The Girls Are Gone by Michael Brodkorb & Allison Mann
Author : Michael Brodkorb & Allison Mann
Title : The Girls Are Gone
Published : 2018
Publisher : Wise Ink
Genre : True Crime
Pages : 336
On the evening of April 19, 2013, Samantha and Gianna Rucki disappeared. Two of five children born to David Rucki and Sandra Grazzini-Rucki, the teenage sisters vanished in the midst of their parents' divorce. The girls' father, David Rucki, worked tirelessly with law enforcement to search day and night for his two missing daughters, following every lead while raising three remaining children at home. Their mother, Sandra Grazzini-Rucki, used her newfound freedom to vacation around the world, abandoning her children. And as the investigation intensified, catching the attention of the media, Sandra also disappeared.
True crime is something I jump into from time to time, as most of you reading this will be aware this is a genre that mostly deals with serial killers, mobsters and survivors of horrific abuse. It is not often that such a book deals with custody battles even ones that turn very nasty. So when I approached The Girls Are Gone I wasn't entirely sure what to expect. Luckily for me, my family has stayed together through thick and thin, This can not be said for the Rucki family as I first started to learn there story they are already in the middle of a bitter fight over there children. It is heartbreaking to see two grown adults being reduced to the lowest base denominators. To Davids credit, he is trying to whats best for his kids a trait he continues through out the book. A lot of what he goes through comes as a complete surprise to him. This is a man that although times are tough believes everything is on the up and up. A man willing to do what he must to try and gives his kids the best life he can.
For me a lot of what happens is truly shocking, I don't have kids my self but I know that if I did there is no length I would not go to, to give them the best possible life they could. Davids wife Sandra comes across as the complete opposite. To me at least the only person she seems to truly care about is her self. This is someone who we lie and cheat to get what and where she wants. There where times while reading this book I was left shaking my head. Her sole focus was to try and hurt her husband as much as she could, with no real rhyme or reason to it. I try my best to find the best in people, but here I failed at each and every turn. As the book progresses the length with which certain people go to will make any parents heartbreak. As I got to know those who Sandra chooses to surround herself with, It becomes apparent they are just as twisted as she is. As the day's progress and the girls time spent missing stretches out these people become more and more inaugurating. I can't imagine knowing what took place and not speaking out.
This book does a great job at explaining what takes place within a courtroom with custody hearings. I have started to realize just how much of an uphill battle David was going through. Maybe it is too often that fathers are not believed. People are far too quick to believe rumors, when it comes to child abuse, be it sexual or physical. As the author was present during the events It feels like I was looking over his shoulder as he witnessed it. It comes as a difficult thing to read, families are supposed to be a loving and nurturing place to be. Sometimes I felt David was unaware of just how toxic his had become before it all blew up. Through the writing, he felt like a gentle and loving parent, but sometimes we all have our blinkers on. The book follows the events in chronological order as the days fall away, as each section is fairly short it means I could quickly build up an idea of each of the people involved. My only slight complaint is the beginning is a little heavy on the court transcripts, But this is minor as I feel this is a story that needed to be told. By the time I got to the end, my mind was racing It goes to show that the system at times is so broken. It must feel like no matter how hard you fight and how much you are on the right side you are going to lose.
When all is said and done this book opened my eyes, how can someone become such a monster and do these things? To pull apart a family and then act like you have no knowledge of it must require something to have died inside you. The final few pages are devoted to where they all are now and allows the reader to get some closure in this dark story.
I want to thank Book Publicity Services for giving me the opportunity to read this book for my honest opinion.
True crime is something I jump into from time to time, as most of you reading this will be aware this is a genre that mostly deals with serial killers, mobsters and survivors of horrific abuse. It is not often that such a book deals with custody battles even ones that turn very nasty. So when I approached The Girls Are Gone I wasn't entirely sure what to expect. Luckily for me, my family has stayed together through thick and thin, This can not be said for the Rucki family as I first started to learn there story they are already in the middle of a bitter fight over there children. It is heartbreaking to see two grown adults being reduced to the lowest base denominators. To Davids credit, he is trying to whats best for his kids a trait he continues through out the book. A lot of what he goes through comes as a complete surprise to him. This is a man that although times are tough believes everything is on the up and up. A man willing to do what he must to try and gives his kids the best life he can.
For me a lot of what happens is truly shocking, I don't have kids my self but I know that if I did there is no length I would not go to, to give them the best possible life they could. Davids wife Sandra comes across as the complete opposite. To me at least the only person she seems to truly care about is her self. This is someone who we lie and cheat to get what and where she wants. There where times while reading this book I was left shaking my head. Her sole focus was to try and hurt her husband as much as she could, with no real rhyme or reason to it. I try my best to find the best in people, but here I failed at each and every turn. As the book progresses the length with which certain people go to will make any parents heartbreak. As I got to know those who Sandra chooses to surround herself with, It becomes apparent they are just as twisted as she is. As the day's progress and the girls time spent missing stretches out these people become more and more inaugurating. I can't imagine knowing what took place and not speaking out.
This book does a great job at explaining what takes place within a courtroom with custody hearings. I have started to realize just how much of an uphill battle David was going through. Maybe it is too often that fathers are not believed. People are far too quick to believe rumors, when it comes to child abuse, be it sexual or physical. As the author was present during the events It feels like I was looking over his shoulder as he witnessed it. It comes as a difficult thing to read, families are supposed to be a loving and nurturing place to be. Sometimes I felt David was unaware of just how toxic his had become before it all blew up. Through the writing, he felt like a gentle and loving parent, but sometimes we all have our blinkers on. The book follows the events in chronological order as the days fall away, as each section is fairly short it means I could quickly build up an idea of each of the people involved. My only slight complaint is the beginning is a little heavy on the court transcripts, But this is minor as I feel this is a story that needed to be told. By the time I got to the end, my mind was racing It goes to show that the system at times is so broken. It must feel like no matter how hard you fight and how much you are on the right side you are going to lose.
When all is said and done this book opened my eyes, how can someone become such a monster and do these things? To pull apart a family and then act like you have no knowledge of it must require something to have died inside you. The final few pages are devoted to where they all are now and allows the reader to get some closure in this dark story.
I want to thank Book Publicity Services for giving me the opportunity to read this book for my honest opinion.
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