In the 1950s, Macon, Georgia, was a sleepy little town where doors remained unlocked and crime was something that occurred in other places. Anjette Lyle’s restaurant was a popular gathering place. While the food was average, the atmosphere was delightful. Most people came to be near Anjette and her lively personality. It was the place to go for lunch to hear the latest news. Then, one day, Anjette Lyles was charged with the murders of two husbands, her mother-in-law, and her nine-year-old daughter, all committed over the course of seven years. The case was the most sensational Macon had ever seen. The newspaper accounts spiced up the allegations of murder with references to voodoo ceremonies and black magic. The trial attracted record crowds and received worldwide coverage. Anjette Lyles was a glamorous figure and spectators stood in line for hours, hoping for just a glimpse of the defendant. Both lucidly written and emotionally engaging, this is the story of a woman who was called both “cold-blooded” and the “sweetest woman I ever knew.”
Jaclyn Weldon White interviewed jurors, one of the prosecutors, the jailer and his wife, Anjette’s friends, acquaintances, and employees. Drawn largely from the 1,000-page trial transcript, this story is told in the very words of the people who lived it. Despite overwhelming evidence and her conviction, many still believe that she was innocent.