Nearly all serial killers believe their crimes are justified or at least explainable, a case of extreme narcissism at its cause' explains FBI profiler/best-selling author John E. Douglas in his latest work 'The Killer Across The Table'
Douglas delves deep into the lives and crimes of four of the most disturbing and complex predatory killers he’s encountered, offering never-before-revealed details about his profiling process and divulging the strategies used to crack some of these most challenging of cases. It's a fascinating insight into the criminal profiler's illustrious career interviewing (from across a table in various US criminal institutions) some of America's most nefarious and narcissistic criminal masterminds.
Over the past few years, true crime has really come to the fore and is probably more popular than ever, and you could be forgiven for wondering why that is? From the incredible Mindhunter series, through to Netflix worldwide smash hits Making a Murderer and Tiger King, to podcasts, magazines, and books, the appetite (a lot like these serial killers) is truly ravenous.
In this latest book, John E Douglas takes us through several cases of child killers, serial killers, single murders, and medical murders using his first-hand knowledge of USA serial killers to examine in-depth, how the minds of these depraved individuals work, and what society can learn from them.
Douglas takes a mild-mannered and at times sympathetic approach in interviews to sway the killer's psyche into opening up, giving them control and utilising reverse psychology to gain an understanding into the murderous modus operandi and behavioural traits.
Is it nature v nurture or are people 'born to kill'? We don't get a definitive answer from this book (or any true crime book for that matter) so I think that is where the fascination with true crime most certainly lies (like a dead body, for example)...
