On December 30th, 1999, in rural Oklahoma, 16-year-old Ashley Freeman and her best friend, Lauria Bible, were having a sleepover. The next morning, the Freeman family trailer was in flames and both girls were missing.
While rumours of drug debts, revenge killings, and police corruption abounded in the years that followed, the case remained unsolved and the girls were never found.
In 2016, crime writer Jax Miller travelled to Oklahoma to discover what really happened. What she unearthed was shocking. These forgotten towns were wild, lawless, and home to some very dark secrets.
Hell In The Heartland is a heavily written account of LAURIA and Ashley. It is a crime that I have heard little about and was very interested to delve into and learn about it, especially since there has now been an arrest in the case.
Although Jax has taken clearly a lot of time and effort to put into writing what had happened to the two young girls, and most of it is interesting; I did feel that it steered off course a lot and became a focus on people that maybe shouldn’t have been looked at as closely and could have been much shorter entries in the book.
That being said, it’s very well written and there is a lot of care from the author with how much she has done for this case. I learnt a lot about small town police and drug gangs in America and how their affect has prolonged getting any answers in this case.
Overall a good read for any avid true crime fan. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

I was really interested in reading this book but for the life of me I couldn’t get into it. Maybe I’ll give it another go sometime, I’m not sure.

Generic three star rating. As it wasn’t awful but I just found myself distracted a lot.

he biggest compliment i can give this book is that it gives me furious hours, one of my favourite books from last year, vibes

i say that bc it focuses on the tragic crime of two missing girls and two dead parents and then it peels back all the layers, stretching across the country and across the years

you can tell that jax miller cares so deeply about this crime, about the families, about the oklahoma community. the writing is beautiful, the way it’s all threaded together is great, and i recommend it to everyone

This was a riveting account of a truly horrendous crime that has continued to haunt the families of both missing girls.
The account of the devastating story is told with compassion and highlights the pain that those left behind have been left to deal with, something which was both intriguing and devastating. Their evident pain is etched into the book, and you can really feel it emerging from every single page.

This is a brilliantly written book that can be slightly uncomfortable at times as the pain of those involved is unimaginable. A certain must read for all fans of true crime.

A very insightful book is great for true crime lovers and written exceptionally well from the first page to the last one!

I thoroughly enjoyed dreading the well written, evocative and riveting account of a crime that has perplexed and haunted the families of both missing girls.
I feel a little uncomfortable in taking enjoyment from reading of the pain of those left behind to suffer the consequences, doubts and frustrations the years have brought them. So good is the writing that their pain is etched into every page.
The author's own fears and concerns come to life in her words.
This is an excellent - albeit uncomfortable at times - account of her journey into the dark side of small-town America.
A highly recommended book.

Hell in the Heartland – Inept Policing

Jax Miller has investigated and published a true crime book, that looks at an unsolved missing – murder case in Oklahoma from 1999. At first read I thought I was reading a thriller, because some of what happened in this case seems unbelievable.

Miller takes a deep dive into how two teenage girls went missing, from a burnt-out mobile home. As the local police department and sheriff were not on good terms with the family, they called in the state police to run the investigation. Previously, Cromer Country Police had shot dead the son the year before. Rumours abound.

On December 30th, 1999 in rural Oklahoma, sixteen-year-old Ashley Freeman and her best friend, Lauria Bible, we're having a sleepover. The next morning the Freeman family mobile home (trailer) was in flames and the two girls were missing. While rumours of drug debts revenge and police collusion abandoned in the years that followed, the case remained unsolved and the girls were never found.

There are too many stories and leads over the years that have led to dead ends, and the police do not seem to have a coherent plan of really solving the case. The only one actually interested in solving the case have been the Bible family and have actually had to run an investigation because quite frankly they had been let down by law enforcement.

If there were medals for inept policing than the both local and state police departments would be gold medallists. I am sure like many people will be angered by the inaction and total cock-ups from the police.

