Rating: 
Summary: Dana is different!!
Review: "To Die For" is the story of Dana Sue Gray, one of the few documented female serial killers. The tale offers neither a whodunit nor a mysterious police investigation. Dana's guilt is made obvious right on the book cover and she leaves a wide trail of evidence that can only implicate her. The junior homicide detective has little trouble finding Dana! The strengths of "TDF" lie elsewhere. For starters, we understand how she selfishly hurt her former husband and last boyfriend. She hurt her father. She devastated the relatives of the victims. It is left to the reader to decide if she ever hurt herself. This reader was shocked to watch as Dana descends from an athletic, intelligent, attractive, employed women (albeit one with an enormous "attitude") to an almost desperate murderess, killing to go on spending sprees for items she does not need. As a sidebar, this reader enjoyed the brief refernces to Police Department politics. Detective Greco had more problems with his "buddies" than with Dana! There are a few warning signs for potential readers:1) "TDF" is not linear but unusually structured, almost an inside-out story. 2)The police interrogation is far too long, given Dana's obvious guilt. 3) As ably mentioned by a reviewer above, Dana's back of the book decision to cop a plea is unexplained. "TDF" ends abruptly! Braidhill's work is for true crime devotees only. If one is not a convert, here is not the time and place to become one. (S)he is better advised to read an Ann Rule book or two before "TDF". Crime fans SHOULD give Braidhill a try. This unusual effort deserves a chance to succeed. 2 final thoughts for those who finished the tale: What if Dana had kept her nursing job and never been fired? Was the burden of unemployment too much? How would any of us react? Did this push Dana over the edge? I would not want Dana for a wife but if I were wheeled into an emergency room, I'd want Dana working on me. I bet she was a good nurse, if not exactly the girl next door.
Rating: 
Summary: One scary lady!
Review: As a fan of true crime books and having just spent 3 weeks on jury duty at a murder trial, I grabbed this book after reading the back cover and discovering Dana Sue Gray had killed in similar ways as the trial I was viewing. This lady is one of the rare documented cases of women serial killers and I had goose bumps as I read about each horrendous murder. Unlike some nonfiction crime books, this book was a page turner from start to finish. The book details how Dana would steal her victims credit cards and go on shopping trips after her dirty deeds. It also tells how Dana constantly lied to detectives when she was finally picked up for her killing spree after her own step-mother grassed on her! If you're the type of person who enjoys reading a book from cover to cover in one sitting, then this book is for you.
Rating: 
Summary: Had It All And Destroyed It
Review: Dana Gray was a mean, abusive, horrible woman. She took wonderful trips, married a man who loved her, and was trained as a registered nurse. Her childhood was not good to say the least, but she certainly didn't do much to help matters. Her relationship with one of her brothers was difficult to even read about due to the pain she deliberately caused him, seeming to really enjoy it. Anybody who had anything to do with her could clearly see that she was not a decent human being. Her own father told her he didn't have the money for a lawyer for her (when he probably did). He loved her but he knew she was guilty and had to pay. Dana destroyed her marriage, lost her nursing job due to stealing drugs and lying, and was frustrated by her inability to get pregnant. She vented her rage on innocent older women, brutally murdering them, then took off shopping as if that would help her feel better about herself. It's been awhile since I read this book, but as far as the plea goes, that puzzled me too, but I figured that since she had a public defender and there was so much evidence against her (eyewitnesses, the credit card use, etc) she figured she would never get off with a jury.Some questions: Who was the dark haired man with the beer belly who went shopping with Dana at the Sav-On and the outlet mall? Where did the author get the little comments that Dana makes in her head upon entering her future victim's homes/shop? Such as calling them "fat barfly, how dare you judge me, you make me sick," etc. Also, how did she manage to qualify for unemployment benefits when she was fired for cause? The writing could have been better organized, some things explained more fully, and the author could have kept out all of the cops' personal information. I'm not reading a true crime book to learn about the detective's marriage.
Rating:
Summary: Had It All And Destroyed It
Review: Dana Gray was a mean, abusive, horrible woman. She took wonderful trips, married a man who loved her, and was trained as a registered nurse. Her childhood was not good to say the least, but she certainly didn't do much to help matters. Her relationship with one of her brothers was difficult to even read about due to the pain she deliberately caused him, seeming to really enjoy it. Anybody who had anything to do with her could clearly see that she was not a decent human being. Her own father told her he didn't have the money for a lawyer for her (when he probably did). He loved her but he knew she was guilty and had to pay. Dana destroyed her marriage, lost her nursing job due to stealing drugs and lying, and was frustrated by her inability to get pregnant. She vented her rage on innocent older women, brutally murdering them, then took off shopping as if that would help her feel better about herself. It's been awhile since I read this book, but as far as the plea goes, that puzzled me too, but I figured that since she had a public defender and there was so much evidence against her (eyewitnesses, the credit card use, etc) she figured she would never get off with a jury. Some questions: Who was the dark haired man with the beer belly who went shopping with Dana at the Sav-On and the outlet mall? Where did the author get the little comments that Dana makes in her head upon entering her future victim's homes/shop? Such as calling them "fat barfly, how dare you judge me, you make me sick," etc. Also, how did she manage to qualify for unemployment benefits when she was fired for cause? The writing could have been better organized, some things explained more fully, and the author could have kept out all of the cops' personal information. I'm not reading a true crime book to learn about the detective's marriage.
