Such Good Boys, Tina Dirmann
Such Good Boys, Tina Dirmann
List: $15.99 | Sale: $11.20
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Such Good Boys
The True Story of a Mother, Two Sons and a Horrifying Murder

Author: Tina Dirmann

Narrator: Gabra Zackman

Unabridged: 6 hr 5 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 10/04/2016


Synopsis

An Abusive Mother

Raised in the suburb of Riverside, California, twenty-year-old college student Jason Bautista endured for years his emotionally disturbed mother's verbal and psychological abuse. She even locked him out of the house, tied him up with electrical cord, and on one occasion, gave him a beating that sent him to the emergency room.

A Son's Revenge

On the night of January 14, 2003, Jason strangled his mother. To keep authorities from identifying her body, he chopped off her head and hands, an idea he claimed he got from watching an episode of the hit TV series The Sopranos. Jason's fifteen-year-old half brother, Matthew, would later testify in court that he sat in another room in the house with the TV volume turned up while Jason murdered their mother.

A Crime That Would Bond Two Brothers

The morning following the murder, Matthew went to school, and Jason returned to his classes at Cal State San Bernardino. When authorities zeroed in on them, Jason lied and said that his mother had run off with a boyfriend she'd met on the Internet. But when police confronted the boys with overwhelming evidence, Jason confessed all. Now the nightmare was only just beginning for him . . .

About Tina Dirmann

Tina Dirmann is a feature writer, investigative journalist, and nonfiction author. A former senior staff reporter for Us Weekly, she is a regular contributor to the Los Angeles Times, Orange Coast Magazine, USA Today and several international magazines, including Ok! (England) and Grazia (Australia).


Reviews

Goodreads review by ♥Milica♥ on January 30, 2023

A sad, but well written book. It's fairly short and fast-paced, but I don't feel like anything was skipped. I think we got enough information about the case and I'm glad it was all understandable and not overwhelming. The narrator was chosen wonderfully too, and her narration almost made this seem l......more

Goodreads review by George on March 18, 2022

A sad story about a murder of an abusive mother. Rather shocking how many people knew the woman was unreliable, struggling with mental health issues (neighbors, police, coaches, family) but nobody ever seemed to think it appropriate to make sure that her two kids were okay. Finally the oldest killed......more

Goodreads review by Chrissie on September 19, 2024

This is the shocking true story of matricide. What makes this even more shocking to me is the fact that, despite knowing that things were not right with this mother, nobody (even her own wealthy family) did anything to get help for her obvious mental illness. It could have all been so different if the......more

Goodreads review by Kara on February 16, 2011

This True Crime novel of Jason and Matthew's killing of their mother is an interesting one. Dirman gets you on the boy's side for the entire beginning of the novel and you yourself would understand why someone would want to kill the woman they call mom. She abuses them, belittles them, and lets her......more

Goodreads review by ♥ Marlene♥ on September 20, 2008

on Tuesday, September 16, 2008 I wrote about this book: Just finished it a few seconds ago (It is Tuesday September 16-2008 12.44.) Quick read but what a sad case. You could feel that the author sided with the 2 boys. She was looking for excuses for both of them, but especially for Jason. Not that it......more