Book dossier

The truth about Aaron

by Jonathan Hernandez

"To football fans, Aaron Hernandez was a superstar. A standout at the University of Florida, he helped the Gators win the national title in 2008. He was drafted by the New England Patriots, and in his second season with the team, he and Rob Gronkowski set records for combined touchdowns and yardage. In 2012, along with Tom Brady, they led New England to Super Bowl XLVI. But Aaron's NFL career ended as quickly as it began. On June 26, 2013, he was arrested at his home, charged with the murder of acquaintance Odin Lloyd, and released by the Patriots. On May 15, 2014, while on trial for Lloyd's murder, Aaron was indicted for two more murders. Convicted in the Lloyd case, Aaron Hernandez died by suicide in his jail cell. He was twenty-seven years old. In this clear-eyed, emotionally devastating biography--also a memoir of family and football and true crime--Jonathan Hernandez finally tells the previously unknown story of a man no one fully understood. Jonathan draws on his own recollections as well as other sources to give us a full portrait of the star athlete and troubled young man who would be convicted of murder, and the darkness that consumed him for the entirety of his short life. Refusing to portray Aaron as a victim, Jonathan speaks openly about his brother's talent, his sexuality, his crimes and incarceration, and the devastating condition--chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE--that ravaged his brain until his death. Filled with headline-making revelations, [this book] is a shocking and moving account of promise, tragedy, and loss--as told by the person who knew Aaron better than anyone else."--Jacket.