Aaron Hernandez, the former New England Patriots player who died in prison where he was serving a life sentence for murder, will be the subject of a new nonfiction book written by author James Patterson. The 70-year-old’s publisher Little, Brown and Co. confirmed the news to the Associated Press on Thursday, just more than a week after Hernandez was found hanging by a sheet in his prison cell.
“. . .His life spiraled out of control, and I felt compelled to ask: ‘What went wrong?’ ” Patterson said in a statement to the Guardian. “I hope that this book helps shed some light on the events that led to his all-too-public and heartbreaking demise.”
Hernandez was found dead in his cell April 19, just two days after he was acquitted of double-murder. He had been accused of shooting Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado after a nightclub altercation that resulted from a spilled drink. The former player denied the allegations, and appeared relieved when a Massachusetts judge read the jury’s not guilty verdict.
Hernandez was already serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole for the 2013 killing of Odin Lloyd, a semiprofessional football player.
Weeks before his death and days before his acquittal, Hernandez continued to show a soft spot for his 4-year-old daughter, who occasionally appeared in the courtroom. One of her last visits came earlier this month when she and Hernandez blew kisses at each other.
“The nonfiction book will investigate the dramatic rise and fall of the football star, who left behind a murder sentence, a young daughter and shocking secrets,” the publisher said in a statement to the Guardian, noting the book will be released in early 2018.
The book will likely be a hit, with Patterson’s name on the cover. The world’s highest-paid author, according to Forbes last year, Patterson’s income was $95 million.
Patterson’s best known for his novels, including the Alex Cross series, which centers on a criminal psychologist.