Supernatural Serial Killers: What makes them murder?

by Samantha Lyon

Albert Fish held the genuine belief that the murders he committed were upon instruction from God. Peter Stumpp, who started practising the "wicked arts from twelve years of age", was convinced he was a werewolf. There are many more murderous individuals like them. Supernatural Serial Killers explores the association between serial killers and the supernatural. The crimes committed by these men and women usually involved sexual deviance, cannibalism and violence toward children. In sixteenth century Europe, the problem became so significant that 'Werewolf Witch Trials' were conducted - many have no idea that it was possible to be tried and convicted for the crime of being a Werewolf, but Lycanthropy was a serious and major social concern in the 1500s. In this book, approximately twenty supernatural serial killers are discussed, including their background, crimes, trials and defences.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, Horror

384 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2016

Reviews

[☼Bookish in Virginia☼ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Back when I was a ridiculously young-adult and was considering being an author I did a good deal of reading about toxins and murderers. Long after I abandoned that most inappropriate career option I found myself still interested in the subject, not so much from a morbid curiosity in the grisly details, but because I could not for one second put myself in their place.  I couldn't grasp how anyone could become so ghoulish, and as I'm eternally fascinated by the spectrum of human conditions, books in the serial killer vain still catch my attention.

Now I haven't read a book about serial killers in some time, but the title of this book caught my eye and piqued my interest.  What did the authors mean by 'supernatural'.  Were they referring to something like possession? Did they find that serial killers believed in the supernatural?  What in the world did the 'other realm' have to do with unbalanced individuals?

The truth is that the Supernatural aspect of the material is almost superfluous.  It doesn't have to do with the motivation of the perps as much as it gives the reader a historical framework for how the general populace perceives the actions of these rare individuals.  For in the place of any understanding of such heinous crimes people throughout history have resorted to Vampire and Werewolf tales to explain away the aberration that is the serial killer.  Even into modern times.

Samantha Lyon's and Dr Daphne Tan's book is well researched.  And one of the aspects of the book that I enjoyed was their attempt to locate ancient evidence of the existence of serial killers.  And so the 16 chapters, each dedicated to an individual, begins in the mid-1500s with the 'Werewolves of Poligny', and proceeds throughout the centuries until Jack Spillman III, the 'Werewolf Butcher', circa 1995.

*note that those with squeamish tummies should probably resist this book.

Those who are curious about serial killers will get a solid overview of the subject. Lyon's and Tan's book isn't just a salacious effort.  They make the attempt to explain and understand some of the common factors that can be found in the backgrounds of this type of criminal.   [Did you know that head injuries are a common factor?]  And they examine each individual using that categorization/typology of  Holmes and DeBurger.

It's this latter that I think is a little weak.  The discussion was lighter than I would have wanted, but probably appropriate for most readers.  I can't help it, I tend to lean a little to the academic.

If this topic is within your reading categories you might certainly want to pick up SUPERNATURAL SERIAL KILLERS.  It was an entertaining and informative read.

~review copy
~book #4 for 2016

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

At first I thought this would be interesting but it was written so plainly that it became dull very quick. Brief facts and minimal information for each case also added to an already dull read. Even the authors summary and speculation at times was not that impressive either. I received this book from Netgalley for a fair and honest review. Would not recommend.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

not as supernatural as I'd hoped. interesting cases highlighted but there were a few that was exceptionally upsetting to me I had to skim. good overview, but could have been deeper.

[SerialReader · Rating 5 out of 5]

Supernatural Serial Killers is such a good and interesting book about 16 of the most notorious serial killers ever known: the Blood Countess Elizabeth Bathory, The Vampire of Sacramento, The Night Stalker and Jeffrey Dahmer.
A deep and chronologically precise discussion including their singular crimes, trials and sentences and psychological and criminological background that may have affected their life and criminal activity.

