Pure Evil - How Tracie Andrews murdered my son, decieved...
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Product Description
Product Description
On 1st December 1996, 25-year-old Lee Harvey was stabbed 42 times in a frenzied knife attack. His girlfriend, Tracie Andrews, claimed he had been murdered in a road rage attack and, days later, appeared at a press conference making an emotional appeal for witnesses to the crime. During the days following the attack, the horrific truth about what really happened that night became apparent; it was Tracie who had killed Lee and then tried to cover her tracks with a web of lies...Lee was a good-looking, happy young man with a bright future ahead of him. Tracie Andrews appeared to be an attractive, lively blonde and, at first, their relationship seemed to be a happy one. But soon, Tracie's true nature began to reveal itself and she became jealous, possessive and even violent. Soon enough, the relationship became volatile and self-destructive.On that cold winter's night in 1996, Maureen Harvey heard the devastating news that every parent prays they will never have to hear - her child was dead. As events unfolded and the reality of what Tracie had done took hold, Maureen was forced to come to terms with the fact that the woman with whom she initially shared her grief was in fact the perpetrator of this horrific crime. Tragic and heart-wrenching, this gripping account of a mother's tragic loss cannot fail to touch the emotions of any reader.
About the Author
Maureen Harvey lives in Kings Norton, Birmingham with her husband Ray. They have a daughter, Michelle, and three grandchildren Danielle, Paige, and Jordan. Since their son Lee was murdered by Tracie Andrews in December 1996, they have campaigned tirelessly to ensure that those convicted of murder serve their full prison tariff. Maureen's book is based on the diary she began writing after Lee's death and is a frank account of the emotional journey she and her family have taken during the last decade. It is a unique testimony which she hopes will serve not only as a tribute to Lee but as an inspiration to bereaved parents everywhere.
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First Sentence
It was 3.20am on Sunday, 1 December 1996. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt
It was 3.20am on Sunday, 1 December 1996. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
17 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Incredibly sad tale of two people who should not have been together and the petty rows and petty jealousies that ultimately destroyed them. Lee's mother is obviously still distraught and in great pain but I found the endless hatred and vitriol very difficult to read and her belief that Tracie Andrews will reoffend when released implausible. This was not a premeditated attack it was a terrible and dreadful culmination of a temper running out of control.
There is a sentence in the book where she and her husband agree that they wish Lee had killed Tracie so at least he would still be alive, albeit in jail and they could visit him. Would she have washed his clothes of blood? Would she have still written a book called 'Pure Evil'? Would Maureen still be campaigning for a life sentence to mean a life sentence for murder? I doubt it. I truly understand a mother's pain and her son's murder was pointless and avoidable, but I think the writer should maybe have guided Maureen down a path less biased and bitter, Lee maybe was not as pure as the driven snow himself.
A very sad tale made all the more poignant because there are a potential Tracie and Lee in every pub in every town.
There is a sentence in the book where she and her husband agree that they wish Lee had killed Tracie so at least he would still be alive, albeit in jail and they could visit him. Would she have washed his clothes of blood? Would she have still written a book called 'Pure Evil'? Would Maureen still be campaigning for a life sentence to mean a life sentence for murder? I doubt it. I truly understand a mother's pain and her son's murder was pointless and avoidable, but I think the writer should maybe have guided Maureen down a path less biased and bitter, Lee maybe was not as pure as the driven snow himself.
A very sad tale made all the more poignant because there are a potential Tracie and Lee in every pub in every town.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
if ever there were two people who should never have got together it was tracie andrews and lee harvey, i like many others followed this case in the news at the time, and like many others, i felt tracie had more to do with lees death than she let on at the time,so it came as no suprise when she was charged with lees murder.The devastation she left behind comes across very clearly in maureen harveys book,yes she is bitter, but who can blame her for gods sake,its easy to be critical when it hasnt happened to you,what she tells us is straight from the heart and how she feels.if there are a couple of errors dotted here and there, so what!these people have gone through hell and probably still do.As for tracie her freedom isnt that far away now,2012 i believe,she looks as cold as steel, i only hope for the harvey family sakes, she moves as far away as possible so as to never darken their doorstep again. Maureen i hope you have found some peace in your life now and wish you well for the future.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
If you are interested in reading the full story of Tracie Andrews the infamous road rage killer from all perspectives then you may find Pure Evil interesting but it will not ultimately leave you satisfied. I doubt it is possible for a family member of either the criminal or the victim to give an unbiased account of a crime and as the title suggest Maureen Harvey does not even try to remain objective in her writings about her sons murder. I certainly don't blame her for this, I'm sure if Lee was my son I would be just the same, but I do feel that Maureens hatred of Tracie and her adoration of Lee prevents her from giving an accurate account of the case and of them as people. Even one of the leading detectives in the case who described Tracie as a heartless criminal acknowledges that there was violence on both sides in Lee and Tracie's relationship so I find Maureens insistence that only Tracie was abusive doubtful. Like another reviewer I also find it difficult to believe that a woman attempting to portray herself as a grieving, innocent girlfriend to both the courts and the public would laugh, smile and flick her hair in the courtroom. So when I finished this book I was left with the feeling that I had read about the Tracie Andrews and Lee Harvey that Maureen sees through her grief, pain and loathing that affect her opinion and may well color her memories rather than reading about the real people.
