Guilt by Matrimony: A Memoir of Love, Madness, and the Murder of Nancy Pfister

By Daleen Berry and Nancy Styler

In February 2014, Aspen socialite Nancy Pfister was murdered in her own homebrutally bludgeoned, wrapped in a sheet, and stuffed inside a locked closet. The question was: Who did it?

Fewer than twelve hours after her body was found and without any evidence, police decided a married couple from Denver had killed her. Within a few days, they arrested and charged Nancy Styler, a friend of Pfister's who'd had a falling out with her after a business deal went sour, and Dr. Trey Styler, Nancy's disabled husband, who recently lost the family home, his medical practice, and any hope of a peaceful retirement for himself and his wife. Eleven days later, police also arrested and charged Kathy Carpenter, Pfister's underpaid and overworked personal assistant and closest friend.

Months later, Trey Styler, who was slowly losing his grip on reality as he battled with mental illness, confessed to the crime. Rampant speculation spread about whether he was involved at allor if his confession was that of a man on his deathbedbecause a medical condition appeared to have left him barely able to walk, much less carry out such a heinous crime.

In Guilt by Matrimony, Styler's widow, Nancy, reveals the answers to the biggest mysteries of this case and recounts the trauma of being falsely accused and imprisoned for a first-degree murder she had no knowledge of. And, in the only interview before his death, Trey gives his account of that fateful day.

New York Times bestselling author Daleen Berry covers this compelling story from the inside, following the Stylers from their fairy-tale life in Denver to the morning of their simultaneous arrest to Nancy's release from jail and her attempts to rebuild her shattered life. Filled with details from exclusive interviews, a close look at the botched small-town police work, and first-person accounts of what really happened, Guilt by Matrimony is the definitive look at a shocking murder that rocked Aspen.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: Nov 17, 2015
• ISBN: 9781941631966

Reviews for Guilt by Matrimony

[linda.marsheells · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

WOW. Many of us may have seen the Pfister murder story on a Dateline type tv show, but once again....the book is so much better. What a twisted story with some truly, ummm....shall i say, ' off the wall' characters?This book will answer questions about the killing of an heiress and what lead up to it. It's about about narcissism, love and the sanctity of marriage. Who DOES one trust? The kook or the spouse ... and tho murder is never a true option...you actually have an understanding for the killer.This book clarifies a lot that is left off sensationalized tv shows and was well worth reading.( ps- two Nancys in the book, big whoop...in answer to other reviews )

[sj1335 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I had not heard anything about this crime until I heard the author interviewed during a podcast I subscribe to. It sounded extremely interesting so I thought I would read the book. This was a huge miscarriage of justice and I'm so shocked that the CBI let it get so far out of hand. I could see maybe the local police and a small minded sheriff's office but the state police? Nancy Pfister was a train wreck, I'm surprised everyone she met wasn't on the suspect list. No one deserves to be murdered for any reason, but when you manipulate and treat others as badly as Nancy Pfister did, you would have expected more from the investigators. This investigation was a total farce, the sheriff had this case "solved" before he even went to the scene of the crime. I thought Darleen Berry did an excellent job with this book, her interview on "True Crime" was very thought provoking as well as this book. It opens you eyes to just how our justice systems needs a complete overhaul. I would like to thank BenBella Books and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this e-galley for my honest review.