Rating: 
Summary: Absolute horse manure
Review: I can't say what I really think or Amazon won't post it. If you think you have any sympathy whatsoever for Sharon Tate and her friends and family, then take a look at the police such a thing shares your feelings, and then also tell me why you would read it. Not only that, but of course apart from the forensic evidence and police eyewitness testimony from the crime scene, we have NO IDEA what happened that night. Why? Because we only have the word of the murderers, and I am not about to believe a thing they tell anyone, even if it's at their own expense. The book is slime, and any pretense to legitimacy is shattered my the mere inclusion of that single photo (as well as the one of Sebring). Shame on King, and shame on anyone who gives it more than one star.
Rating: 
Summary: AT LAST A BIOGRAPHY ON SHARON TATE
Review: When Roman Polanski released his autobiography in 1984(I think it was), Sharon Tate found herself as the heroine of his life. The book is a loving tribute 2 eternal love and a testament 2 the legacy of young Sharon Tate who was taken from life much too soon. Polanski introduces himself with flaws and all and it IS apparent that she was more good for him than vice verca. In "SHARON TATE AND THE MANSON MURDERS" by Greg King, Sharon Tate is still the Angel. The insecure. The loving childwoman, who only wanted 2 be loved and have a quiet domestic life. Unfortunately. Her story tends 2 get lost because of her tragic end - the victim of a sensational murder massacre that changed the World`s look on hippies - and in a way, changed America. The murder on Sharon Tate ended the 60s and its ingredients of flower power, peace and understanding... The thing I regret is that Greg King really makes only a summary of Sharon`s life until the 1969 events. And that isn`t enough. Sure she made a minor output(six films), but there must have been a lot of people who could have made bigger contributions 2 this project. King`s minute-by-minute telling on that fatal evening on August 9 1969 is a nerve-breaking experience. Is this the truth? I think we may never know(the criminals admitted being "high" on the experience), but in any case it doesn`t matter what anyone said and when. The fact that Watson, Atkins & Krenwinkel did what they and wrapped up the evening with the heavely pregnant Sharon Tate condemns them to lifetime in prison forever. Sharon Tate, Jay Sebring, Wojtek Frykowsky, Abigail Folger, Steven Parent and Leno & Rosemary LaBianca are all screaming from their graves for justice. THE FAMILY can never be exposed to the community again. An example must be set. It`s frightening how some young people glorify the events and Charles Manson. So, this book is IMPORTANT even 31 years after the events. Well, yes; The photos are not that great(why so many of Manson?) we could have seen some from Sharon as a baby, as a teenager, family-pictures etc. But on whole: Greg King`s book is a must-reader and he is successful in presenting Sharon Tate as a lovely human being - deeply missed by so many people...
Rating:
Summary: IT'S ABOUT TIME! SHARON'S STORY SHOULD HAVE BEEN TOLD!
Review: It is high time somebody gave a sympathetic and well researched account of Sharon Tate's life. As tragic as this is, another reviewer aptly noted that she might not have achieved the level of fame she did had she not been killed by the Manson Family. Sharon Tate was a warm, real person who had long held out hope for securing a place in the movie world. She did receive plaudits for her role of the (ironically) terminally ill starlet in 1967's "Valley of the Dolls." How ironic, painful and extremely sad that she receives star billing in death related stories (one fictionalized, the other all too painfully real). The book does not gloss over the psychotic cruelty of the Manson Family. It gives a gritty, hard look at how the dementia of one truly evil man had long lasting repercussions. To his credit, the author focuses the book on Sharon. It is a fresh, new look at the horrific events of 1969 as the attention is rightfully turned on the unfortunate casualties of madness.
Rating: 
Summary: Sharon Tate and The Manson Murders
Review: Basically there is not much about Sharon Tate to write about. The book is redundant in the sense that everything has already been written before. I didn't learn anything new that I hadn't already read in Helter Skelter and other books. Sharon Tate may have been well-known in the London and Hollywood circles, but she was far from being known by the general public. She was one of many starlets who simply had no acting ability at all. The few parts she did get were low-budget films and made no impact. There are a few tidbits of information thrown in throughout the book that are interesting. But, as I said initially there simply isn't much to write about on Sharon Tate's life. Therefore the majority of the book is focused more on Manson and "the family" rather than Sharon Tate's life. One thing I did learn about her is that she was extremely insecure, and had no self respect. Her marriage to Roman Polanski was not a marriage in any respect at all. Sharon Tate accepted and condoned her husband's infedelities before her marriage to him and during. That doesn't say much about her at all. I was extremely disappointed in the selection of photos. There was not one photo of Sharon with any of her family members. And not one photo of her taken with Polanski, or at the house on Cielo Drive. All in all it's entertaining reading, but slightly boring due to the redundancy.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I eagerly awaited this book because I thought it would give some insight into what made Sharon "tick'. Although I expected pictures of the Manson family to be included in this biography, I did not expect to see more pictures of them than Sharon! I agree with several others that the pictures were poorly chosen. Most biographies, even the poorly written ones published to capitalize on the "flavor-of-the-month" teen idol contain some photos of the subject's childhood and family. King's book had only one picture of Sharon as a teenager and that was pulled out of a yearbook. I would have liked to have seen some earlier photos of her and those of her family. It also appeared to me that towards the end, King was in a hurry to finish because there were several errors concerning dates and typos that would have been caught by any competent editor. I was surprised to see that Vincent Bugliosi, the author of "Helter Skelter", an excellent book on the Manson Murders, actually endorsed this book. It makes me wonder if he actually read it or just skimmed through it. One last thing, like others who reviewed this before me, there was way too much rehashed info . . . . Entire pages are lifted from "Helter Skelter" and "revelations"--such as Manson returning to the Tate residence after the scene of the crime-- are based on speculation and rumors. I would think that Mason's claim that he returned to "see what his children did" would be viewed with some skepticism considering the source. If and when another biography comes out on Sharon Tate, I hope they take it seriously and do better than Greg King did.
