This book really caught my eye and I was very curious about it. I have always been fascinated by the true crime killings that Truman Capote wrote about in his book, In Cold Blood. This book is kind of related to that one. Although this is the fourth book in a series, it is the first one I have read.

Thank you to Minotaur Books and Netgalley for a copy of the eARC in exchange for a fair review.


Disclaimer this is Book 4 in the Brigid Quinn series.


This is a total What if book? It is based on two real killings the Cutter family made famous the book In Cold Blood and the Walker killed just two months later in Florida. Of course we all know that the Cutter murders were solved or were they?


Brigid is blissfully unaware that in Carlo's days as a priest he was a chaplain at a prison and he has something in his possession that someone wants to ensure remains not found. When the new neighbor moves in Brigid's spidey sense tingles, but she thinks he is after her. She begins to investigate him, and the old murders both the solved and unsolved one.


Soon Brigid stumbles on to the possibility of a third person who was there when the Cutter's were murdered and that person might just be responsible for what happened to the Walkers. Can she find out who he really is and what really happened before it is too late?


I have read the first book in this series, and currently have the second one checked out to read so I was stumped that I had to review this before I caught up on the series. However, that being said I found that I was able to read this without being lost. I was super intrigued by the What if investigation into real life murders. Initially I was thrown off by the other point of view, but when I realized who it was I put aside all misgivings and settled down for a good afternoon read.


Brigid isn't your normal main character, she is an older woman, and she used to be the FBI. She was moved to Florida after some things went wrong and she retired after deciding that she really didn't like her new boss. Her marriage to Carlo is her first and his second. So their relationship is interesting. I am excited to read the two books in the middle and find out if I missed anything in between the 1st and 4th book.

"We Were Killers Once" by Becky Masterman, Minotaur, 320 pages, June 4, 2019.

This novel was inspired by Truman Capote's masterpiece "In Cold Blood," which is about the 1959 murders of four members of the Herbert Clutter family in the farming community of Holcomb, Kansas.

"We Were Killers Once" supposes that Dick Hickock and Perry Smith didn’t act alone when they killed the Clutter family. Retired FBI agent Brigid has been obsessed with the notion that Hickock and Smith were also guilty of murdering a family of four in Florida a month after the Clutter slayings, a crime that was never solved.

Her husband, Carlo DiForenza, a former prison chaplain, gives her a sketch done by Hickock. Brigid discovers a letter hidden behind the sketch that leads to a written confession by Hickock implicating a third person, Jerry Beaufort, who was 15 at the time.

Beaufort was recently released from prison. He is convinced that DiForenza has a written confession implicating him. It is told from both Brigid's and Jerry's perspectives.

"In Cold Blood" is one of my all-time favorite books, so I was intrigued by this concept. But this novel has too many coincidences, is slow-moving and I didn't care for the characters.

In accordance with FTC guidelines, the advance reader's edition of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a review.

Everyone thinks they know the true story behind the Clutter family murders, thanks to Truman Capote's In Cold Blood. No one is entirely sure what happened when the Walker family was murdered, but some think there is a connection between the two crimes.

In this fictional look at the murders, Brigid Quinn, a former FBI agent now married to a former priest, finds her world infiltrated by a man who just may have been the unknown and unsuspected third person who participated in the Clutter murders.

In Cold Blood is an amazing true crime book, so I was really intrigued by the idea of a fictional take on it. This is definitely a unique take on a well-established crime, and I really like that Masterman went for something brave and bold.

Unfortunately, this wasn't a very well-written book. The characters felt very flat, and there wasn't a lot of suspense to the story.

I sadly can't really recommend this book. Read the original In Cold Blood instead.

If there is one way to ensure that I will not put a book down, it is by taking a true story and incorporating it into a fictional thriller. We Were Killers Once threw this at me in spades and I LOVED every second of it!

I am a true crime junkie. Seriously, give me a murder that I can obsess about and you will have me glued to every page, begging for more. Even though the Clutter case isn’t one of those cases that hit the top of my radar, Becky Masterman had me right from the get-go. The extensive research, the meticulous fact hunting and the additional of a possible third party in the case no one knew about just had my inner crime nerd tingling all over with anticipation. I couldn’t look away.

