Lust Killer, Updated Edition [Mass Market Paperback]

Ann Rule (Author), Andy Stack (Pseudonym)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 7, 1983

Linda Slawson disappeared while trying to make a living selling encyclopaedias door-to-door. Jan Whitney never completed her two-hour drive home on the freeway. Karen Sprinkler failed to turn up for lunch with her mother. As a pattern of disappearances emerges, Oregon State Police launch a search for the sadistic monster capable of the most grisly murders.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Signet; later printing edition (June 7, 1983)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451166876
• ISBN-13: 978-0451166876
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (43 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #43,781 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #26 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Nonfiction > True Accounts > Murder & Mayhem
  • #58 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > True Accounts > Serial Killers

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

75 of 78 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A terrifying story, very well told . . ., December 3, 1999

By 

James - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lust Killer, Updated Edition (Mass Market Paperback)

Once again, Ann Rule proves why she is one of the best. "Lust Killer" is a concise and insightful look into the life and crimes of serial killer Jerome Brudos. But more than that, it is a chilling look into the often forgotten realm of victimology. Think you're safe when you go to the mall at high noon? Read this book. Think a man who looks like a big dumb teddy bear can't possibly be a threat to you? Read this book. Think a chance encounter with some stranger in a typical middle-class neighborhood is no big deal? Read this book. Oh, and one more thing . . . be ready to look over your shoulder the next time you go shopping.

33 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "He has no mercy in him.", April 30, 2005

By 

E. A. Lovitt "starmoth" (Gladwin, MI USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Lust Killer, Updated Edition (Mass Market Paperback)

One of the most frightening aspects of this true-crime story is that theoretically, the serial killer, Jerry Brudos could be released back into the community. He's been in the Oregon State Penitentiary for over twenty years now, manufacturing leather key fobs, collecting women's shoe catalogues, and keeping the prison's computer network humming. If he does get his freedom, no one should be surprised if he starts collecting women's shoes again--with the feet still in them.

I found "Lust Killer" to be one of Ann Rule's most disturbing books, not in the least because a young, door-to-door encyclopedia saleswoman was Jerry Brudos's first murder victim. Usually I can distance myself from serial killer victims, telling myself that I would never allow myself to get in a situation like that, e.g. hitching a ride on the freeway. However, I did sell encyclopedias door-to-door while I was working my way through college, and yes, our bosses insisted that we wear high heels. If I'd been flogging my books in Oregon, my foot might have ended up in Brudos's freezer, too.

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. One good lesson does come out of this book though: the author emphasizes that the victims who fought got away. The ones who yielded or tried to talk their way out of captivity, died a gruesome death.

The author tells the story of Jerry Brudos, from several perspectives, including that of the unlucky encyclopedia saleswoman, Brudos's wife, and the homicide detectives who finally trapped and arrested him. Mainly though, we see the serial killer through his own thoughts and actions. I don't know how Ann Rule got into his head, but she does a very chilling job of portraying this man who preferred his sex partners dead, and who saved some very grisly souvenirs of his exploits.

One of the most pitiable victims was Jerry Brodos's clueless wife. She was actually arrested, charged, and tried for abetting in his murders (he brought his victims to his workshop in his garage, where he tortured, murdered, and dismembered them), mainly because her neighbors and the police couldn't believe that she didn't know what was going on. Her husband certainly gave her lots of hints: he never let her access the freezer in the garage--if she wanted something from it for dinner, he fetched it for her; he left nude photos and moulds of women's breasts lying around in the house; he occasionally paraded around in front of her wearing women's clothing.

She was just one of those women who never challenged an authority figure, no matter how strangely he behaved.

One factual error in the book: Wisconsin killer Ed Gein did not murder his mother as stated by the author in this book. On December 29th, 1945, Gein's mother died after a series of strokes, and Ed felt that he had "lost his only friend and one true love. And he was absolutely alone in the world." (quoted from Harold Schechter in his book "Deviant").

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Read--Ann Rule Does It Again, January 14, 2000

By 

Kathleen E. Coleman - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lust Killer, Updated Edition (Mass Market Paperback)

Ann Rule weaves the double life of Jerry Brudos beautifully into a tapestry of pre-modern forensic science. Before the days of DNA testing,psychological profiling and victim awareness, Ann Rule gives a clear, concise look into the mind of a psychopath. Jerry Brudos was able to fool those around him into thinking he was an O.K. guy, a good husband, and gifted electrician. He kept his wife in the dark about his bizaare sexual/murderous crimes, while continuously being on the move to stay ahead of the law. A big, homely man, he nevertheless was able to convince many smart, beautiful women that he was safe to be with. It's an eye-opener to the real dangers in life. Our mothers were right when they said, "Don't talk to strangers." Listen to your inner voice and stay safe.