Confession of a Serial Killer: The Untold Story of Dennis Rader, the BTK Killer Paperback – August 8, 2017

When it comes to books about serial killers and bizarre true crimes, I have read more than my fair share. I have read many theories on how a person develops into a serial killer, always looking for further understanding, or some sort of explanation that I hadn't heard before. I can honestly say that Katherine Ramsland's book: "Confession of a Serial Killer: The Untold Story of Dennis Rader- The BTK Killer" has achieved the great feat of giving readers something more.The book is largely told through Rader himself through an exchange of letters and interviews with Ramsland. This makes for highly compelling reading. Hearing it straight from the horse's mouth is always best. Rader digs back and details the many events in his childhood that were likely the beginning of his developing into a serial killer. He explains how he operated, the things he did, and all sorts of various tidbits along the way. He also tells you his account of all the murders and a large variety of details involved in the pre-kill stages, the murder itself, and the aftermath. He attempts to divulge what was going on in his mind at the time and many of his observations in retrospect about his thought process seem very likely to have been part of his motivation. He seems to be genuine in much of what he tells. Of course, you never know how much of the stuff a serial killer tells you is actual fact, but it does seem like he is at a point where he has nothing to lose and may as well just tell the true story. Ramsland notes how Rader's narcissism and grandiose mindset may have contributed to various things he explains, but overall Rader doesn't seem to shy away from much of anything, including the embarrassment and shame that came with much of what he did.Ramsland presents a large number of factors that likely contributed to Rader becoming a serial killer. Her research is truly excellent and, although it may seem like a lot to take in, she explains a large variety of the ingrediants that ultimately become the stew of a serial killer. All the explanations are another important component to making this book such an excellent read. She importantly points out that society's basic model on serial killers needs to be updated and that some of the widely accepted answers are not in fact the case. We learn more about the mindset of these killers as time goes on and things that were once deemed fact should now be seen as possibility to take into account. For instance, this book does a great job of explaining that not all sexual homicides actually need to involve some sort of sex with the victim. In Rader's case, (I never knew this prior to reading this book) he didn't have sex with any of the victims; he got his gratification and relief through viewing a victim in bondage. It was the ropes, the terror the victim was thinking about, the image of a person in bondage, and the strangling that brought about his sexual gratification.I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in true crime and serial killers. It is very thorough and well articulated. Rader's explanations and theories are mostly satisfying for the reader looking for a better understanding. Congratulations to Katherine Ramsland for adding an important chapter to serial killer literature that will likely go down in history as one of the best in the field.

This was a fascinating and different way to record and talk about serial murder. It wasn’t focused on the gory aspects or horror; instead it was a glimpse behind the curtain. I hope this view allows others to learn more about those who commit atrocities and how to limit their ravages.

