On Wednesday, July 15, at 6:30 p.m. at the Plaza Branch, 4801 Main St., true-crime blogger Laura James tells the story of sex, deceit, money, and murder when she discusses her book The Love Pirate and the Bandit's Son: Murder, Sin, and Scandal in the Shadow of Jesse James.
In this story, sparks flew when gold digger Dr. Zeo Zoe Wilkins and Jesse James, Jr., the son of America's most legendary outlaw, crossed paths. The beautiful Wilkins, a scheming and oft-married osteopath, was no shrinking violet. Having married—and possibly buried—five husbands older and wealthier than herself, Wilkins was no match for Jesse Jr., whom the author argues stabbed Wilkins to death in her Kansas City home in 1924 (a murder never officially solved).
Mixing historical conjecture with forensic fact, Laura James conducts a blow-by-blow reconstruction of their tumultuous relationship, including evidence that she believes convicts Jesse James, Jr. Author Paula Uruburu described the book as combining "astute historical speculation with contemporary forensics in an entertaining and riveting manner."