Mindhunter enters the minds of some of the country's most notorious serial killers to tell the real-life story of the Investigative Support Unit (ISU) -- the FBI's special force that has assisted state and local police in cracking some of the country's most celebrated serial murder and rape cases. The unit specializes in understanding the chemistry and mechanical workings of the brain's of these serial criminals, and did its homework by interviewing such murderers as Charles Manson and David Berkowitz (the Son of Sam). John Douglas, who worked for the FBI for 25 years, is an authority on the unit, and his book combines the best of nonfiction with that of a murder mystery.


From Publishers Weekly
Douglas, who developed criminal profiling techniques for the FBI, teams up with novelist Olshaker to tell of his 25-year career tracking down serial killers. Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.


Publishers Weekly
The many case histories make this singularly important study as readable as a mystery novel.


Book Description
During his twenty-five year career with the Investigative Support Unit, Special Agent John Douglas became a legendary figure in law enforcement, pursuing some of the most notorious and sadistic serial killers of our time: the man who hunted prostitutes for sport in the woods of Alaska, the Atlanta child murderer, and Seattle's Green River killer, the case that nearly cost Douglas his life.

As the model for Jack Crawford in The Silence of the Lambs, Douglas has confronted, interviewed, and studied scores of serial killers and assassins, including Charles Manson, Ted Bundy, and Ed Gein, who dressed himself in his victims' peeled skin. Using his uncanny ability to become both predator and prey, Douglas examines each crime scene, reliving both the killer's and the victim's actions in his mind, creating their profiles, describing their habits, and predicting their next moves.

Now, in chilling detail, the legendary Mindhunter takes us behind the scenes of some of his most gruesome, fascinating, and challenging cases -- and into the darkest recesses of our worst nightmares.


Download Description
Far removed from the light of the sun, in basement offices sixty feet below ground at the National Academy of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Quantico, Virginia, a small and elite group confronts one of our deepest and most primal fears: the fear of evil lurking among us. They are known as the Investigative Support Unit and their leader is John Douglas. He has hunted some of the most notorious and sadistic criminals of our time: the Trailside Killer in San Francisco, the Atlanta child murderer, the Tylenol poisoner, the man who hunted prostitutes for sport in the woods of Alaska, and Seattle's Green River killer, the case that nearly ended his own life. He has confronted, interviewed, and studied dozens of serial killers and assassins - including Charles Manson, Sirhan Sirhan, Richard Speck, John Wayne Gacy, Son of Sam (David Berkowitz), and James Earl Ray - for a landmark study, to understand their motives and motivation. To get inside their minds. He is able to become both predator and prey. He examines a crime scene and creates profiles of the perpetrators, describing their habits and predicting their next moves. Ultimately, when his work has helped snare the criminals, he can help build strategy for interrogating and prosecuting them. He is Special Agent John Douglas, a legendary figure in law enforcement and the model from which Jack Crawford was drawn for Thomas Harris's thriller, The Silence of the Lambs. As chief of the team that tackles the most baffling and senseless of unsolved violent crimes, John Douglas is the man who ushered in a new age in behavioral science and criminal profiling. Now, after twenty-five years of service, John Douglas has just retired and canfinally tell his unique and compelling story.


Simon & Schuster
During his twenty-five year career with the Investigative Support Unit, Special Agent John Douglas became a legendary figure in law enforcement, pursuing some of the most notorious and sadistic serial killers of our time: the man who hunted prostitutes for sport in the woods of Alaska, the Atlanta child murderer, and Seattle's Green River killer, the case that nearly cost Douglas his life.

As the model for Jack Crawford in The Silence of the Lambs, Douglas has confronted, interviewed, and studied scores of serial killers and assassins, including Charles Manson, Ted Bundy, and Ed Gein, who dressed himself in his victims' peeled skin. Using his uncanny ability to become both predator and prey, Douglas examines each crime scene, reliving both the killer's and the victim's actions in his mind, creating their profiles, describing their habits, and predicting their next moves.

Now, in chilling detail, the legendary Mindhunter takes us behind the scenes of some of his most gruesome, fascinating, and challenging cases -- and into the darkest recesses of our worst nightmares.


About the Author
John Douglas During his twenty-five years with the FBI, John Douglas became the leading expert on criminal personality profiling and the pioneer of modern criminal investigative analysis. He conducted the first organized study into the methods and motivations of serial criminals and has aided police departments and prosecutors throughout the world on some of their most puzzling cases. A veteran of the Air Force, Douglas holds a Doctor of Education degree and is the author of numerous articles on criminology and co-author of the landmark books Sexual Homicide: Patterns and Motives and Crime Classification Manual. With Mark Olshaker he wrote Unabomber: On the Trail of America's Most-Wanted Serial Killer. John Douglas lives in the Washington, D.C. area.

ANNOTATION

The New York Times bestseller from the FBI agent who inspired the Jack Crawford character in The Silence of the Lambs, Mindhunter is a riveting look at the major serial killers of our time. It takes readers behind the scenes of America's most gruesome serial killer cases. Includes an eight-page photo insert.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

During his twenty-five-year career with the Investigative Support Unit, Special Agent John Douglas became a legendary figure in law enforcement, pursuing some of the most notorious and sadistic serial killers of our time: the man who hunted prostitutes for sport in the woods of Alaska, the Atlanta child murderer, and Seattle's Green River killer, the case that nearly cost Douglas his life. As the model for Jack Crawford in The Silence of the Lambs, Douglas has confronted, interviewed, adn studied scores of serial killers and assassins, including Charles Manson, Ted Bundy, and Ed Gein, who dressed himself in his victims' peeled skin. Now, in chilling detail, the legendary Mindhunter takes us behind the scenes of some of his most gruesome, fascinating, and challenging cases -- and into the darkest recesses of our worst nightmares.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

One of the first to develop the specialty of "criminal-personality profiling," Douglas has written a readable, popular version of his earlier Sexual Homicide (Lexington, 1988). He discusses how FBI profilers, working from crime scene evidence, predict the type of personality who committed a serial murder. Accurate profiles-such as that of Wayne Williams, the Atlanta child killer-can help focus on likely suspects. Profiling can also suggest proactive steps for luring the culprit into contacting the police. Unfortunately, a profile is apt to "fit a lot of people." As the unsolved Green River Killer case attests, it cannot substitute for hard evidence. Although profiling has limitations not emphasized in this semiautobiographical account, Douglas is justifiably proud of its success. Recommended for true crime collections. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 6/15/95.]-Gregor A. Preston, formerly with Univ. of California Lib., Davis

Rima L. Firrone - Ocala (FL) Star—Banner

Douglas￯﾿ﾽis one heck of a storyteller. Mindhunter is the book that will make you lock up the house, take the phone off the hook and just keep reading. You won't be able to put it down.

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING

John Douglas knows more about serial killers than anybody in the world. — Jonathan Demme