Familiar Evil Focus of New Investigation Discovery TV Series Premiere

Familiar Evil, the award-winning book by Louisiana author Rannah Gray, follows the international search for Baton Rouge TV personality and child predator Scott Rogers and is the focus of a new true crime series premiere airing on the Investigation Discovery (ID) Network on Thursday, August 22 at 9:00 pm CDT.

The series, Lies That Bind will debut on the ID Network, one of the highest rated cable networks in the U.S., available in over 86 million households on most basic cable, satellite and streaming services.

“I'm very pleased our story will be featured as the premiere episode of a new prime time series," said Gray. "We all owe our thanks to a young British man who had the courage to step up and identify Scott Rogers to me as a dangerous child predator, skilled at drawing law enforcement and community leaders into his web of deceit. For the first time since collaborating on the book, he lends his voice to telling this story with hopes that it will inspire and help others in similar situations come forward and tell their truth. Like the Jeffrey Epstein case in today's headlines, the story behind Familiar Evil reveals how predators exploit power and influential relationships to avoid getting caught."

Gray has been working with the series producers, Lion Television, based in New York, since January when they contacted her about participating in the program. The production was shot in and around Baton Rouge and also features interviews with Mary Jane Marcantel and the British survivor called Ethan in the book, both principals with Gray in the international criminal investigation of Rogers and collaborators on Familiar Evil. The new series, Lies That Bind, also includes interviews with Iberville Parish law enforcement officials who responded to the murder-suicide at Rogers’ home in 2014 and local residents who knew Rogers.

Familiar Evil, published by The Lisburn Press, has won 13 international and national book awards for Best True Crime and Best New Nonfiction and is available for sale in the U.S. and the U.K. including at Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million and www.familiarevil.com. Gray has spoken throughout the country on the investigation and presented at the 10th International Congress on Child Abuse held in Coventry, England in 2018.

Familiar Evil Website

The Familiar Evil Book Tour Goes to the UK Where the Case Began

Rannah Gray, the American writer whose book - Familiar Evil – recounts the hunt for one of the UK’s most notorious child predators, returns to the small medieval town where it all began in April.

Familiar Evil follows the unusual twists and turns that uncovered how dangerous child predator Scott Rogers fled the U.K. and became a popular TV personality before meeting his final fate in Gray’s hometown in Louisiana.

The book relies on interviews with several former students who described how Rogers created a false image of himself as the benevolent principal of a performing arts school that operated in Bury St. Edmunds in Suffolk while physically, psychologically and sexually abusing students.

Twenty years before the story told in Familiar Evil begins, a hung jury in a London courtroom allowed Rogers to avoid prison on charges he sexually assaulted a young student. For 13 years, another former student searched for Rogers until he found his name published online in a newspaper letter to the editor written by Gray and contacted her.

For 365 days, the two worked together from opposite sides of the Atlantic to expose the truth, becoming confidential informants in a U.S. government investigation that uncovered Rogers’ path of deceit. Building to an explosive conclusion, Familiar Evil tells the story that sent shock waves across two continents.

Gray will hold a book talk on Familiar Evil at the Library in Bury St. Edmunds, UK located at 2B St. Andrews Street N, on Saturday, 7 April at 2:00 p.m. The public is invited to attend. She will speak and answer questions about the case.

On Monday, 9 April, she will present at the 10th International Congress on Child Abuse being held at the University of Warwick in Coventry and on Tuesday, 10 April she will attend the London Book Fair to promote Familiar Evil to the UK book market.

Familiar Evil has won 12 international book awards and is now available in paperback in the UK and in all eBook formats from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and iBooks by Apple.

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U.S. Review of Books Calls Familiar Evil "Poignant and Powerful"

"In her highly crafted and revealing expose' of the unmasking of a sexual predator, Gray plunges the reader into an investigation that rivals any true crime tale on the market today."

"Gray's writing skills are superb, and her passion for her subject is obvious.

The first national book review of Familiar Evil will be published in the September US Review of Books on its list of Recommended Reading. The US Review is a trusted source and top 25 Google search for book reviews. We are honored and excited to share John E. Roper's review in its entirety with you! 

