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Dale Richard Perelman
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New Castle's Kadunce Murders: Mystery and the Devil in Northwest Pennsylvania (True Crime) Kindle Edition

by Dale Richard Perelman (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
3.9 out of 5 stars 287 ratings

Author Dale Richard Perelman tells the tragic story of the 1978 murders and the mystery surrounding them.

 

In the summer of 1978, a mother and her four-year-old were stabbed to death in the quiet town of New Castle. Police suspected the husband, Lou Kadunce, but were unable to find either a weapon or a motive. Sitting in a Lawrence County jail in 1981, convicted serial killer Michael Atkinson accused Frank Costal - a carny, petty thief and Satanist - of having an affair with the Kadunce husband and participating in the murder. A series of intense trials ensued as Costal was convicted of the homicides and a jury found the husband not guilty. Questions surrounding the case gripped the region and grabbed headlines in the Pittsburgh Press.

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  1. Print length
    211 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Arcadia Publishing
  4. Publication date
    August 5, 2011
  5. File size
    5.5 MB
  6. Page Flip
    Enabled
  7. Word Wise
    Enabled
  8. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Dale Richard Perelman, a native of New Castle, Pennsylvania, has written Mountain of Light: The Story of the Koh-I-Noor Diamond; The Regent: The Story of the Regent Diamond; Centenarians: One Hundred 100-Year-Olds Who Made a Difference; Steel: The Story of Pittsburgh's Iron and Steel Industry, 1852-1902; Road to Rust: The Disintegration of the Steel Industry in Western Pennsylvania and Eastern Ohio; Lessons My Father Taught Me; and The Scottish Rite Cathedral (coauthored with Rob Cummings). Mr. Perelman holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Brown University in English literature, an MBA in industrial relations from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, a graduate gemologist's designation from the Gemological Institute of America and a certificate of completion from the Yale University summer writer's program.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0814K58HF
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Arcadia Publishing (August 5, 2011)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ August 5, 2011
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 5.5 MB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 211 pages
  • Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 1467144029
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.9 out of 5 stars 287 ratings

About the author

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Dale Richard Perelman

Dale Richard Perelman

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Dale Perelman received a bachelor's degree in English literature from Brown University and an MBA in Industrial Relations from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Perelman also attended the writer's program at Yale University and is a graduate gemologist of the GIA. In addition to "Steel," Perelman has written "Mountain of Light - the Story of the Koh-I-Noor Diamond," "The Regent - the Story of the Regent Diamond," "Centenarians - One Hundred 100-Year-Olds Who Made a Difference,” “Road to Rust - The Disintegration of the Steel Industry in Western Pennsylvania and Eastern Ohio,” “New Castle’s Kadunce Murders - Mystery and the Devil in Northwest Pennsylvania,” “The Scottish Rite Cathedral.” (Co-authored with Rob Cummings), “Death at the Cecil Hotel in Los Angeles,” and “Chuck Tanner and the Pittsburgh Pirates.”

Customer reviews

3.9 out of 5 stars
287 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers praise the book's writing style, noting its concise and descriptive approach. They appreciate the story quality, with one customer highlighting the author's extensive research and ability to integrate historical facts. The book receives positive feedback for its readability.

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8 customers mention "Writing style"8 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the writing style of the book, noting its concise and descriptive approach, with one customer mentioning it reads like a novel.

"...It is well written and an interesting read. It was particularly interesting to me because New Castle is my hometown...." Read more

"...It's not gory at all, just moreso sad. The story is pretty well written and put together, although there were so many minor characters it can be..." Read more

"Very good read! I know some of the names of the people in the book!!" Read more

"...It was a very terrifying time for our city. The book was we'll written and had all the details I remember." Read more

7 customers mention "Story quality"7 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the story quality of the book, with one customer noting the writer's extensive research and another highlighting how it integrates historical facts.

"...It is well written and an interesting read. It was particularly interesting to me because New Castle is my hometown...." Read more

"...Great photos, which added a lot to the story, but there is a photo of the deceased toddler (why not the wife as well?)..." Read more

"...I don't know what else to say except, "Buy it, read it, and digest this true tale of the kind of gruesome behavior our neighbors are capable of...." Read more

"...He has a marked talent to integrate historical facts with captivating descriptions...." Read more

3 customers mention "Readability"3 positive0 negative

Customers find the book readable, with one describing it as brilliant.

"...But it was still a decent read." Read more

"...that drives this true story in a way that makes it an easy and entertains read...." Read more

"Easy reading. Great detail, brilliant book, highly recommend!" Read more

The Kadunce Murders is an outstanding book. I couldn’t put it down. I highly recommend.
5 out of 5 stars
The Kadunce Murders is an outstanding book. I couldn’t put it down. I highly recommend.
I enjoyed reading Dale Perelman’s book New Castle’s Kadunce Murders. I could not put the book down. It’s well written with many facts. I knew many people described in the book, because I lived in NC all my life. One of the murderers lived on my street. This is highly recommended. I have also read another book by Dale Perelman called Road to Rust. It’s a great book as well.
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Top reviews from the United States

