The Dark Gray Blanket

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Pub Date 20 Oct 2017 | Archive Date 12 Dec 2017

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Description

A fictionalized novel based on the very real Babysitter Killer who terrorized the peaceful Detroit suburbs in the late 1970’s…

 

The winters of '76 and '77 in the greater Detroit and Oakland County area of Michigan were extremely harsh, with record snowfall, brutal temperatures, and incessant howling winds. During these winters, a deranged serial killer preyed upon preteen and early teen victims, both male and female. As snow would begin to fall, the killer would hunt and abduct them, keep them at a secluded location, bathe them, meticulously groom them, feed them their favorite meal, and then wait for the next snowstorm. Under the cover of the next snowfall, the killer would hide their corpses in snowbanks on secondary roads, where they would be found by passing motorists.

 

This story is a fictional account of an over-the-hill detective, Frank Pellegrini, and his strange obsession in the pursuit of that killer.

 

“My wife and our two daughters ages 10 and 12 lived in Northville, Michigan during those two horrific winters,” says Burns. “The last presumed victim was found late one snowy night, deceased, less than 3 miles from our little suburban home. I have had nightmares over these incidents and finally decided to put it to rest on paper.”


For more information visit www.thedarkgrayblanket.com. Hard copies available for purchase on Amazon: http://amzn.to/2n9FMc0 

A fictionalized novel based on the very real Babysitter Killer who terrorized the peaceful Detroit suburbs in the late 1970’s…

 

The winters of '76 and '77 in the greater Detroit and Oakland County...


A Note From the Publisher

Author is available for interviews, blog tours, autographed tours, autographed book giveaways, contests, and book club discussions.

Author is available for interviews, blog tours, autographed tours, autographed book giveaways, contests, and book club discussions.


Advance Praise

"H. Burns sets the table for a memorable story with his accurate accounting of a harsh, Michigan winter. The secret that lies beneath will keep you on edge and like myself unable to put the book down... The vivid descriptions of Detroit, Oakland County, and the shadow that was once cast upon the Motor City add to the grip that surrounded this proud area of Michigan. In the tradition of Patterson, Cromwell, and Clancy, The Dark Grey Blanket will have you reliving this tale well after you've finished reading. A must read!"
--Steve R., Automotive Executive (Retired)

"I loved this book from beginning to end! While uniquely intertwining fact and fiction, the author weaves a captivating mystery set in a Detroit of days gone by, the essence of which is captured in fine detail. Children 'lost' in the dead of winter and found in bizarre circumstances... A detective called upon to investigate who cannot explain why he is so drawn to these cases. Spellbinding! Left me hoping for a sequel!"
--Lorna B., Design Engineer (Retired)


"...a winner out of the starting gate. Every mystery fan will be engrossed from the first chapter, taken up in the evil and agony as this traumatic episode evolves. Based upon actual events, Burns leads the reader through the time when no parents in the area of Detroit could feel secure about the safety of their children... This critic doesn't see THE DARK GRAY BLANKET collecting dust on any bookstore shelf. Read it, recommend it, and reference it. It's a keeper."
--Dean M., Communications Corporation Senior Statistician

"H. Burns sets the table for a memorable story with his accurate accounting of a harsh, Michigan winter. The secret that lies beneath will keep you on edge and like myself unable to put the book...


Marketing Plan

About the Author:

H. Burns earned a degree in psychology and marketing, and then pursued a successful career with Ford Motor Company. During the harsh winters of ’76 and ’77, he was on assignment at the Renaissance Center in downtown Detroit. He, his wife, and their two daughters, ages ten and twelve, lived in Northville, Michigan, where they watched the developing nightmare from afar. The last victim, a twelve-year-old, was found less than three miles from their home.

About the Author:

H. Burns earned a degree in psychology and marketing, and then pursued a successful career with Ford Motor Company. During the harsh winters of ’76 and ’77, he was on assignment at...


Available Editions

EDITION Hardcover
ISBN 0000692860000
PRICE $29.00 (USD)

Featured Reviews

In the winter of 76 and 77 in the area of Oakland in the county of Michigan four children aged between the ages of 10 and 12 were abducted, held for days before finally being brutally murdered their bodies being left either naked or partially clothed in the frozen landscape. The babysitter killer, as he came to be known, was never apprehended and The Dark Gray Blanket is a fictional novel about this event.

Frank Pellegrini, an experienced detective, works with the Child Victims Investigative Unit of the Detroit Police Department. He is tolerated by his boss Captain McDougal who knows that Frank has the best wishes of the greater community at heart even though at times his methods are somewhat unorthodox. He lives a lonely bachelor life having been greatly affected by events in his childhood disclosed later in the novel. His days are days of routine usually complemented with a visit to his favourite watering hole "O'Malleys"..."Frank's evening up until now had been predictable the medicinal shots of Wild Turkey 101 at O'Malleys, his favourite meal, two hours of mulling over his cases at his desk while dressed only in his underwear, and the final dose of Wild Turkey launching him into a deep, worry-free sleep." When the naked body of a child is found partly buried in snow Frank, together with his new partner Jimmy Wilson, is tasked with the job of bringing the killer to justice. As the body count rises, and the word serial killer is uttered, the good citizens of a frightened community are demanding answers exerting justifiable pressure on an overworked Detroit Police Dept.

The writing of The Dark Gray Blanket is sublime narrated in unhurried deeply descriptive prose. We learn a little of the history of the area made famous by the automobile industry in particular Henry Ford and also two renowned musicians; Vincent Damon Furnier and Robert Clark Seger better known as Alice Cooper and Bob Seger. The cold frosty snowbound Michigan winters of 76 and 77 add a frosty and chilly feeling to the developing nightmare...."The dark black night sky was being punctuated with the soft, fluffy, white falling snow, and the huge boughs, stretching in every direction from the gigantic Douglas firs, were gently swaying under their white burden and the gently blowing wind."....

Pellegrini's personal mission to solve a difficult case, his dogged unflinching determination and the relationship with his new young partner Jimmy Wilson create a spell bounding work of genius and a story that I found once started was very difficult to leave until completed. Throughout is a lingering uneasiness and a sense of morbid anticipation as we wait for the killer to strike again..."He still could not believe his eyes. In all his years, he had never viewed a scene quite like this-the solemn, cold, naked isolation of the frailest among us, having endured the most unimaginable horrors form something so evil."....

I always wonder when reading a detective novel if the author will have the ability to create a unique conclusion something that will be totally unexpected. The final chapters produced a sequence of events that thrilled me in their audacity and inventiveness, naturally I cannot disclose them to you (dear reader of my review!) for to do so would spoil your enjoyment of a novel that I rate as totally unique, and possibly the best book I have read this year. Many thanks to the good people of netgalley and publisher Howard Schrack for a gratis copy in exchange for an honest review and that is what I have written. Highly, highly recommended.

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