This is good narrative non-fiction, with pictures (always helpful).

Thanks to the publisher for the ARC.

Enjoyed this true crime but the unresolved nature of the case was a bit frustrating. This is not a reflection of the author, obviously, the book is just telling the non-fiction of what took place. I think there are probably more interesting crimes to be written/read about than this one.

A detailed account of the pretext and investigation of a young man on the spectrum who was accused of murdering his mother at sea. His beloved grandfather was the closest to Nathan worth 40 million. A twist a the end leaves me wondering what really happened? Good but not resolved to o this reader's satisfaction.

Copy provided by the publisher and NetGalley

An interesting true crime book about a young man pulled from a life raft after a week at sea when his fishing boat sank with his mother onboard. As more and more information is revealed, the story shifts from a son's tragic loss of his mother to accusations of multiple murders, insurance fraud, and family feuds.

Since there was never a verdict in the (numerous) cases discussed, the author did a good job of presenting the facts for both sides (and also in his author's note came to a different conclusion about the case than I did).

Dysfunctional describes the wealthy Chakalos family. John Chakalos built Athena Health Care Systems, a chain of assisted living facilities across New England. He controls his family as he does his business. Although he has four daughters, he grooms his first grandchild Nathan Carman, son of his daughter Linda, to take over the company. Nathan, however, is a troubled young man. He is autistic, has been reported for violent behavior in school, spent time in a psychiatric facility and has flunked out of college. Linda’s sisters are understandably jealous and resentful. Then John is murdered and the killer is never found, although his aunts suspect Nathan. Then he and his mother go on a fishing trip. The boat sinks, Linda disappears and Nathan is picked up by a cargo ship. He tells a wild tale drifting in a lifeboat for a week. This story soon unravels.

In Blood in the Water, Casey Sherman takes a deeper look at the tragedy of the Chakalos family. Did Nathan, with all his emotional problems, have planned a complicated boating accident? Could he have coldly killed the grandfather who loved him? Instead of offering answers, Sherman leaves readers with more questions and a sad, unexpected ending. 4 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, Sourcebooks and Casey Sherman for this ARC.

Casey Sherman has written about a contemporary true crime that continues to make headlines several years after the prime suspect committed suicide in jail in June of 2023. Sherman does a deep dive into the case of Nathan Carmen who was arrested and charged in 2022 in connection with the death of his mother, Linda Carmen, who was killed in 2016 while on a fishing trip with Nathan off the coast of Rhode Island. Nathan's account of the boating tragedy was full of inconsistencies and the insurance carrier denied his claim for compensation for the sunken boat. A few years prior to the boating incident, Nathan's grandfather and Linda's father, John Chakalos, a wealthy real estate developer specializing in assisted living facilities, was shot dead in his home. Chakalos had adored Nathan his eldest grandchild, but he had a fraught relationship with his daughter. Yet, upon Chakalos' death, Linda became a wealthy woman. With a multi-million dollar fortune at stake, Nathan was the prime suspect in his mother's death and a suspect in his grandfather's murder.

Although Nathan Carmen will remain an enigma since he died before he would stand trial, Sherman has uncovered every stone in this sordid story, and it will appeal to those readers who are fascinated with how wealth and power can warp family ties. Thank you Sourcebooks and Net Galley for an advance copy of this gripping true crime narrative.

I had not heard of this case previously, but felt the author did a very good job of setting the stage, and introducing us to the family of Nathan Carman, as well as the elements of the crimes. But as clearly detailed as the crimes are, SPOILER ***


... there is no real resolution because this case never went to trial.

The victims are Nathan's grandfather John Chakalos, a multi-millionaire who adored his grandson, and Nathan's mother, Linda. The author details a thoroughly dysfunctional family, with frequent fights about inheritances from their wealthy grandfather/father. Nathan's aunts are upset because Chakalos clearly favors his first grandson, Nathan, and is grooming him to take over the company, although he appears woefully lacking in business and interpersonal skills.

Nathan is described as being on the spectrum, with an Asperberg's diagnonis, and his attitude and actions accelerate the tension within the family. As detailed by the author, Nathan is very off-putting, lies often and is not forthcoming. While we get lots of background on Chakalos due to his business career, family and friends, Nathan remains a bit of a mystery.

When Chakalos is found murdered in his home in 2013, gruesomely shot with a Sig Sauer rifle, there is no clear suspect and the case remains unsolved. But when Nathan and his mother go on a fishing trip in 2016, there are enough discrepancies that Nathan is a suspect, and in 2023, is indicated by a grand jury. However, because s mentioned above, the case is closed.

The author does an excellents job in presenting all the details, without bias, and we are left with an intriguing mystery, and I found myself equal parts appalled and sympathetic. 4 stars.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for gifting me a digital ARC of the latest true crime book by Casey Sherman. All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4 stars!

