Why We Love Serial Killers: The Curious Appeal of the World's Most Savage Murderers
- ISBN-10
- 1632201895
- ISBN-13
- 9781632201898
- Category
- True Crime
- Pages
- 272
- Language
- English
- Published
- 2014-10-28
- Publisher
- Skyhorse
- Author
- Scott Bonn
Description
A chilling investigation into the deviant mind, “so powerful and provocative, you cannot put it down” (Rita Cosby, New York Times–bestselling author). We know the names: Ted Bundy, Ed Gein, Jeffrey Dahmer, John Wayne Gacy, among them—serial killers transformed by the media into ghoulish celebrities. And their iconic fictional counterparts—from Norman Bates to Hannibal Lecter to Dexter—reveal just how eager we are to watch a psychopath in action. But why? Are we curious about the root of their terrifying compulsions? Or it is something more? Why We Love Serial Killers “attempts to solve some of these mysteries . . . What made serial killers this way? Why did they kill, and why did they do it so gruesomely? How are they different from us? (Please let them be different from us)” (The Atlantic). In exploring our appetite for the macabre, criminology professor Dr. Scott Bonn also provides a unique view into the world of serial killers, having corresponded with two of the most notorious examples: David Berkowitz, a.k.a. Son of Sam, and the BTK Killer, Dennis Rader. In addition, Bonn examines the criminal profiling techniques used to identify serial predators, the charisma of the sociopath, the rise in “murderabilia” collecting, and how and why these killers often become pop-culture icons, escalating both our fears and our fascination. The result is “powerful and a must-read . . . Insightful, compelling, and an excellent source of myth-busting information for laymen and professionals alike” (Burl Barer, Edgar Award–winning author of The Saint).
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