A twisting, deeply engrossing investigation into the many lingering questions surrounding the sudden disappearance of the Mc Stays, a family of four who vanished from their suburban San Diego home without a trace—until their skeletal remains were found in the Mojave Desert nearly four years later—from New York Times bestselling author Caitlin Rother.
On February 15, 2010, Joseph Mc Stay, his wife Summer, and their two young sons were reported missing from their new home in San Diego County. They left eggs and fruit rotting on the counter. Their Dodge truck sat in the driveway. Their dogs were abandoned outside without food. But investigators found no blood, signs of a struggle, or clues to their whereabouts. Did the family take an unannounced vacation? Were they running away from personal problems? Or were they victims of foul play?
Nearly four years later, a motorcyclist found the Mc Stays’ remains in and around two shallow graves, one hundred miles away in the Mojave Desert. Their skulls showed signs of blunt-force trauma, likely due to the sledgehammer buried with them. Authorities focused on Charles ‘Chase’ Merritt, a close friend and subcontractor for Joseph’s company. Despite a lack of physical evidence, scenarios that defied logic, and numerous unanswered questions, prosecutors convinced a jury of Merritt’s guilt. After an emotional sentencing hearing, the judge imposed the death penalty. But did another possible suspect, who was ignored by investigators and ducked a subpoena to testify, get away with murder?
In this twisting, deeply researched true-crime mystery, New York Times bestselling investigative journalist Caitlin Rother hunts for answers to reveal the truth behind a heinous crime that became a nation’s obsession, with a controversial trial in its wake, and lingering questions of justice.
About the author
New York Times bestselling author Caitlin Rother has written or co‑authored 15 books. She worked as an investigative reporter at daily newspapers for 19 years before deciding to write books full- time‑. Her work has been published in Cosmopolitan, the Los Angeles Times, the San Diego Union Tribune‑, the Chicago Tribune, the Washington Post, the Boston Globe, and the Daily Beast. As a TV and radio crime commentator, she has appeared on more than 250 shows, many of which air internationally, including 20/20, People Magazine Investigates, Crime Watch Daily, Australia’s World News, Nancy Grace, and Snapped, as well as Netflix, Investigation Discovery, Lifetime, HLN, Reelz, Oxygen, E!, and A&E. Rother also works as a writing-research coach and consultant, enjoys ocean swimming, and plays keyboards and sings in a band. Please visit her website at caitlinrother.com.
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