What makes this book so special is that Alix doesn't cast himself as a wider victim, although I would disagree on some levels, but nor does he minimise the brutal childhood the boys shared. He shares his story, his fears that he shares his brother's, and father's, DNA and it is so easy for someone outside the story to truly understand how large those fears must loom. By writing the book in a way that avoids sensationalising poor Danielle's murder and focussing the story on the facts, the story is far more powerful than almost any other true crime portrait I have read by a relative of the perpetrator.

Alix and Stuart are brothers, there are just 14 months between them. In this book, Alix Sharkey examines the brothers' history, and what had been an unhappy, violent childhood. They both had the same start, but one brother would go on to commit crimes, culminating in one so terrible, and it would be within his own family. It must be difficult for both families involved especially Danielle’s who still have no proper closure as they still do not know where their daughters body is. Of course, this isn't ever a book you could say you enjoyed, purely for the nature of the crime, but it was a captivating read which was well written. I was particularly interested in the forthcoming parole hearing due at the end of this year, especially with 'Helen's Law's now in force, meaning cases where the location of a body is never disclosed a parole review is likely to be denied - no body, no parole. The author has done really well to not make the book all about himself or his brother, voicing his concerns on many occasions throughout the book of the anguish and upset Danielle's family are still going through. A memoir heavily focused on a crime committed by the author's brother, I found this to be a tremendous work, and impossible to put down. The author Alix Sharkey jumps between two time periods in the past, examining his childhood and young adulthood, and then focusing on the moments immediately before and after the murder of 15-year-old Danielle Jones, for which Sharkey's brother – the girl's uncle – was ultimately convicted. I think in talking about their past, Sharkey deftly describes why both he and his brother ended up with the problems they had in early adulthood, but without excusing any of his brother's behavior, musing near the end that if their childhood caused his brother to murder a teenage girl, wouldn't he be right there in prison with him? But this book is about the author, not about his brother. It is very self-centric. You'd say, fine? But it is isn't. The book covers everything supericially, except for the author's life. And not his emotions towards his brother, but about his career!

The 15-year old’s body was never recovered, but Danielle’s parents soon learned that her ‘Uncle Stuart’, a close family friend, had concealed a decades-long history of sexual violence against teenage girls. Despite the absence of a body, Stuart Campbell was sentenced to life in prison for Danielle’s abduction and murder. But what set him on his path as a violent sexual predator? And how do you come to terms with his actions if he’s your own flesh and blood? As I began reading this book, I tried to recollect the circumstances around Danielle's disappearance, but it wasn't until I googled her and saw her picture that I remembered her from all those years before. The murder of Danielle is a very sad story, not just because of her age and the fact that her body has never been found, but also because Stuart Campbell was her uncle, someone who she should have been able to trust.

I raced through this haunting but important book. I have to disclose that I know the author so that obviously added another layer of intrigue. But from anyone's perspective, it begs the question, how can someone I grew up with and thought I knew so well behave so monstrously? And why won't he 'fess up to the whereabouts of her body? This is the true crime memoir of Stuart Campbell, his brother and the murder of Danielle Jones. Alix Sharkey writes about their lives growing up, his own feelings, and thoughts now about his these could have affected his brother if he’d only known. The tale of family secrets, abuse and deception, and how a little innocent boy can grow up to be a murderer… In 2001, 15 year old Danielle Jones vanished on her way to school. In 2002, Stuart Campbell, Danielle's uncle, was convicted of her murder. Her body has never been found.

