cover image ALMOST PARADISE: The East Hampton Murder of Ted Ammon

ALMOST PARADISE: The East Hampton Murder of Ted Ammon

Kieran Crowley, . . St. Martin's, $24.95 (400pp) ISBN 978-0-312-34023-0

Crowley, a New York Post reporter and veteran true crime author (The Surgeon's Wife ), has written a fast-paced account of the sordid circumstances surrounding the brutal October 2001 bludgeon murder of multimillionaire Ted Ammon. With interweaving narratives, Crowley presents the stories of the three principal players in this drama: Ammon; his estranged wife, Generosa; and her blue-collar lover, Danny Pelosi. None of the three is likely to engage readers' sympathies, although Generosa, whatever her involvement in her husband's death, if any, is clearly the villain of the piece. Possibly scarred by sexual abuse she claimed occurred in her youth, she became a cruel, manipulative and imperious woman who treated others like chattel, and who inflicted horrific emotional damage on the twins she and her husband had adopted. Her rants and threats escalated as she began to suspect that Ammon was cheating on her and looking to end the marriage that had elevated her into high society. She struck back by beginning her affair with Pelosi, who was charged with the murder earlier this year. As Pelosi's trial on that charge began on November 1, this readable but not particularly deep book may well be regarded as dated soon after publication and be superseded by an account that incorporates the trial's revelations and outcome. (Jan.)