Review by Booklist Review
In her role as consultant to a variety of law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, forensic psychiatrist Morrison has interviewed and studied such notables as John Wayne Gacy, Ed Gein, and Wayne Williams, along with many other, less well known but equally horrific serial killers. Her memoir is not what you might call pleasant reading; it is relentlessly unpleasant, as a matter of fact, as Morrison describes these men and women and their crimes in precise, often graphic detail. At the same time, however, it is a profoundly enlightening book. Morrison provides startling insights into what factors breed serial killers, and she avoids the broad generalizations that make other books of the topic seem slick and superficial. Still, Morrison recognizes that experts have only the sketchiest understanding of what makes a person commit murder repeatedly. This is an absorbing, disturbing book that makes it clear just how much we have yet to learn. --David Pitt Copyright 2004 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
With serial killers a hot topic in the wake of Charlize Theron's Oscar-winning performance in Monster, forensic psychiatrist Morrison's memoir of working with more than 80 serial killers couldn't be more timely. The author's countless hours of interviews with John Wayne Gacy and others of his ilk have led her to a controversial conclusion: she believes there's a serial killer gene ("He is a serial killer when he is a fetus, even as soon as sperm meets egg to create the genes of a new person"). Unfortunately, she offers little in support of this deterministic view, and she will offend some readers with an implied exoneration of criminals whom she describes as "completely unaware of the process leading up to murder," despite the detailed planning and preparation displayed by many of them. And even readers who are willing to have an open mind about Morrison's theories are likely to find some aspects of her report a little creepy, as when she discusses a treasured trophy she keeps in her basement: "I place John Gacy's brain back in the box because my kids are calling for me upstairs." Agent, Chris Calhoun at Sterling Lord. (On sale May 4) Forecasts: 60 Minutes II has committed to a profile with Dr. Morrison to air May 5. The author will appear live on the Today show on May 6, with more media appearances in the days to follow, including with Paula Zahn on CNN and Chuck Scarborough on MSNBC. Expect an initial surge in sales. (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
Forensic psychiatrist Morrison has probed the minds of more than 80 murderous psychopaths in an attempt to find out why serial killers kill. In addition to subjects from her three decades of profiling work, she presents "psychological autopsies" of earlier killers from history. In short, Morrison concludes that serial killers lack the essential core of human relatedness-the ability to become close to others. She has worked with the FBI and other law enforcement agencies and has consequently handled some bloody and gruesome criminal cases. Here, she shares many interesting and sometimes disturbing stories from her profiling work: for example, immediately after she returned from her honeymoon, a Christmas card was delivered to her unlisted address from John Wayne Gacy, an infamous psychopath who killed 33 young males. The reportedly toned-down version of her research on Robert Berdella, a particularly savage killer, is enough to make the average reader cringe. This highly recommended book will make an excellent addition to any collection in criminal justice and especially in the specialized area of serial killers.-Tim Delaney, SUNY at Oswego (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A forensic psychiatrist takes well-turned clinical forays into the heads of multiple murderers, with additional long-distance thoughts on their peers in foreign countries and in the past. Aided by veteran journalist Goldberg, Morrison shapes her experiences as a memoir and lets her prose express both analytical detachment and utter fascination. Nonetheless, she states, "I still could feel sickened about the nature of their crimes, no matter how detached I tried to be." And these crimes are particularly dreadful. Morrison has spent 25 years trying to uncover some pattern to serial-killer behavior, a painstaking process of trying to understand why they do what they do by interviewing as many serial killers as she can get access to. Slowly the material accrues. John Wayne Gacy, she found, had the emotional makeup of an infant and "felt he was drowning when subjected to emotional complexity." Robert Berdella displayed a total lack of empathy; he "couldn't picture what the meaning of torture or even death is." Serial killers typically show no social or psychological attachments, yet the author finds a terrible chemistry that suggests "serial murder at first sight exists and thrives much like love at first sight." Killers had a "sudden urgency to get a victim. It wasn't just a need; it was a drive, a compulsion"--an addiction of sorts. These discoveries pointed Morrison toward a genetic explanation of serial killing: something, she believes, causes an imbalance of the neurochemicals that trigger emotions and lead to actions. "I am firmly convinced there is something in the genes that leads a person to become a serial killer," she asserts. "In other words, he is a killer before he is born." Morrison has not been able to prove this theory conclusively, since her attempts to run tests on serial killers have, understandably, run into issues of free will. A scary piece of work, with even scarier implications. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.