Sharon Fuller should have been happy with the life she was given. However, nothing was good enough for Sharon. She wanted more. She wanted excitement, and she wanted as much money as she could get her hands on.

As a preacher's wife, she was finding that life was not fulfilling. After they transfer to a new congregation, she begins looking for her next victim, I mean husband. Although still married, she begins an affair with a doctor, one who happens to be an elder in their church. When the money runs out, and things start to unravel, Sharon convinces a lover to murder her husband.
When she remarries, she quickly finds that the match is not good - and it is not going to last. If she hopes to get any insurance money, this husband is going to have to have an accident - and soon.

Oh my goodness, this book. I hated this woman - her manipulations and the many families that she tore apart. She was working to have a better life than what she grew up in, but she ruined many lives along the way. Nothing was off limits, and she lived by no rules. The detectives who are looking into the death of her last husband are convinced that she is guilty of much more - and they had no idea what they were fixing to walk into.

It was an interesting read. As much as Sharon irked me, I could not put this book down. It was a fabulous book, with a very interesting array of characters.

3.5 stars. Oh, Sharon. I'll never understand why spouses go to such extreme lengths to get rid of their other halves when a modern-day divorce is so much easier. But I'll always read their stories!

Sharon Nelson manages to manipulate her long-term lover into killing two of her husbands in order to collect on their life insurance policies. She doesn't care at all that it looks crazy suspicious or that every woman for miles hates her for being an oversexed adulterer. She isn't deterred by a man's marital status or even by multiple accidental pregnancies — she just heads up to Denver for yet another abortion, as babies inconvenience her. Plus, she has several children already she doesn't care one iota for. Sharon's not great, y'all.

I enjoyed listening to this crazy story, but it wasn't my favorite Gregg Olsen book. With true crime genre, you already know where the plot is going, so the details and the backstory have to be more gripping than usual. In this case, I didn't find Sharon's story to be overly compelling, and it was difficult to sympathize with any of the characters, as all of them make consistently poor choices (except the children).

Thank you to Gregg Olsen, Bookouture Audio, Thread Books, and NetGalley for my advance audio copy.

Who doesn’t love a true crime story?!? This was a decent read, but a tad too slow and dramatic for my liking. Constantly heard about the American Black Widow looks/sexual habits and that she was a a 🐝 on wheels….I got it, promise. I could definitely see this as a Dateline segment or Lifetime Movie Network (LMN)…utilizing all of the written content. Overall, the narrator was good and it was interesting to hear the various aspects. I had not heard of this "story," so I was intrigued until the end. That's where I was left with many unanswered questions….so I’m off to consult The Google.

As for recommending the book…
If listening to gossip or LMN is your thing—> this is your book
If wanting to hear all the details of the actual murders—> keep it moving

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the gifted copy (audiobook) for review…all opinions are my own.

4 stars

The book was interesting and kept me engaged. The time on the audiobook went by fast. The narrator was excellent. I think that the language has changed a lot since these events occurred and when the book was first released and may be offensive to some listeners.

It’s amazing how we could meet someone immediately dislike them just by glancing in their direction or a quick introduction well that is what happened when the new minister‘s wife showed up in Colorado to meet her husband‘s new parishioners. Time would definitely prove their first instincts right and then the end not even her daughters would talk to her. I always find it amazing how in the face of beautiful women some men are just so oblivious and irregardless of what friends and family say not to mention the dead bodies in some peoples wake they go full steam ahead and again most regret it. Sharon Nelson is one of those people who still to this day claim her innocence so much so during an interview with the author she came up with many things she would do has she not had a conscience… Because that’s what people with a conscience do?… Right? I read the story years ago but when I saw Gregg Olsen wrote it I knew there would be things I didn’t know and there were not to mention the up-to-date information I didn’t know like about how the firefighters daughters sued the insurance company and won. This is another great book about religious people behaving badly and when I say people I mainly mean Sharon Nielsen. It is also a heartbreaking story about love ones who lost their dad way too early in life. The scariest murders I read about or those that are killed by the ones they trust because OMG that is this book not to mention Karen Peaks did a great job setting the tone and doing all the voices as a definite five star listen. I received this book from NetGalley and publisher but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

Thank you Thread Books and NetGalley for the advance copy for review.

This is yet another page turner by Gregg Olsen. This is the story of Sharon Nelson and the part she played in the murder of her two husbands. Gregg Olsen writes non fiction in such an intriguing way. He draws you in from the first page and you don't want to put the book down.

If you enjoy this read definitely pick up If You Tell, another of Olsen's books.

This true crime story revolves around Sharon Fuller, the Colorado minister’s wife who went through kleenex, discarding them when she was finished with them. Her first husband appears to have escaped unscathed, but her second died from a mysterious fall. The third is found burned almost beyond recognition, with bullet holes in his head. It’s only after this latest death and another life insurance payout that the police begin to investigate and the truth about this seemingly normal woman comes to light. Evil comes in all forms

Wow. This story is a wild ride. It’s very sad and just shocking that this woman was able to get so many men under her spell. The families broken apart by her.. ugh just really makes me want to smack her. I thought this story was very well told. The audio kept me engaged, was able to follow, and I was excited to press play each day to see what was going to happen next. I always recommend Gregg Olson and was so happy to listen to this early! Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced listener copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to review this audiobook.

Let me give my disclaimer. I love suspense and some drama. When you combine the two it’s usually a win for me. However, I didn’t get this from this book. I had this audiobook and I’ve pushed through to 40% and I’m done. I can’t go on.

