Forever and Five Days: An Account of Obsessive Love and Murder That Rocked Grand Rapids, Michiga

Ex- Detroit News writer Cauffiel makes an auspicious debut in the true-crime genre with this sensitive and searching story of the murders of at least six nursing home patients in Grand Rapids, Mich., in 1987. The killers were two aides at the home: Cathy Wood, a divorced mother who had turned to lesbianism, and Gwen Graham, long gay. Wood was a brilliant, manipulative individual who enjoyed stirring up trouble; Graham was a harder, more physical woman, capable of violence. They told others about the slayings but were not believed, principally because Wood was known as a congenital liar who delighted in ``mind games.'' She finally convinced her ex-husband of the murders, telling him that she and Graham had killed for fun and excitement. The authorities apprehended Wood first and she turned state's evidence. Graham got five life terms and Wood a sentence of 20 to 40 years. What makes this study noteworthy is Cauffiel's discreet handling of the killers' homosexuality (a restraint not shown by media at the trial) and the excellent concluding section of analyses by a number of psychotherapists which help explain what motivated the crimes. Photos not seen by PW. (Mar.)