The World's Worst Serial Killers: Shocking Crimes and Unspeakable Murders

by Al Cimino

Serial killers are the most terrifying criminals out there. They find themselves driven to kill and kill again and no amount of reason or logic can stop their orgy of violence. Often they masquerade as ordinary members of society. The body counts continue to rise until their shocking crimes are uncovered by dogged detective work or their own mistakes.

This collection features more than 60 of the most evil serial killers from across the globe,
• Charles Manson, who led a cult of death and destruction in Los Angeles,
• Ted Bundy, who charmed women into returning home with him before revealing his true self,
• John Wayne Gacy, who worked part-time as a clown for children's birthday parties while in secret took home teenage boys to abuse and kill,
• Tamara Samsonova, the 'Granny Ripper' who chopped up her victims and dumped them outside her flat,
• Daniel Carmago Barbosa, one of the most prolific serial killers of all time, with more than 150 victims,
• and many more.

ABOUT THE The True Crime Casefiles series covers some of the most shocking crimes and notorious criminals and psychopaths of all time, without shying away from the grisly details. These books include psychological profiles, witness testimonies, court proceedings and more, accompanied by chilling photographs of the people and places involved.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction

464 pages, Paperback

Published September 3, 2024

Reviews

[Jenni V. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was an impulse buy while browsing. Even though it's hefty it's digestible, with a few pages devoted to each person and pictures throughout the book.

This was a good book but one I could only read a little at a time before it started affecting me, especially at night. It wasn't overly gruesome but it was graphic and reading page after page of depravity was tough. There were so many serial killers in this book, I had no idea so many different people were able to murder for years and years before being caught.

It's frustrating how many times the killer would be on the police's radar yet still able to continue killing, sometimes even for years. At first I thought this was the reason this book was hitting me so hard, because of the seemingly unnecessary deaths if they'd been stopped sooner, but then as I continued reading a new layer of this discomfort hit me. I realized so many of these killers are white and I feel that's a major contributing factor to why they would be questioned and let go, or flimsy excuses/alibis would be accepted, or they would be found guilty but put on probation, etc. How many minority suspects have been jailed and/or lynched for much much less evidence?

Find all my reviews at: https://readingatrandom.blogspot.com

[Matthew · Rating 5 out of 5]

True crime has become an obsession in America. Anyone interested in true crime in general, or a particular event or criminal, can find books, documentaries, and even podcasts that will both entertain and inform. The World’s Worst Serial Killers:Shocking Crimes and Unspeakable Murders (London: Arcturus Limited, 2024, 464 pages, $16.99) is an important contribution to the literature surrounding serial killers, a branch of true crime that seems to fascinate with every turn of the page. The World’s Worst Serial Killers presents brief biographies of killers such as John Wayne Gacy, Ted Bundy, and Edmund Kemper, along with lesser known European killers such as Enriqueta Marti and Donato Bilancia. The mini-biographies are rich in detail but not too intense for general readers.
Serial killers are synonymous with crime and with evil. Many of them killed vulnerable members of the population, including prostitutes, the homeless, and the elderly. Author Al Cimino chronicles the lives of these infamous people and the impact that their crimes had on their families, friends, and the towns they called home. Each of the individuals described in these pages seemed to be destined for a life of crime from an early age. Cimino relates how their behaviors as young children and adolescents fits perfectly into the literature of evil that dominates the early years of serial killers.
The World’s Worst Serial Killers is an exceptional read. The vignettes of serial killers are arranged by method of killing in order to create a cohesive narrative. Each killer is heard from in their own words and actions. The reader who is seeking an introduction to this difficult topic can feel comfortable beginning with this volume. The World’s Worst Serial Killers fills a much-needed place in the general public’s need to understand their fellow human beings.


Matt


The World’s Worst Serial Killers
Al Cimino
arcturuspublishing.com
ISBN: 9781398837737 464pgs. $16.99 $0.99 Kindle

[ashley summers · Rating 1 out of 5]

had this book been properly written it could have been great and very informative. however, there were so many spelling and grammatical errors i thought i was going to have a freaking stroke reading this garbage. not to mention the author was very back and forth. he’d talk about a killer’s kill, then go back in time and then flash forward again with no warning or context so you’d have to piece together the proper order in which things are supposed to go. absolutely horrendous. i assume this guy had no editor before publishing this trash book. my ten year old could’ve wrote a better one. i’m pissed i wasted $9 on this.

[Sarah Martiszus · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked how this book was written and personally liked how it did not go into extreme detail and was more of an overview of the depraved and evil acts these people inflicted on innocent people. It was heartbreaking to see the amount of times poor investigation was responsible for killers to continue but I thought overall it was a fascinating read that is a great start to the topic of serial killers. Once again read at your own discretion. all of this information is hard to stomach and always take a break or stop entirely reading if it is effectign your mental health.

[Alyssa Allen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked it. I felt it explained about each killer and what they did; however, it didn't go into much detail. For being such a large book, I was expecting a bit more case-study rather than a listing of each victim and methodology. I want to know the psychological aspect behind the killers, etc. It was interesting and a good read between other books, but I wanted more. Some descriptions of the killings made me a bit squeamish, though, and that doesn't happen often, so props.

[Isa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Serial killers have a pattern and a MO, so I expected a bit of repetition, but some of the sections seemed to drag on forever, repeating the same things over and over. I did start to feel sick by the end of the book— there’s only so much devastation you can read without a break, so it did its job. This book also had a peculiarly large number of grammatical mistakes? Made it feel less credible. Overall, an intriguing yet disturbing read, as it says on the tin.

[ಇ · Rating 4 out of 5]

very interesting & enjoyed almost everything. just wish there was more historical killers or maybe some obscure/lesser known ones! don't get me wrong, still enjoyed reading about john wayne gacy and ted bundy but they've been told so much i kind of skipped over them. def good to read if you are an avid true crime enjoyer!

[William Byers · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought it was a well written book that covered all
The famous serial killers not only in America but all
Over the world. I gave it a three star because I had a hard time following all the jumping around and skipping ahead in a serial killers life time. Overall a good read to get some general knowledge of serial killers.

[Rachel Kennedy · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you enjoy reading about true crime, this is a look at multiple cases from the 1970s forward in a matter-of-fact way that is easy to follow. However, based upon the title, there are at least two individuals missing which I would have thought would be included, namely Dahmer and Keyes.

[Laura Aase · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting! Reintroducing many I knew about and many more I didn’t. Also, the world piece and following other countries was interesting too. Got a little redundant…

[John Sexton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting read. I got some good information for my Criminology class.

[KayTea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing book!! However it doesn't go into great detail about the killers themselves. But overall very concise and good read!

[Jake Keyes · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good summary of many of the worlds most notorious monsters.

[Tanya Meara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book with short stories of various serial killers.

[Anna Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

Murderers from all over the world. Several missing from the US. Aside from the copious amounts of miss spellings and several murderers that should have been added, it was informative. 🤷🏻‍♀️Some I’ve never heard of or they were labeled mentally incompetent some were the definition of a monster.

[Courtney Speed · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you like crime then this is the book for you. It goes through history of serial killers some are very cringeworthy and some are just plain ignorant and predictable

[Collin Greenwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well researched and written account of very shocking events. My only gripe is the way that some portions kept jumping forward and back in time a lot, making the timeline hard to keep track of.