4.5⭐

This is my first time reading a book by M. William Phelps. I will be taking a look at his true crime backlist. His writing really flows.

We Thought We Knew You is about the death of Dr. Mary Yoder. Drs. Mary and Bill Yoder are the joint owners of a Chiropractic practice. They both work part-time and their son's girlfriend, Katie Conley, is the business manager. Katie and their son, Adam, have had a tumultuous, on-again off-again relationship. They met when they were 18 and 20 respectively. In 2015, Dr. Mary (her nickname) is working when she suddenly gets ill and goes to the hospital because she needs fluids. Within 24 hours and multiple cardiac arrests, Dr. Mary passes. The doctors and her family are desperate to figure out what happened.
After a few weeks of investigating, the medical examiner determines that Dr. Mary was poisoned.
I will not say that We Thought We Knew You is an unbiased examination into what happened to Dr. Mary. The author does lay out all the potential suspects, her husband, her son, or Katie, or even a combo of the above. But the author is also very clearly indicating that only one person makes sense.

Spoilers Below:

Kaitlyn (Katie) Conley has been convicted of the crime and Phelps lays out the evidence that points to the facts she clearly premeditated this crime. Katie is clearly a narcissist and the author points out comparisons between Katie Conley and Jodi Arias. Unfortunately, Katie still denies committing the crime and has many supporters that believe her. Because of this, Katie has never said why she killed Dr. Mary. Probably revenge against Adam, but we don't know if she intended to kill her or just make her very ill.
Because of Katie's young age and clearly does not have any empathy, I have serious concerns about her ever being released. She has been convicted to 23 years and will only be 47 when released if she serves her entire sentence.

Mary Yoder was a wife, mother and grandmother above all else. She also helped her husband, Bill, run their chiropractor clinic. With Bill already semi-retired they had been planning an extended vacation taking in some European locations before embarking on the cruise they had been given as a Christmas gift. In late July, 2015 however, she had arrived home feeling unwell and nauseous. By the following morning Bill had taken her to the local ER, but after initially rallying she was rushed to the ICU where she was, a short while later, pronounced dead.

Mary had always been health conscious, careful with her diet, full of life and so her sudden and unexplained death left her family broken. Bereft and unsure how to continue without her Bill and his family were devastated to learn that Mary had been poisoned.

M. William Phelps is an expert provider of true crime books who is able to paint picture after picture as he details every salient point and piece of vital evidence in a case. Here he gives a voice to Mary Yoder by showing her position in the family and hearts of those she loved and how justice was finally served and her killer put behind bars.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, the narrative was crisply written and never strayed into the sentimental or maudlin areas it could so easily have done. The unbelievable was explained, behaviours explored and discussed in the clear and concise way I have come to expect. I hadn't read about this case beforehand and shared his amazement at some of the behaviour witnessed and his belief that the right person was sentenced and sent to jail.

I was able to read an advanced copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and the publishers but the opinions expressed are my own. There are few who can match this author's true crime works and I happily recommend it.

Thank you to NetGalley, Kensington Books and the author for the chance to read this book for a fair and honest review.
When Mary Yoder came home from work ill, no one expected her to be so sick, so fast. Mary and her husband Bill ran a well known chiropractic clinic and shared the work. The Yoder's son Adam, had asked his parents to hire his girlfriend to work as office manager and she stayed on even after several breakups. When Mary was taken to the emergency room with what was thought to be a virus no one expected her to to become critical and then die so quickly. Doctors were baffled as to the cause because none of the tests gave an answer. After the autopsy and some very detailed tests with poison control, Mary's family were told she had been poisoned. Who could have poisoned her? And why? She was popular and well liked by patients and staff alike.
What will follow is a tale of a narcissist who can't let go and plots the ultimate revenge, attempting to frame family members for the death of Mary. A detailed account of a strange story that kept me reading until I had finished the book. Mr. Phelps detailed account of this story was compelling and interesting as you try to figure out why anyone would do this to another person.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this book in exchange for an honest review.
I read a lot of true crime books but this one was particularly interesting because of how manipulative the murderer was. Parts of this book jumped around too much and some of it got repetitive but overall it's a fascinating case. I totally agree with what the author said in the epilogue and reading his analysis of the case made so much sense.

This is the toxic story of a cunning sociopath, a narcissist without a moral compass. The true crime story of the poisoning and death of Mary Yoder. There is little doubt to who committed the crime throughout this book. As the pages turned, I was filled with utter disbelief that a such a toxic relationship was given so many chances. Over and over again until its devastating conclusion. It’s a story of codependency and its effects on an entire family. While an interesting case, the story starts a bit slowly, but builds as it progresses through to the investigation, trial and sentencing.

