A Cold-Blooded Business

Adultery, Murder, and a Killer's Path from the Bible Belt to the Boardroom

By: Marek Fuchs

Narrated by: Kevin T. Collins

In 1959, Olathe, Kansas was made famous by the murder of the Clutter family and Truman Capote's ground-breaking book on the crime, In Cold Blood. But fewer know that Olathe achieved notoriety again in 1982, when a member of Olathe's growing Evangelical Christian population, a gentle man named David Harmon, was bludgeoned to death while sleeping - the force of the blows crushing his face beyond recognition.

Suspicion quickly fell on David's wife, Melinda, and his best friend, Mark, student body president of the local bible college. However, the long arms of the church defended the two and no charges were pressed. The case was declared as dead as David Harmon.

Two decades later, two Olathe police officers revived the cold case making startling revelations that reopened old wounds and chasms within the Olathe community - revelations that rocked not only Olathe, but also the two well-healed towns in which Melinda and Mark resided. David's former wife and friend were now living separate, successful, law-abiding lives. Melinda lived in suburban Ohio, a devoted wife and mother of two. Mark had become a Harvard MBA, a high-paid corporate mover, a family man, and a respected community member in a wealthy suburb of New York City. Some twenty years after the brutal murder, each received the dreaded knock of justice at the door.

A Cold-Blooded Business provides fascinating character studies of Melinda and Mark, killers who seemingly returned to normalcy after one blood-splattered night of violence. A fast-moving true crime narrative, A Cold-Blooded Business is a chilling exploration into the darkest depths of the human psyche.

©2013 Marek Fuchs (P)2013 Audible, Inc.

True Crime Jewel

Would you consider the audio edition of A Cold-Blooded Business to be better than the print version?

A true crime junky I am not. I rarely read true crime. This, however, is a jewel both because of the type of people involved and because it was a cold case. The execution of the crime and apprehension of the culprits were separated by 23 years. It was very well written.I consider all audio editions to be better than the print versions.

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

The type of people involved and the influence of the Nazarene Church in regard to both execution and apprehension.

What three words best describe Kevin T. Collins’s performance?

Not so good. Perhaps this was his first one. His delivery was such that I began to get the feeling that he had recorded each word separately and then a machine had chosen the words and produced the sentences. Kind of weird. I have been known to ditch books when I just couldn't stand the reader, so he was not nearly that bad. At some point I got used to it and did not notice it. Or he got better.

Any additional comments?

The characters were very well developed (unusual in my experience with true crime). This is not a book I would read twice, but I surely recommend reading it once. It is a seven hour read and I had a seven hour drive. I had two other books I could have listened to, but it fully absorbed me for the entire drive.

ACold-Blooded Business

Very interesting story. Always sadder when it is based on real life. The narrator was kind of monotone at times.

Unbelievable what ordinary people do

Highly recommended Audible book! This should be featured in Dateline’s Secrets Uncovered. The people in this true crime story were so normal that I’m still shaking my head that this could’ve ever happened. The book was so well written and narrated that I’ll read it agin one day.

Interesting story but it feels a bit remote

Narrator mispronounces quite a few words which detracts from the story and its credibility. This is a common problem with Audible.

Such a twisted tale of hypocrisy

It was very well told and showed once again how some people with no morals would hide behind religion and itts power players to get away with the most monstrous acts.
Not shocking but very sad