The Parable of the Knocker

The True Crime Story of a Prosecutor’s Fight to Bring a Serial Killer to Justice

By: Bryan Porter

Narrated by: Michael Butler Murray

Length: 11 hrs and 18 mins

Publisher's summary

The Parable of the Knocker is a nonfiction book about the investigation, prosecution, and trial of a notorious serial killer, Charles Severance. Severance committed his crimes in the City of Alexandria, Virginia, an affluent, historic community just miles south of Washington, DC.

Over the course of a decade, Severance ambushed three outstanding Alexandria residents in their middle-class neighborhood by knocking on their front doors in broad daylight and shooting them unexpectedly when they answered the knock. Severance was not personally acquainted with any of his victims, and instead selected his targets to revenge perceived wrongs and terrorize a community.

©2019 Waldorf Publishing (P)2019 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books

Thorough and Thoughtful!

Bryan Porter does an excellent job of recounting the details of the investigation and subsequent trial of the "Alexandria Assain". His insight, connection to the case, and thoughtful relationship to the victims families provides for a very engaging recount of the events surrounding these horrific murders.

Mesmerizing True Crime at its best

this is the most outstanding true crime novel I believe ever written. I would truly recommend. I would love to have an I'm depth discussion with the author. he is truly brilliant.

Braggart!

Mainly the author boasting how great he is. I couldn't finish it. Waste of time and money!

I waited …

I kept listening and hoped it would get interesting but had to give it up.
Firstly, he should have given the story to the writer that asked for it and not thought of himself to be a better author. The real life story maybe good but he is not the right person to write about it.
His actions in the story come through as arrogant but it may just be the lack of a concise writing style.
When the nonfiction crime-law book became his opinion philosophy religious faith book, I could not take it any more.
** author keep to your subject

A prosecutor’s self-admiration

This book is not a who-done-it or a griping tail of how a killer was caught and brought to justice. It is a prosecutor’s story designed to instruct the reader on Virginia law and tedious accounts of his sympathies toward the mentally ill.

The writer’s ego gets in the way of the story. For example, Mr. Porter believes that the mark of a good leader is taking credit for the hard work work of underlings. Since his underlings worked hard and his team prevailed in the case against Charles Severance-Mr Porter would have you believe his leadership is unassailable and he deserves a lot of credit.

Mr. Porter early on in the book explains that he sympathizes with Severance by not seeking the death penalty due to Mr. Porter’s belief that Charles Severance is severely mentally ill. Mr. Porter would have the reader accept that if only Mr. Severance would have received mental health treatment or if Severance’s parents would have recognized his mental illness or perhaps if the community had recognized his illness these atrocities would have been prevented. According to Psychology Today very few if any psychopathic serial killers suffer from debilitating mental illness.

What Mr. Porter fails to understand is that his sympathy was for a psychopath. Mr. Porter’s view toward mental illness is greatly lacking and is ironic given the fact the danger of psychopaths is that they lack empathy and have the capacity to understand their actions.

The book has a poorly developed plot but becomes a narrative timeline that is boring. It is a banal case study in Mr. Porter’s lack of understanding predators and his self-aggrandizement. This story would have been better told by someone else. Skip this book and read the newspaper articles. You will save time and money.