While the story itself had me near foaming at the mouth with excitement, I didn’t feel the same about the characters. Brigid and Carlo (mostly Brigid) did an amazing job at irritating me over and over again through the entire book. Carlo just comes across as way too much of a puppy to feel like he fit in to this world. His background as a priest and professor of philosophy obviously lends to his overly trusting nature but I just felt that his naiveté was a little over the top, considering who he is married to.

Then there is Brigid. Brigid with her “top dog” attitude and overpowering insecurities made me want to slap the stupid out of her but her obvious obsession with the Clutter and Walker cases made me want to sit down with a glass of wine and chat the night away. Let me tell you, this woman both pushed me away and drew me in so many times in this book that I’ve given myself a complex.

I might be being a little too harsh on this couple because this is the first book in the series that I have read so I don’t have any of the background on them but until I read the previous books (and I will be reading them!) my impression stands. Don’t get me started on Beaufort. How that man managed everything he did is beyond me.

The one character I AM interested in, however, is Gemma-Kate. Obviously, this girl has some crazy psychopathic tendencies and I don’t feel like we got to see nearly enough of her. This girl is by far my favorite person in the book and I want more!

While the characters were not exactly my cup of tea, they didn’t make the story any less enjoyable for me. What actually bothered me more than anything else would be the pacing. In the case of a lot of thrillers the usual issue is that the book starts out slow and gets you into the story gradually. Not this one. This book starts with a bang and goes full steam ahead….until about the middle…where we reach the “second date” portion of the story. You know that place; where the initial excitement is over and you’re just biding your time until it’s acceptable to be invited in for coffee at the end of the night. Fortunately, the author doesn’t make us wait long and finishes off just as strong as she starts!

Masterman has done an incredible job of taking one of the most well-known crimes in the world and giving it a whole new life while sticking so close to the facts and theories that will have you second guessing what really happened. We Were Killers Once is absolutely a must-read for fans of thrillers and true crime addicts alike. If I may give a small piece of advice: keep your phone or computer handy while reading. Fact checking is guaranteed!

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with a copy of this book to read and give my own honest opinions.

A Cold Case Starts a Chain of Death

It’s been three years since Bridget Quinn, retired FBI agent, married Carlo, a former priest and university philosophy professor. They’re living in Tuscon, trying to adjust at retirement age to the emotional demands of marriage.

Bridget has always been fascinated by the murder of the Walker family in Florida in 1959. The case had much in common with the Clutter case immortalized by Truman Capote in his epic novel, In Cold Blood. Although the cases were similar and the murderers in the Kansas case were in the area at the time, no one was ever charged. One other remaining mystery is whether a third person was with the murderers in Kansas. It has never been proved and the person has never been located.

Jerry Beaufort, a long term prisoner, who has been jailed for drug dealing among other crimes, wants to live out his life in peace, but he fears that papers may lead investigators to his involvement in the Walker killings. Carlo, who was at times a priest at the prison where the Clutter killers were held, may have papers relating to the old crime. Jerry needs those papers.

This is not a book where the reader doesn’t know who the killer is. It’s plain from early on that Jerry was involved in the crimes. The question is whether he can be stopped before he commits other crimes in trying to erase the evidence. I found the connections between the Walker and Clutter crimes fascinating. However, the book was rather slow.

I found Bridget hard to relate to. She is obsessed with Carlo’s first wife. She spends a great deal of energy on her obsession, rather than the crime. Carlo is much more likable. He is very patient with Bridget.

For me, the most interesting part of this book was the information on the older crimes. However, it’s an easy read for if you like cold case novels.

I received this book from Dutton for this review.