[Jessica White · Rating 3 out of 5]

Werewolves, vampires, and witchcraft, oh my!
Oh wait, you mean they're just serial killers?
Supernatural Serial Killers: Chilling Cases of Paranormal Bloodlust and Deranged Fantasy focuses on serial killers that have animalist of Satanic characteristics. It starts in the 1800's with vicious werewolf attacks, at least that's what society thought it was. There murders were so brutal they could not fathom how anything other than an animal could have caused the gruesome scenes. When it was apparent that werewolves were no longer popular, the murderers obviously had to be vampires. No person in their right mind would commit murders and drain victims of their blood. They were drinking directly from their victims wounds and could not control the impulse to do so. Some even went as far to cannibalize their victims as a means to gain power. Witchcraft came about in the 1900's when murderers began placing blame hallucinations, deities, Satan, even God Himself.
All of the murders could be described in great detail and oftentimes had an motive behind it. These killers were not werewolves, vampires, or witches. They suffered from mental illnesses that were not yet discovered, therefore society could not comprehend the violence happening around them. They found it easier to blame a mythical creature than to believe that someone in their community could commit such heinous crimes.

Huge thank you to NetGalley for giving me an advanced copy of Supernatural Serial Killers!
I was given this e-book many, many months ago and apologize for just now getting around to reading it!

This review and more can be found at A Reader's Diary!

[Erin · Rating 2 out of 5]

ARC for review.

Other than the earliest serial killers portrayed here, whose crimes were often linked to "monsters" because it was probably felt unlikely that a human could have performed some of the monstrous acts attributed to these murders the use of the word "supernatural" in the title feels like a stretch to sell books - with few exceptions involving possible ritualistic murders, most of the modern-day killers were just garden-variety serial killers (a little sad that there is such a thing). There is also a great deal of time spent analyzing each individual according to something called the Holmes and DeBurger typology for serial killers (1985). I have no idea if this is a widely used "thing" or just something the author hung her hat on to flesh out the book. One could probably generally learn just as much by reading the Wikipedia entries for each killer. Probably not worth your time.

[Majanka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book Review originally published here: http://www.iheartreading.net/mini-rev...

I really liked this book. As a firm believers in the supernatural, and a fan of true crime, I knew I had to read this one. And it was interesting, even for people who don’t believe in the supernatural at all. A lot of serial killers (in any case, at least the sixteen cases presented here) turned to the supernatural to explain their crimes, or cover them up. Some claimed to be vampires, others acted on behalf of the devil, or even on behalf of God. It’s an interesting study, and as a criminology student, I enjoyed it all the more.

[Angela DeSilva · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review to come

[Dat-Dangk Vemucci · Rating 2 out of 5]

There is nothing supernatural about most of these serial killers, misleading title. Mostly just an overview of the canonical big names of late night Wikipedia research seshes (Ed Gein, Albert Fish, Elizabeth Bathory), who at one time or another just happened to get called something like "the vampire of [insert street name here]" or "the [city name] demon" in a newspaper headline. None of them are actually supernatural in any way or supernaturally motivated, except for a minority who said they heard voices or thought God was commanding them to kill. Did you know that those are called "visionary serial killers" and that they are the rarest kind ? I didn't, so I guess this book is at least informative. I also liked the chapters on "werewolfism" and how murderers in the middle ages were conceived of as werewolves. I would have preferred a more sustained analysis of the interaction between supernatural ideas and how we conceive of these most abject criminals, but outside of a brief section in the intro there isn't much beyond a surface interrogation. I feel like there's an interesting study there somewhere for another author to pick up

[Izzati · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was both easy and hard to read this book. Easy, because the language was simple to understand and each case was explained in categories. Hard, because the details of some of these crimes were hard to swallow.

At the beginning of the book, the cases appeared similar and there were so many repetitive sentences. Perhaps it was mostly due to the fact that the cases were pretty similar and not a lot was known about the cases. Still, some things like the reiterations of how Singapore was a safe place and how kids were affected by experiences in their early years could be left out. They could even do without the conclusion section at the end of the book, as it was nothing but a repetition.

Still, the cases were interesting and I like how they arranged them in order of the years (from back in the day till the most recent).

[Kyle Robertson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is bizarre, the crimes and killers described are perverse and unsettling, and overall I thought it was a fascinating read. There are sixteen real life monsters profiled, of which I was only really familiar with two of them. The authors state that the aim of the book is to investigate serial killers with a link to the supernatural, whether it be that the killers themselves felt an affinity with a creature of myth or whether they were assigned this link by society and the media.

