This book delves into the gruesome side of human nature. It describes brutal, horrific murders where people have been totally brainwashed by a leading cult figure. They prey on their victims leaving a bloodbath behind them. It reveals some of the dark secrets that drive these people to commit such heinous crimes. Was the Easter Islanders' cannibalism exclusively a religious rite or the expression of an urge for revenge? Or was it induced by a simple liking for human flesh that could impel a man to kill for no other reason than his desire for fresh meat.

The darkest, innermost secrets of cannibals and evil cult killers are revealed.

The body snatcher who inspired Psycho, the noblewoman known as Countess Dracula, Jack the Ripper, and other killers for whom murder was just the beginning. From Gilles de Rais’ castle in fifteenth-century France to “the Bloody Benders’” eighteenth-century Kansas farm to Jeffrey Dahmer’s quiet apartment in twentieth-century Milwaukee, history is littered with serial murderers whose first impulse was to take a life. For some, it was never enough. The real thrill came after their victims were dead. In this shocking anthology, true crime journalist Nigel Blundell brings together more than two dozen chilling profiles of the world’s most unforgettable fiends, including: Ed Gein, the Plainfield necrophile and inspiration for The Silence of the Lambs; Andrei Chikatilo, the “Rostov Ripper”, whose uncontrollable hunger was satiated by more that fifty victims; Dennis Nilsen, whose London house of horrors so overflowed with body parts that they blocked the drains; Germany’s Fritz Haarmann who killed and consumed more than two dozen men, then peddled the left-over meat on the black market; Hungarian countess Elizabeth Báthory whose lust for the blood of virgins—a body count estimated to be in the hundreds—has branded her the most prolific female serial killer in world history; and many more human monsters whose appetites are still the stuff of nightmares.

Desperation, duty and desire - the three primary motives for breaking what is the oldest taboo in the Western world, cannibalism. This book investigates all three and presents startling evidence that will challenge cultural and moral perceptions as never before. It explains how in some societies, 'duty' cannibalism has been integral to existence and viewed as both necessary and socially acceptable. If most people find such a concept difficult to comprehend, they might just be able to reserve judgement on those driven to eat companions out of sheer desperation in order to survive. But, by far the most disturbing of the three types is 'desire cannibalism', practiced by men such as Albert Fish and Ed Gein who ate human flesh simply because they wanted to. If the second type of cannibalism shows what we humans are capable of under extreme stress, this third gives a chilling insight into what some of us require for emotional and sexual gratification. A History of Cannibalism treats seriously, and with great erudition and understanding, a subject that causes many people to recoil in horror and disbelief. It examines the various - and sometime conflicting - motives, and assesses the background to many notorious cases. It offers no easy answers but a fascinating insight into the forces that lie deep within the human psyche.

Imagine coming face to face with the kind of extreme crime that can only be conceived by a truly evil mind. Acts so powerful that they can scar a whole nation for generations. The perpetrators manage to achieve a level of notoriety only usually afforded to Hollywood icons. In their own twisted imaginations they sit in an Evil Hall of Fame among others of their kind: Ted Bundy, Charles Manson, Andrei Chikatilo all jostling for the top spot. Extreme Evil throws light on the most vicious crimes ever committed, and the turbulent lives of the men and women behind them. Contents: Cannibals including Albert Fish, Armin Meiwes, Dennis Nilsen, Eladio Baule, Jeffrey Dahmer, Ted Bundy Serial Killers including Andrei Chikatilo, H.H.Holmes, Javed Iqbal, John Wayne Gacy Lady Killers including Bell Gunness, Beverley Allit, Ilse Koch, Rosemary West Cult Killers including Charles Manson, David Koresh, Jim Jones, Shoko Asahara Tyrants including Adolf Hitler, Attila the Hun, Caligula, Pol Pot, Josef Stalin Children of Evil including Bryan and David Freeman, Edmund Kemper, Jon Venables and Robert Thompson

There are few people alive who are so cruel, so heartless and so undeniably evil that they will kill again and again. Yet at any one time, there are between 25 and 50 active serial killers in the USA, and their chilling crimes have fascinated us since the days of Jack the Ripper. Here you will discover how these heartless killers committed their gruesome deeds, what motivated them to kill and how, eventually, they were caught. This collection features more than 50 compelling stories, including: • Ed Kemper, who dismembered the bodies of his victims once he had finished with them; • Ted Bundy, who abducted, raped and brutally killed more than 30 women; • Charles Manson, who led a cult of mayhem and murder; • Jeffrey Dahmer, who stored a human head in his freezer; • Randy Kraft, who was pulled over for drunk driving with a body in the trunk of his car; • Alexander Pichushkin, who aimed to kill a person for every square on the chessboard.