We Were Killers Once is the fourth book to feature former FBI agent turned private investigator, Brigid Quinn, but each instalment can be read independently of one another as the main plot is self-contained. The only parts you will not be privy to is Brigid's family matters but they are rather boring, and that continues here as she compares herself to her husband and ex-priest Carlo's dead wife; it was a tad irritating and quite unnecessary. Nevertheless, this is a rather intriguing fact-meets-fiction thriller, and Ms Masterman has done a great job of amalgamating the two sides.

The murder of all four members of the Walker family in Florida in 1959 shocked America to the core, and to this day it remains a cold case with no one convicted despite there being close to 600 suspects. Quinn recognises that this case bears extensive similarities to another brutal family murder, this time of Herbert and Bonnie Clutter and their two children in the same year in Kansas. The investigation and eventual justice for this crime were captured in Truman Capote's masterpiece In Cold Blood. Two people were eventually convicted of the Clutter murders but could a third killer have managed to get away with it?

Well, that is very much what Masterman explores in this novel. It is the perfect crossover of crime fiction and true crime and will appeal to fans of both genres. It's well written, believable and compelling and the possibility of a third person was never discounted from the real-world investigation they just could never identify this person. It's definitely more slow and steady as opposed to anything fast-paced and frenetic, however, this allows the time to build up the characters as well as the tension which is ratcheted up nicely as the story progresses. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

As a young girl, Truman Capote’s IN COLD BLOOD, both the book and the movie were chilling! I looked forward to reading WE WERE KILLERS ONCE. I thought the premise of what if there was a third person involved in the Clutter family and this third person killed the Walker family in Florida. When Jerry is released from prison after a life-time sentence based on the three strike law, Jerry is determined to go after a priest who heard the confession of one of the Cold Blood Killers and destroy any evidence that might lead to him. Here is where the story fell apart for me, He should have disappeared and lived his own life. The priest was already on his death bed and no one knew about the connection. He gave Carlos Quinn a sketch and a confession written by Hickok when Carlos left the order years ago. Carlos had no idea he had a confession letter hidden behind the sketch. He had became an ethics professor and married Jane who passed away after a long marriage. Carlos then married a retired FBI agent, Brigid Quinn. I put this book down many times as it just moved too slowly and did not seem believable.

I received an ARC of this story from NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.

Brigid Quinn, former FBI agent is know for her toughness, but underneath that, is a dry humor . She is softer than she seems but strong enough to do what she needs to. Quinn gets drawn into a cold case that resembles one of Truman Capote's best selling books called In Cold Blood. This book is based on a true life crime that happened in nineteen fifty nine. A family was killed in Kansas by two subjects , who were caught and executed. Quinn is married to a professor and former priest, Carlo. Carlo may have been given a note from one of the executed men. Another family was killed at this time. What if there was a third killer and the note was explaining who and what really happened? When a prisoner gets out of jail, is he the third man? Will Brigid and Carlo be safe or In the sights of a killer who is not going back to jail because of two people and a note? If you have read In Cold Blood, This is another for your list. A well written book with a true crime. People died and all the people involved should be punished. I received this book from Net Galley and St. Martin's Press for a honest review. I voluntarily read this book

Taking historical events and a bestseller based on them and then writing a thriller based on them is a great way to hook an audience familiar with In Cold Blood. This alternative history is a fun, engrossing and suspenseful read that keeps you turning page after page in a hurry to get to the end. I'm definitely going to look for the rest of the series to see if the characters hold up on their own.

“Anyways, we drove up to the Clutter ranch after dark and parked within view of the place, waiting for the lights to go out. The kid was still in the back seat.”......


In 1959 there was a crime that would become the center stage of Truman Capote’s movie, “In Cold Blood.” A family murdered by two cold blooded killers. The killers were caught and executed. There was also another unsolved murder at that time of another entire family in Florida, the Walker family.

This story takes us on another road of that horrific time. An alternate take on what could have happened. What if one of the executed men left a confession behind of a third man and another dead family?

A hidden written letter to the prison chaplain may just come back to haunt former prisoner Jerry Beaufort. Jerry is out, and would like nothing better than to find out about cold cases and DNA evidence. What man wants to go back to prison on a murder charge? He’d like to get his hands on whatever it is that could link him to those murders.

