Home of the Happy

This true crime / memoir blend story was pretty good! It was a quick paced story, kept me entertained. I liked the dual timeline and how the storytelling went back and forth in the different timelines. I liked the writing style and the pacing of it too.
Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers, and especially the author for this ARC in exchange for my honest review of the book!!

Part memoir, part true crime, but written as a story that you will never forget. Jordan LaHaye Fontenot digs deep into family history to uncover secrets of the community, secrets of the LaHaye family, and ultimately searches for answers to ensure that the truth is heard.

I enjoyed this book and I think others will too.

WOW! I have not heard of this case before this book and now I fully vested! The details of this crime and the events that have come to play.....I am shocked! I will never forget this case and I hope this family gets the justice they deserve. Today, tomorrow and forever.

The authors great grandfather was kidnapped and then brutally murdered. Her great grandmother, Emily, was tied up and left to deal with the aftermath.
So begins the book "Home of the Happy"

The author describes what happened, how it unfolded, the FBI, the prosecution, and finally a conviction of John Brady Balfa.
But the question remains, did John Brady Balfa do it?

The book leads the reader down the path from the kidnapping, the murder, the hunt for suspects, the conviction, and then what happened afterward.

She describes how her family reacted, how the crime rippled across the family, affecting everyone.

The author follows leads and tracks down all potential other killers.

Yet the unease of the court case convicting John Brady Balfa is palpable. The question remained....did John Brady Balfa kidnap and kill her great grandfather?

Then the smoking gun. The reader will WANT to know what did she find out that made the answer to the question an absolute?!

This was an intense read that at times got bogged down with all of the Dixie Mafia names and a list of characters.

But the wild ending was worth it!

My apologies for another long review! The book isn't a question of "if" a man was unfairly convicted, it's a question of if the "right" man was unfairly convicted. And, if it was a conspiracy or murder for hire, who orchestrated it, etc.

This was fantastic, Fontenot can write!! The book follows the author through interviews and investigations regarding the murder of her great grandfather. The setting, Louisiana, is already a beautiful, mysterious place and the author described it with such poetry it became even more so.

I loved the amount of detail and that the author included everything. The story was very linear in most places, and there wasn't a lot of confusing flashbacks. Having to remember dates, along with subtle clues, while the author uses unnecessary flashbacks to reveal "twists" is one of my major gripes of true crime novels. Not so in this case, Fontenot lays everything out clearly with no attempts at sensationalism.

I also appreciated the openness. Considering the topic is the authors own nearest and dearest, some bias (conscious or not) is a concern for me. Perception is such a powerful thing. I feel this author was concerned about it as well, and that she specifically guarded against it. She didn't hide the ugly facts about her own family, whether they were related to the case or not.

The overwhelming sense of anticipation, a driving desire for answers and closure. The struggle for answers is a tension, a need she tries to satisfy. It's cloying and she translates that to the page with the skill of a master. At the end, I felt the need. I was emotionally invested in this!



The only issues I have are:

The recurrent names. Six degress of separation does not apply to small towns okay. I live in one and "six degrees" would be a dream come true. Everyone is connected to everyone else six times over. In a setting that small, in a story thats spans decades, it can get hard to follow. Even the authors married name is associated with someone assigned to review the case at the end. I know people usually gripe about repetitive introductions but, in this case, it would have been helpful to have more differentiation.

To build on that complaint, there's a huge aura of dirty dealings, nepotism and secret activity surrounding the murder and the trial. When the names are so repetitive, it adds extra fuel for the conspiracy fire. I'm not sure if it's legitimate evidence or just the reality of a small town.

The killer gives a presumably false name when he tricks the victim, and his wife, into opening the door. It was a legitimate name. They same last name as the parish Sherrif who investigates the kidnapping and murder... and also the last name of one of the prosecutors... Also, the story told from the surviving wife didn't make sense and her IDs were very questionable. I don't understand why she was never considered a suspect. Life insurance is considered a possible motive at one point, but not once is any suspicions directed at her.

Lastly, the author has a habit of using words in a series of three to emphasize a point, point, point. It grated on my nerves, nerves, nerves.