A Plague of Murder : The Rise and Rise of Serial Killing in the Modern Age

**The renowned criminologist and author of __The Outsider__ delivers a penetrating study of serial killers as a uniquely modern phenomenon.** In this fascinating study, Colin Wilson explores the roots of the serial killer mindset, and the origins of this terrifying modern personality. The term "serial killer" is still relatively new, coined by the FBI to describe those who murder repeatedly and obsessively, usually with a sexual motive. Who are these killers? What social and psychological pressures drive them to their crimes? Can we understand and learn to predict their behavior? Wilson offers revealing profiles of some of the most infamous killers in modern history: from Jack the Ripper to Jeffrey Dahmer, the monster of Milwaukee; Reginald Christie to Dennis Nilsen, who killed for company; the Boston Strangler to Donald Gaskins, who murdered more than 100 victims; as well as Richard Ramirez, the Night Stalker and many more. From the bestselling author of THE OUTSIDER Serial killers are the headline-grabbing criminals of the modern world. But despite extensive police investigations, court trials, and news stories, a complete map of the serial-killer mindset has proven elusive. This fascinating study by one of the world's foremost popular criminologists lays bare the roots of a terrifying modern phenomenon. The term "serial killer" is still relatively new, coined by the FBI to describe those who murder repeatedly and obsessively, usually with a sexual motive. Who are these killers? What social and psychological pressures have produced them? Can we understand and learn to predict their behavior? Colin Wilson examines the changing face of murder over more than a century. Here are studies of some of the most infamous killers of our era, from Jack the Ripper to Jeffrey Dahmer, the monster of Milwaukee; Reginald Christie to Dennis Nilsen, who killed for company; the Boston Strangler to Donald Gaskins, who murdered more than 100 victims; as well as Richard Ramirez, the Night Stalker and many more From the bestselling author of THE OUTSIDER Is the Shroud of Turin a holy relic or a clever fake? What was the coded message that made a poor French priest a millionaire, and does it prove that the crucifixion was a fraud? And what lies at the bottom of the 200-foot shaft on Oak Island, Newfoundland, where two centuries of digging have yet to unearth the buried treasure that must be there? In THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF UNSOLVED MYSTERIES, Colin Wilson presents an astonishing variety of unsolved riddles and enduring enigmas to prove that our everyday world is stranger than we believe, wilder than we can imagine. Ranging in content from Atlantis to the Bermuda Triangle and from Kaspar Hauser to the identity of Shakespeare, Colin Wilson's ENCYCLOPEDIA OF UNSOLVED MYSTERIES is a comprehensive examination of the most baffling mysteries of our time.