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Chaos

Written by: Tom O'Neill, Dan Piepenbring
Narrated by: Kevin Stillwell
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Publisher's Summary

A journalist's 20-year fascination with the Manson murders leads to shocking new revelations about the FBI's involvement in this riveting reassessment of an infamous case in American history.

Over two grim nights in Los Angeles, the young followers of Charles Manson murdered seven people, including the actress Sharon Tate, then eight months pregnant. With no mercy and seemingly no motive, the Manson Family followed their leader's every order - their crimes lit a flame of paranoia across the nation, spelling the end of the 60s. Manson became one of history's most infamous criminals, his name forever attached to an era when charlatans mixed with prodigies, free love was as possible as brainwashing, and utopia - or dystopia - was just an acid trip away.

Twenty years ago, when journalist Tom O'Neill was reporting a magazine piece about the murders, he worried there was nothing new to say. Then he unearthed shocking evidence of a cover-up behind the "official" story, including police carelessness, legal misconduct, and potential surveillance by intelligence agents. When a tense interview with Vincent Bugliosi - prosecutor of the Manson Family, and author of Helter Skelter - turned a friendly source into a nemesis, O'Neill knew he was onto something. But every discovery brought more questions:

  • Who were Manson's real friends in Hollywood, and how far would they go to hide their ties?
  • Why didn't law enforcement, including Manson's own parole officer, act on their many chances to stop him?
  • And how did Manson-an illiterate ex-con-turn a group of peaceful hippies into remorseless killers?

O'Neill's quest for the truth led him from reclusive celebrities to seasoned spies, from San Francisco's summer of love to the shadowy sites of the CIA's mind-control experiments, on a trail rife with shady cover-ups and suspicious coincidences. The product of two decades of reporting, hundreds of new interviews, and dozens of never-before-seen documents from the LAPD, the FBI, and the CIA, CHAOS mounts an argument that could be, according to Los Angeles Deputy District Attorney Steven Kay, strong enough to overturn the verdicts on the Manson murders. This is a book that overturns our understanding of a pivotal time in American history.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2019 Tom O'Neill and Dan Piepenbring (P)2019 Hachette Audio

What the critics say

"What if everything we thought we knew about the Manson murders was wrong? O'Neill spent 20 years wrestling with that question, and Chaos is his final answer. Timed to the 50th anniversary of the Manson murders, it's a sweeping indictment of the Los Angeles justice system, with cover-ups reaching all the way up to the FBI and CIA." (Entertainment Weekly)

"Chaos is less a definitive account of the murders than a kaleidoscope swirl of weird discoveries and mind-bending hypotheticals that reads like Raymond Chandler after a tab of windowpane." (The New York Times)

"O'Neill's discoveries are stunning, especially when he's discussing the inexplicable leniency shown by law enforcement officials and by Manson's parole officer." (The Washington Post)

What listeners say about Chaos

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Sucked me in

I thought I knew what the Manson story was… NOPE
Author spent 20 years so I could understand in 16 hours. Buy this.

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A whole new perspective

I strongly recommend reading Helter Skelter first so you have the awareness of how the story was told before. Then, this one will take you on the deep journey into the depths that shows you just how much detail was always missing from the real happenings. To think how all these parts play connect the dots to what finally came about...it's crazy to think how intricate the story really is. I was very satisfied with where Tom took the story - i could see how it could become so consuming - and when i got to the end of the book I wanted more knowledge of just how life and crime evolved in those times. I am certain that Manson and the family killed many more people never discussed.

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An absolute must read!

Everything you thought you knew about the Manson family murders is wrong...this book can change your mind about the whole thing.

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Thought provoking

This is a great book I would definitely recommend it to anybody who is interested in history, politics or true crime by myself I’m not a true crime person, but down this book absolutely riveting

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Fascinating and disturbing

A massive amount of new information around the Manson murders. Highly recommend. I think there needs to be an official inquiry based on this information.

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more than meets the eyes

Tom puts innear 30 years of research to one of the most suspicious crimes. although it leads to a redacted dead end, the journey there is captivating.

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JRE book list

Heard about this while listening to the JRE. Not disappointed at all. I had heard rumors of the CIA and Manson before and always went ya huh. But now yea there is something there.

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  • 2023-01-25

Fascinating

i wish i could say i am surprised at the corrupt exposed in this book. But sadly i am not surprised at all. We live in a world where lies are virtue and truth is hidden. the Helter Skelter narrative never did make sense. a muat read for anyone who read Helter Skelter.

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Well written, well explain,

I really like the way he takes you through the story, and explaining. The time consuming it took the author to gather all this info make it even better.

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Very entertaining though slow to get into

while I really loved the overall structure of the book, I found the first few chapters difficult to get through. It's setting up the later chapters well, but I just felt that it spent too much time on information that is common knowledge before getting into the real meat.

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