Robert Keppel explores in unflinching detail the monstrous patterns, sadistic compulsions, and depraved motives of serial killers. From the Lonely Hearts Killer who hunted the most desperate of women in 1950s America to such infamous symbols of evil as Jeffrey Dahmer, Ted Bundy, and John Gacy, these are the cases--horrifying, graphic and unforgettable--that Keppel ingeniously taps to shed light on the darkest corners of the pathological mind. Foreword by Ann Rule.

Linking the murders of an alleged serial killer to successfully present a case in court involves a specific methodology that has been scrutinized by the judicial system but is largely absent in the current literature. Serial Violence: Analysis of Modus Operandi and Signature Characteristics of Killers fully explains the process of finding the nexus

Serial killers like Seattle's Ted Bundy, Maryland's Beltway Sniper, Atlanta's Wayne Williams, or England's Peter Sutcliffe usually outsmart the task forces on their trail for long periods of time. Keppel and Birnes take readers inside the operations of serial killer task forces to learn why. What is the underlying psychology of a serial killer and why this defeats task force investigations? This is the first book of its kind that combines state-of-the-art psychological assessment experience with the expertise of a homicide investigator who has tracked some of this country's most notorious serial killers. The author also brings to the book hands-on best practices gleaned from the experience of other task forces. Readers, both professionals and students, will benefit from the comprehensive and critical case reviews, the analysis of what went wrong, what went right, and the after-action recommendations of evaluators in the US, UK, and Canada. The book covers: * The nature of the psychology of a serial killer * How crime assessment profiling reveals that psychology * Why psychological profiles fail * How serial killer task forces defeat themselves * How the media can, and usually does, undermine the task force operation * The big secret of all serial killer investigations: police already have the killer's name * The best practices for catching a serial killer * Comprehensive case reviews of some of the US's and UK's most baffling serial killer cases * A list of best practices for serial killer task force investigators * Recommendations for how to manage comprehensive files and computer records * Practical advice on how to manage the media: what to say and not to say * Insight into what a serial killer might be thinking and doing to stay away from police * Recommendations for setting up and administering long-term investigations * Practical tips on how to maintain a task force's psychological edge and avoid defeatism

AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! “This Golden Girls meets James Bond thriller is a journey you want to be part of.” -Buzzfeed Older women often feel invisible, but sometimes that’s their secret weapon. They’ve spent their lives as the deadliest assassins in a clandestine international organization, but now that they're sixty years old, four women friends can’t just retire – it’s kill or be killed in this action-packed thriller by New York Times bestselling and Edgar Award-nominated author Deanna Raybourn. Billie, Mary Alice, Helen, and Natalie have worked for the Museum, an elite network of assassins, for forty years. Now their talents are considered old-school and no one appreciates what they have to offer in an age that relies more on technology than people skills. When the foursome is sent on an all-expenses paid vacation to mark their retirement, they are targeted by one of their own. Only the Board, the top-level members of the Museum, can order the termination of field agents, and the women realize they’ve been marked for death. Now to get out alive they have to turn against their own organization, relying on experience and each other to get the job done, knowing that working together is the secret to their survival. They’re about to teach the Board what it really means to be a woman—and a killer—of a certain age.

Whether a side-street skirmish or an all-out war, fight scenes bring action to the pages of every kind of fiction. But a poorly done or unbelievable fight scene can ruin a great book in an instant. In Fight Write you'll learn practical tips, terminology, and the science behind crafting realistic fight scenes for your fiction. Broken up into "Rounds," trained fighter and writer Carla Hoch guides you through the many factors you'll need to consider when developing battles and brawls. • In Round 1, you will consider how the Who, When, Where, and Why questions affect what type of fight scene you want to craft. • Round 2 delves into the human factors of biology (think fight or flight and adrenaline) and psychology (aggression and response to injuring or killing another person). • Round 3 explores different fighting styles that are appropriate for different situations: How would a character fight from a prone position versus being attacked in the street? What is the vocabulary used to describe these styles? • Round 4 considers weaponry and will guide you to select the best weapon for your characters, including nontraditional weapons of opportunity, while also thinking about the nitty-gritty details of using them. • In Round 5, you'll learn how to accurately describe realistic injuries sustained from the fights and certain weapons, and what kind of injuries will kill a character or render them unable to fight further. By taking into account where your character is in the world, when in history the fight is happening, what the character's motivation for fighting is, and much more, you'll be able write fight scenes unique to your plot and characters, all while satisfying your reader's discerning eye.

Taut and edgy, Signature Kill is a riveting exploration of a killer next door—a tour de force from acclaimed author David Levien. The quiet of the Indianapolis night is broken when an unidentifiable body is found in a local park, deliberately arranged in such a way that police know it’s not a random crime. Across the city, former cop Frank Behr, down on his luck and virtually broke, takes on a no-win case to locate a desperate mother’s wayward daughter who’s been missing for months. Behr has few friends left on the police force, but as he wades into the world of small-time prostitution from which the daughter disappeared, he comes to believe the two cases are related. When another body is found, it becomes clear Indianapolis has a serial killer on its streets . . . an untraceable predator who, Behr surmises, lives behind the chilling veil of a perfectly normal life. Behr’s pursuit threatens to become entangled in the official police investigation, and will lead him to a dark place—and ultimately to a devastating decision from which he will not be able to turn back. Signature Kill is a masterly novel, in which one man’s obsession with justice faces off against a killer’s all-consuming obsession with perfection.

The true stories of how professional profilers help catch serial killers.