Cauldron of Blood: The Matamoros Cult Killings

by Jim Schutze

When Mark Kilroy disappeared in Matamoros, Mexico, his family and friends expected the worst ... but the worst was more horrifying than anyone ever imagined ! One month later, his mutilated corpse was discovered, along with the grisly remains of thirteen others, in a makeshift grave on a barren stretch of Mexican land called Rancho Santa Elena. All had died at the hands of a charismatic madman and his fanatic followers - the brutalized victims in a bizarre religious ritual of torture, cannibalism ..and human sacrifice.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, Crime, History, Cults

248 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1989

Reviews

[Jared Roberts · Rating 2 out of 5]

Schutze wrote an odd book here, weaving in and out of biography, sociology, anthropology, and criminology. The problem is, he doesn't weave very well and a lot of it feels like padding.

When I read true crime, I'm particularly interested in the crime: how it happened, what happened, and the ensuing investigation into who did it and why. If we took just that from Cauldron of Blood, we'd be left with thirty pages. That's unfortunate, because it's the best part of this book.

The crimes are unpleasant in the extreme. The book is as tasteful as is possible in a true crime book. The investigation that follows is a fascinating one requiring a great deal of political pressure. Schutze does well making this compelling. There's just not enough of it.

The rest of the book deals mostly with Schutze's awkward account of occultism. He makes one sweeping generalization after another, like "all cultures" use frog intestines in their potions? Did you know that? No, he made it up. He doesn't need this statement for the subject he's treating, namely the occult practices of the cartel. That doesn't stop him. Similarly, his accounts of the cult leader and cartel families are full of glib comments that are just off-putting.

For a true crime book that does all of this right, read The Monster of Florence. Still, if you're interested in this instance of modern-day human sacrifice, Cauldron of Blood is the definitive text.

[Gail · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not even well-written. Fascinating facts but the book was so dry and hard to follow I skimmed most of it. Not recommended.

[♥ Marlene♥ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Treated myself to some true crime books. It is getting harder and harder finding good ones that are affordable but I think I managed it again.
This was a little more expensive but it had some great reviews so I had to get it.

Well Finished today and it took me long to read because it was kind of a struggle. Hindsight is a bitch they say and if I had known it was a bit the same as Gary Provost's book I would not have bought it even though the writing is okay I was just not that interested. Lots of explaining about black magic and lots of stories about people with beautiful Spanish names but I am too forgetful and with a real book you can not do a search when you forget who someone is so I think this book might have been better for me if I could have read it on my kindle. That being said I would not pay any more money so I am not in agreement with all the raving reviews. Hardly any info about all the people that were in the cult and were caught. What happened later on. There were a few photos in the book but not many. I managed to find one online where the cultists were led for tv cameras.

There were so many journalists but if you search online there are hardly any pictures of the villains. The ones that are there are all the same ones. Hmm Do I smell a rat? Must be that voodoo. ;)

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting book diving into customers, cultures, and the occult but took too long for my taste to get to the crime. So much background information was given to get to the point of the murders it was kind of like two separate books joined together. I’d have read them both separately, but there wasn’t enough balance and weaving together of the crime. It was very informative though and well written.

[Eduardo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting case but also atrocious and terrible. I believe the narrative is bit repetitive and that can be boring after a few chapters.

[Stefanie Robinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Adolfo Constanzo was the leader of the Narcosatanists, a group of people who trafficked drugs and participated in occult rituals. Constanzo was a practitioner of Palo Mayombe, an African religion that involves the sacrifice of animals. Constanzo met up with some others, and together they operated a business based on the practice of Palo Mayombe. They charged people decent sums of money for what boils down to good luck charms. People would pay for his magical/religious knowledge to bring them good fortune in family or business dealings. Constanzo began raiding cemeteries for body parts, placing them in a cauldron. The Narcosatanists believed the spirits of the dead whose parts were bubbling in the cauldron would protect them and bring them fortune, and eventually decided to add parts from live human sacrifices to the mixture. This led the gang to kill upwards of 20 people for parts. During their rituals they would drink from this fermented, festering slime in the cauldron as a way to gain power and prestige. Police were determined to find out what happen to an American student who was kidnapped by the Narcosatanists, which uncovered a lot more than they bargained for.