Rating:
Summary: Gives life and personality to the legendary victim.
Review: If you've ever wondered why the Manson murders have lingered in the American psyche for so long, this book may help shed some light on the central reason - the charming and lovely Sharon Tate. With King's straight-forward account of her life and death, along with the circumstances surronding her killer's lives, we see a starlet's dreams coming true and we ache because of the tragedy that awaits her. It's simply one of those stories that surpasses what fiction could ever do. Success and beauty pitted against tragedy and death. It's no wonder that we've been captivated by these crimes for so long... Sharon Tate was and is a captivating figure in both death and life. Thanks Mr. King for helping us to remember.
Rating:
Summary: A disappointment
Review: I was surprised how much re-hashing was in this book and how little there was in new information. I could have done without the chapters on "The Family" and more on what made Sharon the person she was. Could also have left out the pages of dialog from her scripts, as well. The one item that did touch me was reading that Sebring wore Sharon's class ring til his death.Although I know this was a book about Sharon, I would have liked more background on Jay as he was so devoted to her.
Rating:
Summary: Sharon Tate wasn't just a pretty face.
Review: This is the first book on the murders that I have read that really let you know the real Sharon Tate. She seemed to be a sweet, caring person and it is really a shame that with her beauty and charm that she didn't have more self confidence in herself. Maybe if she did, she would still be alive today. By that I mean she may have chosen a different path to follow, one that wouldn't have crossed the path of a sick group of people who had no regard for human life. The book was well written, the pictures weren't that great, but there were a few things in the book that I had never known about before. It is worth the time it takes to read it, and for me that was just one afternoon. I hope the killers, any of them, never see the other side of the chain link fences that separate them from the other innocent people they may come in contact with. Reformed? I don't think so.
Rating:
Summary: No new insight, but still a good book
Review: I read Helter Skelter and that for me will always be one of the scariest true crime books ever written. So when I heard about this book I decided to read it. I have seen in the past, Sharon Tate's mother and sister help keep the animals that killed the lovely actress, her friends, and the LaBianca's behind bars. The book makes you even sadder for these victims because it shows the really human side of Ms. Tate not just the glamourous side you've read about. The creepiest part of the book, that will send chills up your spine was - four months before the murders, a strange looking character walked up to the house looking for someone, Ms. Tate and her friend asked the creepy little fellow what he wanted. That creepy little man was Charles Manson.
Rating:
Summary: Well researched, and extremely disturbing.
Review: I've found Sharon Tate fascinating ever since Valley of the Dolls. When she was murdered in 1969, I, like so many others, were horrified when she was murdered in the manner she was. I found that I couldn't get enough information on this whole incident. I ordered this book as soon as I knew it was available, and I was pleased, overall, and impressed with Greg's extensive research and new view into this terrible incident in our history. I hadn't realized that Manson and some other followers had returned to the Tate residence after the murders were committed, and was absolutely mortified that they had planned on doing more damage there. Just reading that the bodies were carried out to the front porch and then later, put back was something that made my skin crawl. After all is said and done, and reading this in one sitting - yes its a page turner - I realized that I had had enough of reading about this whole incident. Sometimes one's search for truth in such a bizarre instance in history can lead one down paths they wish they had never gone down. Frankly, after seeing the death pictures on the internet, and now, in this book, of Sharon (yes there's one picture of her, in death in this book), I just would rather remember this beautiful woman the way she was, in life. Her life was interesting, from the perspective of how someone with great beauty isn't always extremely well-adjusted or happy. Having the outside not match the inside must have created enormous inner conflict within herself. She seemed to accept life and its roughness, but deep down she was a sensitive soul that just didn't wish to make waves with those she loved, probably out of the enormous fear of not being loved and accepted. In psychological terms, we would say, in today's language, that she had a huge fear of abandonment. I kept thinking, what if she had developed spiritually, and stopped looking in the directions she looked in for satisfaction. There was a fatalism about her attitudes towards life - she had experiences that seemed to validate this. My sense is that she might have known she wasn't going to live very long. Her last interview seemed to bear this out - she stated she was a victim of fate, and that she never knew which direction life would lead her in. Often times our cultural icons don't live long- which in a very obscure way, she was. This incident in history was a major turning point, and a disillusionment for many, given our ways of living back then. All that peace and love had just ended with reality smacking society in the face. My criticisms for this book which lead me to give this 3 stars, is that there was a lot of repetitive information from other sources in this book, as well as a poor editing job - there were many typos, and misspellings. My last concern was with the fascination of the morbid side of this crime - I really didn't want to see her death picture again, or know how Sharon had a slight smile on her face in death, which seemed to fly in the face of the violent manner of her death. It took me many hours to shake off this feeling after reading this book - a similar feeling I had when I first saw Sharon's death photos. I don't want to go there again - I just want to remember this beautiful soul the way she was.
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