I always wondered this in the book and the movie. Why in the world did she have the guy come at night when the kids were in the house. Why not have him do it when the kids are at school? Makes no sense to me. Her carelessness basically cost the lives of her two daughters and essentially her son. Libby is screwed up forever.
shareYeah overall her planning and clear thinking - well I don't think those were supposed to be portrayed as "good".
shareWasn't the one daughter already dead by the time the killer came in the house?
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I'm just expressing my opinion.
You may all go to hell, and I will go to Texas.
I don't think she was. I think she was choked out after her mother was shot, while Ben was investigating.
shareI agree this is the biggest plot hole in the whole story. The movie is absolute garbage and leaves out so many details and while I enjoyed the book a lot I find it hard to believe she would arrange her own death. Yes she was desperate and needed the money for Ben, but would you really sacrifice the happiness of your other three children to do it. Ben was only 15 in the book so would he have been in jail for a crazy long time? Also it was just the one girl and there was no proof, I think we all know how that usually works in court and it doesn't go in favour of the victim. Even if Ben had gone to jail and they lost the farm the mother could have found a job and they could have lived in a trailer or on welfare. Surely that would have been far better that her killing herself for the insurance money. It just makes no sense for a mother to do that.
shareYeah not very thought out.
Lose the Game!!!!!!!
In the book she goes outside and it starts on the porch and was supposed to end there, until Debbie showed up. I thought it was kind of crappy that she would do it with her kids there too. Like that's what I'd want my kids to wake up to. But I guess it made for a better story line ?
share[deleted]
Patty Day chose the time. She wanted to die as soon as possible.
The killer got away with it for more than twenty-five years. He usually made every death look like an accident and was fairly skilled at it. The group of amateur detectives (Kill Club) were the only ones to suspect anything. In the end he was caught trying to stage a riding accident and confessed all.
Send lawyers,guns and money/The *beep* has hit the fan
I think she wanted it to happen in night when she was asleep. Also for a murderer it is easier to move out of sight when it's dark. No one sees when a murderer leaves somewhere (from a motel) and neighbours don't see when he arrives on a farm. Also there are much more suspects when people aren't working.
shareYeah I couldn't accept that either, up to that point I was gonna give it a 7/10 but after it went down to a 6/10...
She must have known that the psychological damage she would inflict on her children from finding her murdered in their home one morning would screw with their heads tremendously and made it not so believable that she did it for the kids, and she seemed like a caring mother up to that point
I'd prefer it if it was just Chloe Grace Meritz who killed them all off and Ben would have been paralyzed from the shock of seeing what was going on
I'm gonna refuse you an offer you can't make
"She must have known that the psychological damage she would inflict on her children from finding her murdered in their home one morning would screw with their heads tremendously and made it not so believable that she did it for the kids, and she seemed like a caring mother up to that point "
Patty planned that her sister would find her dead on the front porch the next morning. She didn't just do it for the kids. Patty was overwhelmed by her problems and wanted to die anyway.
"I'd prefer it if it was just Chloe Grace Meritz who killed them all off and Ben would have been paralyzed from the shock of seeing what was going on."
That would have been a much better plot for the movie. (Especially since Diondra was out of control that night from a combination of rage and some stimulating drug like meth or PCP. She was totally capable of mass murder!) The plot worked in the novel. There was all this background and detail that made it believable.
Overall it was a bad adaptation.
Send lawyers,guns and money/The *beep* has hit the fan
It was during winter break and the kids didn't have school.
In the book this was supposed to take place outside.
I assumed she asked for it at night because she was known to be a heavy sleeper who barely realized what was happening, to make it easier for her and so she wouldn't change her mind last second.