The chaplain has moved on, and is now a married to a retired FBI agent. Carlo and Brigid are trying to enjoy this peaceful time in their life. The past is haunting. Jerry is out there, and the only thing standing between him and that letter is Carlo and his wife. This is the fourth book in the “Brigid Quinn” series, and my first read by this author. I found it well written, and definitely intriguing.

An alternate look at what could have been a truth. We will never know for sure. I always find true crime a hard story to read. This isn’t just a book. Two real families died. Could there have been another killer? Could they have also killed the Walker family? Thought provoking.

Thank you Becky Masterman, Netgalley, and St. Martins Press

The synopsis of "We Were Killers Once" was alluring. A new fictional account on the Clutter/Walker cases IF there was indeed a third killer involved. The description of the book immediately drew me in, but the overall enjoyment was only satisfactory.

"We Were Killers Once" is a great psychological thriller in many levels: very well-researched and carefully plotted. Author Becky Masterman skillfully connects the characters together by using alternate narrations between the villain and an ex FBI agent to build her story. No confusion timeline wise but the pace is painfully slow at the beginning. I almost gave up the book several times because I just couldn't get into the story. Few intense moments about half way done yet the last few chapters fall flat again.

This book could be read as a standalone without needing to read the first three installments in the series. Readers do not even need to know about the Clutter/Walker cases or are acquainted with Capote's "In Cold Blood" prior reading "We Were Killers Once." The author provides enough background information throughout the book to keep readers in the loop.

As a thriller, "We Were Killers Once" is not intense enough to keep me interested throughout. The villain, however, is extremely well created by the author as a twisted, cold-blooded monster which provides some levels of excitement. To me, this is only an OK read.

"In 1959, a family of four were brutally murdered in Holcomb, Kansas. Perry Smith and Dick Hickok were convicted and executed for the crime, and the murders and their investigation and solution became the subject of Truman Capote's masterpiece, In Cold Blood. But what if there was a third killer, who remained unknown? What if there was another family, also murdered, who crossed paths with this band of killers, though their murder remains unsolved? And what if Dick Hickok left a written confession, explaining everything?

Retired FBI agent Brigid Quinn and her husband Carlo, a former priest and university professor, are trying to enjoy each other in this new stage in their lives. But a memento from Carlo's days as a prison chaplain - a handwritten document hidden away undetected in a box of Carlo's old things - has become a target for a man on the run from his past. Jerry Beaufort has just been released from prison after decades behind bars, and though he'd like to get on with living the rest of his life, he knows that somewhere there is a written record of the time he spent with two killers in 1959. Following the path of this letter will bring Jerry into contact with the last person he'll see as a threat: Brigid Quinn.

Becky Masterman's unputdownable thrillers featuring unique heroine Brigid Quinn continue with this fascinating alternative look at one of America's most famous crimes."

If you wanted something more to In Cold Blood, than this book's for you.

Have you read the first three books in the Brigid Quinn series?
Have you read Truman Capote's IN COLD BLOOD?

No? Well, you may want to, but it's NOT necessary as both stories are very well depicted here....with a kicker.

So.....What REALLY happened in the Cutter home that awful night back in 1959? What if there was a third man present....someone worse than the rest of them?

And....Who REALLY killed the Walker family?

Retired FBI agent Brigid Quinn is obsessed with finding out what truly happened so long ago. She grew up listening to gruesome tales in a cop household and is still a tough old broad given her petite stature and personal demons....an old gal who can still kill a man with her bare hands so they say; and niece Gemma-Kate is pretty much a bad-ass too....when it comes to mixing potions!

BUT....as for 6'3" Italian born, x-priest turned philosophy-professor-husband Carlo.....I have serious doubts. He came across as a big wuss and dense for an educated man....with loose lips to boot! He killed the seriousness right out of the story (for me) along with the idiotic actions and comments from old x-con Jerry Beaufort who is on a mission to locate a secret document that could ultimately destroy his chance for a new life....or what's left of it.

