X-Book

The Peyton Place Murder

Click Buy to Log in and see personalised pricing.

Send as a gift Get in the xigxag app

Listen to a sample

What to expect

Grace Metalious, born and raised in Manchester, New Hampshire, came from humble beginnings. A former mill worker, mother of three, and school principal’s wife, she would shock the nation in 1956 with the publication of Peyton Place, her first novel about a murder in a small town.

Quickly becoming the bestselling book of its time, the sexually charged book spawned sequels, two Hollywood movies, and a long-running television series on ABC starring Mia Farrow and Ryan O’Neal. It also made Metalious a pariah in the town where she lived and tabloid fodder for years, ultimately leading to the her untimely death at the age of thirty-nine.

Unknown to most readers, behind the fictional story about the lives and scandals of residents of a small New England town Metalious called Peyton Place lay a dark secret based on fact. The story was, in part, inspired by a true-life crime known in the press as “the Sheep Pen Murder,” which took place in Gilmanton, New Hampshire, in the late 1940s.

In The Peyton Place Murder: The True Crime Story behind the Novel That Shocked the Nation, historian Renee Mallett skillfully weaves together the lives of Metalious and Barbara Roberts, the confessed killer behind the Sheep Pen Murder. In her book, Mallett shines a new light on the inspiration behind the shocking bestselling novel and explores what happens when true crime and literature meet.

Author Renee Mallett
Narrator Mia Gaskin
Duration 4 hours and 29 minutes
Release Date
ISBN 9798200807864
Format Audiobook
Publisher Blackstone Publishing
Genre True crime: serial killers and murderers
Availability AU, GB, IE, US

About xigxag

xigxag is an independent, UK-based audiobook platform and the UK’s only B Corp certified audiobook company. We offer nearly 150,000 audiobooks, all with professional human narration. No AI-generated voices. xigxag is rated an Ethical Consumer Best Buy for audiobooks and a top-rated ethical bookshop.

There is no subscription. You buy the audiobooks you want, you own them permanently, and prices start at £8.99. The more you listen over the year, the less you pay per book, and there is always a selection in Listen for Less from £3.99. You can also send audiobooks as gifts using our audiobook gift cards or in-app gifting.

Every audiobook on xigxag has honest reviews covering both the book and the narration, and our community features make it easy to share what you are listening to, discover what others recommend, and find your next listen.

Download or stream on iOS, Android, or in your browser. Browse the full catalogue at xigxag.co.uk.