The first part of the book, titled "Why Killers Kill", discusses possible factors that can contribute to the development of certain tendencies for those that are profiled. The authors state "some obvious patterns or themes emerge which link the serial killers discussed in this book...some of them, for example, suffered head injuries, which have been shown in neurological studies to correlate with the subsequent development of aggressive behavior. Many of them suffered problems with sexual dysfunction or impotence during their formative years and their murders subsequently demonstrated a great deal of sexual frustration and sexual violence. A good number of them were struggling with mental illness of various forms, whether or not they went on to be judged as legally insane. They very often had unfortunate, even traumatizing, childhoods."

Each profile provides an introduction of the killer which examines their childhood, teenage years, and their life leading up to the beginning of their crime sprees. Most serial killers begin in their late teens and twenties, but some in this book were much older at the time they began. Next, the chapter goes into detail about the actual crimes committed, as far as the research is available. Then comes the trial and sentencing portion, which explains the capture, questioning, trial, and sentencing. The final section for each profile provides a discussion about the psychological and criminal background, including possible mental health issues. This provides great insight into the mind of each killer, as the authors attempt to classify each one using the Holmes and DeBurger typology.

This book is extensively researched, and I would recommend it to all true crime fans, but not to those that are easily offended by gory details and depictions of the crimes committed, many of which involve children. I received this as a free ARC from Arcturus Publishing on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a bit of a difficult read. Fascinating. But quite a bit more academic in nature than most of your grocery store fare true crime novels that the majority of readers are used to.

This novel presents us with 16 small case studies on various serial killers that had supernatural (more like superstitious) circumstances to their crimes. Yes, some of the crime descriptions are quite brutal & graphic. Well, not quite sure what people expect, these were not white collar crimes but atrocities.

It was rather interesting to consider that many of these took on supernatural overtones as more of a way to dissociate from the brutality and not try to think that this amount of depravity can (and does) exist in the hearts & mind of just simple men and women. It is also a bit hypocritical in the early cases where those same atrocities or worse were used in order to secure confessions.

Highly recommended for students of criminology.

*Digital review copy provided by NetGalley and the publisher.

[Rajan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thnx netgalley and Arcturus Digital for providing me and advance copy for reading and review.
i did not find this book interesting. It seems just a copy paste of old trial records. it does not give a peek into psyce of these killers. very boring and repetitive.

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Werewolves and vampires in human form: Gilles Garnier, Peter Stumpp, Elizabeth Bathory, Fritz Haarmann, Albert Fish, Peter Kürten, Jeffrey Dahmer are among many more blood thirsty human monsters. Inside you'll read about their body count, the cases and the trials... with black and white pictures/photos of the perpetrators. An absolutely intriguing and terrifying read. Really recommended!

[Evan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent book profiling 16 different serial killers across the centuries. My only complaint is I wish it was longer.

[Dan Hume · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good if you are interested in serial killers from multiple decades.

[Barbara Clifford · Rating 5 out of 5]

For true crime fans this an awesome read. Really liked it.

[Sandra Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting investigation into some interesting serial killers

[Michelle Sahagian · Rating 1 out of 5]

between the almost completely absent grammar and the author's aggressive attempts to dissipate any blame or ounce of malice from the killers, this was really hard to get through

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

The title of this book says it all: it’s all about serial killers with supernatural elements in their story ranging from werewolves and vampires to monsters, Satan worshippers and the occult.

I love true crime and am very much interested in serial killers and their stories. So when I saw this book on Netgalley, it was pretty much a no brainer and an immediate must read. *request*

I’ve read a couple of books about serial killer thus far, and I’ve always found them missing something. Sometimes it was just the author’s opinion and no details about the serial killers themselves, sometimes there was only a discussion of the past and no details of the crimes, almost none of the books I’ve come across discussed the trial and sentencing, etc. This book however, has it all.
It contains 16 chapters of serial killers in which the authors discuss their childhood, teenage years and life before the murders, their actual crimes (sometimes in gory detail), the trial and sentencing, and ultimately there’s a discussion in every chapter about the psychological & criminological background, the mental health issues and legal complications. In short, there is really nothing missing and every chapter contains everything you could possibly want to (and can) know.