This hard hitting memoir for the brother of convicted killer was an eye-opening account of his life growing up in an abusive environement and how this could have contributed to the path that his brother took. I'm not sure I can say I enjoyed reading this book - purely because of the nature of what this book is about. However it was super interesting, and the idea of nature vs nurture was a strong theme within this book - particularly with the final couple of chapters. (i won't say more in case it's a spoiler) This is a case that I didn't think I knew, until I searched up the crime online, and I remember it being such a high profile case. I don't know how this man writes for a living, it's so bad. Part of the book feels like he's writing a personal autobiography then it switches to a true crime write up then it switches again to a thriller where he's beating the hell out of a guy in a strip club. Half of the things the author wrote about really didn't need to be included, and I swear he repeated a few things. Then on top of all that, he throws in this random theory that his brother killed Danielle Jones because he could have been molested by a paedophile from when he attended boarding school. Maybe he was, but it just felt like the author crammed the theory in there, and then hoped for the best. Of course we never really find out what it was like to grow up with an alleged murderer. Sharkey's brother didn't run around the house wielding knives; the boys and their sister had a less than idyllic upbringing, but it wasn't brutally hopeless either, thanks to their mum, and until puberty hit the brother seems to have been more or less okay. There's no explanation for why he turned out the way he did (while Sharkey didn't), other than the hinted-at possibility of sexual abuse at the hands of a teacher, and no warning signs of the cutting-heads-off-bunnies variety, other than the brother's callous/cruel treatment of and early predilection for young girls; which obviously wasn't enough to set off alarm bells, at least during the 1970s and 80s. So if "My Life with a Murderer!" is what you're after, this book (thankfully) won't deliver. It's more of a memoir of growing up under very particular circumstances during a time that seems very far away now.

If the author wasn't being offensive, he was writing about things that didn't matter. He would constantly talk about how the case affected him, despite the fact that Danielle Jones lost her life and her body has never been recovered. He talked about how the trial affected him, and how he didn't know who to cry for. Himself, or Danielle? This was a really well written and interesting true crime novel. I hadn't heard of this case before even on Youtube so was really interested to find out what had happened in the case. Alix Sharkey is the older brother of Stuart Campbell, the man convicted in 2002 of murdering 15-year-old, Danielle Jones. Danielle's body was never found, and the author wrote this book in the hope his brother would finally do the right thing and reveal where Danielle's body is before his parole hearing scheduled for later this year. Alix Sharkey tells us about growing up as a child in the 70's, it was rife with bigotry and racism., life with a brother who was "normal" whatever that is until puberty. had issues and an unhealthy, but unknown predilection for young girls, not to mention an abusive, alcoholic dad and how his mother mum enabled both the father and the brothers behaviour. At some point his mum finally threw her husband out, who then went on to become a hapless drunk. My brother, the killer is an interesting, first hand account into the life of child-killer Stuart Campbell. It’s written by Alix Sharpley, his elder brother, and describes in great detail events such as their childhood and the murder charge itself.Especially since he's not even around -- his daughter lives hundreds of miles away in another country, and Mr. Sharkey is basically Fun Dad who pops over every now and then. The Danielle chapters IMO had a bit of "me me me" to them ("OMG that was MY brother, what does that mean for ME, what if the press find out that he's related to ME, what do I do now", etc. etc.), and Daughter seemed to function almost as an extension of the author. Never heard of this crime story before, although it was much in the news (in the U.K.). Not an easy book to read because of the content, but it does have a coherent flow. The brother in the title is somewhat of a mystery, an enigma, so the book is really about the family. Essentially it is a memoir about the author and growing up in a rough neighbourhood outside London, with an alcoholic father, and then later dealing with the revelation that his brother has been accused of abducting and killing a 15 year old girl (and to make the story even worse, the accused is the girl's uncle). There are times where I really wished Goodreads would do half star rating increments. This would be a 3.5 A family can hold many secrets. Sometimes, a secret is just something that happened and is never mentioned again. I wasn't familiar with Danielle's story, and I had a hard time putting the book down. As someone who likes true crime, especially trying to understand how a killer becomes a killer, I found the story of their childhood, with an abusive father, an often enabling mother, and possible abuse at a school that was supposed to help, intriguing. The author obviously has made it out on the other side of a what was and still is a terrible situation.