Date Archives October 2019

One-year ‘bookiversary’ of ‘The Girls Are Gone’

Michael Brodkorb and Allison Mann celebrated the one-year “bookiversary” of their award-winning book The Girls Are Gone by highlighting the key events of last year today. In a series of tweets this afternoon, Brodkorb and Mann announced 10,000 copies of The Girls Are Gone have been sold across all platforms in the past year.

As detailed by Brodkorb, a paperback and ebook were released last year, and an audiobook was released earlier this month.

“The past year has been exciting and humbling for both Allison Mann and myself,” said Michael Brodkorb. “We are continually thankful to everyone that helped make this possible,” added Brodkorb.

Since being released last October,  The Girls Are Gone has been a commercial and critical success. In April, Brodkorb and Allison Mann were awarded a 2019 Independent Publisher Book AwardBrodkorb and Mann announced in July that the fourth printing of their book had been ordered.

Brodkorb and Mann have appeared at nearly 40 events for their book in the last few months, and more book events will be announced later this week.

The Kindle Edition of The Girls Are Gone has appeared on multiple “best seller” lists by AmazonThe Girls Are Gone is published by Wise Ink Creative Publishing.”

“It has been amazing to see this story reach so many people,” said Allison Mann. “Hearing from readers about their personal experiences and those of their loved ones has made it even more clear how important it was to write this book,” added Mann.

 

15-month investigation by lawyers board into MacDonald continues

The investigation by the Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibility into alleged violations by Michelle MacDonald of the Minnesota Rules of Professional Conduct governing licensed attorneys continues according to a letter from the Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibility.

The investigation into the alleged violations by MacDonald was opened over 15 months ago after Missing in Minnesota filed a formal complaint with the Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibility in response to MacDonald filing a “frivolous and vexatious” lawsuit against Missing in Minnesota, which appeared to be in violation of an Order of the Minnesota Supreme Court which details the conditions by which MacDonald is allowed to practice law.

The lawsuit filed by MacDonald against Missing in Minnesota was dismissed in March by a judge in Ramsey County. MacDonald is appealing the dismissal of the lawsuit.

MacDonald was an unsuccessful candidate for the Minnesota Supreme Court in 2018, having previously lost two bids for the Minnesota Supreme Court in 2014 and 2016. Continue reading

Wednesday: ABC’s ’20/20′ episode about Grazzini-Rucki

Tomorrow, October 16, 2019, at 10 AM (CST), Investigative Discovery (ID) will be broadcasting the episode of ABC’s “20/20” discussed in the award-winning true crime book,  The Girls Are Gone.

The episode about Sandra Grazzini-Rucki, called “Footprints in the Snow” was first broadcast on April 8, 2016, and was later rebroadcast on March 25, 2017. The episode has since been rebroadcast on multiple television networks over the last two years.

Grazzini-Rucki had tried to stop the rebroadcasts of the episode which found no documentation to verify Grazzini-Rucki’s claim that she was abused by David Rucki. Grazzini-Rucki had taken to Facebook, calling the show “rank propaganda” and encouraging people to register complaints.

In April 2017, Grazzini-Rucki announced she would be filing a defamation lawsuit against ABC, Inc, ABC’s “20/20”, and Elizabeth Vargas, the co-anchor of “20/20”. Grazzini-Rucki claimed she would be seeking “an ungodly amount” of money in her latest lawsuit, but the lawsuit was never filed. Continue reading

‘The Girls Are Gone’ audiobook available for sale

Michael Brodkorb and Allison Mann announced today that the audiobook of their award-winning book – The Girls Are Goneis now available for sale. The audiobook not only shares the story of the disappearance of Samantha and Gianna Rucki but also includes a rare gem in the audiobook universe: never-before-heard audio.

“We really wanted to find a way to bring something fresh to the audiobook,” said Michael Brodkorb. “Adding real-life interviews into the recording brings a new dimension for fans who’ve already read the book, and an interesting twist for our new fans,” added Brodkorb.

The audiobook of The Girls Are Gone is available today on Audible, Amazon, and Apple. Additional platforms will be announced in the coming days. Continue reading