And the Sea Will Tell by Vincent Bugliosi is a 2006 W.W. Norton Company publication.

Last year I read a novel that might have been partly inspired by this true crime case. The author mentioned this book in her notes at the end of her novel, which triggered a memory of both this book and the made for television mini-series based on it. Although the novel jogged my memory- reminding me of the bare basics of this case, I had long forgotten the specifics. So, I thought I’d try to locate a copy of this book and re-read it sometime.

Though this edition was published in 2006- the book was originally published in early 1990s. The case in question began way back in the mid-1970s, when an affluent couple- Mac and Muff Graham took off on a long voyage aboard their sailboat- ‘The Sea Wind’- (this boat is actually called at ketch).

Apparently, Muff had a strong feeling of foreboding before embarking on this journey- and sadly, her intuitions proved correct.

Expecting the island of Palmyra to be uninhabited, the Graham’s were a bit irritated by the presence of Buck and Jennifer- a scrappy looking couple who were obviously ill prepared-the seaworthiness of their vessel is highly debatable- they are very low on provisions and are hanging around waiting for someone to bring them more supplies.

Meanwhile, the two couples would have to resign themselves to sharing the island. But, when the Graham’s go silent, not answering any attempts at communication, it raises serious questions. When Buck and Jennifer subsequently arrive in Hawaii aboard the Sea Wind attempting to pass the boat off as their own, they don’t fool anyone- and are eventually arrested for theft.

Years pass-

Then the skeletal remains of Muff Graham are discovered. Buck and Jennifer are arrested for murder- But they are tried separately.

This is where Bugliosi comes in. The attorney became a household name when he prosecuted Charles Manson. But at this time, he is trying to transition from prosecution to criminal defense -and this case would a good one bulk up his reputation- which is how he came to be Jennifer Jenkin’s attorney.

In this book, Bugliosi takes the reader through the entire case from start to finish. Although Bugliosi was a very good attorney- no matter what side of the debate- he is not exactly humble, and this comes through in the tone of this book. He is also verbose to the extreme. The book really should have been trimmed down by half- I’m not joking- because the author tended to go on long diatribes that made for dry reading at times.

Eventually, he gets down to brass tacks, leading to the ultimate courtroom showdown.

The argument was that Buck was guilty of murder- but Jennifer was totally clueless about it. Bugliosi was convinced of her innocence. But, even after reading this book twice now- I still don’t feel like we know the whole truth of what happened on that island.

To this day the body of Mac Graham has never surfaced…

Overall, despite being overly long this is a compelling murder mystery and a riveting courtroom drama.

3.5 stars ( )

“It is said that the principal element that distinguishes a profession from a business is that in a profession, one’s primary obligation is to those he serves, not to himself.”
― Vincent Bugliosi, And the Sea Will Tell

I like a good True crime book every now and then and I had already read Bugliosi's book about OJ Simpson so I tried this one. It is extremely long and very wordy. It is also a creeper of a book, all together more of a creeper because you are reading non fiction.

So I had a few thoughts. The first one is that there was so much packed in here and some parts were more interesting then others. There was ALOT of courtroom jargon and some aspects of this book were extremely difficult to follow. I also did feel my mind wander at some of the more legal aspects of the book.

But it is exceptionally well written and just horrifying to read about. It is much different then his book about Simpson.

So yes it is a well written and interesting book but it is quite long and took me awhile. If you are a true crime fan you will most likely want to read this. ( )

This was pretty interesting for a murder mystery. It is a true story and I do get a bit scared so that's why I didn't rate it higher! ( )

Bugliosi tells this story with such passion, that it keeps you turning the pages - I read this book in 3 days ... Complete page turner, keeps you interested until the very end ... Amazing how these "free spirits" could get away with so much, who you choose to believe, is up to you ... ( )

this is a true story and is a movie ( )