Today’s episode is based on the noir short “The Killer Christian” by Andrew Klavan.

Everyone knows the story of the final shootout between Sarkesian and Billy Shine, better known as “The Death” that fateful Christmas Eve night above the Mysterious Bookshop.

At the time, most of the coverage of this event had been focused on how the shootout fit into the bigger picture of gang violence in New York. Reporters were hyper focused on how this was just another example of La Cosa Nostra’s weakening hold on their territory and how other gangs were starting to move in.

And the coverage that wasn’t focused on that was focused on the great betrayal of Sarkesian and the mob boss Picarone’s response. Turning the shootout into a metaphor for the underworld’s underlying tensions and shifting loyalties. 

But none of these stories truly understood what happened that night when Sarkesian met Billy Shine. And it wasn’t until an expose by journalist Andrew Klavan that the real story would come out. And that’s the story that we’ll be hearing today.

Reader, I Murdered Him is a true crime podcast for book lovers. Every week we’ll do a deep dive into a murder, cult, serial killer, or other noteworthy crime, but with a twist. The crimes on Reader, I Murdered Him aren’t ripped from the headlines. They’re ripped from the pages of newly released, noteworthy backlist, or timeless classic mystery, thriller, and horror novels.

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