A Rage To Kill and Other True Cases: Anne Rule's Crime Files,...

Features

• Cover Type: Mass Market Paperback with 400 pages
• Published by: Pocket August 1, 1999
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 0671025341
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-0671025342
• Book Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 1.1 inches
• Weighs: 6.7 ounces

Reader Reviews
One of the most frightening aspects of these ten true-crime stories is that the early release dates for many of the perpetrators have already passed. I would hate to think that any of these particular criminals are free to kill again. Ann Rule has selected gruesome cases to include in "A Rage to Kill." Fortunately a few of the most vicious killers did not survive their capture. Unfortunately one of them was never identified, and some of the stories have had to have their body count revised upward. Ann Rule, a former policewoman writes about the victims with a compassion that sometimes ventures over the border into cliché. Many are described as stunningly beautiful, innocent, soft-spoken, harmless, well-loved, kindhearted creatures who would certainly have qualified for sainthood if their lives had not been cut tragically short. The killers are more interesting, as in that old Vaudevillian cliché, "the snake has all the lines." A transvestite prostitute stabs his customer to death when the john discovers his true sex. A prison official must decide whether this particular killer should be incarcerated with other men or put in a prison for women. Spree killer Chris Wilder drives one of his victims cross-country, then puts her on a plane back to California instead of murdering her. Rule's homicide detectives are all a heroic blend of hard work, perseverance, and courage. They do not stand out as individuals as they would if say, Joseph Wambaugh had written this book. I will remember the murderers in "A Rage to Kill" much longer than the bland policemen or the saintly victims, because they are the characters upon which Rule lavishes her most original prose. Most of these cases took place in the Seattle area, and only one that I know of has received extensive, nation-wide media attention. True-crime aficionados will appreciate Ann Rule's meticulous attention to detail, and the extensive contacts with law enforcement officials that give her a unique perspective into each of these ten stories. Comment | | (Report this)