There is only one John Douglas.
We first met Douglas in Mindhunter, which told the story of his brilliant and terrifying with the FBI until his retirement in 1995. And now, again with coauthor Mark Olshaker, he goes even further. We accompany him on the Journey Into Darkness that marks every case he examines; every instance in which he helps police identify the unknown perpetrator of a violent series of rapes, kidnappings, or murders through his remarkable criminal personality profiling.
In this fascinating audio experience, we journey with some of the brilliant and sensitive agents John has trained, who have carried on his work. We take a startlingly fresh look at the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman as if John had been asked by the LAPD to identify the killer through behavioral profiling. And we hear how a lifetime around killers and their victims has shaped his views on justice and punishment.
The Journey Into Darkness is a perilous one, but ultimately a hopeful one as well. For not only do we see from the men and women who track the most sadistic of criminals what a powerful weapon profiling has become, we also get advice on how we might better keep our children, our families and ourselves safe from harm. By making the Journey Into Darkness with John Douglas and his colleagues, we come away with an insight into the human condition that no one else can offer.
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"avid watchers of id discovery and ci network will want to read this book. the stories can get one on edge or push one towards paranoia given the sometimes random nature of the crimes, but the author does a good job of presenting the numbers as tools against this kind of thinking (one should focus more on the probability of a crime occurring and the type of victim/situation/etc.). i enjoyed the social psychological aspect that the author implemented, but it seemed superficial and chastising at times as if he was mad at the public. toward the end of the book it seemed to hit a bump. it seemed to repeat itself. he did explain his view of human nature, however it escapes me at the moment (the little i think i can remember claims that people can be bad, but some are evil. of those few can be helped, but most cannot). from that (recalled argument) his political point is based on. the cases were presented well to get into the mind of a profiler and where to focus one's efforts if they wanted to pursue the interest."
— Danesh (4 out of 5 stars)
“A good choice for anyone fascinated by the subject matter.”
— AudioFile" It's factual while still maintaining a personal touch, it's really intense and interesting, giving us an insight into what their FBI team had to deal with on a daily level. I loved every moment of it. "
— Lauren, 2/16/2014" Good stuff about bad things "
— Fred, 2/13/2014" Although the author leads with promised stories of the "most terrifying serial criminals", the book is padded with more general information on personal safety and some factoids on criminals, especially murderers. "
— Glenda, 2/6/2014" This was the first book that I read about serial killers and murderers and it fascinated me to find out what went on in their heads. A truly great read. "
— Faith, 2/4/2014" Love John Douglas "
— Alana, 1/16/2014" The FBI's Premier Investigative Profiler penetrates the minds and motives of the most terrifying serial criminals. One chapter was on O.J. Simpson. That chapter made a lot of sense. I loved seeing how they profile. They can tell what personality the criminal has from looking at the crime scene. "
— Vikki, 1/13/2014" Being a devoted viewer or shows like CSI & Criminal Minds I thought this book would be interesting since it's written by one of the original Criminal Mind profilers for the FBI. Of course it was more hard to follow these crimes since you know from the start they are real cases. I did question whether I should let myself into that mind set or not. I did like how the author would go back & retrace where perhaps earlier efforts form law enforcement may have missed clues or signs on these criminals. He did write the stories always with a perspective of "What could everyone have done to prevent this?" which gave off an odd aura of hope that these horrible events at least had some future value to society as warnings all around. However, at the end he got much too heavy handed with his political opinions and I started to zone out as it felt too much as if he was preaching and obviously spinning one particular case to support his opinion. It's not that I necessarily have some deep disagreement with his stance at all - I just didn't like his tone. I actually think my favorite part was the last chapter when he looked at the OJ Simpson case and retraced it as if HE had been called in to to profile the killer. It was not a surprising revelation, but I appreciated the profiler viewpoint on a case that like which gave it a more detached way of coming to the same conclusion everyone *except* those twelve jurors came to: OJ did it. "
— Christina, 1/8/2014" It was a little wandering, and had no real through line throughout the book. Each chapter was interesting separately, but they didn't connect. Which is fine, had I realized that going in. "
— Trisha, 1/6/2014" An at times unbearably sad and disturbing look into the crimes committed by of serial killers and how the profilers at the FBI Behavioral Sciences Lab in Quantico, Virginia helped to catch them. Made me feel like locking up my 15, 18 and 22 year-old daughters. "
— Pascale, 12/17/2013" I love the info in all of the books by John Douglas. It's great that he breaks things down the way he does. Too bad he thinks he has to tell us how great he is too - what an ego! "