When Nathan Carman is miraculously rescued from a lifeboat bobbing in the unforgiving North Atlantic, questions swirl about the fate of his mother, who is presumed to have drowned when their fishing boat sank. Nathan is in remarkably good shape for being lost at sea for a week, and his account of what exactly happened out there on the waves raises questions from family members and law enforcement. Then there's the mysterious murder of Nathan's multimillionaire grandfather who was murdered a few years before. With all that money on the line, did Nathan commit the ultimate betrayal?

Money, power, family - how many times have we seen that combination end in tragedy? I'm a fan of Casey Sherman's books because he always does such a thorough job of researching and compiles all that research into a gripping story. Although this one was on 20/20, I never saw that episode and this crime didn't ring a bell to me, so it was fascinating to delve into. The fact that Nathan was on the autism spectrum added another layer of complexity into these crimes. If you like true crime, this one is for you!

Blood in the Water by Casey Sherman is the true life story of Nathan Carman. When Nathan was 22, he and his mom went out on an overnight fishing trip. The next day, they didn’t return. Seven days later, Nathan was rescued from a life raft, with no sign of his mom, Linda. This story dives into what happened out there on that missing boat and looks at Nathan’s life prior. I didn’t know anything about this trial or what had happened when I started this book. I am left unsettled. It is a very sad, very tragic story. I couldn’t help but feel for Nathan. He didn’t seem to have anyone advocating for him until the end. Nathan was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, so the way he interacted with the world was different. He was harshly judged for that behavior. This is probably going to stick with me for a long time. We will never truly know or have the answers to what happened. This is an objectively written, engaging account. I will read more from this author. 4/5 stars. Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for allowing me access to an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Publication date April 8th, 2025. This review will be found on Instagram, StoryGraph, and Goodreads indefinitely.

Blood In The Water; an untold story about a family tragedy by Casey Sherman, Nathan Carmen was the oldest grandson of John Chakalos. John was a millionaire builder in New England and spoiled his first grandson Nathan. So when Nathan was pulled out of a rescue boat near Martha’s Vineyard telling a story about how his boat fell from underneath him while he and his mom Linda were fishing and he never saw his mom again people were suspicious. especially Linda’s three sisters and Nathan‘s aunts. they also believed he killed his beloved 84 year-old grandpa. The first thing people criticized was the great condition he was in despite being afloat in the liferaft for seven days not to mention all the things he hid from his aunt‘s lawyers. he was also the last known person to see both of these people before they were murdered or went missing. despite all the evidence being circumstantial and in my opinion neither case could be proven beyond the shadow of doubt he still doesn’t come off as a nicest person and I took into account that he is on the spectrum but he still came off as a jerk. Throughout the book I really had a dislike for him but then when we got to the part where he was in court with his aunts and despite having a very high IQ it seems as if he didn’t know what to do. They accused him of not acting like someone who just lost a loved one but how does a person on the spectrum act when that happen. Another woman said she went up to him at the memorial for his mom and tried to hug him and he didn’t want to hug her… Hello he’s on the spectrum! Either way I found this book very interesting I do want to say in the book they mentioned the Sandy Hook shooter and how after that massacre happened everybody thought autistic people were potential murderers but I followed that case and didn’t even know the killer was autistic but that is neither here nor there. This is a great book from a great author And if you find stories about the human condition whether a tragic or heroic you will definitely find this book truly interesting. #NetGalley, #SourceBooks,, #TheBlindReviewer, #MyHonestReview, #CaseySherman, #BloodInTheWater,

True stories are sometimes written more from the author perspective, but when they are written with the facts they are more informative and enjoyable to read, even when the story is tragic. This story is tragic for the events that lead to the notoriety and more so to the ending of the book, not really the end of the story. Due to the end of the book, I don't personally feel it is the end of the story, as I don't feel the whole truth was ever known, so it could not be told. If you know anything of these events, you will like this book and maybe even feel some sympathy for the main character.

I just couldn't bring myself to care about this true crime book that is basically a story about rich people behaving badly. It felt like the author was adding a lot of filler to make this article-length story a 300-page book. Sherman does a good job presenting a fair and balanced look at the facts in this unsolved mystery - did a young autistic man murder his rich grandfather, and then, later, did he murder his mother on a fishing trip? The reader is left to draw his or her own conclusions, as there are no real answers. I found the writing itself somewhat clunky and I would not have finished the book were it not an ARC. This is probably a good choice for people who already have heard of this case, or who like stories about dysfunctional rich families. Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for a digital review.

Somehow, I completely missed this case when it was unfolding—but wow, what a story.

Nathan Carman’s rescue from a lifeboat in the middle of the North Atlantic sounds like something straight out of a survival thriller. But as the details emerge, it quickly shifts from Lost at Sea to Suspicious as Hell. His mother is presumed drowned, his story is riddled with holes, and oh yeah—his multi-millionaire grandfather was murdered a few years earlier, conveniently leaving behind a massive inheritance.

