Too Late to Say Goodbye: A True Story of Murder and Betrayal

Ann Rule never disappoints in her true crime writing. It is terrifying when you realize her monsters are all too real. She has seen the monsters, listening to court cases, interviewing survivors and the loved ones of their victims, and manages to tell the tale. This one does not disappoint. The handsome dentist who loses his wife. Oh, wait. This is the second wife he has lost? What poor luck the man has! Except, it's not poor luck...

This is a true crime story about Bart Corbin, an educated, attractive dentist, who killed his wife and, 14 years earlier, killed his college girlfriend. He staged both as suicides and got away with the first one for a long time. Although both women were smart, educated, attractive with good, caring families, they just didn’t believe Bart would ever really hurt them despite his bad behavior toward them. Ann Rule is really good at letting the reader really get to know the people involved. A few places went on a bit too long but overall, an interesting story.

I enjoyed the way this book, a crime story, was written. In some books, the crime, and the perpetrator, are described from the start. In this book, the reader comes upon the crime much like the investigating detective might see it. Rule describes the victim, the scene, and the possible criminal, but you're left to find out who actually committed the crime as the book develops, keeping things interesting.

One of the things that struck me most in reading this book was that the victim had been given the right advice by a number of people, but she did not heed something which seemed so commonsense to an objective observer. Perhaps she would have lived.

One of the things that struck me most in reading this book was that the victim had been given the right advice by a number of people, but she did not heed something which seemed so commonsense to an objective observer. Perhaps she would have lived.

Another great Ann Rule Book. A dentist with a huge ego kills a girlfriend while in dental school and gets away with murder. Several years later he marries and kills his wife. He almost gets away with a 2nd murder. Ann Rule does a fantastic job of tell the lives of the two women and of Dr. Bart Corbin. I felt like I know the characters. I loved the last chapter where she details her research and highlights what the families are doing. I would recommend this book to all True Crime Lovers.

I have a love hate relationship with Ann Rule's books. I love the genre - true crime and I love that she's so thorough, but sometimes her writing is to sterile, too police report-like. I know that she's trying to do justice to the facts, but sometimes her writing is just downright boring. Luckily, this book is one of her better books.

Dr. Bart Corbin is a dentist with a dark side. No woman ever leaves him...voluntarily. His first girlfriend broke his heart and let loose a monster. When Dolly Hearn tries to break up with Bart, he methodically stalks her and sets out to make her appear unstable. She ends up dead. When his wife of 9 years finally gets the nerve to leave him, she ends up dead. The two deaths are similar in many ways.

Rule show more does a good job of being fair and impartial to all in this book. She is a true reporter in that sense. One of the key problems I have with her writing in this book as in others is that I really don't care about the characters because they're treated so clinically. I think she needs to add more of a human touch to them, then the true horror of the crime is apparent. As it is, I know from the beginning that people are dead and I never have any true sense of fear for them.

But as much as I find Rule's writing somewhat clinical, I keep going back because I like the subject matter. show less