American Predator

The Book in 1 Sentence

Corruption within the Alaskan government, red tape, internal conflict, and published material to allow for one of the most egregious serial killers to kill themselves before providing details on their kills.

Brief Review

What a crazy book that tells a story I have never heard of. The name doesn't sound familiar, his actions don't sound familiar, and the tales of corruption don't ring a bell. The fact that this dude was hunting for over 2 decades is crazy and for him to get caught like Al Capone is even better.

Why I Read this book

Its 2024 and serial killers are part of mainstream media. I am always interested in this that I should have heard about and never did as long as it isn't pop culture.

In-Depth Review (Favorite Quotes)

I was talking to my mother-in-law about this book tonight and just how crazy this story is. Maureen Callahan does a fantastic job of presenting the narrative of events and using the interviews to explain extrapolated details.

I find myself hesitant to write about the killer because I think for the public it is a good thing that he has stayed unknown. I think also the fact that another serial killer didn't reach public infamy is the right way to handle situations like this. However, on the flip side, his victims' survivor deserve to know the truth. Part of the reason I am hesitant is because a lot of the skills and knowledge that he used to learn how to kill, hide his kills, and hide himself came from reading books about the BAU like Mindhunter, Hunting Humans, and other books about serial killers. So while this book has already been written and presents a lot of detail about his actions, my review doesn't need to add to it.

What I will say is that there isn't much in this book that doesn't bring you into the story, wanting to know the details and wanting to catch this guy for all the evil he has brought into the world. There are some portions of the book that are definitely leading you to believe some things that may or may not be true.

How my life / behavior / thoughts / ideas have changed as a result of reading the book.

There was a part of the book where he was talking about the people who let go. The common factor was people who didn't show fear and talked to him like a human. Having read and will read my fair share of books about serial killers and terrorist, this idea that their victims are beneath them and don't understand them is consistent. Also the idea they are attributing fear as part of why they are doing it means that if you can set aside your fear just long enough to treat them as humans making a bad choice, you might survive.

Also, carry a knife with you and react with violence if anyone threatens you.

Rating

I enjoyed the presentation of information in this book. It was so well done that I will for sure look for more books by Callahan. This book is an 8 because of the writing style and presentation of the information with my only deductions really comes from the author even mentioning not making this person public but still wrote a book about them.

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