Books like Depraved by Harold Schechter

A chilling, factual account of the 1959 shotgun murders of the Clutter family in Holcomb, Kansas, where four members were killed with no clear motive or clues.

In 1893 Chicago, Erik Larson weaves the story of visionary architect Daniel Burnham and the cunning serial killer H.H. Holmes, whose crimes unfolded against the backdrop of the World’s Columbian Exposition.

John E. Douglas recounts his 25‑year career in the FBI Behavioral Science Unit, detailing how psychological profiling helped him solve some of the nation’s most infamous serial killings.

A detailed biography of serial killer John Vincent Ramirez, drawing on sixty hours of interviews with the convicted murderer and additional conversations with women seeking contact and a death‑row interview.

The Ice Man chronicles the life of Richard ‘The Iceman’ Kuklinski, a New Jersey family man who was also a prolific mob assassin whose career spanned thirty years and continents, and who claimed to have killed over two hundred men.

A case study of the Zodiac Killer's unsolved serial murders in California.

A year‑by‑year chronicle of global crime spanning two centuries, profiling infamous killers, organized crime, and violent events from London’s slums to modern terrorist attacks.

The Serial Killer Files catalogs real‑world serial murderers—from John Wayne Gacy and Ted Bundy to historical figures—offering rigorous profiles, psychological insights, and details on crimes, motives, and societal impact.

Tim Cahill's *Buried Dreams* brings to life the brutal crimes of serial killer John Wayne Gacy, Jr., revealing the complex personality behind his twisted atrocities.

350 p

When reporter Paul Novak investigates a series of brutal murders, he didn't plan to pry into the legend of Ed Gein, the "butcher of Plainfield, Wisconsin". But when local lore leads him to the ramshackle home of a bizarre young man and his mother, Paul realizes he's stumbled across Ed Gein's best kept secret. And he's about to discover that a killer's instincts never die.

A biographical case study of Lee Boyd Malvo, examining his psychology, criminal career, and role in serial murders and sniper incidents in the United States.

Mikhail Krivich’s biography provides an authoritative account of Andrei Chikatilo, the Russian serial killer behind 52 murder–sex crimes over a 12‑year spree, culminating in his 1990 conviction.

An exhaustive true‑crime account of Ed Gein, the Wisconsin farmhand whose murders and grave‑robbing shocked America in 1957, revealing the depths of deviant behavior and the social conditions that framed his crimes.

A true‑crime biography of Jane Toppan, the 19th‑century New England nurse who became the most prolific female serial killer in America.

A gripping biography that examines the lives of European serial murderers, the brutal violence they inflicted on prostitutes, and the trials and journalistic investigations that followed.

A gripping true crime story of serial killings by Dr. Thomas Neill Cream, featuring the author's investigative approach and examination of Victorian sexual tensions and fears.

From veteran true crime master Harold Schechter comes a unique look into the history of crime told through the dark objects left behind. The false teeth of a female serial killer from 1908, the cut-and-paste confession of the Black Dahlia killer, the newly cracked cipher of the Zodiac killer, the shotgun used in the Clutter family murders, which were made famous by Truman Capote's true crime classic In Cold Blood—these are more than simple artifacts that once belonged to notorious murderers. They are objets of fascination to the legion of true crime obsessives around the world. And not merely for fleeting dark thrills, but because they represent a way to better understand those who we typically label monsters in lieu of learning how they actually became one. In Murderabilia, veteran true crime writer Harold Schechter presents 100 murder-related artifacts spanning two centuries (1808–2014), with accompanying stories of various lengths. A visual and literary journey, it presents a history unlike any previously told in the true crime genre, one that speaks to the dark fascination of true crime fans while also presenting a larger historical timeline of how and why we continue to be captivated by the most sensational crimes and killers among us.