U.S. Review of Books - review by John E. Roper:

Scott Rogers had an uncanny ability to get people to like and believe in him. In England, parents entrusted their children to him, not simply in the role of students at his performing arts academy but also as houseguests for sleepovers. In the United States, he cast his spell on members of his flock at the church he established with himself as pastor. Government officials and representatives from local and federal law enforcement agencies also succumbed to his influence. As the host of a local cable TV show, Rogers even managed to charm many of the residents of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, that he had never met personally. Of course, no celebrity is popular with everyone, and there were some who recognized the manipulation that lurked beneath his public persona. The author was one of these individuals who saw this and also sensed there was something else not quite right about the man. But it wasn't until she received a disturbing email from an unknown correspondent in England that she began to see just how dangerous Rogers was.

According to the book, Rogers began sexually abusing some of his young male students during his early days at his academy in England. Eventually, he was found out and brought to trial, but a hung jury resulted in him avoiding punishment for his crimes. Despite the horrifying nature of his abuse which included rape and torture, some of his victims still clung to him and even ran away from their families in order to accompany him to America. Others, though, managed to escape his physical clutches but still battled the emotional ones for years to come. One such survivor was "Ethan," a man who found Gray's editorial during an Internet search for Rogers two years after it was written.

In her highly-crafted and revealing exposè of the unmasking of a sexual predator, Gray plunges the reader into an investigation that rivals any true crime tale on the market today. What gives the story added interest is the fact that the author is not just reporting on the case as an outside observer but was actually a key figure in it. If Rogers hadn't tried to cheat Gray's company out of fees for its services and deliberately attempted to hurt her reputation, the author would have never had cause to write an editorial in defense that mentioned his name. After "Ethan" contacted her, she showed his email to criminal defense attorney Nathan Fisher. Paralegal Mary Jane Marcantel was soon recruited, and together the foursome contributed to the eventual downfall of the charismatic criminal.

Gray's writing skills are superb, and her passion for her subject is obvious. Her technique of not telling her tale in strict chronological order ironically adds to the fast pace of the story rather than detracting from it as one might suppose. Her inclusion of emails from "Ethan" along with firsthand accounts from some of Rogers' other victims also give her book added depth and enhance its emotional impact. Poignant and powerful, Gray's book points out how easy it can be for monsters to hide among us.

RECOMMENDED by the US Review

Barriers to Reporting Child Sex Abuse - National Survey

A National Survey Conducted by Dr. Jim Kitchens, founder
The Kitchens Group
Orlando, Florida

In partnership with Rannah Gray, author

Familiar Evil – named Best True Crime and Best New Nonfiction of 2016

Familiar Evil Wins 10th National Book Award

The Lisburn Press has announced that Familiar Evil has won two more book awards, bringing the total to ten, including six Gold Medals for Best True Crime, Best New Nonfiction and Best Narrative Nonfiction. 

Familiar Evil was named the 2017 Winner of the Best True Crime category by The Independent Press Award. This juried competition received worldwide participation with only one winner named per category. The Independent Press Awards are judged on overall excellence by a jury of experts from all aspects of the book industry, including publishers, writers, editors, book cover designers and professional copywriters.

It was also a Finalist for the Eric Hoffer Award which honors the memory of the great American philosopher Eric Hoffer by highlighting freethinking writers and independent books of exceptional merit. Since its inception, the Hoffer has become one of the largest international book awards for small, academic, and independent presses. Results are published in the U.S. Review of Books.

FAMILIAR EVIL WINS 8TH NATIONAL BOOK AWARD

Familiar Evil won the USA Best Book Award for Best New Nonfiction and was the Finalist for Best True Crime for 2016. This brings the total book awards to eight national and international honors, including five Gold Medals for first place wins.

Groups interested in Rannah Gray as a program speaker may contact us at info@familiarevil.com.

Panel Discussion on Familiar Evil Scheduled for October 9th in Baton Rouge

Christ in the City, a local ecumenical non-profit organization, will host a community discussion on Sunday, October 9th on the book, Familiar Evil, the winner of six national and international book awards including four Gold Medals, written by Baton Rouge author Rannah Gray.

The panel discussion will be held at 3:00 p.m. at the Lamar Tennis Center at the Paula Manship YMCA, 8100 YMCA Plaza Drive in Baton Rouge.

