In 1974, the US East Coast was whipped up into a frenzy of fear. Locking their windows and doors, everyone was terrified of becoming the next victim of the strikingly handsome but deadly “Casanova Killer”. And he was on the move.

After being released from jail and promptly abandoned by his fiancée, Paul John Knowles embarked on a spate of gruesome murders on a road trip up the Pacific Coast.

No room for fear, no room for guilt, just the road.

As the man-hunt gathered pace, the cold-blooded killing spree continued to defy detectives. With no visible pattern in the age, race nor gender of the victims, Knowle’s joyride of kidnap, rape and murder tore across multiple state borders. It became a race of tragically high stakes. How many more lives would be lost before the police finally caught up?

Drop Dead Dangerous is a chilling account of Paul John Knowles and one of the most disturbing true crime stories in America’s history. Ryan Green’s riveting narrative draws the reader into the real-live horror experienced by the victims and has all the elements of a classic thriller.

CAUTION: This book contains descriptive accounts of torture, abuse and violence. If you are especially sensitive to this material, it might be advisable not to read any further.

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My Review

I chose to read this book after receiving a free e-copy from the author through LibraryThing. All opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased.

True crime has always fascinated me. I had never heard of Paul John Knowles before, so of course I wanted to see what he was all about. He did have a horrible childhood and survived a lot of abuse before he turned 18, but there are survivors of such abuse who don’t turn out to be serial killers. A look into his mind, although the author couldn’t have known what he was thinking, doesn’t show the real reason that he turned into a murderer except that he had no regard for others.

The system also failed him, or society. He was charming which initially led to him receiving no charges or lighter sentences. Once he was sentenced to hard time, he was determined to escape. Eventually, he knew that he didn’t want to go back to prison no matter what. He wanted to be on the road. All these factors led to a fascinating read about a desperate killer on the run.

This is an interesting story, but the pace was a little slow for me through most of the book.

About the Author

Ryan Green is a true crime author in his late thirties. He lives in Herefordshire, England with his wife, three children, and two dogs. Outside of writing and spending time with his family, Ryan enjoys walking, reading and windsurfing.

Ryan is fascinated with History, Psychology and True Crime. In 2015, he finally started researching and writing his own work and at the end of the year, he released his first book on Britain’s most notorious serial killer, Harold Shipman.

He has since written several books on lesser-known subjects, and taken the unique approach of writing from the killer’s perspective. He narrates some of the most chilling scenes you’ll encounter in the True Crime genre.

“Ryan Green is an incredible storyteller…he doesn’t just tell the story, he allows you to be part of it.” ~Blackbird

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