The more I read, the more I felt like I was watching a Dateline special unfold in real time. The book does a fantastic job unraveling the layers of family drama, greed, and mystery—all set against the high-stakes backdrop of a seven-million-dollar fortune. Did Nathan betray the people closest to him, or is there something even darker lurking beneath the surface?

Casey Sherman delivers a gripping true crime narrative that fans of the Murdaugh murders or high-society scandals gone horribly wrong will eat up. But the real kicker? We may never know what really happened. And that might just be the most chilling part of all.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars rounded up!

As a chronic consumer of true crime on the daily, I'm surprised I haven't heard about this case before! This is such an intriguing story with so many twists and turns you'd expect it to be fiction. Not only is it well written but the author went to great lengths to research it. I like that he is not trying to convince you one way or the other, but providing the facts and laying them out for you to make your own conclusion. As someone not interested in boats or rich people, I was still invested the entire time.

I'm so happy NetGalley emailed me asking if I wanted to read this. I don't read much nonfiction and probably wouldn't have picked it for myself. I'm very interested in reading more from this author, apparently he's been writing true crime non fiction for decades.

I came into this book knowing nothing about Nathan Carman, but with an itch for an immersive true crime story. Acclaimed investigative journalist Casey Sherman delivered on all accounts.

I'm genuinely flabbergasted why this wild goose chase was not more widely televised! Not only is Nathan a difficult nut to crack, but the entire Carman/Chakalos clan is entangled in a web of secrets, resentment, and outright chaos. This story has all the standard ingredients for a binge-worthy true crime tale-- family drama, unimaginable wealth, and complicated controversy.

While many true crime retellings are exciting in the beginning but then begin to drag on and on as the details pour in and become repetitive, Sherman keeps the audience engaged with endless twists and cliffhangers. My interest in the story only grew and grew, and Sherman ended it on a perfect note that will keep me pondering for a while. Highly recommend to anyone who is in the mood for a quick read and a wilder-than-fiction story!

Thank you, NetGalley and SourceBooks, for the opportunity to read an advanced reader's copy in exchange for my honest opinions.

What a fascinating book! As a true crime nut, I enjoyed the anxious feeling of suspense and learned a lot about this mysterious case jam packed with twists, greed, and unanswered questions.

Nathan Carman's extremely wealthy grandfather loved his eldest grandson and generously provided for him. But when John Chakalos was murdered, the suspects were his family, including Nathan. Some time later, as a young adult, Nathan claimed to have taken his mother fishing in a boat he bought and shoddily repaired. After the boat sank, she disappeared and he was rescued after seven days at sea in a lifeboat with no physical signs of trauma. His childhood diagnosis on the autism spectrum came into play as the social disorder affected his behavior throughout his life, including in court.

Not only are there suspicious deaths but a missing rifle, embezzlement, 20/20 television show, and family drama. This book is loaded to the hilt with action and questions. Who was responsible for the deaths of the two family members? Who had motive?

My mind was captivated by this true crime, one which will stick in my mind for a long time. The writing is gripping and the author has clearly done his research! Photographs add a personal layer.

Blood in the Water recounts the story of Nathan Carman and the deaths of his mother and grandfather, occurring years apart. After Nathan is rescued floating in a life raft following the sinking of his fishing boat, an investigation begins into the circumstances of his rescue, revealing that his mother was also on the fishing boat but never found during a widespread search. Further investigation into Nathan uncovers that his multimillionaire grandfather was murdered years earlier, with Nathan being considered a person of interest. The author presents the facts of the story, allowing readers to form their own opinions about Nathan's guilt or innocence, without inserting personal viewpoints. The book provides an objective and detailed narrative of the investigations into the deaths, based on police reports, court testimony, and other sources. It offers a compelling account that progresses swiftly and maintains reader engagement, suitable for those interested in true crime stories.

I sincerely appreciate NetGalley and Source Books for providing me with an advance copy to read and review.

This book was well researched and presented. It is an easy read about a not so easy mysterious true crime. The book reads very much like a dateline episode. The only thing the book is lacking is solving the mystery of who did it.

I enjoyed this very well researched and well written book about Nathan Carman who was rescued from a life raft in the ocean. Nathan claimed he had been fishing with his mother, the boat sank and he managed to get to the life raft with food, water and extra clothing while his mother disappeared and was presumed drowned. The men on the ship that rescued Nathan thought he was in unusually good shape for being out at sea for 7 days as he claimed. Nathan supposedly had Autism Spectrum Disorder, Asperger's, and had been doted on since birth by his millionaire grandfather. His grandfather was murdered in his sleep some time earlier and Nathan was a suspect but there was not enough evidence to charge him. I enjoyed this very interesting book about this very rich and very dysfunctional family.

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks for the ARC of this page turner.

Super fast read about two local to me crimes. The author definitely knew the information, but I feel like they repeated themselves a few too many times. Unfortunately, you can only get so far when the people involved can't or won't talk. There is also a lot more filler on the back end of the book, but if you are looking for some crimes on the high seas drama, this is definitely an option.