Sleep, My Child, Forever

By: John Coston

Narrated by: A. T. Chandler

Length: 7 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's Summary

The dark double life of Ellen Boehm, the mother who murdered her two sons - and nearly killed her daughter

Ellen Boehm, a single mom from St. Louis, Missouri, appeared devoted to her children. But in reality, she was unequipped for motherhood, financially strapped, and desperate. Within a year of each other, her sons, ages two and four, died mysteriously, and Boehm's eight-year-old daughter then suffered a near-fatal mishap when a hair dryer fell into the girl's bath. While neighbors wondered how Boehm remained so calm through it all, Det. Sgt. Joseph Burgoon of St. Louis Homicide had darker suspicions.

Burgoon soon unraveled a labyrinth of deception, greed, and obsession that revealed a cold-blooded killer whose get-rich-quick scheme came at the cost of her children's lives. Boehm had taken out insurance policies on her children with six different companies totaling nearly $100,000. Using police reports, case documents, and photos, journalist John Coston recreates the events that led to one mother's unspeakable acts of filicide - and a cop's relentless pursuit of the truth.

©1995 John Coston (P)2019 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Interesting story which needed more editing

I didn't buy this. It was in a free section. So I have zero cause for complaint. I did finish it but I'm glad I didn't pay for it. The story of Ellen and what she did was interesting but it went on and on and repeated things throughout. It probably mentions her weight about 40 times throughout, and even exacting weight of her friend. It was almost weird. Like yes, we get it, she was unattractive and wanted to live in a fantasy about being desired. It wasn't just this, but that's an example of the repetitive nature of this book.
The other thing which dragged it down was narration. The narrator read with no tone or inflection in many parts of the book. He was robotic, sounding like GPS directions.

How sad!

(As posted in GoodReads)
What a sad situation! I would love to say that Ellen was a monster, but that sounds the situation up far too tidily and simplistically! She probably was, but her overall childhood and upbringing are doubtless a part of her character and actions later in life. The book was good as far as it went, but that background and upbringing deserved a more formal investigation for the reader to get an overall view of the troubled woman.
This is not to say that a horrible childhood and early circumstance excuse later actions, but a little more background in those areas would have been helpful. I weep for Ellen and Stacy both! I don't weep for the boys, because there's no point: they're dead :-(

Great Book, Tragic Story

I had never heard of this case... but oh my gosh. I finished this book in two days, and for me.. that's saying something. I would definitely recommend.

Tragic lost of lives

Another case in which untreated child abuse breeds more child abuse and in this case leads to murder.

Great book.

Tragic

I had no idea about this case and I’m from St. Louis. This story was hard for me to listen to at times as my heart broke for the children-especially Stacy. What irked me about the writing was the author’s constant narrative of how “fat” Ellen was or how unattractive she was...we get it already. Can we focus more on what a monster she was?! Her appearance had zero to do with her selfishness and greed to get rid of her kids.

A good, free listen

With the way my subscription benefits have changed, thereby rendering this a free, bonus listen, I’m giving this a thumb’s up! I don’t think I would have used a credit on this book simply because I tend to listen to longer material. So this is really a double bonus for me, a good book, in one of my favorite genres that’s now free!

Narrator was decent and the story was simple but good. I’d never heard of this woman and her despicable crimes before this moment but I believe it’s important to hear about and remember other unheard of victims, perpetrators and their circumstances. Someplace in my heart I hold those victims dear and I keep them in my prayers. Straightforward account, there’s no mystery here. But their lives meant something to a lot of people.

A most appreciative thank you to Audible for this new addition to my subscription and the chance to get to listen to all types of good books I might not otherwise have chosen had this opportunity not been made available to me!

Not there

Did not like the story teller made it very hard to follow. I believe may have been better if different person

Fascinating true crime book about a mother who shouldn’t have been a mother.

Fascinating story about a mother whose life was not easy. Great family dynamic book for study. Well researched. Good writing. Narrator read very well.

Very robotically read

The narrator is terrible on this audio. No feeling no dynamic, At times l thought it was computerised voice.