For me, there are entirely too many characters. The beginning of the story had a list of all the characters and that already had me lost. But I progressed. Then, I’m listening to what I thought was the beginning of what’s to be the story- I’m like 2 chapters in and then there’s a prologue. That definitely confused me. This story was all over the place.

I feel like the idea of this would have been great. Sharon was definitely messy and selfish. She cared about no one but herself from what I’ve heard. However, the execution of this didn’t hit for me. I feel like this was lacking and it didn’t keep my interest. So , I respectfully choose not to finish this. This was boring and I did not want this to put me in a reading slump.

@bookouture is publishing @greggolsen’s American Black Widow in audiobook format🖤 Gregg’s nonfiction books read like fiction and are so well researched. He has a knack for finding criminal stories that are not widely known, but are extremely disturbing in how manipulative the criminals are in order to hide their true selves from others. This book is about Sharon Fuller who was married to a preacher and her history of jumping from relationship to relationship, some of those ending with her husband dead.

I highly recommend checking out this audiobook, especially if you love listening to true crime podcasts about femme fatales.

Thank you @bookouture and @netgalley for allowing me to listen to this audiobook ahead of publication in exchange for my honest review.

Sharon Nelson, the 1980s femme Fatale /Black Widow who would stop at nothing to get what she wants.

A true crime thriller based on sex, lies, and greed is the story of a preacher's wife who
seduced, married, and murdered 2 of her husbands for the insurance money.
I felt sorry for the families who were affected and for the children whose father was murdered. They went through so much heartache, and I was glad that justice was finally served in the end.

This book had a lot going on and many characters to keep track of, so I was thankful for the list of ' Who's who' at the beginning of the book.
Gregg Olsen is a go-to author, and I have loved most of his books.

Thank you to Netgally and Bookature Audio and Thread Books for the Arcs.
The review was voluntary.

This book has it all! It’s about the sexy siren Sharon Nelson Harrelson. The author masterfully details her story. This is a great book for those that enjoy true crime.

2.5 stars

Unfortunately I just didn't feel like this story worked well as an audio book, it didn't flow very well and I found myself getting lost and confused. I feel like it would work really well as a documentary.

How evil can one person be? She isn't the only one but Sharon surely is a rare breed. This is a very detailed true story and quite interesting.

Thank you Net Galley and publisher for this audio ARC. This was a fascinating read, and I'd never heard of this case. My beef with this book is that it doesn't read like a true crime book as advertised.

American Black Widow by Gregg Olsen - I really love true crime. This story was no exception - it was crazy, interesting and had so many moving parts. There were a lot of characters but the story did a good job of explaining everything so we could keep everything straight. There were some slow parts in the book but I did not really know much about this story so I wanted to see how it ended. The narrator was great. Thanks NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for the ARC!

I, weirdly, am a true crime fan. Ugh, what an awful thing to be. I grew up reading Ann Rule books left around the house by my mom. Vincent Bugliosi was a favorite in my teen years. Gregg Olsen is becoming this decade's prolific crime writer and I jumped at the chance to read American Black Widow knowing only that Olsen was the author.

I'm sad to say this one was not a winner for me, and, frankly I realized mid-way through, and later confirmed based on a small amount of web-based research - I'd read this already. The murder took place in 1976 so it was pretty dated considering this is a 2023 book, but it was actually a 1998 book. Originally published as Confessions of an American Black Widow, I had read this sometime in the pre-Goodreads world. And, for whatever reason, it was published AGAIN in 2013 under the cringe worthy title, Bitch on Wheels, which, title alone, I would never have read.

I get that new readers who missed earlier books might want to read a current hit author's previous works, but re-publishing under new title and allowing readers to think it's new work feels wrong to me. You may have different opinions, but it feels cheaty. And, in the case of this book compared to current works, it's clear to see that the author got better as he aged.

That said, overall it was dissatisfying and felt incomplete. The biggest explanation over the main character, Sharon, and her ability to control men, was her sexuality and breasts. I know a lot more about this woman's breast than I care to know. It never felt believable, and I didn't care about the men murdered. Absolutely zero ducks given.

And, finally, as a former Christian, the tag line "The shocking true story of a preacher's wife turned killer" drew me in. Alas, this book does not present her as a preacher's wife in any sense that a good woman turned bad. She just happened to be married to a guy who preached. She was nothing but a busty gal (see, her breasts) who slept around and killed a couple guys. The end.

Will I read another Gregg Olsen? Absolutely. Will I check to see the history of the work and how many times it's been given a new name and new cover? Yup.

This is another stellar take on a true crime story by Gregg Olsen. Black widow indeed. I found this particularly disturbing, it seemed somehow so recent and I often easily forgot these were real people.
Sharon really was a master manipulator, a real femme fatale. I often found myself feeling slightly sorry for her murderous lover. I’m truly glad they saw justice in the end.
Chilling. Disturbing. Distressing. A real page turner.

*special sauce truly made me heave.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookature for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook in return for an honest review.

I enjoyed American Black Widow. I was excited to see a "new" book by Gregg Olsen and since I hadn't read it when it was published before (under the title of Bitch on Wheels) I was even more excited. I thought the book was well researched and enjoyable. I wasn't a huge fan of the timeline jumps, but that is just a personal preference on my part. All and all it was a very interesting story.

Black Widow 101!! What a crazy story!! I both listened and read this one. There is ALOT of characters so it does get confusing. I appreciated the who’s who section at the beginning of the book. I enjoyed the narrator and different accents.