As a general rule, true crime books have titles that are a bit over-the-top. Kathryn Casey’s A DESCENT INTO HELL: THE TRUE STORY OF AN ALTAR BOY, A CHEERLEADER, AND A TWISTED TEXAS MURDER is no exception, but it does detail the downward climb into the dark world of drug use by two promising youths.
Jennifer Cave was a bright, energetic cheerleader with a scholarship to study business. Colton Pitonyak was a former altar boy with a private Catholic school education and the unconditional support of his well-to-do family. Jennifer and Colton crossed paths at the University of Texas when they both fell into the drug scene and struck up a platonic friendship.
Jennifer turned to drugs, probably as a result of unresolved daddy issues, as her father left when she was young. Colton was a thug wannabe rebelling from his religious and uptight upbringing. You know the kind: the white kid from the suburbs who has Tupac Shakur posters on his bedroom walls. They were no good for each other and everyone knew it but them. Their relationship took a tragic turn when Jennifer tried to leave Colton and was on the path of getting her life back on track.
Even though we know before we even crack the book open that Jennifer is going to be murdered, Casey does an amazing job of building up tension leading to the climax of the grisly discovery of the crime. While no one deserves to be murdered, this book is a great cautionary tale of the perils of drugs. The lifestyle of the addict lends itself to increasing one’s odds of violence and general self-destructive behavior.
No true crime tale is complete without a trial. This is where I lost interest in the book. The same dialogue and details in the last third of the book were the same dialogue and details that led up to the courtroom. Skip the repetition by fast-forwarding to the verdict and sentencing.
And tell your kids to stay off the dope. —Ken Davis
Related posts:
- Suburban Legends: True Tales of Murder, Mayhem and Minivans
- The Killer Book of True Crime: Incredible Stories, Facts and Trivia from the World of Murder and Mayhem
- Killing Yourself to Live: 85% of a True Story
- Inside the Mind of BTK: The True Story Behind the Thirty-Year Hunt for the Notorious Wichita Serial Killer
- Finding Atlantis: A True Story of Genius, Madness, and an Extraordinary Quest for a Lost World