Familiar Evil, published by The Lisburn Press, follows the international search for local television personality Scott Rogers that revealed his dark past as a dangerous child predator. A young British man called “Ethan” in the book, contacted Gray in 2013 with information about Rogers’ past in England, urging her to warn others that Rogers was dangerous. “Ethan” and Gray ultimately became confidential informants in an international investigation that ended when Rogers and one of his longtime victims carried out a murder-suicide that sent shockwaves from Louisiana to London.

Gray will lead the panel, joined by Mary Jane Marcantel, a key figure in the investigation who collaborated on the book, local social worker Leslie Todd, LCSW-BACS, who provided insight into the characteristics and actions of child predators, and Kathleen Richey, former juvenile court judge and current President/CEO of LouisianaChildren.org, the state’s umbrella association of Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) and Children’s Advocacy Centers (CAC) of Louisiana.

Since the book was published in late 2015, Gray has spoken throughout the country at Children’s Advocacy Centers, CASA and law enforcement training programs, continuing education classes for social workers, and adult Sunday School classes in addition to serving as a panelist at national writers’ conferences to share the true story behind Familiar Evil.

“We believe the threats described in Familiar Evil are, in part, moral and spiritual vacuums,” said Rev. Melville. “It’s important for this subject to be discussed in ways that can inform, educate and heal. We believe this powerful true story can show others how we can all protect children from the dangers they increasingly face in modern-day America.”

“I’m very proud of the honors the book has received because it has allowed this story to reach people all over the world with the message that this is a subject we must learn to talk about,” said Gray. “There were many people in our own community fooled by Scott Rogers, and we can learn from that. But the young survivors of abuse I met in England are the most inspirational people I’ve ever met. The way we can protect children is to have conversations like this that help people understand how predators operate.”

The book discussion is recommended for all adults and is free and open to the public. A short video showing scenes from England with excerpts from interviews with British survivors will be shown and a book signing will be held after the talk with books available for sale or you may bring your own copy.

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Christ in the City is an ecumenical non-profit organization dedicated to connecting the many beautiful spiritual dots in our city, promoting love, peace and neighborliness.

Familiar Evil was published by The Lisburn Press and is available in Baton Rouge at Barnes and Noble, Books-a-Million and Cottonwood Books. It is available internationally in all eBook formats through Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble and iBooks by Apple.

Familiar Evil has won the following National and International Book Awards:

1st Place for True Crime - Independent Publisher Book Awards

1st Place for Narrative Nonfiction - International Book Awards

1st Place for True Crime - National Indie Excellence Awards

1st Place for New Nonfiction - National Indie Excellence Awards

Finalist Award for True Crime - International Book Awards

Silver Medal for Biography & Memoir - Nonfiction Authors Association

FAMILIAR EVIL WINS GOLD MEDAL IN INTERNATIONAL BOOK AWARDS

Familiar Evil by Louisiana author Rannah Gray, published by The Lisburn Press, is a 2016 Gold Medal winner in the Independent Publishers Book Awards, receiving first place honors in the True Crime division.  

Publishers from the United States, Canada and English-speaking countries throughout the world submit entries each year in the awards competition. The Independent Publishers Awards, known as the IPPY Awards, are presented at Book Expo America, the largest publishing event in North America.

The 20th Annual IPPY Awards Ceremony will be held on May 10th in Chicago.

Familiar Evil tells the story of one man’s international search for TV personality Scott Rogers which exposed his dark side as a child predator. It was written in collaboration with Mary Jane Marcantel, a key figure in the investigation into Rogers’ activities, and the British survivor known as Ethan. 

FAMILIAR EVIL IS NOW ON SALE IN THE U.K.

The Lisburn Press is pleased to announce that Familiar Evil, by Louisiana author Rannah Gray, is now on sale as an eBook throughout the United Kingdom.

Familiar Evil, the chilling true story of an international search for justice, was written in collaboration with Mary Jane Marcantel and the British survivor known as Ethan. 

It can now be purchased in the U.K. in all eBook formats from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and iBooks by Apple.

Familiar Evil is on sale now in the U.S. in both hardback and eBooks at Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million, Amazon, the Apple Store and other independent bookstores.