# Recommend me a serial killer thriller. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 6, 2011, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380 "2011-09-06T13:43:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Seamack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/46a35a/32.png) [@Seamack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seamack)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2011, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/21 "2011-09-06T21:05:24Z")
> [@Khadaji](#): > > Have a look at the first two in the Dexter series. (Skip the third.) I’ve read the first and (I think) the third. That was a bit of a shark jumper right? Put me right off. TV series has gone from strength to strength by developing the story from book one but going in it’s own direction after that. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2011, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/22 "2011-09-06T22:11:16Z")
> [@Seamack](#): > > I’ve read the first and (I think) the third. That was a bit of a shark jumper right? Put me right off. TV series has gone from strength to strength by developing the story from book one but going in it’s own direction after that. The third was horrible and put me off the series too. I can’t imagine what he was thinking when he wrote it. I can’t imagine what his editor was thinking when he let it go through. If there is a forth, I won’t read it, just because the third was so very very bad. [Here](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=619418)is a similar thread that I started a few weeks ago. ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2011, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/23 "2011-09-06T22:27:52Z")
[Pity Him Afterwards](http://www.amazon.com/Pity-Him-Afterwards-Donald-Westlake/dp/0786703962) by Donald Westlake. A killer escaped from an asylum hides out by working in a small town theater under a phony name. The POV switches from the killer’s to third person objective in alternating chapters without revealing his identity to the reader until the end. Which is to say, we know the killer’s real name but not his assumed name. Regarding Dexter: There is not only a fourth, but also a fifth book, and the supernatural element in the third book was pretty much abandoned. ---
**Author:** ![MadTheSwine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MadTheSwine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MadTheSwine)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2011, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/24 "2011-09-06T22:50:30Z")
Does it have to be fiction? ---
**Author:** ![Gil-Martin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Gil-Martin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gil-Martin)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2011, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/25 "2011-09-07T00:31:59Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > A neat twist on the genre are Tim Dorsey’s **Serge Storms** books. Set in Florida, they recount the adventures of Serge, an amiable, manic serial killer who only kills assholes. Of which there are plenty. Funny, insane, whacko…they read like a cross between Dave Barry and Carl Hiaasen. Start with either _Florida Roadkill_ or _Hammerhead Ranch Mote_l. This sounds similar to the\* Dexter\* series of books. Does anybody know how it compares? I would also like to second **WordMan** ’s recommendation of _The Alienist_. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2011, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/26 "2011-09-07T03:12:09Z")
I read [The Perfect Woman](http://www.amazon.com/Perfect-Woman-James-Andrus/dp/0786022159/ref=tmm_pap_title_0) by James Andrus when it was briefly free for Kindle. I thought it was a decent read, though not particularly special or memorable. ---
**Author:** ![Seamack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/46a35a/32.png) [@Seamack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seamack)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2011, 8:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/27 "2011-09-07T08:07:06Z")
> [@MadTheSwine](#): > > Does it have to be fiction? No not at all. Here’s a very disturbing but well researched non-fiction read www.amazon.com/Happy-Like-Murderers-Gordon-Burn/dp/0571209971 It’s an account of Fred and Rose West’s murderous reign. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosemary\_West](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosemary_West) ---
**Author:** ![kbear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4491bb/32.png) [@kbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kbear)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2011, 10:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/28 "2011-09-07T10:28:15Z")
Most, if not all, of James Patterson’s books are about serial killers. British writer Mark Billingham has a DI Thorne series that’s mostly serial killers as well. You very much get the sense that they are both churning them out but they’re a decent beach read. ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2011, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/29 "2011-09-07T11:52:44Z")
Margery Allingham’s _The Tiger in the Smoke_ – a classic, but wonderful. Robert Block’s _Psycho_ on which the movie was based. Another Donald Westlake: _Sacred Monster_ On the lighter and amusing side, there’s Agatha Christie’s _The ABC Murders_, of course. There is at least one by Lawrence Block in his Scudder series, but i can’t recollect the title. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2011, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/30 "2011-09-07T13:30:37Z")
On the non-fiction side, nothing is better than Ann Rule’s “The Stranger Beside Me.” Image getting a contract to write your first book about the murders of several young women before there is any suspect, then realizing later you know the murderer. ---
**Author:** ![beagledave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6de8d8/32.png) [@beagledave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beagledave)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2011, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/31 "2011-09-07T13:35:07Z")
The Harry Hole series of novels from Jo Nesbo. I read [The Snowman](http://www.amazon.com/Snowman-Jo-Nesb%C3%B8/dp/0307595862/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1315402453&sr=1-1) and am currently reading [The Redeemer.](http://www.amazon.com/Redeemer-Jo-Nesbo/dp/0099505967/ref=pd_sim_b_1) ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2011, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/32 "2011-09-07T13:56:55Z")
