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Read Larry Pollard’s Powerful Endorsement of DEATH BY TALONS by Tiddy Smith

In March 2023, Tiddy Smith's DEATH BY TALONS hit the shelves, shedding light on Kathleen Peterson's tragic death—and the disconcerting facts and unsettling implications about what might have been known by the police.

The book ended up in the hands of none other than Larry Pollard, whose review is more than an endorsement; it's a stamp of validation, affirming the book's compelling narrative and the meticulous research that underpins it.

“Twenty years ago, I went to the media with the theory that an owl attack might have preceded the death of Kathleen Peterson. This was just a few weeks after Mike Peterson was imprisoned for his wife's murder in a clear case of a "rush to judgement." There has never been any serious investigation into the evidence. The facts of this case have never been presented in full...

Until now.

In Dr. Smith’s exceptional book, all the evidence is laid bare. He demonstrates, beyond shadow of a doubt, that Mike Peterson did not kill his wife, that his incarceration was a miscarriage of justice, and that Kathleen Peterson was attacked by a raptor. I highly recommend this book!”

—Larry Pollard

Death By Talons Book CoverBuy DEATH BY TALONS: Did An Owl 'Murder' Kathleen Peterson? in all formats!

Featured Image for DBT Gallery

Gallery | DEATH BY TALONS: Did An Owl ‘Murder’ Kathleen Peterson? by Tiddy Smith

DEATH BY TALONS: Did An Owl ‘Murder’ Kathleen Peterson goes beyond the theories and speculations and uncovers the shocking conspiracy surrounding the infamous “Staircase” investigation. In this photo gallery, find the color versions of black and white images contained in the paperback and hardcover copies of the book. CONTENT WARNING The following gallery contains graphic crime […]

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Scholar and DEATH BY TALONS Author Tiddy Smith Answers “Who Is Larry Pollard?”

Thomas Lawrence Pollard, better known as Larry Pollard, was born in Durham, North Carolina in 1948. He was the son of Julia Davis Pollard and Forrest Pollard sr. Studying law at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, he would go on to work in some of the most prestigious legal counsel positions in the […]

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Author Tiddy Smith Tells Why He Wrote About The Kathleen Peterson Case

I have always been intrigued by claims of the strange and unusual: Things like ghosts, extraterrestrials, sea monsters and sinister conspiracies.  ghosts, extraterrestrials, conspiracy, Ira Levin, Rosemary’s Baby, The Boys from Brazil For this reason, perhaps, my favourite fiction writer was always Ira Levin. I remember reading Rosemary’s Baby for the first time, and having […]

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Tiddy Smith, Author of DEATH BY TALONS, Gives Background Information on The Owl Theory

The Owl Theory and the Michael Peterson Case It was a couple of weeks before Christmas in 2001 when Kathleen Peterson was found dead at the bottom of her Durham, North Carolina property. She had bled terribly from deep slices in her scalp. Her husband, Michael Peterson, claimed that she must have fallen down the […]

Author Tiddy Smith

Meet Author Tiddy Smith

I am a New Zealand philosopher of religion who has always been fascinated with the strange and unusual. I hail from the town of Dunedin, a Scottish settlement in the lower portion of the South Island, where I earned my PhD from the University of Otago. I presently live in Jakarta with my wife, Ingrid, […]

Filed Under: Blog, DEATH BY TALONS, Tiddy Smith, True Crime Tagged With: Book Review, endorsement, Larry Pollard, Murder, review, True Crime
August 23, 2023 By Stephanie Johnson Lawson Leave a Comment

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DEATH BY TALONS by Tiddy Smith

Buy DEATH BY TALONS now!

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Hear Interviews with Tiddy Smith

Read More From Tiddy Smith

Featured Image for DBT Gallery

Gallery | DEATH BY TALONS: Did An Owl ‘Murder’ Kathleen Peterson? by Tiddy Smith

Get DEATH BY TALONS   eBook   Paperback   Audio Book DEATH BY TALONS: Did An Owl ‘Murder’ Kathleen Peterson goes beyond the theories and speculations and uncovers the shocking conspiracy surrounding the infamous “Staircase” investigation. In this photo gallery, find the color versions of black and white images contained in the paperback and hardcover copies of the book. […]

Death By Talons Book Cover

Author Tiddy Smith Explores ‘Owl Theory’ and North Carolina’s Infamous ‘Staircase Murder’ in DEATH BY TALONS: Did An Owl ‘Murder’ Kathleen Peterson?

