Was she a sweet southern charmer? Or a cold-blooded killer?

For their wedding portrait, petite Pat Taylor and handsome Tom Allanson posed as Rhett and Scarlett. Both came from fine Southern families and dreamed of the Tara-like plantation where they would grow roses, raise horses, and move in the genteel circles of Atlanta society.

Less than two months later, their dream exploded in terror and murder: their beautiful home mysteriously burned to the ground, and Tom was convicted of the brutal slaying of his mother and father.

Pat's only brother had died in a puzzling suicide, her grandparents-in-law were poisoned with arsenic, and no one—from her wealthy employers to her own children—was safe when Pat Allanson didn't get her way.

It took Georgia lawmen more than two decades to stop her for good—if indeed they have.

In this fascinating account, Ann Rule delivers a tour de force: a whirlwind of misguided love, denial, guilt, and passions out of control; a series of brilliantly manipulated crimes; the bizarre and horrifying tale of two families brought to ruin; and, at the center of it all, the heartless, supremely selfish sociopath whose evil hid behind soft words and gentle manners, but who destroyed—without mercy—those who loved her.

Annabel Lee is the last complete poem composed by the renowned American author Edgar Allan Poe. It is a haunting tale of love and loss, set in a mystical kingdom by the sea. The narrator fell deeply in love with Annabel Lee in their youth, a love so profound that even the angels envied it.

Despite the tragic passing of Annabel Lee, the narrator's love for her endures, undiminished by time or circumstance. This timeless poem evokes the beauty and tragedy of eternal love and captures the reader's imagination with its lyrical quality and poignant theme.

Set against the rugged, wind-swept landscapes of the Gaspé Peninsula in Quebec, Annabel Lee remains a testament to the enduring power of love, even in the face of death.

The Masque of the Red Death is a chilling tale by Edgar Allan Poe that explores themes of death and the illusion of safety. The story follows Prince Prospero and his attempt to escape a deadly plague known as the Red Death by secluding himself in his luxurious abbey.

Within the abbey's fortified walls, Prospero hosts a grand masquerade ball in seven distinct rooms, each adorned in a unique color scheme. The revelry is abruptly interrupted by the arrival of a mysterious figure, disguised as a victim of the Red Death, who moves ominously through each room.

As Prospero confronts this spectral intruder, he is met with his own demise, illustrating the story's underlying message of the inevitability of death. The guests, too, fall victim to the Red Death, as the tale concludes with the triumph of "Darkness and Decay".

Poe's masterful use of gothic elements and allegory invites readers to ponder the futility of trying to escape one's fate, making this story a timeless piece of macabre fiction.