Read, and get angry.

My latest foray into the true crime genre came in the form of this book from Jax Miller, who, as comes across in this beautifully written narrative, spent a lot of time and emotional energy looking into the sad case of missing girls Ashley Freeman and Lauria Bible.

I knew a little about the case from other sources but here was a writer who invested an awful lot of herself into trying to get to the truth and that comes across in every passing chapter – her relationship with Lauria’s mother is an anchor throughout and both these women in different ways are absolute forces of nature.

Hell In The Heartland offers a lot of insight, looking at every angle when it comes to the possibilities of what happened to the girls, but more importantly for this reader, tells us who they were, tells us of the huge impact on the loved ones left behind and, indeed, on the author herself.

Some of what happened in the investigation will have you shaking your head, but the strength of this story comes in the way Jax Miller describes this setting, it’s people, its beliefs, the often wild community that sets the backdrop to this melancholy story of two young women who never got the chance to live their lives through and find out who they were.

There has now been an arrest and, much like Jax Miller I imagine, I leave this story with the hope that the families of Ashley and Lauria, will finally find some closure and some peace. I hope this review leads more people to this extraordinary story told by a writer who with the power of words will put you right there. Don’t look away. Ashley and Lauria deserve our attention.

Highly recommended.

On the evening of the 30th of December 1999 Ashley Freeman celebrated her sixteenth birthday with her mother Kathy, father Danny and best friend Lauria Bible at her home near Welch, Oklahoma. The next morning the Freeman family trailer was in flames and Ashley and Lauria were missing.

The story itself is unbelievable; murder, mystery, drugs, police corruption and incompetence, but the way this book is written is what makes it really special. It is an engaging whodunit without ever losing sight of the fact that these are real people. Jax Miller has put so much of herself into solving this case and telling this story in the hopes that it will lead to justice for the Freemans and the Bibles. She has built lasting relationships with the families of Ashley and Lauria and the people of the town of Welch. Her compassion and empathy and her resolve to find these girls bleeds out of the pages and into the reader.

This book has been compared to Capote's 'In Cold Blood', an incredible book, deserving of its success and acclaim. This may just be better.

'Hell In The Heartland' is the best book I have read so far this year.

Thank you #NetGalley and Harper Collins UK for the free copy in exchange for an honest review.

On December 29th 1999 in Welch, Oklahoma, sixteen year old Lauria Bible is staying over at her best friend Ashley Freeman’s trailer to celebrate her birthday. In the early hours of 30th December, emergency services responded to a large fire at a trailer belonging to Ashley’s parents - Kathy and Danny Freeman. What they discovered inside were the remains of Kathy, who had been shot in the head. The following day, Danny’s body is found amongst the rubble – also with a gunshot wound to the head. Neither Lauria nor Ashley have ever been found.

You can tell straight away while reading this that the author has done an immense amount of research into the case, to an obsessive degree. She spends years talking to various eye witnesses, neighbours and family members of the girls in order to tell their story and bring them to the forefront of the readers mind. She deals with their story sensitively, going into detail about their personalities and what they loved doing, and generally just brings back the humanity to a case that could all too easily become too impersonal. Loria’s mother Lorene does a great amount of work in keeping the face of her daughter at the centre of the investigation, and really reminds us that this case is about real people. She’s an incredible woman.

However, I think the most interesting (yet also disturbing) aspect of this case is the amount of police corruption, incompetence and cover ups that Miller uncovers during her investigations. Although there are three suspects, the sheriff’s department didn’t reveal who they were, or even start to look into them properly, until 2017 when evidence is passed over to the OSBI. Private investigators who found information that could have led to a prosecution were actively earned off, or told to forget about it. Miller herself received several threats to back off and leave the case alone. The level of corruption is unreal, and at times it feels almost unbelievable – which makes it all the scarier.

