The Family Man: Blood and Betrayal in the House of Murdaugh by James Lasdun ~ a Review

by Susan Roberts

 

An immersive account of a seemingly loving father’s transformation into family annihilator.

In March 2023, Alex Murdaugh was found guilty of murdering his wife and younger son at Moselle, their home in South Carolina’s Lowcountry. In The Family Man, James Lasdun takes a new angle on this story of corruption in high places, massive fraud, opioid abuse, fake suicides, suspicious accidents, and the generational recklessness of the wealthy legal dynasty at its center.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site.  A free book was provided for an honest review.

May 2026; W. W. Norton & Company; 978-1324075325
audio, ebook, print (432 pages); true crime

I don’t read many true crime books, but this one caught my eye since it occurred in an area of South Carolina that I’m familiar with, plus I wanted to learn more about what would cause a seemingly happy family man to kill his wife and son.  The author did a fantastic job with his research and laid the story out in a concise way.  He also wrote about some of the inconsistencies that were published in the press and the rumors that were going on while the crime was being solved.  Even though it’s still difficult to believe that someone could kill their wife and son (Paul), the author does an excellent job of explaining the mindset and problems that drove Alex to commit murder.

In 2023, in a small town in the Lowcountry of SC, 911 received a call from Alex Murdaugh that he had just found his wife and son murdered on their property.  Everyone in the area knew Alex – his family had been lawyers in the area for several generations, and Alex was just an all-around good old boy.  As SLED (SC Law Enforcement Division) began its investigation, Alex was about the last person on their radar.  At first, they thought that it was connected to a recent death on a boat that Paul had been operating while drunk.  Lots of the clues pointed in that direction.  Were they real clues, or was Alex working to point the authorities in that direction?

The author did extensive research for this book, but for me, the most important thing that he did was to interview many people who knew Alex – not only the people he worked with but family members and people in town who had known him his entire life.  Along with the boat accident, he explained other deaths that may have been associated with the family and how they affected (or why they didn’t affect) the entire family.  I have read several books about the murders, but this is the first one that gives transcripts from phone calls that Alex made from prison after his conviction.  The conversations gave a good look at his state of mind and his lack of remorse because, despite the verdict, he always said that there was no way that he would kill his beloved wife and son.

This book is a well-done portrait of Alex Murdaugh and the horrific crimes that he was accused of.  The writing is so well done and the research so extensive that it reads like a Southern Gothic novel.  

Buy The Family Man at Amazon

Susan Roberts grew up in Michigan but loves the laid-back life at her home in the Piedmont area of North Carolina where she is three hours from the beach to the east and the mountains in the west.  She reads almost anything but her favorite genres are Southern Fiction and Historical Fiction.

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