Charles Chitat Ng Books

I enjoyed the authors format for the book, relating daily, monthly then yearly coverage of events of the serial killings in readable format. The only disappointment is that the book does not cover the trial of Lake's "partner" in the crimes, which takes place after the writing of the book. Does anyone know the sequal to this book covering Ng's trial?

Just as David Bond explained, I was also very surprised on the amount of information the authors had since even family members were "left in the dark". We found out that in 1995 the State of California had 95% identified the remains of my sister Sheryl Lynn Okoro but did not receive that news or her remains until after the trial started in November of 1999. And only then did we find out from a reporter who had been sitting in on the trial! She was finally brought home and laid to rest in December 1999, 14 years after her death. The book answered alot of the questions our family had and it shed some light on the monsters who took the lives of our loved ones. Once I started reading I could not put it down. Very engrossing. My heart extends to all families who have yet to endure our nightmare.

The jury just found Ng guilty on 11 counts of murder and are now hearing evidence for the penalty phase -- death or life without parole -- this is in response to prior reviewer's request for more current info. I prepared transcripts for the court reporter during four years Ng was in Calaveras County, and it is chilling to read the case in this format -- adds the drama that is not always evident from a transcript. Publisher needs to reprint, especially since it is back as front-page news and the saga of the appeals is about to start.

Good, engrossing read on the events surrounding the capture of Leonard Lake and Charles Ng, and the discovery of the house of horrors of the Wilseyville Ranch. The book is well laid out and easy to follow and for that I give it high marks. However, I found it lacking in any true background information on Lake and Ng. There's no insight as to who they were, just what they did. Part of the reason I read such novels as this is to find out what happened to shape people into the beasts they become. There was none of that here. Also, the character of Tomasina Boyd Clancy, the reporter and the only fictional character in the book, just rubbed me the wrong way. Maybe it was because I knew she didn't exist, and knowing that the authors discription of her being a knock out red head, and the unusual name made it all so obvious. She completely unnecessary and her thoughts during the hearings at the end just got in the way of the otherwise riviting speech of the lawyers. Finally, I was somewhat surprised in the Author's Note at the end the calls for the retirement of the Death Penalty not because it was inhumane, but because the fight to avoid it by the accused usually ends up in a long and costly trial. While the points certainly have their validity, reading them at the end of such a tale is almost unbelieveable. I had to reread the last paragraph several times to make sure I had read what I had read. And for those final points I had to mark down this book.

My sympathies go out to Mr. Bond and his family. I hope they can rest a little easier knowing that Ng has finally gone to trial.

lake and ng killed my brother,his wife,and baby. we read the book when it came out a long time ago and was surprised how they got all that info befor ngs trial was even started cuz it is very detailed. a very good book if its not about your own famliy.............

I really enjoyed this book. I couldn't have giving it 5 stars for one reason. The author did a tremendous job talking about the victims and giving the reader a background to the crimes but unfortunately (and i hope i am not coming off to sick) there are no actual descriptions of the crimes. I understand that Leonard Lake is dead and Charles Ng maintains his innocence therefore there is no way to acturately tell the entire story. Overall a very good book. I finished it in a couple of days.

Fairly familiar with events. Grew up near there. Lots of information her I was not aware of. Overall highly recomend to anyone interested in the case.
Jon

I remember reading about the Lake-Ng crimes which are still unspeakable, unforgivable, unconsciousable, brutal, merciless towards the men, women, and children who were completely innocent. Lake and Ng were two men of a kind who enjoyed sadistic pleasure in torturing people at their compound in Northern California. Fortunately, Ng is in prison on death row I believe and Lake committed suicide. The story behind their lives is equally fascinating to result in two of the most demented serial killers and sadists around. I read a lot of real crime books and these two men were monsters in human form who enjoyed the sadistic pleasures of torturing women to death and humiliating them. The story of Lake-Ng is only partially told because there are other unknown victims but even after 20 years since the initial discovery of the house of horrors, the Lake-Ng crimes still penetrate a nerve in the community there like ghosts who refuse to go away.

I am a fan of material that is a bit more hardcore and gory. This had potential to remind me of scenes from Silence of the Lambs when the girl was in that hole in the ground...but yet it didn't deal with enough of the experience of the victims. It seems to zoom through the victims and once you get half way through, all of a sudden the rest of the book dealt with court proceedings (I assume, I stopped after a few chapters of that part).
But on a positive note, these guys WERE hardcore and Leonard Lake had some serious issues. There was some interesting reading in the beginning
and is worth the read if you consider yourself a true crime buff.

