05 July, 2010

Unholy Messenger

Unholy Messenger: The Life and Crimes of the BTK Killer by Stephen Singular.

It has been awhile since I read a good True Crime book. Truth be told, the more I read, the harder I am to please. So I am very pleased to say that this one hit the mark! Stephen Singular managed to not only retell the harowing story of a serial killer who terrorised Witchita, Kansas for thirty years, he gave an insight into the man, his community and the police who hunted him.

Dennis Rader achieved the almost impossible in the world or serial killing - he managed to keep the lives of the monster and the man seperate. Not only did he hold down a job, he was married with children, president of his church council and completely under the radar. It was only his need to communicate with the police that finally bought about the end of his killing career.

For me, this book is a must read for anyone with an interest in this area. I myself and fascinated by it, having a shelf full of books about serial killers and mass murderers. I not sure what it is, most probably the fact that I can't understand someone like that. I swear if I was 20 years younger and wondering what to do with my life, forensic psychology would be high on my list!

The end of the book mentioned that the BTK was given the chance by the judge to give details of his crimes. This was televised  and  because I couldn't help myself I youtubed it. While it is compelling, it is also highly disturbing. Don't do it unless you have a strong stomach.