Mindhunter: Inside the FBI's Elite Serial Crime Unit

The famous FBI profiler John Douglas, the inspiration for Jack Crawford in “The Silence of the Lambs,” shares the grim secrets of the most dangerous serial killers and criminals.

Over a quarter of a century working in the Investigative Assistance Unit, John Douglas became a cult figure within the FBI. He was the first to develop psychological profiling techniques, beginning to conduct interviews with serial killers in order to identify their motives and behavioral patterns. Douglas hunted the most ruthless criminals of his time, including the killer of prostitutes in Alaska, a child murderer in Atlanta, and the Green River killer, whose investigation nearly cost him his life.

With incredible precision, Douglas describes his investigations—analyzing crime scenes, recreating the actions of killers and their victims, studying habits, and predicting their next steps. Through interviews with criminals such as Charles Manson, Ted Bundy, and Ed Gein (who used his victims’ skin), Douglas shows how his advanced methods made it possible to identify and catch the most dangerous offenders. This impressive and frightening book reveals how a killer’s mind works—and how it can be outsmarted.

The book is published as part of the series “Why They Kill. The Profiling Legend of John Douglas.”