This book was very interesting. I learned a lot about a religion I had never heard of, which I liked. I am always interested in learning about other cultures and religions. I can say with certainty that I would not wish to drink anything out of any cauldron with fermented corpse parts. I had briefly heard about this group from a podcast I used to listen to on Spotify, called Cults. I also believe this was mentioned on another podcast that I used to listen to, The Last Podcast on the Left. This was thoroughly researched and provided a lot of information about the case and all those involved. I am sure my roommates at work loved all the faces I was making at this book.

[María Tovar · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cauldron of Blood: The Matamoros Cult Killings prometía mucho más de lo que entrega. Y eso es justo lo que más frustra.

El caso del asesinato de Mark Killroy es, sin rodeos, uno de los episodios criminales más perturbadores y simbólicos del cruce entre narcotráfico, sectarismo y violencia ritual en la frontera. Me fascina el caso —por lo que dice del poder, del miedo y del imaginario—, pero este libro no está a la altura.

Schutze opta por un enfoque excesivamente sensacionalista, cargado de morbo y reiteración, como si desconfiara de que los hechos por sí solos ya fueran lo bastante fuertes. El resultado es un texto que insiste, machaca y se recrea, pero no profundiza. Mucha sangre, poco contexto.

El gran problema es que el libro se queda en la superficie: no explora con rigor ni el entramado cultural del culto, ni el contexto socioeconómico de Matamoros, ni el papel estructural del narcotráfico en la impunidad. Todo queda reducido a una crónica oscura que avanza a trompicones, sin una tesis clara ni una mirada verdaderamente periodística.

Y es una pena, porque el asesinato de Kilroy merecía algo mejor: un trabajo que ayudara a entender, no solo a estremecerse. Aquí hay páginas que parecen escritas para impactar al lector medio, no para respetar la inteligencia de quien quiere ir más allá del horror.

No es que el caso no me interese. Es que el tratamiento es pobre, repetitivo y, por momentos, irresponsable.

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

My non fiction book club read Cults: Inside the World's Most Notorious Groups and Understanding the People Who Joined Them and I have been going through the cults in the book trying to learn a little bit more about them.

While this book discusses the Narcosatanists, its main focus is on Mark Kilroy and his disappearance. It was interesting, but not what I was looking for.

[Shelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was interesting, yet terrifying. Some of the statistics are probably dated by now, and the author did characterize several groups with stereotypes. However, as an investigation into the disappearance of Mark Kilroy, this book is very good. It explains the sequence of events and the dangerous investigative work by authorities on both sides of the border to solve the mystery. The book explores the origins of the cult activity that led to Kilroy's kidnapping. I would say some of the events are unbelievable, but the evidence that they happened is irrefutable.

[Sue Daul · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kind of tough to read. A lot about voodoo written in a somewhat dry style at the beginning of the book.
The actual story and fact that it is all true made it worth plowing through the beginning of the book. The actual crime was bizarre & horrifying and it still kind of blows my mind!

[Karen Bullock · Rating 4 out of 5]

An intense & in-depth read into some very dark religious practices that took me awhile to absorb.
The author handles with precision & underneath is a layer of warnings & cautious behavior when your out traveling.

[Morgan]

very good

[Emma Reilly · Rating 3 out of 5]

pretty overwritten but a good overview and resource for someone trying to write a history thesis (me)

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting! I agree with others that there is a lot of history and back stories of the religions and rituals, but I am a history buff, so I did enjoy that. I read it on my Kindle and didn't realize there were actual police photos in the book. I was taken by surprise when they showed up! Very intense! The story is wild. There are also a few podcasts about this case if you're interested. It's truly a mind blowing case.

[Duane · Rating 4 out of 5]

there's a *really* good review of this here .
I couldn't really add much to it but it's worth linking to.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

you won't be able to sleep at night.