Not the sort of book I normally read, as it is non-fiction, but was a good read and could easily have been fiction. Well written and easy to read. I recommend this book to crime and mystery readers

I really enjoyed this book! The story was engaging and the fact that it was true makes it that much crazier. I recommend that others try this book as well. Well done!

I really liked the sound of this, as love reading crime, how it was done, how it was solved etc.

I struggled to get into this as felt it was written and so I read it like one of those slightly dodgy overacted crime tv shows!

Thank you to Netgalley and Thread books for my copy in return for an honest review

I was enthralled with this story once I got into the linear timeline. I found the writing style engaging as well as the story itself which felt unbelievable at times. The time jumping back and forth was slightly jarring to me as well and I felt like much of the first hand accounts were biased after finding out the truth of these tragedies. Overall, well done and I would recommend to fans of true crime.

I was very excited for this book. I have loved his other books. I love dateline and felt this was going to be a mix of the two. I was wrong. I struggled to get through this book and it took me a while to read it. I gave it two stars as the overall theme of the story behind what he wrote interested me. The way it was written did not. I felt like it didn't flow smoothly and jumped around. I also do not agree with how the main character lived her life but the way this book was written made it out to be she was a slut and all men were innocent. They chose their actions and played a small part in them. It was very slut shamming and men can do no wrong in a way. It should have focused on the crimes and I felt that the crimes were only 10% of the book.

I love true crime and Gregg Olson writes with such captivating style that I'm immediately hooked. This book is an episode of "Snapped" and I couldn't devour it quick enough. Some women are truly monsters and Sharon is no exception to that.

True crime is well presented in this fascinating book about Sharon Nelson, wife to 3 men, 2 of whom were found dead, allowing her to collect a substantial life insurance money from one of them. Greed and sex, mixed with murder create a mesmerizing picture of this woman.

Great for fans of true crime! This is about Sharon who had two of her three husbands killed. It is written as more of a fiction book. It was somewhat hard to follow as the book kept jumping around. Overall a good book about true crime

i know this was true crime, but it’s felt more like a regular book to me? i also had a hard time keeping track of characters even though i should have because i know the storyline (from a podcast). you could definitely tell that all the research and time he put into it was well worth it! i got so frustrated at the multiple men in her life and just wanted to shake them through my kindle screen! i am a true crime addict and for some reason i think i would prefer to stick to my podcasts than reading a book. i definitely recommend if your even slightly into true crime and mystery!

Having read Gregg Olsen’s “If You Tell”, I had high hopes for this novel. However, this was filled with so many different characters it was hard to keep mapped out, not to mention it just seemed to drag on with lots of information that didn’t add to the story and wasn’t needed.

I am always so compelled by true crime stories and Sharon Nelson's crimes are quite interesting. Gregg Olsen has a way with writing these true crime stories, he delves into all the details that lead up to each of Sharon's failed marriages and how Sharon views herself and those in her life. There are some timeline jumps and that was a bit confusing and some parts got a little slow, but otherwise, it was fascinating. Why do people do these things that they do and act like they aren't at fault? People are complicated creatures and Gregg knows how to showcase their narrative without prejudice, just giving us the facts so we can make the decision ourselves.

I found this book to be a little hard to get into - it's a nonfiction story of a true crime, but it's very clear that there is a lot of embellishing, and it's written more like a fiction story. I think that the author spent so much time showing Sharon's 'sexy side' and not enough of her cruel side - I understand that that was the point of her character and the story, but it felt like almost all of the descriptions of her were so overly sexualized.

So much of this book is spent talking about Sharon as a sexual being and not nearly enough was actually about the crime. It had so much potential to talk about the investigation of the crimes, but it fell short of that in my opinion.

Overall, this book felt like a little too much slut shaming and not enough true crime.

2.5 stars rounded up

𝚁𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐: 4⭐️
𝙶𝚎𝚗𝚛𝚎: True Crime/ Nonfiction📚

𝙼𝚢 𝚃𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑𝚝𝚜:
I would recommend this book if you enjoy true crime, specifically stories about black widows. I enjoyed learning about Sharon and her heinous crimes and I liked Greggs writing style- it almost had a fiction feel to it. There were parts of the book that were slow and I wish there had been more details about the actual crime and what happened with the investigation.

Tells the true story of Sharon Nelson, who had two of her three husbands killed. The story kind of jumps around a bit instead of being told from start to finish. It's still very interesting, especially for people who love true crime stories.

I haven't read Gregg Olsen before so I have nothing to compare to regarding writing style/if I didn't like the story. After a quick Google search - because I like to see what people look like if the story is based on real life, it looks like this isn't the first story about Sharon Nelson by Olsen. Which, okay, I understand time goes on, maybe new information has been found out, but it seems a little obsessive which rubs me the wrong way. Not that murder is ever okay, but definitely felt like the shitty behavior of the men in this story was accepted.

I also wasn't a huge fan of the order of the storytelling. I felt like if it had been more chronological, it would have been easier to follow. Other than that, I was interested in the book, though it took me some time to finish (maybe because of the order).

A solid portrait of a wicked villainess, the type seldom seen outside overwrought soap operas. I would have liked to have heard more from Sharon’s children, get more insight into what it’s like to be raised by a malignant narcissist. This book reminds me a little of “Everything She Ever Wanted” by Ann Rule. Both are about an evil woman who left nothing but misery in their wake, but in quoting extensively from her subject’s daughter, Rule is able to provide more unique insights.

Oh and despite the book’s best efforts to make him sound better than he was, Perry Nelson still sounds like a total sleaze.

This was my first time reading this particular author, and let me say, I was not disappointed by any means! I was hooked from the first few chapters!

This one confused me.. I thought it was a true crime non fiction? But it’s actually a fiction-style novel telling a true story. I would have preferred just a true crime non fiction or a fictionalised book based on true events- I feel like the marketing of this is off because it’s listed as a non-fiction. Gripping story though.

As a true crime fanatic, I loved reading this book. A true story, but read as a fiction novel. It was great! I look forward to reading more of Gregg Olsen’s work.

The story of American Black Widow Sharon Nelson was so unbelievable to me I was googling it after to see if it was really true. I’ve read quite a few true crime books and this one really hooked me in. I think the characters are so crazy that you just keep reading and are like “wait, they got back together again?!” The story was told in a way that gave you the facts about the murders but also really let you get to know the characters. And these are some interesting people.