "I had a hard time putting the book down" Whenever I review a book, especially non-fiction, I always read it a second time to pick up whatever I missed. Before that second reading, I make a … [Read more...]
A crime of national news intrigue, a book for cops, mystery readers
In about ten days, true-crime readers from across the globe can become acclimated with a tiny western Iowa community that captured the national spotlight a decade ago: https://wildbluepress.com/dixies-last-stand-john-ferak-true-crime/ This was a murder case that ultimately generated incredible public awareness on hot-button topics such as domestic violence and murder in self-defense. How big a deal was the murder case involving Dixie … [Read more...]
Meet the prosecutor in DIXIE’S LAST STAND: WAS IT MURDER OR SELF-DEFENSE?
In DIXIE'S LAST STAND, readers will follow the turbulent lifestyle of Defiance, Iowa, resident Dixie Shanahan, but nobody had a more pivotal role in the outcome of the case than Iowa prosecutor Charles Thoman. Thoman drew the assignment from his bosses at the Iowa Attorney General's Office to handle the criminal proceedings against Dixie. In DIXIE'S LAST STAND, you will learn how Thoman was almost bypassed for the assignment, based on his own … [Read more...]
Tremendous input from true crime readers helps finalize our DIXIE’S LAST STAND cover
At WILDBLUE PRESS, we're a true-crime book publishing firm like nobody else. Why? Because we consider your input essential in our most vital work. It's a known fact that many readers of all shapes and sizes make a decision whether to buy a book based on the title and based on the cover. Over the past week, we've received hundreds of comments from TC readers all over North America as we posted several different dummy designs of … [Read more...]
A small Iowa sheriff’s office comes up big in Ferak’s new book, DIXIE’S LAST STAND
(Seated: Shelby County Sheriff Gene Cavenaugh, with chief deputy Mark Hervey ) Photo Courtesy of The Harlan Newspapers As I set out to produce this story as an original True-Crime Feature for WildBlue Press, there was no shortage of angles. Questions about self-defense, justification and mandatory sentencing laws. The crime was bizarre given the length of time that Scott Shanahan's body was left in his bedroom. A body in the bed. A … [Read more...]