Rating:
Summary: Protrayed Dana extremely accurately!
Review: Dana Sue Gray worked hard to get what she wanted - fancy clothes, endless material possessions and a lie for every occasion. Her methods for acquiring happiness would quickly bring about her downfall. Living with her partner Jim and his son Jason she gave the appearance of an average wife and mother. Dana was leading a double life - a ruthless killer when no-one was looking, and covering her crimes by adopting a casual and calculating manner on her numerous spending sprees. Dana's compulsive 'retail therapy' involved purchases which were unnecessary - she shopped as though each time would be the last, and her house was filled to bursting point with packages both opened and unopened. As a 'shopaholic' Dana was not revealing a problem which is not shared by women around the world. Dana stood out due to the methods she used to fund her shopping blow-outs. Serial killers whilst not rare, are not commonly women. This factor set Dana apart, together with the fact that her victims were all elderly, defenceless women, whose lives ended in a gruesome manner. Ask yourself this question of a bizarre situation - how did her partner Jim explain to himself her seemingly endless cash supply, given her unemployment and his financial support of Dana?
Rating:
Summary: Lies, lies and more lies
Review: Dana Sue Gray worked hard to get what she wanted - fancy clothes, endless material possessions and a lie for every occasion. Her methods for acquiring happiness would quickly bring about her downfall. Living with her partner Jim and his son Jason she gave the appearance of an average wife and mother. Dana was leading a double life - a ruthless killer when no-one was looking, and covering her crimes by adopting a casual and calculating manner on her numerous spending sprees. Dana's compulsive 'retail therapy' involved purchases which were unnecessary - she shopped as though each time would be the last, and her house was filled to bursting point with packages both opened and unopened. As a 'shopaholic' Dana was not revealing a problem which is not shared by women around the world. Dana stood out due to the methods she used to fund her shopping blow-outs. Serial killers whilst not rare, are not commonly women. This factor set Dana apart, together with the fact that her victims were all elderly, defenceless women, whose lives ended in a gruesome manner. Ask yourself this question of a bizarre situation - how did her partner Jim explain to himself her seemingly endless cash supply, given her unemployment and his financial support of Dana?
Rating:
Summary: To Die For
Review: Having read thousands of true crime books over the years I can truly say when an extrodinary one comes along. To Die For is one of them. I was fascinated by the life of Dana Sue Gray, convicted serial killer. Author Kathy Braidhill skillfully takes you to the brutal murder scenes, then takes you back in the killers life to help try and explain why this once pretty nurse ended up killing to steal her victims credit cards and go on wild shopping sprees. Very well written, I could not put it down!
Rating:
Summary: an interesting read...
Review: I agree with several people that have reviewed this book - that I would like to know how her plea bargain came about. I went to school with Dana, and she was weird way back then. Very opinionated, bossy, and verbally abusive.
Rating:
Summary: Protrayed Dana extremely accurately!
Review: I was one of the jail deputies that was in charge of "babysitting" Dana while she was incarcerated in the County Jail. This book protrayed Dana very accurately!! Dana is extremely egotistical! She had most of the other inmates terrified of her, or completely under her control. Dana displayed the same attitude in the jail that is described here in this book. The ending of this book does kind of just "drop" off without much explanation. It leaves me with a lot of questions as I was no longer working in the jail by the time Dana decided to plead guilty. Knowing Dana, I still find it unbelieveable that she did in fact plead guilty, and it would be nice to have this decision better explained in the book. Overall, I was very impressed with this book!
Rating:
Summary: To Die For: A Predictable Story!
Review: Kathy Braidhill writes an interesting but predictable story about Dana Sue Gray. But give me some intrigue! The author gets in depth in describing the crimes and psychological details about Dana's personality but the reading was choppy and forthcoming, especially towards the end. While reading, I thought I had missed a whole chapter as the author misses the mark in explaining the transition leading to Dana Sue Gray's admission of guilt. One minute you're beleiving she's still in denial the next she's not!
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