A well known, well respected family of a chiropractors, Mary and Bill Yoder, welcome their son's girlfriend Katie into helping at their practice by being their office manager. She gave off a sweet, loving country girl vibe to everyone she met. What they don't know was she is a deceiptful manipulator and when their son Adam no longer falls under her controlling spell (examples: saying she was pregnant and it was his, telling him he got really drunk one night and raped her), he finally starts to see her for who she really is, a pathological liar. When she starts to lose him for good, she takes the most drastic measure of all by going after the most important woman in his life, his mother. Mary comes home from work one day with what appears as gastrointestional issues, a few days later, she's dead. Doctors are baffled as she's a healthy 60 year old woman who takes very good care of herself.
Katie thought she had this all figured out, framing Adam for the murder, sending an anonymous letter to the police saying she knew who the killer was, planting the poison in Adam's Jeep. When she couldn't pin the blame on Adam, she tried to go after the husband Bill, saying he was a drug dealer and a cheater. It started to get rather ridiculous as she tried to find ways not to take the blame. What she wasn't prepared for was computer forensics and the trail she would unkowingly leave behind.
It was hard to believe that Mary's sisters supported Katie and tried to convince everyone that Adam and Bill did it, either individually or together. The only direction the evidence pointed to was Katie, and the reader cringes when they read how Katie and her family acted at trial, like they did not have a care in the world. Katie was used to getting her way, after all.
I really enjoyed reading this story although I felt sorry for Adam as I knew he would shoulder the blame in the years to come. I hope this family is doing well as the years have passed and they have been able to move on from this tragedy. Thank you NetGalley and Kensington for allowing me to read this book for an honest review.

Bill and Mary ran a chiropractic clinic. Adam their son, had persuaded his parents to allow Kaitlyn, his girlfriend to manage the clinic. The business was flourishing and they were very popular with always a full waiting room of people wanting treatment. Bill was getting ready to retire and he and Mary had planned their dream vacation. Then Mary suddenly felt unwell and within a few days she was dead. The medical staff at the hospital were puzzled as she had been a very healthy person. Various tests were performed and finally a diagnosis came back - Mary had been poisoned. How did this happen? She was an avid gardener, had she inadvertently touched something poisonous in her garden? There did not appear to be a motive though everyone close to Mary was a suspect.
True crime is my all time favorite reading genre and this author never fails to keep my interest to the very end.

It was an interesting book but it was so repetitive! Switching between points of view can add interest but it's annoying when there is a recap of the last time it was in that POV. It took me quite a while to get through this book and I can't honestly say that I enjoyed it, I didn't hate it but I don't recommend it either.

What a fantastic read that captivated me from the very first page. Bill and Mary Yoder have a very successful Chiropractic Clinic in the state of New York. Both of the Yoders are very popular with their patients and love serving the people. One day, Mary comes home from work sick with vomiting and diarrhea. The next day Bill takes her to the emergency room and she is admitted. Doctors are puzzled about Mary's symptoms and sudden deterioration and Mary soon dies. It was discovered that Mary died of a Colchicine ingestion, but where did it come from and how did she get it?? This book explores all the possibilities of who would have wanted Mary gone, where and how the drug came from, as well as the subsequent trials. True Crime author, M. William Phelps, did a superb job with this very puzzling case and he is one of my favorite authors.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC of this very interesting read in exchange for an honest review.

I have to be honest and say that I found this book really hard to get into after being excited to read it from the cover and synopsis. I found it to be like a docudrama and later read that it was featured on Dateline as a true story.i love mysteries but this one gave away the villainess from almost the beginning.

While I appreciated that it was the family trying to tell their story and their mothers story about her murder, I found it difficult to follow as it skipped around between hospital and court rooms and flashbacks trying to incorporate memories of Mary and her family esp son Adam and his evil girlfriend Katie.. the way however that the plot developed and the writing style seemed distant and hard for the reader to connect with the characters. Also given the current Covid crisis, the last thing I wanted to read about was people dying in the hospital. Honestly I found this book very hard to get through as it didn’t hold my attention .

Thanks to author, publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book. While I got the book for free, it had no bearing on the rating I gave it.

I went into this book not knowing a thing about this case. Mary Yoder was a Chiropractor with a practice in upstate NY. Her Husband was her partner in the practice and administrator was her son's on/off girlfriend. This book is all about what can happen when love turns into the opposite and revenge is taken. It will scare the heck out of anyone who is out there dating.