I do think that sometimes the story veered too much away from the true story and the girls, as the author delves deeper into her own background and past which I felt sometimes detracted from the story she’s trying to tell. However, her sheer tenacity and perseverance must be commended.

This was incredibly heartbreaking and terrifying, made all the more so because it’s true. Well researched and humanising towards the victims, with a lot of compassion and crazy demonstrations of police incompetence. A good read for all true crime lovers.

Hell in the Heartland is a searing true crime expose of the drug problems and law enforcement corruption at the heart of middle America. In 1999 a trailer in rural Oklahoma was found set alight. On first sight there appeared to be one badly burned body, but the families of two missing teenagers, Ashley Freeman and Lauria Bible, took a closer look and were horrified to find another body that the police had missed. This was the first of many screw ups and cover ups that would plague the search for the two girls. Boxes of evidence and records would mysteriously go missing and the buck was continually passed from one department to another. The behaviour of certain law enforcement departments at times is maddening and it seems crazy how incestuous and corrupt Sheriff’s departments can be and what a maze it becomes trying to find someone to take responsibility. Author Jax Miller, however, has travelled to Oklahoma to try and piece together who set the fire and what happened to the two girls afterwards. It’s no easy task, there’s a revolving door of disreputable and frankly, disgusting, characters who often lie, deny, point the finger at others and threaten Miller. There’s no happy ending to this story. The details are grim and the hope of any really justice is long gone. The families of the girls are relentless though, there’s a glimmer of hope in their unceasing devotion to their daughters and I hope that one day they find some small sense of closure. Miller is both an excellent writer and reporter and is sensitive enough to tread carefully in an area where strangers are treated with suspicion. This is an absorbing read and a fascinating insight into a part of America that, for me, has flown under the radar. Highly recommended.

I received a ARC from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for a fair review.

Hell in the Heartland is a deep dive into a double homicide committed in the small town of Welch, in Craig County and the disappearance of the two teen girls Lauria Bible and Ashley Freeman. The night of the 29th of December 1999 the girls were having a sleepover in the Freeman’s trailer to celebrate Ashley’s birthday. The following morning a neighbour calls the emergency services to report that the trailer was on fire. The police pretty soon declared that it was arson and then managed to recover Kathy Freeman’s body, which they discovered was killed by a gunshot. Danny Freeman’s body was only found the day after, thanks to Lorene Bible, who decided to investigate by herself.
While lately there has been some new discoveries in the case, the bodies of the two girls are still missing.


Many speculations has been de about whatever happened to the family (a drug deal gone bad, police corruption and so on), and what the faith of the girls could have been. And probably we would have had a different outcome today if the sheriff department at the time, followed the leads given them, probably they would have even been able to save the teenagers.
I can’t even imagine what their families have been through and how frustrated at the law system they were, I was while reading this book.
How is it possible that Danny Freeman’s body wasn’t found by the police while inspecting the crime scene? How is possible that the killers felt so safe to show around Polaroids of the raped and then killed girls? Why didn’t the police follow the lead given by the PIs hired by the family? And why did they found the box with all the clues only in 2017?
I can understand why the author was so drowned to Oklahoma, and to this mystery and why she went to the extent she did to try and help the families of the victims. I pray that they will find the teens bodies and find some sort of closure if that’s even possible.
Surely this is one of the finest true crime book I’ve read.
Review posted on Amazon, Goodreads and Instagram already

Hell in the Heartland is a deep dive into the disappearance of two teen girls from the scene of a double homicide in the small town of Welch in Craig Country and was once one of Oklahoma’s most haunting and enduring mysteries. But while a recent break in the cold case provided some answers, there's still much more to this story than most people know. Lauria spent the night of December 29, 1999, at best friend Ashley’s home to celebrate Ashley’s sixteenth birthday. Early on the morning of December 30, a neighbour called emergency services to report that the trailer where Ashley lived with her parents, Kathy and Danny Freeman, was on fire. Police pretty swiftly ruled that it was arson and after the fire was extinguished they discovered the charred remains of Kathy Freeman who had been executed by gunshot to the head before the fire was set. Danny’s body was not found until the following day (Dec. 31) when Lauria’s parents descended on the rubble of the trailer to look for clues pertaining to their daughter's disappearance when they discovered Danny’s remains; he too died as the result of a gunshot wound. The two girls’ bodies have never been recovered.