What True Evil does do is tell the sad journey that Maureen and the Harvey family have gone through since losing Lee and the grief they have experienced. I found it eye-opening to read of the lack of support they have were given and the insensitivity and even outright cruelty they received from certain member of the public (I was truly disgusted to read of the football "fans" who mocked Lee's murder because he supported a different team to them and I hope some of them read the book and feel ashamed).
True Evil isn't brilliantly written but it is easily readable and I would recommend it to those who like true crime stories. If like me you aren't that interested in true crime - I only read it because it was lent to me by a friend to keep my occupied on a long train journey - then you will probably find it quite intriguing but it is not a must-read.
As a side note I would like to say that as someone who previously worked in a prison the idea that prison is easy which Maureen Harvey obviously believes is completely false. Tabloids will misreport educational initiatives intended to teach job skills as fun leisure activities, make it seem like actors who visit to educate themselves on prison life for acting roles are there to treat the prisoners to a celebrity visit, bitter PO's who have been fired will sell stories of prisoners having lives of luxury that are absolute lies but will be presented like they are fact and events - such as fashion shows - that only happen once a year and that only prisoners with good behavioral reports are allowed to witness or participate in are made to seem as if they are happen on a weekly basis and all prisoners get to join in.
After reading some of the other reviews I would also like to add that I find it highly insensitive to say the least for people who have never lost a child to say that a woman who has is being too bitter and self-pitying.
What True Evil does do is tell the sad journey that Maureen and the Harvey family have gone through since losing Lee and the grief they have experienced. I found it eye-opening to read of the lack of support they have were given and the insensitivity and even outright cruelty they received from certain member of the public (I was truly disgusted to read of the football "fans" who mocked Lee's murder because he supported a different team to them and I hope some of them read the book and feel ashamed).
True Evil isn't brilliantly written but it is easily readable and I would recommend it to those who like true crime stories. If like me you aren't that interested in true crime - I only read it because it was lent to me by a friend to keep my occupied on a long train journey - then you will probably find it quite intriguing but it is not a must-read.
As a side note I would like to say that as someone who previously worked in a prison the idea that prison is easy which Maureen Harvey obviously believes is completely false. Tabloids will misreport educational initiatives intended to teach job skills as fun leisure activities, make it seem like actors who visit to educate themselves on prison life for acting roles are there to treat the prisoners to a celebrity visit, bitter PO's who have been fired will sell stories of prisoners having lives of luxury that are absolute lies but will be presented like they are fact and events - such as fashion shows - that only happen once a year and that only prisoners with good behavioral reports are allowed to witness or participate in are made to seem as if they are happen on a weekly basis and all prisoners get to join in.
After reading some of the other reviews I would also like to add that I find it highly insensitive to say the least for people who have never lost a child to say that a woman who has is being too bitter and self-pitying.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
pure evil
excellent book you feel the pain that lees family went through and all tracy could do was gloat and cause more misery for them !!!!
Published 1 month ago by fay
Sad
These two people were so so wrong for each other, it was obviously going to lead to a disaster. They were so deeply jealous of each other. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Hayls
pure evil
this book goes beyond the killing,the killers sentence. it reveals the tragedy left behind by a evil killer. Read more
Published 3 months ago by michael moten
Oh Dear..
Before i start.. I want to say that the grief this women felt about her sons awful death must have been phenomenal and i can not even begin (or want to try) to understand what it... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Lissa Jane
Never mind the negative reviews.
This book is a truthful and honest account of the hell the family of a murdered son, brother & father suffered as a result of an evil killer. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Dave Holcroft
Life for a Life
The title was so appropriate PURE EVIL is the only way to describe the vileness of Andrews. I found myself unable to put the book down. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Pebbles
The destructive force of bitterness!
Like many of the other reviewers, I too remember this story being in the News headlines. It was a case which was steeped in lies as I remember. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Mrs. Wendy Mccallum
get over it
not that great a book, not well written. when people serve their sentence then thats it !! let them free, that's the way the law works. Read more
Published 11 months ago by MR. M COX
Interesting and emotional read
I read this book some time ago but still quite clearly rememeber how interesting it was, albeit upsetting at the time. Read more
Published 21 months ago by diamondlady
couldnt put it down.. but cringed a bit..
I always enjoy/find interesting true life crime type books and read a fair few.. whilst this was one i couldnt put down from beginning to end i found it a bit cringey at how bitter... Read more
Published on 1 Jun 2010 by Mrs. L. Stocks
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