  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Reads like an novel, but true
    Reviewed in the United States on November 3, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    A lot of research was obviously done for this detail filled book. It is well written and an interesting read. It was particularly interesting to me because New Castle is my hometown. I left over 20 years before the murders, but it brought back memories of the town, and many of the people in the book were familiar. This is the third of Dale Perelman’s book I have read, and I enjoy his concise descriptive writing style.
    3 people found this helpful
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  • AJH
    4.0 out of 5 stars An Accurate Enough Account of a Small Town Scandal
    Reviewed in the United States on December 2, 2019
    I lived in New Castle at the time of the slayings. This book has a bit more than the newspaper reports. My issue is that this book includes names of some people and events that were only slightly associated with the crime, if at all. I realize that the information was taken from trial records and police investigation reports, but innocent people were hurt by the facts that unfolded in these murders and the subsequent trials. Perhaps this book should have remained unpublished so that survivors could continue to go on with their lives. I will be curious to read reviews by readers who did not read the newspaper reports in real time.
    As far as the book goes, the author did a decent job of compiling the information into an easy to read story with vivid depictions of the main characters. I assume that the couple of misspelled names can be attributed to taking them from existing documents and records.
    3 people found this helpful
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  • Lora905
    3.0 out of 5 stars "COLORFUL CAST OF CHARACTERS" (mild spoilage)
    Reviewed in the United States on January 12, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    When I saw this cover, I thought, "Oh, that guy's definitely guilty." I don't know why, just the disgruntled look on his face at being caught, I guess. Turns out, it's the photo of Lawrence "Lou/Larry" Kadunce being escorted out of court. Interesting. Reading this book made me think of the phrase "colorful cast of characters" because that's what this book was about. Only they were more than just "colorful": everyone that wasn't a cop was a criminal druggie. Most of the witnesses were on drugs or inmates. In court, these people are looked at as unreliable witnesses.

    Mike Atkinson told one version of the story, and then told pretty much the same version at Frank Costal's trial. But because he told at least 3 different versions in between, he was definitely pinned (correctly) as a big liar. He was a career criminal, a drug addict, and he was gay, all severely frowned upon in court in the late 70s. But all 3 things were true & proven, so "clearly" he was guilty of at least being present at the scene. Frank Costal was a psychopath. He believed he was a shepherd for the devil, and all in his cult and/or his orbit definitely believed him. Didn't help that he only dealt with highly uneducated, often mentally delayed, drug addicts who were also petty criminals. Being a gay, Satan worshipping, drug addicted, ex-carnie who clearly was a control freak with anger issues. He had to be the ringleader, right?

    Unfortunately, IMO, the DA decided not to go into the 3rd trial of Lou Kadunce. A new DA was elected, but then offered the former DA $10K to handle the case for him. "Panella rarely litigated his own cases..." then why run for election? DA Williams, who was quite capable, said he'd had enough of the whole lot of the criminal case, but looking back I think his pride was stung at losing the election, only to be begged to be the prosecutor again. I think that was an issue because the new attorney wasn't very effective at proving that all 3 of these men were most definitely connected. People other than Atkinson saw and/or knew that Kadunce & Costal were lovers. The prosecuting attorney obviously didn't have all of the same witnesses testify, and the defense was able to find plenty of people who knew nothing about Kadunce's other life (apparently he & Costal were still "together" even after the murder) so they all spoke highly of him. That was all it took for the jury to find him not guilty. It really didn't help that the cops did kind of a shoddy job with the investigation in some places. So I believe Kathy & Dawn Kadunce only got partial justice.

    Great photos, which added a lot to the story, but there is a photo of the deceased toddler (why not the wife as well?) It's not gory at all, just moreso sad. The story is pretty well written and put together, although there were so many minor characters it can be hard keeping the names straight, let alone putting together & keeping in mind who's essential to the case. But it was still a decent read.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • JoeyB415
    5.0 out of 5 stars Skillfully crafted account of a true story.
    Reviewed in the United States on December 25, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    I remember the Kadunce murders of 1978 very well. As such, I couldn't wait to get busy with this book. Dale Perelman does a great job chronicling the incident and bringing the characters to the reader. I don't know what else to say except, "Buy it, read it, and digest this true tale of the kind of gruesome behavior our neighbors are capable of. Remember, they walk among us!"
    4 people found this helpful
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  • Shak'in and Bak'in with Shelly
    5.0 out of 5 stars Hard boiled true crime done exceptionally well.
    Reviewed in the United States on November 27, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    I have read several of Mr. Perelman’s other books. He has a marked talent to integrate historical facts with captivating descriptions. The Kadunce murders marks a significant departure in subject matter. As a self-proclaimed true crime junky, I was definitely not disappointed. The seedy perps and hard-boiled detectives create and captivating balance that drives this true story in a way that makes it an easy and entertains read. Mr. Perelman utilizes facts from court documents and other official sources. He does not indulge in editorial commentary. Instead he presents the facts while weaving a tapestry of local colt from this small Westen Pennsylvania town. This effectively allows the reader to draw some of their own conclusions with giving all of the answers. Can’t wait to see what this gifted author turns his attention to next.
    9 people found this helpful
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  • Julie
    4.0 out of 5 stars Convoluted
    Reviewed in the United States on February 21, 2020
    What did I just read ? The story starts out to be well written, but then when they toss in .....what ? Another 25 people, either involved or knowing things , or thinking they know things.....geez. You have a bit of everything in this book , including the circus , and the kitchen sink ( isn’t that where one of the guys worked ?)
    I found it to be very confusing about halfway through the book and I’m not real sure the right people/ person was convicted. Read it for yourself and come to your own conclusion.
    3 people found this helpful
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  • Paul VanderBorgt
    2.0 out of 5 stars I wanted to like this book
    Reviewed in the United States on September 1, 2024
    The author would switch between people’s first name, nickname, and last names. It was not easy to keep track of who he was talking about. Should’ve gone through more editing.
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