— Jennifer, 11/29/2013" This is a continuation of Mind Hunters, more cases, just not quite as good as the first book. Still scary. "
— Eric, 10/27/2013" Read Mindhunter or The Anatomy of Motive instead. I found this one to be a less interesting version of his other works. "
— Jen, 10/25/2013" Another chilling but fascinating book by one of my favorite authors. "
— Brittany, 10/24/2013" Very disturbing, and though certainly insightful, I found myself shying away from reading about other people's real pain. "
— Dev, 9/22/2013" A little too gruesome for me, but I did finish it and enjoy the psychy behind it. "
— Ali, 9/10/2013" I have difficulties trying to find out the purpose of this book. Some parts I read of how to avoid crime. Some parts I read victim's family grieves. Most parts I read the author accomplishments throughtout his career. These are not why I picked up the book. "
— Sae-chan, 7/8/2013" The chapter on the OJ trial is reason enough to read this book. "
— Michelle, 2/8/2013" This is a good educational book, cant really say i "liked" it. it is after all about really evil people that are walking among us. good read though as you learn from the man that created criminal profiling. "
— William, 8/19/2012" Another moribidly fascinating crime book (see Mindhunter's description if you really want to know about this. It's more or less a continuation) Remember these books are exceedingly graphic. I just find forensics absolutely gripping. "
— Jill, 6/28/2012" A journey into the twisted minds of serial killers and rapists. Laymen can learn a lot from one of the FBI's original profilers. "
— Beka, 5/27/2012" Makes you think twice about walking alone at night. Or ever. Contemplating a large investment in a barbed fence, a pit bull and a mote after reading about some of the heinous crimes he's profiled. "
— Nitsa, 2/29/2012" Thank God for John Douglas and the hard work he has done in his career with the FBI to incorporate Criminal Profiling as a valid science, in understanding and apprehending viscous sociopaths and getting them off the streets. "
— Isabel, 12/17/2011" creepy but really good to learn about what law enforcement have to go through... "
— Diane, 6/11/2011" Great source of information. "
— Rena, 6/10/2011" I thought this book was fascinating. There are some really nasty and worthless people out there and this book sheds some light on them; and the people that track them down. "
— Matt, 2/2/2011" One of the books I read when I was intersted in behavioral studies. Pretty good, but very grim. "
— Jonathan, 12/6/2010" Interesting to read, but truly creepy. "
— Tory, 9/28/2010" I don't like true crime and hardly ever read it. I read this because I thought it might relate to the stuff I teach in my psychology classes, or at least give me some intersting anecdotes. I thought it did that pretty well and was a good read. "
— Charles, 8/23/2010" This book gets a little too preachy, even if it is talking about the worst monsters that roam earth -- sexual predators. The long chapter on how to teach your kid about stranger danger is just embarrassing and unnecessary. "
— John, 6/26/2010" A journey into the twisted minds of serial killers and rapists. Laymen can learn a lot from one of the FBI's original profilers. "
— Beka, 2/20/2010" It is interesting to see what makes criminals tick. I like to think I learned ways to protect myself and the people I care about. I choose not to be a victim. "
— Trudy, 2/15/2010" I skimmed most of this because the author can sort of go on and on but it was still interesting to a crime/FBI/profiling freak such as me. Plus I now see where Criminal Minds gets 99% of its storylines from! "
— April, 2/15/2010" I love this book. The insight to the criminal mind is intriquing. The details of the cases he has worked and the way he has come up with the priofile of the killer or perp was a amazing.I want to read his other books. "
— Gina, 9/22/2009" Although the author leads with promised stories of the "most terrifying serial criminals", the book is padded with more general information on personal safety and some factoids on criminals, especially murderers. <br/> "
— Glenda, 9/15/2009" I liked Mindhunter better because the author stuck to what he knew and kept to a tighter structure. This work was less organized and was all over the map on subject matter and purpose. "
— Shad, 5/26/2009" Showed me we all need to work together to protect the vulnerable. "
— Gail, 4/10/2009" I love the info in all of the books by John Douglas. It's great that he breaks things down the way he does. Too bad he thinks he has to tell us how great he is too - what an ego! "
— Jennifer, 10/1/2008John Douglas is a former special agent with the US Federal Bureau of Investigation, one of the first criminal profilers, and a criminal psychology writer. While working for the FBI, he headed the elite Investigative Support Unit and was the real-life model for FBI Agent Jack Crawford in The Silence of the Lambs. Upon his retirement, Douglas, along with acclaimed author and Emmy award-winning filmmaker Mark Olshaker, created Mindhunters, Inc., a website providing information on their writing as well as criminal justice and profiler resources.
Mark Olshaker is an Emmy Award–winning filmmaker and a New York Times bestselling nonfiction author. His seven books with former FBI Special Agent and criminal profiling pioneer John E. Douglas, beginning with Mindhunter, have sold millions of copies, been translated into many languages, and along with his Emmy-nominated PBS film Mind of a Serial Killer, made Olshaker a sought-after speaker and consultant on law enforcement–related issues.