> [@Gil-Martin](#): > > This sounds similar to the\* Dexter\* series of books. Does anybody know how it compares? Not really alike very much. The key to Serge is that he likes to kill assholes in very complex ways One comes to mind that involves gasoline, a garden shed, motion-activated lawn lights and a hula-hoop. The early books also feature the world’s worst gang of Columbian drug runners. ---
**Author:** ![Seamack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/46a35a/32.png) [@Seamack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seamack)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2011, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/33 "2011-09-07T14:04:56Z")
> [@beagledave](#): > > The Harry Hole series of novels from Jo Nesbo. > > I read [The Snowman](http://www.amazon.com/Snowman-Jo-Nesb%C3%B8/dp/0307595862/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1315402453&sr=1-1) and am currently reading [The Redeemer.](http://www.amazon.com/Redeemer-Jo-Nesbo/dp/0099505967/ref=pd_sim_b_1) Cool. I’m just about to start ‘Redbreast’ from this author. Thanks ---
**Author:** ![beagledave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6de8d8/32.png) [@beagledave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beagledave)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2011, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/34 "2011-09-07T16:05:47Z")
Other resources to consider… Join [Goodreads](http://www.goodreads.com) [http://booklamp.org/](http://booklamp.org/) > **[The Book Seer | What should I read next](http://bookseer.com/)** > > Read a great book and wondering what to read next? Ask the famous bookseer ---
**Author:** ![Puff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce73a5/32.png) [@Puff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Puff)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2011, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/35 "2011-09-07T18:55:31Z")
Just wanted to say that I second the reccomendation of The Alienist, fascinating look into the mind of the detective not the killer, and how detection grew from the roots… Another one that is slightly different and alternative is The Meaning of Night by Michael Cox [link](http://www.amazon.com/Meaning-Night-Confession-Michael-Cox/dp/0393330346/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1315421488&sr=8-1) It’s an introspective killer writing his memoirs, big nods to bibliophiles, victorian era fans and historical thrillers in general. ---
**Author:** ![Hockey\_Monkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a183cd/32.png) [@Hockey\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hockey_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2011, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/36 "2011-09-07T18:58:19Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > A neat twist on the genre are Tim Dorsey’s **Serge Storms** books. Set in Florida, they recount the adventures of Serge, an amiable, manic serial killer who only kills assholes. Of which there are plenty. Funny, insane, whacko…they read like a cross between Dave Barry and Carl Hiaasen. Start with either _Florida Roadkill_ or _Hammerhead Ranch Mote_l. Serge is my favorite serial killer with Dexter a close second. I named my new dog Serge in homage. The books are also HILARIOUS! ---
**Author:** ![The\_Peyote\_Coyote](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5f8ce5/32.png) [@The\_Peyote\_Coyote](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Peyote_Coyote)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2011, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/37 "2011-09-07T19:25:57Z")
Seamack, I would recommend Ellery Queen’s _Cat of Many Tails_. Written in 1949 this is one of the first novels to deal with a serial killer and it’s still one of the best. If you’re interested in non-fiction, try \*Helter Skelter \*and _The Family_, both about the Manson family. ---
**Author:** ![VOW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vow/32/3043_2.png) [@VOW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VOW)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2011, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/38 "2011-09-07T22:32:43Z")
I also put in a vote for the “Prey” series by John Sanford. And Ann Rule has written a BUNCH of true crime books, all great reads. I like Jonathan Kellerman and his Alex Delaware series. The earlier ones are much better than the recent books, IMHO. A similar series with the main character being Alan Gregory are by Stephen White. Perhaps White and Kellerman were twins separated at birth? The Patricia Cornwell books are outstanding, but again, I think the earlier ones are much better than those more recently written. If you wish to branch out to your more feminine side, romance author Nora Roberts has written a series under the pseudonym JD Robb. The books have a slight sci-fi aura, in that the main character is a cop in the future, named Eve Dallas. All the JD Robb books are “[Something] in Death.” I love these and scour the bookshelves in stores for the newest release. And now I’m off to Amazon to check out the “Serge Storms” books! ~VOW ---
**Author:** ![Seamack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/46a35a/32.png) [@Seamack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seamack)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2011, 8:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/39 "2011-09-08T08:02:42Z")
> [@beagledave](#): > > Other resources to consider.. > > Join [Goodreads](http://www.goodreads.com) > > [http://booklamp.org/](http://booklamp.org/) > > [http://bookseer.com/](http://bookseer.com/) Great suggestions. Booklamp really appeals to me. Cheers ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2011, 8:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380/40 "2011-09-08T08:25:56Z")
Not a serial killer in motivation, as he’s really an opportinist sociopath, but I have read all of Patricia Highsmith’s [Ripliad](http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Ripley) (spoilers at link) books and can’t recommend them highly enough. Brilliantly written in the literary genre, and she really gets inside his mind, so much so that some biographers have suggested she might have done some bumping off herself. How’s it going btw? 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-a-serial-killer-thriller/595380.md?page=3)