True crime writing was taken to a whole new level with the release of The Darkest Night by Ron Franscell.
In this intense book, Franscell details the story of eighteen-year-old Becky Thomson and her eleven-year-old sister Amy Burridge were in the wrong place at the wrong time in 1973. It was on this horrible night in Casper, Wyoming, that these two young girls crossed paths with two low-life thugs: Ronald Kennedy and Jerry Jenkins.
After being beaten and raped, Thomson and her little sister were tossed off a canyon river bridge to the deaths. Kennedy and Jenkins never once gave thought to survivors; but Becky Thomson did, against all odds.
Known around time as drunken thugs, it didn’t take police long to figure out who was responsible for this horrendous, unspeakable crime; especially since both were stupid enough to have given real names to their victims.
What followed was judicial chaos as both Kennedy and Jenkins were convicted and sentenced to death. Soon after their convictions would be commuted to life sentences, offering the opportunity for parole.
Needless to say, Thomson may have survived the attack but the judicial system continued victimize her. And one day, after many years of living with fear and anxiety, Thomson would regain control of her life for at least one last moment on that same canyon river bridge.
Making this book especially unique is Franscell’s ability to offer insight from a first person perspective of someone who knew these young ladies personally and felt the effects such a travesty had on their small community.
This is an emotion evoking read, but one that should be read by anyone who enjoys this genre. It is a book that you will never forget!