4 stars for some repetition but a really good true crime novel!

Mary Yoder was beloved by just about everyone who knew her, and when she died an agonizing death in 2015, poisoned by a fairly unknown drug, the person eventually convicted for her murder was someone no one suspected. To this day, members of Mary Yoder's own family believe the wrong person was convicted.

The story is a convoluted one, but Phelps does a stellar job in detailing why Kaitlyn Conley was the only person who could have murdered her boss, Mary Yoder. Kaitlyn was son Adam Yoder's on-and-off girlfriend, who started working at the Yoder chiropractic clinic part-time while attending school. She was an attractive young woman with dark hair and a lovely smile ... but she also spent months crafting a murderous plot to place the blame on her ex-boyfriend.

Phelps really has his work cut out for him detailing all the twists and turns in the planning of the murder, and he does a good job in showing how all the little details connect into the larger picture. Given that Kaitlyn's family and friends refused to talk about her, the picture is less than complete, but bit by bit, the detectives on this case uncovered and put together a series of actions and deeds that clearly showed Kaityln as the guilty party.

Phelps' writing style here is clear and well-organized, something that I felt was lacking in his earlier works. 4.5 stars and I highly recommend this book.

Another, incredible read by M. William Phelps. I have read most of his books and enjoyed every single one. This book has a particularly vicious protagonist, who seems to have killed a totally innocent woman for mindless reasons. Difficult to fathom the evil that had to be lurking behind the killer’s normal seeming exterior. Highly recommended.

Honestly didnt realize this was a true story till the end. I think I missed that in the book details. Made it all more worth the read.
Well written with all details covered.
Sad story and the ending about dateline is concerning.
If you love true crime this is for you.

Thanks to the Author, the publisher and NetGalley for an early release of this book.

Great read by a new author for me. The plot is well written and enticing to the reader. Makes the reader feel like part of the story.

The horrible things that people are capable of always surprises me . This was a really good true crime book . I love everything by M. William Phelps . Me being an avid true crime reader I read alot about the same serial killers and one thing I like about Phelps books is I learn and read about people I've never heard of , secondly Phelps writes his books in great detail and I really like that because I want to know the How! The Why! This book is for all true crime lovers a must read .

I remember watching the Dateline episode on the Mary Yoder case a couple of years ago. When I saw that there was going to be a book about it, I need I had to read it. One thing I loved about the book is how it actually focused on Mary Yoder, who she was, her family, and the impact she made while the episode of Dateline focused more on Katie Conley. If you watched the Dateline episode of the Mary Yoder case, I would highly encourage you to read this book. It provides new information and allows people to see a different side of Katie, then what was seen on Dateline.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Always a fan of this writer, whether its his true crime books or his commentary on different crime shows on the 24 hour TV crime channels out there now, or his own shows he’s done. This book follows the case of the untimely death of Dr. Mary Yoder, universally beloved in her community. So it’s a shock when it is eventually discovered that her death was a murder. I remember hearing bits and pieces of this story floating around after it happened. There is no one I’d rather have put it all together for me to read than Phelps, so this was a treat, indeed. Phelps gets to the heart of the story, telling it in his typical, thorough style, yet keeping the interest up. I enjoy the amount of detail and background he layers in without overdoing it. So I enjoyed this book, and I’ll be looking forward to the next one too. Advance electronic review copy was provided by NetGalley, author M. William Phelps, and the publisher.

I did not hear or read about this case before picking up this book, and I also do not read true crime books. I am, however, a huge fan of psychological thrillers and mystery books. This book sounded intriguing to me.

I appreciated how carefully the author, M. William Phelps presented the evidence, and even a good bit of background information about the people close to the victim. He does such a good of describing everyone that I really got a very good sense of what each person was like. Early on, I got a good idea of who poisoned Mary, but from the kind of books I read, I didn’t know if there would be a surprise ending. At one point, I have to admit, I even looked this case up online because I wanted to see how it was covered.

Overall, this was very well done, and I enjoyed reading it.

This was a chilling true-crime account of the murder of a sixty year old chiropractor. Going into the book, I hadn't heard of the case, but the details were explained clearly even though much of the evidence was computer based and could have easily gotten confusing. The author clearly did a lot of research, and all the players were well represented. I liked how the details of computer forensics were explained as so much of what we think we know about the topic (from television) is exaggerated or completely inaccurate. It is unfortunate that the accused's family weren't willing to speak to the author as it would have been interesting to hear what they had to say. I would definitely recommend this to fans of true crime.