Serial Killers: Jack the Ripper to The Zodiac Killer

by Lightning Guides

Serial Jack The Ripper to The Zodiac Killer is an exploration of the dark world of serial murder in the 20th and 21st century.  Covering international cult figures from H.H. Holmes to Luis Garavito (La Beastia), examining psychological motivations of serial murderers, and presenting some of the most terrifying unsolved cases to date, Serial Killers provides an eerie peer into the oft uncovered world of murder and mystery.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction

118 pages, Paperback

First published October 15, 2015

Reviews

[bookblurbage · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really good summary of notorious killers, a background in categorizing types of killers in depth that I never knew about and some good advice about how to avoid potential dangerous situations.

[Tracy Paden · Rating 1 out of 5]

I don't know if it's a good or bad thing that I didn't learn anything from this book that I didn't already know.

[Kayla Chittum · Rating 3 out of 5]

Serial Killers: Jack the Ripper to The Zodiac Killer by Lightning Guides offers a quick, broad survey of some of the most infamous serial murderers in history — from classic figures like Jack the Ripper to modern enigmas like the Zodiac Killer. 

What Worked:
• 📚 Concise Intro to Cases: The book serves as a rapid introduction to well-known killers and key details of their crimes. It’s easy to dip into for a quick refresher on famous cases, which can be useful for general readers or new true-crime fans.
• 🧠 Basic Motivational Notes: There are some attempts to explain motives and psychology behind certain killers, offering a spark of context beyond just listing facts. 

What Didn’t Quite Deliver:
• 📏 Surface-Level Coverage: At just over a hundred pages, the book doesn’t have much depth. If you’re hoping for thorough analysis, profound psychological insight, or original reporting, you’ll likely be left wanting more. This guide touches the edges of fascinating topics without fully exploring them.
• 🔄 Structure Feels Rushed: Case summaries sometimes feel compressed and repetitive, as though the goal was breadth over depth. For readers familiar with the subject, the details won’t feel new or especially enlightening.

Final Take:
This Lightning Guides title is a decent quick reference or casual read — useful if you want a crash course on notorious killers — but it doesn’t satisfy deeper curiosity or stand out among stronger, more analytical true-crime books. A solid 3-star read for what it is: brief, accessible, but ultimately lightweight

[Amanda Shellhorn · Rating 4 out of 5]

So, idk that I learned a whole lot that I didn’t know from this book…Which ISN’T at fault to the author because I like many others reading this am a true crime junky but I seriously still loved this book. It was interesting to have all this compiled into one book instead of the mass amount of other books it takes to read on them. It’d probably take 10 books to get all these facts and this author compiled it into one neatly written book- disgusting people though. It’s always been insane to me just how sick people are. Anyway, totally suggest this whether you’re a seasoned junkie like me or just starting out.

[Jamie Gogocha · Rating 3 out of 5]

The snippets about the history of profiling and investigation was interesting. As far as the information about the individual serial killers, it was very short and to the point, and it was all stuff that you will find in any of the documentaries or other basic books about them.

Not quite what I was hoping for when it kept coming across the desk at the library, but it was fine.

[Patricia Atkinson · Rating 2 out of 5]

this book talks about signs of a serial killer but there was nothing really new or interesting in this book not worth it

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good, brief overview of the different types of serial killers and some of the most notorious throughout the world. Includes a number of details that instilled further curiosity and potential research on specific people and subject matter. Detailed references were included in the back which makes for easy research starting points.