BUT....oh the Hickock confession! Now, this is what I was waiting for....this fear inducing part of the narrative that makes your blood run cold. Well done Becky Masterman!!

WE WERE KILLERS ONCE was a decent 3 star read for me. The novel has an intriguing plot with connective ties to IN COLD BLOOD (a must read) which is a big plus in my book, but unfortunately had a down side too consisting of foolish actions and some bizarre unnecessary dialogue that nearly negated the bone-chilling aspect of the gruesome historic event.

***Many thanks for the early reading opportunity from the publisher Minotaur Books/St. Martin's Press via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review***

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for a digital galley in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for a digital galley in exchange for an honest review.

I seem to be having a bit of a two star type of week that might give the illusion that it's the only type of rating I give out. Coming in as my 188th read of the year, We Were Killers Once is the twenty eighth 2 star of my 2019 reading year. Some of my most eagerly anticipated books have already hit the market and they have left me very satisfied . The book synopsis is elaborate in detail and I don't want to rehash it all here.

But I was lured in by the connection to Truman Capote's In Cold Blood and was hoping for a solid thriller. Unfortunately, the story was just way too slow in beginning and as I am not familiar with the first three books in the series, Brigid Quinn's side focus on her husband's first wife didn't seem that relevant.

However, I like that Brigid Quinn is an older protagonist and the what if premise that Perry Smith and Hickock didn't act alone and may be connected to another murder in Florida was intriguing. In fact, the author's note was extremely interesting and I wish the story had lived up to it.


Goodreads review 30/05/19
Publication Date 04/06/19

Truman Capote is famous for his “fictional novel” In Cold Blood. Becky Masterman will soon be known for her novel, We Were Killers Once. Capote writes of two men that worked together slaughtering two families for no discernible reason. Masterman tells of a third man that could have been the instigator and true killer during robberies gone bad.

First of all, Masterman acknowledges We Were Killers Once is a work of fiction. But, she has also done copious research of the murders of the Clutter family and the Walker family in 1959. There is mention of an unnamed boy in the records of the two famous murders. This boy, Jackson Beaufort, is the focus of Masterman’s novel.

Bridget Quinn, former FBI Agent is obsessed with the murders of the Clutter and Walker families. She is only six-years-old when she first hears about the deaths and time has only increased her obsession. Her husband Carlo also has a tenuous link to Hickock and Smith from when he was a priest working in the prison system. Little do they know their lives may be in danger from the very man that had a part in these brutal murders.

Jeremiah Randolph Beaufort is getting out of jail. He has been incarcerated on and off since he was twelve and shot his little brother. He claimed the killing was an accident, but no one believed him. After reform school his parents would not let him come home, so he lived with his grandfather before striking out on his own and hooking up with two men, Richard Eugene Hickock and Perry Smith when he is barely in his teens.

After his time with Hickock and Smith, he becomes a drug dealer/thief until the “three strikes “ law puts him behind bars for life. His good behavior set him free as an old man. On a mission to make sure the new DNA tests don’t put him back behind bars or on death row, Beaufort needs to find documents that Hickock and Smith may have left behind that could tie him to the 1959 murders.

Beaufort, Bridget and Carlo will intersect and then collide with one another as the story heats up. This page turning thriller will keep you up at night both reading and wondering about the true story behind the fiction.

Be sure to read the Author’s Note at the end of the book. Masterman explains the parts of her story that are based on facts and what is pure entertaining fiction. She has researched documents from the crimes and shares what she has learned. She also recommends further reading because We Were Once Killers will undoubtedly spark your interest about the events in 1959. I read In Cold Blood in the 1960’s but am going to listen to it again on audible. There are several other books, films and even a crime series that was aired in 2018 about these murders. I find myself thinking about this book wanting to know more – you will too. It is a puzzle unlikely to be solved, but you can draw your own conclusions after diving into these books.

DISCLOSURE OF MATERIAL CONNECTION: I have a material connection because I received a review copy for free from Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Copyright © 2019 Laura Hartman

After seeing a number of mentions and reviews of Becky Masterman's first thriller Rage Against the Dying (2013), I got a copy from my local library and devoured it. Now I watch for each new title as it is released.This is the 4th book in the series but can be read as a stand alone.