I will admit, I can be somewhat of a slow reader. It's not that I can't read fast; it's just that I like to savor every word. Just like, oh, this one serial killer who likes to savor the minutes while binding, torturing, and then killing, his victims. It's just that I have the luxury to take my time usually, while for him, a whole bunch of annoying little distractions keep getting in his way: a dog starts barking; a police car drives by on the street and stops; or a boyfriend is due home anytime. Hey, it's the little things in life that can take away from our enjoyment, I suppose.Of course, the first paragraph is written somewhat tongue-in-cheek, and it's intended to moralize a bit on the antics of one Dennis Rader -- AKA "BTK." But the best thing about "Confessions of a Serial Killer: the Untold Story of Dennis Rader the BTK Killer" from Dr. Katherine Ramsland: she closes the door on that little thing we like to call Morality herself, leaving him outside for only the reader to invite in, if that reader so chooses. Even if that reader is a little slow, like me.But I also read slowly for another reason. I consider myself to be a very "active" reader. I buy almost all books in the Kindle format. While reading, if I stumble upon some person, place or thing -- those used to be called "nouns" -- then I jump out of the Kindle app, open up Safari, and search until I believe that I know enough about that noun to move on. I think that it's the best way to read, because you actually end up learning much more about the subject, and other topics, than you originally thought you would.This is the first book I've read by Ms. Ramsland, although I did read a short piece she wrote in one of the "Serial Killer Quarterly" books about Israel Keyes. While the chapter on Mr. Keyes is somewhat short, the entire book is definitely worth purchasing, just for information about the so-called "most organized serial killer ever." But later on, when it became available, I purchased and read "Devil in the Darkness," in which I'll give a mild recommendation. But usually, I read books from detectives or FBI profilers who've chased serial killers, and so it was a nice change of pace reading a book from a more pure psychological angle.And the thing I like best here: she allows other people, other psychologists, and even Dennis Rader himself, to outline most of the information, and I think that she views herself as mostly just "the messenger," at least until the last chapter in the book. At the end, in a nice change of pace, she does psychoanalyze Mr. Rader, and I think most of it is spot on. I'll be off by a bit here, but the pattern of this book, which somewhat repeats for each crime, is mostly: 1. Define the codes of BTK; 2. Introduce something that BTK did; 3. Print verbatim news articles of some killing; and finally 4. Allow Mr. Rader himself to explain what he was thinking and why he performed some act.And I think that this really works here. We really get into the mind of BTK, as Ms. Ramsland pretty much allows Mr. Rader to write whatever the hell he wants. And that's good, because otherwise, truth that was originally full of life would've been completely strangled and left for dead from this really strong effort. (It should be noted that "truth" is a slippery beast. I believe that, if someone states something that he believes to be true, even if it's "wrong," he is being truthful; if he states something that is generally regarded as the "truth" but doesn't believe it himself, then he's lying. Opinion.) As a comparison, I read the book "Inside the Mind of BTK" by John Douglas -- a really good book itself, and I think maybe his best, maybe even better than "Mind Hunter" -- but Mr. Douglas doesn't really care much about what Mr. Rader has to say nowadays. Mr. Douglas was really only interested in retracing Mr. Rader's path and trying to determine what made that serial killer tick. But I gave that book a 5 as well, and once again, both of these books are well worth the effort in reading.There are some very dark but funny moments here. My favorite: Mr. Rader, in describing why he wanted to kill someone, writes something like, "I wanted to find out what so and so would look like with a rope around her neck." I actually laughed during that sequence. But one thing I did really think about while reading: Mr. Rader's family, in particular, Kerri Rawson. I'm not giving much away when I write that the FBI subpoenaed her DNA from her doctor after naming her father privately as the prime suspect, and in my opinion, this was dirty pool. Sometimes, I think that law enforcement has the opinion, "The end justifies the means," which is faulty logic. But what's somewhat surprising: I think that she was MORE mad when Stephen King wrote a short story that was made into a movie about a BTK-like serial killer that is actually pretty good, entitled "A Good Marriage." Supposedly, I guess she thought that it was disrespectful to the victims of her father, but I found the movie to be anything but.But while reading, I really did think, "Wow. How did Ms. Rawson, in particular, feel about the information laid out in this book? Did she even read it? Does she even WANT to read it? And how would it make her feel?" I know that if someone in my family did "evil things," even far less evil than what her father did, I would disown him and never want to read or see anything about him again. But I'm just guessing on this idea, because I'm mostly dealing in hypotheticals. I did have a relative once who is now dead who I used to call a "Grifter." He liked to put himself between other people and their money. Let's just say that didn't impress me much.Well, I can be a slow reader, and I finally finished this excellent read. But I'd urge you to take your time as well, because if you don't, you might think afterwards, "I wish I would've just had more time to savor the moment." I know that BTK -- Dennis Rader -- would probably agree with me on this point.

Fascinating book.

It was a gift so i only now she loved it.

