Donnie Brasco. Poster of the 1997 movie and cover of the 1988 book, Donnie Brasco: my undercover life in the Mafia
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Donnie Brasco: my undercover life in the Mafia
Joseph D. Pistone, Richard Woodley, 1988
movie vs book
Mike Newell, 1997

In 1970s New York City, Lefty Ruggiero, an aging gangster in the Bonanno crime family, is introduced to a jewel thief named Donnie Brasco, who impresses Lefty by threatening a diamond dealer whom Donnie suspects of having sold Lefty a zirconia set ring, priced as a real diamond one. Donnie is revealed to be Joseph D. Pistone, an undercover FBI agent, whose wife, Maggie, is not fond of his undercover position.


Open Range. Poster of the 2003 movie and cover of the 1990 book
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Open Range
Lauran Paine, 1990
movie vs book
Kevin Costner, 2003

In Montana in 1882, Boss Spearman is an open range cattleman, who, with hired hands Charley, Mose, and Button, is driving a herd cross country. The town is controlled by a ruthless Irish immigrant land baron, Denton Baxter, who hates open-rangers. Mose is badly beaten and jailed by the marshal, Poole. The only friendly inhabitant is Percy, a livery stable owner.


The Capture of the Green River Killer. Poster of the 2008 TV series and cover of the 2004 book, Chasing the Devil
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Chasing the Devil
David Reichert, 2004
TV series vs book
Norma Bailey, 2008

Over the course of almost two decades, the Green River Killer wreaked havoc on Washington State with a string of horrifying murders. The miniseries chronicles the experiences of a young runaway named Helen Hel Remus, who, due to a combination of unfortunate circumstances and poor decisions, crosses paths with the notorious serial killer.


The Ninth Gate. Poster of the 1999 movie and cover of the 1993 book, The Club Dumas
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The Club Dumas
Arturo Pérez-Reverte, 1993
movie vs book
Roman Polanski, 1999

Dean Corso is a New York City rare book dealer who is hired by wealthy collector Boris Balkan. Torchia is alleged to have written the book in collaboration with the Devil, and only three copies survived when he and his works were burned for heresy. Corso retrieves the book and travels to Toledo, Spain, to speak to the Ceniza Brothers, book restorers who owned Balkan’s copy before the Telfers.


The Postman. Poster of the 1997 movie and cover of the 1985 book
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The Postman
David Brin, 1985
movie vs book
Kevin Costner, 1997

In 2013, an unnamed and clean-shaven nomad enters the Oregon flatlands, trading Shakespearean performances for food and water. In one of the towns, the nomad is forced into the ranks of the Holnists, the predominant neo-fascist militia in the area and branded on his shoulder with their symbol, a figure 8. Their leader, General Bethlehem, schemes to take over the fallen United States with his regime.


Perfect Sisters. Poster of the 2014 movie and cover of the 2008 book, The Class Project: How To Kill a Mother
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The Class Project: How To Kill a Mother
Bob Mitchell, 2008
movie vs book
Stanley M. Brooks, 2014

Two teenage sisters, Sandra and Beth, live with their alcoholic mother and her abusive boyfriend. Tired of their miserable home life, they plot and carry out a plan to murder their mother in hopes of achieving a better life. They make the murder look like an accident, but when the police start investigating, they become suspicious of the sisters. The movie explores the events leading up to the murder and the sisters’ attempts to cover their tracks.


A Stranger Is Watching. Poster of the 1982 movie and cover of the 1977 book
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A Stranger Is Watching
Mary Higgins Clark, 1977
movie vs book
Sean S. Cunningham, 1982

The same assailant kidnaps the 11-year-old daughter and girlfriend of a father whose wife had been raped and killed in front of his daughter three years previously. While the authorities work to find the kidnapper, the two, who are being held captive in a bunker beneath Grand Central Station, plan their escape.