First published 2026
Teresa Sievers ran a successful anti-aging practice in Bonita Springs, Florida. Her husband Mark managed the business and homeschooled their daughters. In June 2015, Teresa was bludgeoned to death in their kitchen while Mark and the girls vacationed in New York. Police initially suspected burglary, but the attack was clearly targeted. Mikita Brottman examines the couple's volatile marriage and Teresa's pursuit of fame through questionable choices. The investigation reveals Mark's intense relationship with Wayne Wright, his childhood friend who resembled him so closely they were mistaken for twins. Wright lived in an Ozarks trailer park but maintained a deep bond with Mark despite the distance. Brottman applies psychological analysis to explore how obsessive love and hatred intersected in this case. The book moves beyond standard true crime narratives to examine the destructive power of both emotions.
Genres: biography, psychology, crime, contemporary, true-crime, american-history
Vibes: analytical, dark, psychological, thought-provoking, unsettling
Tropes: dual-perspective, obsessive-love, psychological-complexity, unreliable-relationships
Setting: Bonita Springs, Florida, New York, Ozarks
Period: June 2015, 21st-century
288 pages · Hardcover · Citadel
Content warnings: domestic-violence, murder, violence