This book by Katherine Ramsland is really highly recommended! Here you get an excellent insight into the world and soul of Dennis Rader. It is fascinating and frightening at the same time. Nevertheless, highly interesting!It describes what is going on in the emotional world of Dennis Rader (if you can describe it that way).In this book it is not about the investigations, but to get an insight into the soul of BTK and Dennis Rader. Furthermore, it is about his childhood, his role as father and husband and as murderer.I personally found this insight, how Dennis Rader describes his world in his own words very interesting. Of all BTK books, this one is probably the best, because Rader "co-wrote" it, so to speak, in the form of letters and long conversations with Katherine Ramsland. So you hear his mind speaking through his own words. It is sometimes bizarre and complex. But those who have dealt with BTK before should know this. It also describes sexual fantasies, which are simply not comprehensible for many of us. Therefore, the book tries to make clear his feelings for this kind of fantasies. Of course, we never know whether Rader is telling the whole truth. Still, I think, "What else has he got to lose? What else has he got to lie about now?" What could still drive him to lie (or not tell the whole truth) is presented quite well at the end of the book.Considering that he strangled himself, tried every form of bondage on himself, took bizarre pictures (dressed as a woman, in a "grave", with clothes of his victims, etc.) and much more, he shows little to no shame. He describes these things very openly and what drove him to do them. He also describes that he never had sex with his victims and through what he still achieved sexual gratification.Ramsland presents here individual factors that made Dennis Rader become a murderer. And it must be said that her research in this matter was extremely good!Thank you, Katherine Ramsland for this extraordinary book, which leads us through the terrifying mind and world of Dennis Rader.

incluso teniendo en cuenta la dificultad que entraña leer un libro de este tipo en inglés, el tema me ha parecido de lo más interesante. solo he podido ojearlo por encima, pero no dudo que será una lectura muy bienvenida.

Die schockierende BTK Mordserie ist ohne Frage in besonderes Kapitel in der Kriminalgeschichte – und mit dem hier rezensierten CONFESSIONS OF A SERIAL KILLER hat der als „BTK“ überführte Serienmörder Dennis Rader nun aus der lebenslangen Haft heraus seine eigene Darstellung zu seiner Biographie und seinen Verbrechen vorgelegt.Man muss sich vor der Lektüre dieses Buches mehrere Faktoren vor Augen führen:Dennis Rader dürfte es mit der Wahrheit nicht allzu genau nehmen. Rader wird vielfach als sehr manipulative Persönlichkeit mit Hang zur Selbstüberschätzung und fast zwanghaftem lügen bezeichnet (auch von Familienmitgliedern), welche sich darüber hinaus auch noch in ausgeprägten Phantasien verlieren kann - insofern bleibt zu bezweifeln, dass Raders in CONFESSIONS OF A SERIAL KILLER zu findende Darstellungen der Abläufe nun komplett ehrlich sind.Es fällt auch auf, dass Rader – genau wie bei seinen Einlassungen vor Gericht – einige Aspekte seiner Taten, so gut es angesichts seiner Verbrechen geht, abschwächen will… das „T“ in BTK, eben das Zufügen von Leiden und Angst, welches für ihn sicherlich während seiner Taten von zentraler Bedeutung war, versucht er immer wieder etwas unter den Tisch zu kehren.Hinzu kommt: viel Neues ist CONFESSIONS OF A SERIAL KILLER nicht zu entnehmen. Die meisten Fakten hat Rader bereits in seinen Verhören beziehungsweise seinem Geständnis vor Gericht gesagt, viel Neues (oder gar Erhellendes) findet sich in diesem Buch nicht – wer sich für den Fall BTK interessiert ist mit anderen Büchern zum Thema ohne Frage deutlich besser beraten. Angemerkt sei an dieser Stelle auch, dass einigen von Raders in diesem Buch zu findenden Darstellungen heftig widersprochen wurde – auch zum Beispiel von seiner eignen Tochter.Schließlich sei noch bemerkt, dass sich CONFESSIONS OF A SERIAL KILLER ziemlich konfus liest und nicht sonderlich gut strukturiert ist. Ohne Vorkenntnisse des Falles wird man mit diesem Buch kaum wirklich gut zu Rande kommen.Alles in allem: eigentlich ist an diesem Buch nur „interessant“ (wenn man diesen Ausdruck benutzen möchte), dass Dennis Rader halt selbst an ihm beteiligt war. Ansonsten gibt es wesentlich bessere und informativere Bücher über den Fall BTK – empfohlen sei hier meiner Meinung nach insbesondere Roy Wenzls Buch zum Thema.