There has been much speculation over the years as to what may have happened to the family, and what the fate of Lauria and Ashley could have been. This book brings into focus some of the complex and often intermingling issues at play. Apparently, sometime in December 2017, the sheriff’s department handed over a box of “previously unknown” notes to the OSBI, which eventually led to the discovery of the three suspects. The notes identified Warren Phillip Welch II, David Pennington, and Ronnie Busick as having murdered Danny and Kathy and abducted and later killed Lauria and Ashley. They also contained witnesses who had heard confessions and details of the crime from these three men and seen Polaroid pictures kept by these men of the girls bound and gagged. Per Oklahoma News 4, a private investigator had discovered an insurance card belonging to Welch’s girlfriend at or near the Freeman’s trailer shortly after the murders, and Welch was known to regularly drive his girlfriend’s car. This same private investigator was later warned of the case by the sheriff’s department.

As a self-proclaimed true crime connoisseur who watches countless hours of true crime cases on YouTube and has read many such books, I am rattled by what I've read and uncovered about this case. I can't help but ask a number of questions that came immediately to mind: how is it possible that the police and emergency services at the scene of the fire completely missed Danny’s body? Why was it that the killers felt so cocksure that they openly bragged about the incident and showed polaroids of the girls to several people? As the girls were kept alive for a day or two after they were abducted this places a crucial importance on the fact that the insurance card found by the PI hired by the family was dismissed when brought to the attention of the police. If this had been taken seriously at the time they may have been recovered alive. This is a heartbreaking, compelling and endlessly frustrating case and this book covers it in a compulsive and gripping manner. The author is to be lauded for her sheer tenacity and ceaseless quest for truth. Undoubtedly one of the finest true crime reads that exist. Perhaps all that really matters now is to locate the girls’ bodies.

Did incompetence/ineptitude, small-town police budgets, police threats, corruption, negligence, drug activity and a local vow of silence combine to devastating effect?

Hell in the Heartland, Jax Miller, 4/5 🔥

A stranger than fiction true crime case from Oklahoma that has stumped authorities for 2 decades. On December 30 1999 Ashley Freeman was having a sleepover at home with her best friend Lauria Bible. The next morning, her trailer was in flames, the girls missing and 2 decades of rumours about revenge, drugs and police collusion followed. This book drops tomorrow and is worth the order!

Wow. This was a gripping, gritty read. I find True Crime has to toe a very delicate line, keeping itself respectful of the victims and not giving in to what can sometimes be “rubber necking” of natural curiosity of crime. Jax Miller however has done an incredible job here, building a clear and lasting bond with the families left behind, her desire to see the case solved for both the victims and their loved ones is obvious. You can see that this is more than just another story to her, she has poured her soul into this. The careful, thoughtful writing here is reminiscent of I’ll Be Gone in the Dark.

The crime itself is mind blowing, the sheer ineptitude of those investigating, the level of failure and the strength displayed by Lorene Bible, Lauria’s mother is inspiring.

This is a MUST for true crime fans and i’ll be watching the doc aswell. Thanks to #NetGalley and #HarperCollins for my ARC of this book

December 30th, 1999 – Welch, Oklahoma. In the strange in-between days separating Christmas and New Year, Ashley Freeman celebrates her sixteenth birthday. Her best friend, Lauria Bible, spends the night at Ashley’s childhood home. The next morning, neighbours are drawn to the trailer as a fire rages. Ashley’s parents are both dead, and the girls are nowhere to be found. It would take eighteen years for any arrests to be made in connection to the fire, murders and abductions. But in that time, Lauria’s mother continues searching for her daughter, along with her family and the Freemans. Jax Miller travelled to Oklahoma in 2016, burying herself in strange, forgotten towns in an attempt to uncover the truth of what really happened on the eve of the new millennium.

