Silent Death, Second Edition [Paperback]

Uncle Fester (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 1997

This book details the home or clandestine manufacture of poisonous materials, with an emphasis upon guerrilla war applications. Topics covered in detail include nerve gases, ricin, botulin toxin, and much more. The Aum cult in Tokyo used this book as their lab manual.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

I am considered the world's foremost clandestine chemist. See the George magazine feature article about me in the Dec. 1999 issue. I spend my days working as an industrial chemist in the electroplating field, and raise my two kids as a single dad. I wish I had some time to write more books these days. I went to Marquette U in Milwaukee, and graduated with a double major in Chemistry and Biology.

Product Details

• Paperback: 136 pages
• Publisher: Festering Publications; 2nd edition (May 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0970148534
• ISBN-13: 978-0970148537
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #894,045 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Okay, but not great, September 22, 2004

By 

a reader (connecticut) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Silent Death, Second Edition (Paperback)

SILENT DEATH does have some interesting stuff in it, but there also parts that I found a bit ridiculous.
The corrections to bad information in "The Poormans James Bond" are much appreciated, as are the little anecdotes that appear from time to time. However, some info is really off the wall. For example, one chapter includes instructions for delivering a poison from 1,000 feet above: Uncle Fester tells you that all you have to do is buy an issue of Popular Mechanics magazine, get the instructions for building a small airplane (using a VW Beetle engine), build it, join a club of pilots and learn how to fly the thing, find a location (not an airport) where you can take off and land without being noticed, build the little gas bomb, and drop it on your intended target! Why don't I just build a nuclear submarine while I'm at it?
Then there is another poison that he states is "really terrific, one of my favorites and very easy to make with all the ingredients readily available...EXCEPT ONE". Well, if one ingredient is unavailable, what good does the rest of the info do me?
There is also a short but interesting chapter on using hydrogen peroxide as a fire starter. Uncle Fester acknowledges that the drug store stuff is only 3% potent and you need more like 30% to do the job, but there is no info on how to distill it or whatever. Frustrating.
Pick this book up if you find a used one at a low price. Don't pay $20 for it.

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Fun but perhaps a lttle dated, April 7, 2007

By 

Thomas J. Green "Computer Doctor" (Rural NC) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Silent Death, Second Edition (Paperback)

An interesting read, but the availablity of his raw material is problematic. Carbon Tet these days requires EPA registration, and is for practical purposes unavailable. Metal (red) phosphorus is $1000 a gram and I could only find in 10g quantities.

The end of the book on naturally occuring poisons is more practical to my view.

6 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a writer needs to know., February 16, 2007

By 

Maria (Hampton, VA, United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Silent Death, Second Edition (Paperback)

For mystery writers like me, this is a wonderful resource; full of information that you can't find anywhere else. Granted, it isn't intended to be used in the real world! I expect bits and pieces of what I learned to stain the pages of my next book.