The Less People Know About Us
A Mystery of Betrayal, Family Secrets, and Stolen Identity
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4.4 • 92 Ratings
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- $13.99
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
AN EDGAR AWARDS 2020 WINNER AND WALL STREET JOURNAL BESTSELLER
In this powerful true crime memoir, an award-winning identity theft expert tells the shocking story of the duplicity and betrayal that inspired her career and nearly destroyed her family.
Axton Betz-Hamilton grew up in small-town Indiana in the early '90s. When she was 11 years old, her parents both had their identities stolen. Their credit ratings were ruined, and they were constantly fighting over money. This was before the age of the Internet, when identity theft became more commonplace, so authorities and banks were clueless and reluctant to help Axton's parents. Axton's family changed all of their personal information and moved to different addresses, but the identity thief followed them wherever they went. Convinced that the thief had to be someone they knew, Axton and her parents completely cut off the outside world, isolating themselves from friends and family. Axton learned not to let anyone into the house without explicit permission, and once went as far as chasing a plumber off their property with a knife.
As a result, Axton spent her formative years crippled by anxiety, quarantined behind the closed curtains in her childhood home. She began starving herself at a young age in an effort to blend in--her appearance could be nothing short of perfect or she would be scolded by her mother, who had become paranoid and consumed by how others perceived the family. Years later, her parents' marriage still shaken from the theft, Axton discovered that she, too, had fallen prey to the identity thief, but by the time she realized, she was already thousands of dollars in debt and her credit was ruined. The Less People Know About Us is Axton's attempt to untangle an intricate web of lies, and to understand why and how a loved one could have inflicted such pain. Axton will present a candid, shocking, and redemptive story and reveal her courageous effort to grapple with someone close that broke the unwritten rules of love, protection, and family.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This shocking debut charts how Betz-Hamilton's family suffered after falling victim to identity thieves. When Betz-Hamilton was 12 in the early 1990s, her parents stopped receiving their mail, including their bills. The author's often depressed mother, who was in charge of household finances, concluded that some vindictive person was out to get the family. The author watched as troubles piled on: her parents had their utilities turned off and received a foreclosure notice, her mother was accused of passing bad checks at a store she supposedly never went to, her father learned he had property he never knew existed. "Closed curtains became a hard-and-fast rule in our house," writes the author, who became paranoid and wary of strangers. When Betz-Hamilton went to college, she learned via a credit report that she'd had her identity stolen, too, at age 11. This discovery, which Betz-Hamilton relays with the tension of a thriller, compelled her to focus her studies on identity theft. It is only after her mother's death that a cache of incriminating documents is discovered on the family property. Betz-Hamilton then begins an investigation into her mother's past, a process that leads to jaw-dropping revelations. Astonishing and disturbing, this emotionally resonant book is perfect for true crime fans.
Customer Reviews
What an amazing story
The author gives a very detailed account of identity theft and life growing up with the results of it. To find out who was responsible for this is just so unbelievable. I give Axton so much credit for tell her amazing story and for the person she became in spite of it.
Fascinating
One of the best books I’ve read in a long time. I’d recommend it to anyone. Hated to see it end.
Heart wrenching
So many times I wanted to hug her! This is such a gripping story, I could not put it down.