The Girl in the Leaves

By Sarah MaynardLarry MaynardRobert Scott, et al.

Book Overview

The shocking true crime story of one of the most bizarre mass murders ever recorded--and the girl who escaped with her life.

In the fall of 2010, in the all-American town of Apple Valley, Ohio, four people disappeared without a trace: Stephanie Sprang; her friend, Tina Maynard; and Tina's two children, thirteen-year-old Sarah and eleven-year-old Kody. Investigators began scouring the area, yet despite an extensive search, no signs of the missing people were discovered.

On the fourth day of the search, evidence trickled in about neighborhood "weirdo" Matthew Hoffman. A police SWAT team raided his home and found an extremely disturbing sight: every square inch of the place was filled with leaves and a terrified Sarah Maynard was bound up in the middle of it like some sort of perverted autumn tableau. But there was no trace of the others.

Then came Hoffman's confession to an unspeakable crime that went beyond murder and defied all reason. His tale of evil would make Sarah's survival and rescue all the more astonishing--a compelling tribute to a young girl's resilience and courage and to her fierce determination to reclaim her life in the wake of unimaginable trauma.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0425258823
• ISBN13: 9780425258828
• Release Date: December 2012
• Publisher: Berkley Books
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 0.46 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 4.2" x 7.5"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

10/10 Recommend

Being an Ohio native, I was very interested in this book. I remember when this case happened. The book definitely gave more info and detail than the news did when the story broke. As a true crime junkie 10/10 recommend. I did find some "typos" and then going back and forth between Tina's married names, which can be very confusing. Even with those errors, I greatly enjoyed this book.

Thumbs up

Great account of a terrifying multiple murder.