So, apart from being very well researched and having all the information you need, the writing is also solid and captivating. I also loved that this book is original in case choices. From all the serial killers discussed, I was only familiar with 2 of them (being Jeffrey Dahmer and John George Haigh). The authors start with serial killers in the late 1500s and slowly work their way to more ‘modern’ serial killers. The supernatural element in every case is also different. There were some serial killers that were believed to be werewolves by the community; others used the supernatural element as a defence strategy. On top of that, almost every chapter has a little photograph, which gives the serial killer discussed an actual face.

All in all I thought this book was absolute perfection. If you’re a fan of true crime (or if you don’t want to be labelled a fan, but you read true crime anyway) this is a must-read for sure!

I received a free copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

[Diane Lynch · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would like to thank Netgalley and author Samantha Lyon for my copy in exchange for a fair and honest review.
This book covers 16 different serial killers and their stories. The format is well organized . The beginning of the book clearly sets up the rest of the book. Explanations of what makes a serial killer. Explanations of what label goes with which type of killer. A typology is explained and each of the killers is examined to see where they fit into that typology.
These killers were chosen because their crimes were so gruesome. In some way, each killer is linked with the beliefs people have about vampires or were wolfs. These 16 monsters span from the 16th to the 20th centuries and come from various parts of the world. Since this book covers such a large time period the reader also watches the justice systems mature to what they've become today. In the 16th century people were actually convicted of being a witch, vampire or were wolf. No witches are covered in this book. The book brings up good points for these beliefs as well.
Each chapter covers one killer in chronological order. First background information about the killers life leading up to their serial killing. The crimes are described next. The trial and outcome follows. Finally the discussion where the analysis takes place. By putting these 16 criminals in this structure it is possible to really look at not only the killer but the society he/she exists in. No two are ever the same. There are similarities that you will see because of this format.
These chapters contain just the facts. You get what you need to understand these types of killers. It was an exciting book to read. Many of these serial killers I've never heard of. A few I know to well. Many of them I will be reading more about. I immediately jumped into a book based on the first one covered.

[Heidi · Rating 1 out of 5]

Thank you netgalley and Arcturus Digital for providing me and advance copy for reading and review.

This was probably one of the worst serial killer books that I have read. There was so much repetition that it was hard to read. Constantly reminding us that these horrible people had awful lives growing up and some had head injuries. Some of the other issues that I had were: Title: Paranormal blood lust....really nothing had anything to do with anything paranormal, supernatural yes, but not paranormal. About 13% in to the book there is a section in regards to Peter Stubbe that states there is no copies of a pamphlet but then in a few sentences later it says that there are 2 copies. After re-reading it it made a little more sense but it was very confusing. About 16% of the way through the book in regards to Haarman it states that he discharged himself from the military but then 22% it states that he received compulsory military service and had to serve. Then about 30% into the book in regards to talking about Fish it states "They were, unhappily, to develop much further" what an inappropriate sentence. I n about 52% of the book in the part about Dahmer if this book is supposed to be a non-fiction educational book why would you use any language from the Urban Dictionary. The Urban Dictionary is a joke and a slight on the Webster Dictionary. Another example of a horrible sentence "...it was almost completely devoid of fingerprints. Thankfully, one remained and so, at long last....". I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone

[Ionia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well...first off, don't read this book if you can't handle a lot of blood and gore and real life human depravity, because you won't survive the first couple of chapters. If, however, you are a twisted sort like me, and you find these things interesting, this will be a great book for you to while away the hours with.

We all know most of the ore recent serial killers, but this book begins before that and delves into the case histories of some of the more interesting vampire and werewolf legends and the killers throughout history that were associated with them. The book also deals with much more recent serial killers associated with the supernatural and the occult.

I thought the organisation here was wonderful and I commend the authors for not relaying yet more incorrect information about these infamous people. In fact, they left some of the killers out of the book that they might have included for the sake of accuracy since there wasn't enough information they could verify available to include them.

This book really shows the darker side of humanity and also makes you think about how people can act this way. I appreciated the writing style as it was straight forward and easy to read. I'd definitely recommend this book to anyone curious about these killers and their motives.