If you are like me....then of course The Shrine of Jeffrey Dahmer is a great read, but also read about Albert Fish (Deranged). I just read about Armin Meitwes (a German cannibal) and two books about Eddie Gein. Of course, I've read a small stack about Manson and his family. I'd like to suggest a book titled Love & Death about the MURDER of Kurt Cobain. Skeptics are the ones who should read it the most!!!


[...].

"Die For Me" is a true story of gruesome torture, terror, sex, rape, cold murder and videotapes. To identify both Leonard Lake and Charles Ng (pronounced 'eeng') as ex-marines is blasphemy at its greatest. Similarly, and more critical, is the statement the author made contrasting both Lake and Ng with being God;

"...They had witnessed two young women enduring a nightmare, and two men (Lake and Ng) playing God with their lives."

More correct would have been contrasting them with the devil. The references of being an ex-marines or acting like God is a complete and total blasphemy. Both Leonard Lake and Charles Ng are not worthy of being recognized as ex-marines and worst yet, acting like God.

"Die For Me" is the horrifying story of the "Miranda project" by Leonard Lake and Charles Ng. Before Leonard Lake befriended Ng, Lake had a plan to prepare for Armageddon (day of reckoning) by building a military survival bunker. However, the plan by Lake went further than that since a secret holding cell was going to be built within the bunker. The cell would satisfy Lake's misogyny by enslaving, terrorizing, torturing, raping, and killing women he lured to his torturing den. Women were not the only victims in Lake's and Ng's Miranda project (based on the book "The Collector" by John Fowles), but men, children and babies as well. Both Leonard Lake and Charles Ng grossly took the lives of at least sixteen human beings.

The author, Don Lasseter did well in not describing the gruesome, gross, and churning details of what the victims went through before being killed and disposed of as worthless trash. The toned down descriptions are bad enough to churn the readers' stomach and raises the readers' displeasure to infinity.

Granite inscription at the sight:

In Wilseyville We Found You
Ou Lost Ones
Though Taken In Darkness
You Will Forever Live In Light
Rest In Peace

Victims Of The 1984-85
Wilseyville Mass Murder

Harrington and Burger waste a lot of time, and my money, in this book without an end. When detailing the crimes, they become rather coy and worried about being overly sensational. I appreciate that many books become lurid in their description of crimes, but Harrington and Burger are almost shy in their description.

The real mass of the book is an endless litany about how long it takes to get Ng to trial, and in fact, the trial hasn't even begun when this book ends. The authors endlessly quote sources, to the point that the reader just wants to cry.

I am still trying to figure-out the reason for this book. It basically tells the reader nothing, and doesn't inform in any way.

Don't waste your money.

For those who enjoyed Truman Capote's breakthrough "non-fiction novel" IN COLD BLOOD a generation ago, JUSTICE DENIED will be a welcome find. This is a gripping, well-researched documentary that reads like a well-plotted mystery novel. But beware: it may change your views of the American justice system forever -- are we being ripped off by the very system we trust to adminster justice? In other words, who among you is willing to fork over his share of the $16 million (and 13 years!) it cost to finally bring a brutal, maniacal killer to justice. JUSTICE DENIED is writing superb!

The Author takes you step by step from 1984 to the present depicting an incredible amount of bodies and other evidence buried in Calaveras County, California. He takes you through the process of capturing Ng and the delayed trial. It's unbelivable how Ng played around with the system. Very well written, I couldn't put it down.

The trial was only half over when the book ends. Yes, Ng was found guilty but the penalty phase of the trial remained. After 14 years, couldn't the authors (and publishers) waited a few more months? I found the account and analysis of the legal wrangling simplistic and shallow.

Very disappointed in this book. It's a duplicate of Eye of Evil by these authors until the dates reach 1991...which is the very last few chapters of the book. Also a little disppointed that the authors did not take the time to correct some of their information on the victims. My sister's name is Sheryl PORTER....not Cheryl OKORO, they have had 15 years to research this criteria but neglected to do so but then again the uncharged decedents obviously aren't very important to anyone other than the people who loved them. Lots of other mis info. The authorities did not recover the number of bodies that the authors claim they did. Very diasppointed.