Hell in the Heartland is an intriguing, infuriating, harrowing account, as Miller interviews a variety of people involved in the case, and lays bare the steps and missteps taken during the investigation. It’s clear almost from the start that law enforcement messed up when dealing with the aftermath of the fire. As Miller gets deeper into things, we see the places surrounding Welch, the impact of environment, poverty and drugs on these communities.

The theories seem, at times, almost endless. Prior to the fire, the Freeman family had various run-ins with the local officers, and it’s hard not see some (though slight) parallels with things like Making a Murderer, and the West Memphis Three case, in terms of police incompetence, anyway.

There are instances where Miller uncovers something honestly surprising, drawing the reader deeper into the rabbit hole with her, as names are whispered and we see communities held hostage by terror. Miller pieces together information, taking us back and forth from the night of the fire and the immediate aftermath, to her own investigations. She explains the strange, cryptic messages she receives, the threats, the indications that people out there want her to stop digging. And she shows us the people involved, gives a solid impression of the victims, the families, the investigators, as well as possible suspects. The writing is objective and clear, with Lauria’s mother, Laura Bible, playing a key role.

This is a strong, clear account, reporting the facts alongside sometimes unsettling, sometimes stark, sometimes beautiful descriptions of the various places Miller visits along the way. If you have an interest in true crime, this is definitely worth checking out.

On the 30th December 1999, in rural Oklahoma. sixteen year old Ashley Freeman and her best friend, Lauria Bible, were having a sleepover. The next morning the Freeman family trailer was in flames and the girls were missing. While rumours of drug debts, revenge and police collusion abounded in the years that followed, the case remained unsolved and the girls were never found.

Kathy and Danny Freeman died in the fire. Jax Miller interviewed everyone with even the slightest connectionto this case and goes through every piece of evidence with a fine tooth comb. Sometimes Jax felt her life was in danger but she carried on relentlessly. A lot of people concerned were into the drug and crime scenes. There were so many rumours surrounding the fire. Her investigation is written in great detail. This is a must read for fand of true crime.

I would like to thank NetGalley, HarperCollins UK, HarperFiction and the author Jax Miller for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was keen to read this book as I had heard a podcast about the case and was intrigued. I have to say that sadly I really struggled with the writing. It feels very overwritten to me and it kept stopping me in my tracks and taking me out of the narrative. The writer also seemed to have lots of details about things (thoughts and conversations) that people had that she couldn't know, as these people died.
But the problems I had with this were purely personal and I see other people have reviewed it very favourably and so would still encourage people to give it a try.

This is a powerful and engrossing book. Miller's dogged determination to uncover the truth about an unsolved case featuring murder, missing teenage girls and arson, her empathy for the Freeman and Bible families, and the toll the investigation takes on her own health places her on a par with Michelle McNamara (author of I'll Be Gone In The Dark). Miller details the dark side of life in rural Oklahoma such as drug addiction, domestic violence, police failings, but also conveys the beauty of the landscape and the resilience of the communities.

I really struggled with this book, the writing style left me frustrated. This is about arson, murder and an unsolved case of two missing girls in Oklahoma.. A search for truth and justice, a very sad case. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

There's a disturbing story here of arson, the disappearance of two girls, a state riddled with drugs and police negligence/corruption/lack of interest, but personally I didn't like the way it's written with overwrought prose and Jax Miller's own overriding presence... it just feels a bit self-regarding that so much time is spent on her anxiety, her persistence, her doggedness, her obsession. I'd have preferred a cooler, more distanced, more objective mode of telling but that's personal taste.