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A Rage To Kill and Other True Cases: Anne Rule's Crime Files, Vol. 6 (Ann Rule's Crime Files, 6) |
Author: Ann Rule
Published: 1999-08-01 |
List price: $7.99
Our price: $7.99
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As of: December 01st, 2008 05:57:56 PM
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Customer comments on this selection.
 Absolutely one of Ann Rule's best (and that's saying a lot)
I have read several of Ann Rule's books, including her Crime Files series, and for me, this collection of true crime short stories is one of her best. While I enjoy all her books, I have wondered how she decides which cases will receive more in-depth treatment than others in the Crime FIle series. This collection, on the other hand, gives just enough length to provide a good understanding of each case, and more importantly, helps the reader recognize some of the bizarre psychological profiles of individuals they may have actually encountered personally, as well as the fatal mistakes some innocent people make. Ann's preface to the case "As Close as a Brother" may describe your own teenage or college-age daughter's naivete very well; for this reason alone, it is highly recommended reading.
As for Ann Rule's prose, it is refreshing to compare her highly readable and absorbing work to the slipshod, error-riddled products that are somehow published so frequently these days. Thank goodness she knows her stuff and writes with great ease; this is what allows her to produce such a generous body of work.
 middling quality for ann rule
This is Volume 6 of Ann Rule's Crime Files. Some of Ann Rule's best books have been her "Crime Files" collections, but only when the volume is built around a book-length treatment of a fairly fresh case. The best collection by far has been "Last Dance, Last Chance". This book is somewhat like "Without Pity" in that the cases all seem kind of old. If, like me, you are a big Ann Rule fan who can't get enough, and waits anxiously for each new title, you should definitely get this book. It contains some interesting cases, just none that will knock your socks off. There is not the psychological depth here that we hope for in Ann Rule's very best work, that leaves the reader totally blown away. If you are new to Ann Rule, read one of her truly great books, like "Small Sacrifices", "The Stranger Beside Me", or "Everything She Ever Wanted". Read any of these and you will be hooked on Ann Rule too.
 Come to Seattle and die
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.
True Crime Accounts by a Master of the Genre
Ten different cases profile the victim and killer in Ann Rule's typical style. She reveals the vulnerabilities of the victim and the psychological influences that drove the murderer. Some are sex crimes, one is a spree killer and one murders a bus driver resulting in 30 people hurtling five stories down from a bridge in the out-of-control bus.
It's a diverse batch of murderers, so true crime readers can surely find a few that fit their interests. Rule's detailed research and analysis of the motivation illuminate these frightening case studies.
Transvestite prostitutes and spree killers
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.
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