A startlingly revealing book about the life and death of one of the 20th century's greatest icons, based on a never-before-seen transcript of tapes Marilyn Monroe made for her psychiatrist in the days and weeks before she died. Suicide? Or murder? Marilyn Monroe's death in August 1962, apparently a suicide, shocked the world. A Hollywood star, a global icon, why would she have killed herself? Yet the coroner's report stated her death was due to a massive overdose of 47 Nembutal capsules. But what about the discrepancies between the official report and the scene of her death? What about the forensic evidence that went missing shortly after she died? Matthew Smith has constructed a startling new version of events. His interpretation is based not only on the full and true forensic evidence from the time, but also on the tapes that Marilyn made for her psychiatrist in the days and weeks before her death, tapes that portray a woman in full charge of her life and looking forward to a bright, busy, successful future. Forty years after her death, Marilyn remains an icon and a mystery. Matthew Smith's investigation into her death will lead to a new understanding of what really happened on the night of August 5th 1962 and in the weeks leading up to it.… (more)