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In April, 1998, Debra Puglisi Sharp—wife, mother, and hospice
nurse—was
planting rose bushes in her garden when a factory worker with a crack
cocaine habit slipped in through an open door and waited for her to come in. Nino, her
husband of twenty-five years, got in the way and was shot. The man then attacked and
raped Debra, placed her in the trunk of his car, and drove to his house, where he kept
her prisoner for over 100 hours.
This is an account of something we pray
never happens to us. The book is
well written, with bits of the Puglisi family
history interspersed with the story. I found it fascinating to read a first-person
account of how the victim felt during the tragedy. She describes how she went into
herself—begging her dead mother to meet her and take her to the other side, away from the
pain. Then, after hearing on her captor’s radio that her husband had been shot and
killed, she became angry and decided to try to escape. The whole story is
edge-of-your-seat, but when Puglisi loosens her ties and finds her way to a phone to call
911, you’ll be worked up to a near panic.
Shattered is not just a
story of torment, murder, and rape. It’s the biography of a woman who refused to give
her abuser and husband’s killer any
more than he has already stolen; it’s her
agonizing journey back to life.
This is a must-read for anyone who devours
non-fiction—as I do. Those who read crime stories will also enjoy this true-crime story.
After reading this book, I’m sure I’ll never leave my doors unlocked
again.