Other titles in the series are Fear the Darkness (2015) and Twist of the Knife (2017).

FIRST SENTENCE: "Little Brigid Theresa Quinn, with a band-Aid on my knobby knee from jumping of a banyan tree o a dare, and a ponytail of red hair that should have been washed four days ago--I'm only six years old when I first hear about the murder of the Walker Family on December 19, 1959."

THE STORY: Inspired by Truman Capote's IN COLD BLOOD, Becky Masterman has created a modern crime thriller on the Clutter family murders in Holcomb, Kansas in 1959. The story alternates between the past and today.

Brigid Quinn, a 60 year old retired FBI agent, has recently married and started a new life in Tucson, Arizona. Her husband Carlo, an ex-priest, is now a professor of philosophy and a good balance for Brigid.

Jerry Beaufort, out of prison after years behind bars, worries that somewhere there is a written record of the time he spent with two killers in 1959. His attempts to find the document that could implicate him will pit Jerry against the last person he'll see as a threat: Brigid Quinn.

QUOTES:

"Cold cases, they call them, as if they're frozen harmlessly in the past without any power to wreak new havoc."

"That I hadn't killed anybody in about a year didn't feel like a huge point in my favor."

WHAT I THOUGHT: A most fascinating story whether you are knowledgeable about the Clutter Murders or are just hearing about them for the first time. And the author gets inside Jerry's head and lets us see the twisted thinking that the reader couldn't imagine.

BOTTOM LINE: Highly Recommended - just keep the lights on.

DISCLAIMER: Thank you to Minotaur and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this title.

Hardcover: 320 pages
Publisher: Minotaur Books (June 4, 2019)
ISBN-10: 1250074525
ISBN-13: 978-1250074522

An acquisitions editor for a press that specializes in medical textbooks (forensic examiners and law enforcement!), Becky Masterman grew up in Florida and received her M.A. in creative writing from Florida Atlantic University. She and her husband actually live in Tucson, Arizona. This is her first thriller.

Once again, Becky Masterman does not disappoint! This was so great. Masterman weaves historical true crime into current fiction seamlessly and it works like a charm. It was hard to tell what was real and what was fiction! (I loved reading her afterward on that as well.) The main characters that you know and love are back - and they're still flawed in all the right ways. I can't wait to see where Masterman goes with them next!

What if Truman Capote was wrong in his book In Cold Blood and Perry Smith and Bill Hickok had an accomplice? Someone that has remained anonymous all these years until a written confession comes to light. A slow game of cat and mouse ensues and the reader is quickly caught up in the drama between a retired FBI Agent, her husband, a Chaplain, a recent parole, and and ingenious niece. A well-written unique novel.

We Were Killers Once is the fourth novel which follows retired FBI agent Brigid Quinn. In this stunning thriller, Becky Masterman expertly weaves the true crime of the 1959 Clutter family murders with a unique “what if” introduction of a third killer. This is my first novel by Masterman and it definitely won’t be my last. I typically wouldn’t start a series on the fourth book, but being a true crime buff, the storyline intrigued me and it did not disappoint.

Brigid and her husband Carlo, a retired Priest, are living in Arizona when they come into contact with recently released ex-con Jeremiah “Jerry” Beaufort. Upon his release, we learn that Jerry was somehow involved in the Clutter family murders and possibly more. Jerry knows that Richard Hickock, one of the killers, has left a confession that might incriminate him. Suspicions aroused, Brigid is onto Jerry and the story ensues from there.

We Were Killers Once is a real page turner and it kept me guessing until the end. The reader knows that Jerry was involved in the murders somehow, but we don’t know why or to what extent. Brigid is not your typical heroine and I really liked that aspect of the book. Although she’s retired, she’s witty, tough, and determined to solve this crime. I highly recommend this unique take on a decades old true crime story.

Publication Date: June 4

Thank you to Netgalley, Minotaur Books, and the author for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.