Deadly Deception: A True Story of Duplicity, Greed, Dangerous Passions and One Woman's Courage

by Shannon Richardson and Brenda Gunn

Book Overview

Blinded by Love... Romance seemed unlikely for Brenda Gunn, a shy and insecure health care worker living outside Kansas City. Then she met Glen Brumbaugh, a charmer who showered her with attention and promised a fairy tale marriage. It seemed too good to be true. Seduced by Lies... Madly in love, she overlooked the stunning news that he was a felon, fresh from a twelve-year prison stint. Even after barely surviving an inexplicable fire, and a bizarre...

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312981031
• ISBN13: 9780312981037
• Release Date: July 2003
• Publisher: St. Martin's True Crime
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 0.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 4.8" x 6.6"

Customer Reviews

Great Story

I only read non-fiction and this was a great book. Sometimes hard to beleive that someone would put up with so much, but when your in love I guess you try to see only the good in people. It was actually nice to read about the bad guy getting it instead of the inocent person. Most true crimes do not end that way. I'm a big fan of Ann Rule and this was even better than some of her books!

Deadly Deception:

Brenda Gunn thought she'd met the man of her dreams when Glen entered her life. Romantic, sexy, and charming, Glen proposed after a two-month courtship. Brenda wore her grandmother's wedding dress when she became Glen's wife in a ceremony that included her family and friends. For only a short time, her marriage was all that she'd dreamed it'd be. Then things started going terribly wrong. She barely survived when the house she'd worked so hard for burned. A man in a purple Jaguar began stalking her. One rainy night, someone ran her car off the road into a ravine. She ate poisoned food. Brenda provided a home for abused animals, and they began dying mysteriously. Worst of all, her handsome husband turned to alcohol and wife-beating. Brenda struggled to return normalcy to her life, first asking her family and friends for help, then finally taking her suspicions to the authorities. Without proof, official help wasn't available. Knowing that her life was in danger, she bought a gun and learned how to use it. When the moment came that she had to shoot or die, she fired the gun, with devastating results. What went wrong for Brenda Gunn? What happened to the loving husband she married? Why did the one person she trusted most betray her? Whose grave does she visit regularly to ask forgiveness? With the help of Shannon Richardson, Brenda tells her story in Deadly Deception, an account that's all the more compelling because it really happened. "Brenda Gunn's horrifying, yet courageous story will speak to anyone who has witnessed the passions and deceits of a marriage and life gyrating out of control-and vowed to do something about it."

A recommended reading true crime story

With Deadly Deception, Brenda Gunn and Shannon Richardson collaborate to present a true life story of duplicity, greed, dangerous passions, and one woman's courage. This is the story of an ideal courtship that concluded with animal activist Brenda Gunn marrying a handsome, charming man. Their life was lovely until an eccentric, wealthy client began to stalk and threaten her. Brenda's husband begins to change into a violent stranger, her house is burned down under suspicious circumstances; her care is run off the road and sent spinning onto the edge of a ravine; one by one her animals begin to disappear or are poisoned. Without any proof the police are unable to help her and the killer is growing bolder. Finally, Brenda takes maters into her own hands just to live through the night. Highly recommended reading for those interested in true crime stories, Deadly Deception is the substance of horror movie thrillers -- and yet it really happened to a most remarkable woman.

Wow! This is scary.

This book is one of the best True Stories I've ever read. The writers have a style that I personally like better than the journalistic commentary of Ann Rule. I noticed a couple of editing errors but the story blew me away. It's scary that an average person could be completely set-up by the two people she loved and trusted. I do recommend this book to anyone who likes thrillers (especially those involved in the dating scene.)

You Could be Married to a Killer

Can we ever really trust the person we love, the person we marry? Brenda thought she could, but this chilling true story proves that she was wrong. Dead wrong. Terrifyingly enjoyable, DEADLY DECEPTION will keep you up at night. Lock the doors, pull up the blankets, and make sure you know who's sleeping next to you.