In [DEATH BY TALONS], all the evidence is laid bare… I highly recommend this book!” —Larry Pollard It was not enough to suggest that Kathleen began to bleed outside. It was not enough to point to prior owl attacks on humans. Larry needed a smoking gun. And he would find it. —from DEATH BY TALONS […]

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Author Tiddy Smith Discusses Police Misconduct in Durham

Get DEATH BY TALONS   eBook   Paperback   Audio Book The city of Durham in North Carolina had a serious problem with police misconduct at the beginning of the 21st century. The most famous example was the so-called “Duke Lacrosse” case, which gained worldwide attention. In this case, a young Black woman accused three Duke University students, […]

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A Fatal Owl Attack Has At Least One Historical Precedent, Says Author Tiddy Smith

Get DEATH BY JTALONS The unusual death of Kathleen Peterson in her home in Durham, North Carolina has attracted a tremendous amount of media attention since it occurred in December, 2001. It was first brought to international prominence by Jean-Xavier de Lestrade’s docuseries The Staircase, released in 2004. It was later rereleased in extended form […]

Author Blog Quote "It's not science fiction any more; it's science fact."

Author Tiddy Smith On ‘Jurassic Park’ and ‘The Boys from Brazil’

In 1996, a sheep called Dolly was born. She was the first mammal in history to be cloned from an adult. For this reason, Dolly had three mothers: the one who provided the egg, the one who carried her to term, and the one who provided the DNA. It was a remarkable leap from science […]

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Scholar and DEATH BY TALONS Author Tiddy Smith Answers “Who Is Larry Pollard?”

Get DEATH BY JTALONS Thomas Lawrence Pollard, better known as Larry Pollard, was born in Durham, North Carolina in 1948. He was the son of Julia Davis Pollard and Forrest Pollard sr. Studying law at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, he would go on to work in some of the most prestigious legal […]

Author Tiddy Smith Tells Why He Wrote About The Kathleen Peterson Case

Get DEATH BY JTALONS I have always been intrigued by claims of the strange and unusual: Things like ghosts, extraterrestrials, sea monsters and sinister conspiracies. ghosts, extraterrestrials, conspiracy, Ira Levin, Rosemary’s Baby, The Boys from Brazil For this reason, perhaps, my favourite fiction writer was always Ira Levin. I remember reading Rosemary’s Baby for the […]

Tiddy Smith, Author of DEATH BY TALONS, Gives Background Information on The Owl Theory

The Owl Theory and the Michael Peterson Case It was a couple of weeks before Christmas in 2001 when Kathleen Peterson was found dead at the bottom of her Durham, North Carolina property. She had bled terribly from deep slices in her scalp. Her husband, Michael Peterson, claimed that she must have fallen down the […]

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Read Larry Pollard’s Powerful Endorsement of DEATH BY TALONS by Tiddy Smith

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Title Contest

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When a young married couple living comfortably in the sleepy town of San Marino, California suddenly disappeared, family and friends wanted to know why.

 

Linda Sohus, an artist, and her husband John, a Star Trek fan and a computer geek with a part-time job at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in nearby Pasadena, might have left town on a secret government mission. At the very least it could have involved a more lucrative job for John on the East Coast.

 

It’s just that they left so suddenly. And, for a while at least, they weren’t in communication with anyone. But as days grew into weeks and Linda’s animals went uncared for, members of their families began to ask questions. Before long, someone called the police.

 

All trails led nowhere.

 

Eventually, the couple’s pickup was located in Greenwich, Connecticut.

 

John and Linda? Gone. And, nearly a decade later, all but forgotten. Then, bones turned up in the backyard of the home the couple shared with John’s mother Didi. Criminalists were initially baffled by the find. They wondered, were these the remains of an indigenous person or an early settler?

 

What detectives uncovered was a complex web of deception that left tragedy and unanswered questions in its wake. Although the case was overshadowed by events that captured the nation’s attention, eventually the truth emerged. It was a tale involving murder, lust, deceit, and trickery in some of America’s wealthiest towns. All perpetrated by one brazen conman, captured only after he was trapped by love.

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