The Devil at His Elbow: Alex Murdaugh and the Fall of a Southern Dynasty by Valerie Bauerlein

"Valerie Bauerlein's blistering, unforgettable account of the Murdaugh saga leaves no stone unturned, helping us finally truly understand the man at the center of one of the century's wildest crime stories."Robert Kolker, author of Hidden Valley Road and Lost Girls

Power, luxury, and bloodthis is the authoritative and fascinating real account of Alex Murdaugh's violent demise, from a seasoned Wall Street Journal writer who has become an expert on the subject.

Alex Murdaugh was a benign dictatorthe president of the South Carolina trial lawyers' organization, a political boss, a part-time prosecutor, and a partner in his family's legal company. He was always ready with a favor, a drink, and an invitation to Moselle, his family's 1,700-acre hunting estate. The Murdaugh name inspired respectand fearfor a hundred miles.

When he killed his wife, Maggie, and son Paul in Moselle on a dark summer night, the flimsy façade of Alex's world could no longer hold. His predecessors had covered up a midnight suicide at a lonely railroad crossing, a bootlegging ring run from a courtroom, and the attempted murder of a pregnant girlfriend. Alex, too, nearly walked away from his horrible atrocities with his reputation intact, but his collapse was sealed by a twist of destiny, some errant missteps, and a tragic choice by an old buddy who'd finally seen enough.

Why would a guy who has everything murder his wife and adult son? To uncover the roots of Alex's destruction, award-winning journalist Valerie Bauerlein reported not only from the courtroom every day but also along the backroads and into the tidal marshes of South Carolina's Lowcountry. When the jurors made their trip to the murder site, attempting to visualize Maggie and Paul's dying moments, she went directly behind them, feeling the spirits that haunt the Murdaughs' now-shattered legacy.

Through excellent research and dramatic language, The Devil at His Elbow is a fascinating trip through Alex's life, the night of the murders, and the investigation that ended in a trial that kept tens of millions riveted. With her remarkable insights and daring sense for the truth, Bauerlein discovers elements of the Murdaugh murder case that have not been shared.

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