This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher, provided through Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

[Veronica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have always been interested in true crime and what makes serial killers tick so as a result I am a huge fan of Ann Rule because she wrote about true crime cases clinically but with compassion and without a trace of sensationalism (unlike a book I ended up putting down because the crimes were described with such glee and enjoyment). Supernatural Serial Killers by Samantha Lyon is definitely not like the book I put down in disgust. This book discusses in detail selected cases of serial killers who in some way have a connection with the supernatural. Each killer is examined in detail (as much as possible with available information). There is a focus on their childhoods with particular emphasis on abusive childhoods and head injuries. At the end of each chapter, the author examines the psychology of each killer and what "class" of killer they are. There are comparisons concerning the childhoods, early psychology, and the effect head injuries possibly had with the serial killers examined. The cases are discussed quite graphically sometimes but in such a way that it adds to the understanding of the killers character and is not sensational in any way. In short, I found this book to be well written and well researched and was quite informative. I received a copy of this book from the publishers via Netgalley for free in exchange for an honest review.

[Angel Hatfield · Rating 4 out of 5]

The public is fascinated with serial killers and due to the media we are used to displays or reports of violence and depravity. But we want to understand who, and why. If some killings are really bad we tend to use the words monster or evil. Which is someway seems to be comforting to set these people a part. The serial killers in this book are either associated with or influenced by supernatural forces. This book also talks about the beginning of werewolves and vampires. Also it talks of individual criminal’s capture, capture, questioning, trial, sentence, and the execution or jailing of each individual. The first three individuals had thought they were werewolves from France from 1520 to 1630. There are sixteen serial killers described in this book. I find it was very interesting that these serial killers involved the supernatural to explain their crimes. I found this book informative and I am glad I read it. Anyone interested in serial killers should read this. I recommend

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Being someone who is interested in true crime, I really enjoyed this book. The focus of the book is on serial killers whose acts are considered so depraved that they have been labeled supernatural in some way. There is a wealth of information provided regarding each serial killer mentioned. I learned something new about Elizabeth Bathory, Jeffrey Dahmer & Andrei Chikatilo. I also learned about serial killers I hadn't previously heard of, such as Tsutomu Miyazaki and Jack Spillman. One issue I had with the book is that the term "mass murderer" was used interchangeably with "serial killer" when those terms actually mean different things. However that did not detract from my enjoyment of the book. If you are interested in true crime, I highly recommend this book.

Note: I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating book about sixteen serial killers. The book starts with a 1500's killer which will give you your first hint on why these serial killers were considered supernatural. The time period ends in the 20th century. Are they supernatural serial killers? You are given a lot of information on each killer. I think it is really up to you to decide if they are supernatural. I do think they are all monsters. I have never read true crime books but suspect that this book might be considered one.

It is excellent read though be aware that you will be reading crime descriptions that are violent and graphic. It is quite fascinating in spite of that.

Disclaimer: I received an arc of this book free from the author/publisher from Netgalley. I was not obliged to write a favorable review, or even any review at all. The opinions expressed are strictly my own.

[Donna Maguire · Rating 4 out of 5]

I do love true crime, I love reading about the things that they got away with, but most of all how they were caught and brought to justice, the processed with the DNA, finding the evidence and the court cases - I know they are all true cases but some leave me gobsmacked and you really struggle to believe that they could possibly be read. This book was similar to others that I have read but quite a bit more gory, not that it is a bad things. A good read and I would definitely read more from this author in future.

[Polly Krize · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

An in-depth portrait of many of the serial killers throughout human history. Not sure if I can say I enjoyed this book, but it is detailed and well-researched, grisly and macabre. Each killer is studied thoroughly, with a section introducing the killer, one detailing his/her crimes, a trial/sentencing section, followed by discussion. I found it surprising that Ted Bundy was not included.

[Lozzi Counsell · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very intriguing book and I love that for each serial killer it's split into sections so that you can read it all or focus on the parts you want. Clearly the author has done a lot of research and she never will shove an idea in front of you if she's not sure it is fact - all possibilities are stated as such. I would probably focus more on less known serial killers, as for me I was re reading about cases that I already knew a lot about.