Publication Date August 20, 2024

NOTE: This review includes information about and from John Glatt’s book Tangled Vines (also about the “Murdaugh mystery”), in addition to Valerie Bauerlein’s The Devil At His Elbow.  I admit my guilty pleasure in both reading and podcasts is true crime, so I fell into this topic, along the way getting deep into the various crimes, scandals, and trials. As it became a national story, there were podcasts, posts in online discussion forums, and then the books started popping up. I consumed many hours of podcasts about the Murdaugh saga on my beach walks  (most notably Mandy Matney’s). In July 2023 the book I had been waiting for arrived:  Tangled Vines by John Glatt, which I reviewed  in August. You might think I’d be sick of the story but I wasn’t, and in August 2024 I received a copy of The Devil At His Elbow by Valerie Bauerlein in exchange for my honest review, thanks to Random House/Ballantine and NetGalley.    

Tangled Vines was the first full book I had read on the topic, back in Summer 2023, followed by Mandy Matney’s Blood On Their Hands in November. Matney’s book provided tons of information and I applaud her for both her podcast excellence and outstanding true crime writing. (In April of this year, I also read Swamp Kings by Jason Ryan, an author and journalist who lives in Columbia, S.C. I wasn’t able to find much info on him and his book was memorable more for the nearly overwhelming jumping around in time while telling the story than for the information provided). 

So what is the scoop on this story that has kept my interest all this time?  If you have been asleep for the past couple of years, here is the basic outline (NOTE: quotes marked with * are from Glatt’s Tangled Vines, both the book and my review): In the Low Country of South Carolina, many decades ago, the Murdaugh family began the law firm that would rule the area right up until about 2021. They were incredibly wealthy and powerful,  both socially and politically.

In 2021, Alex Murdaugh, the current patriarch of the family (generally called “Alec” or “Ellick” – go figure) found (ahem) the bodies of his wife and younger son just outside the kennels at their hunting lodge. Both were dead from gunshot wounds. Two different guns—more than one shooter? A few months later, Alex called 911 from the side of a road, saying he’d been shot in the head. WTF?

Then there were the earlier tragedies. Younger son Paul was in legal jeopardy (despite the efforts of Daddy and Granddaddy) after he had been driving a boat drunk and ran it into the side of a river bridge, killing a young woman named Mallory Beach. The police treated him like the local prince he was, Was this a cover-up? (Duh). The whole law enforcement response the night of the crash was a mess: “…dispatchers gave out the wrong location fourteen times to various emergency services, wasting valuable time to save Mallory Beach.” *

Then there was the housekeeper who died falling down the steps of the house at the hunting lodge. She “fell over the dogs,”* although that was a little suspicious. Then there was Stephen Smith, the young man who may or may not have been in a relationship with older son Buster. His death was ruled a hit and run, although it was suspected to be a homicide, it was never investigated as one. Ruled a hit and run? Why? “…she stated it was a hit and run because he was found in the road.”*

Then the money and drugs became hot news. Alex had blatantly embezzled and downright stolen millions of dollars. Alex said he was an addict…but the more likely story seems to be that the family was just evil, and their lavish lifestyle had been funded for years by an elaborate drug trafficking and money laundering scheme.

The Devil At His Elbow spends considerable time on the history of the Murdaugh family, which might help people understand this family…although I admit I find them  just disgusting and Alex’s actions are beyond my ability to understand. But it still held my interest. Sadly, Alex/Ellick/Alec “...inherited his forebears’ power and prowess and then squandered it.” The book explains that he”...pronounced his name “Ellick Murdick,” in the traditional Scottish diction that lingered for centuries in the rural South.” I was happy to learn that, but I still find him reprehensible.

To sum up the current situation, Alex is now in prison for the murders of his wife and son. The deaths of Stephen Smith and the housekeeper don’t seem to have been finally resolved, but tons of money has been generated for the local economy via crime tourism, podcasts, etc. Several books have come out of this mess and more will follow, but it will be hard for others to top the storytelling by John Glatt in Tangled Vines. It is a shocking and extremely entertaining and informative book, and in my opinion is the best so far.  I thought I knew a lot about this story before I read Glatt’s book, but wow did I learn a lot. As for Ms. Buerlein’s book, it is perhaps the strongest on the family history, which does help put all the insanity in a sort of perspective. Well worth reading, for true crime fans or just anyone fascinated by the “Murdaugh Mystery.” Four stars.