What do you think?
Rate this book
The Serial Killer Cookbook: True Crime Trivia and Disturbingly Delicious Last Meals from Death Row's Most Infamous Killers and Murderers
The Serial Killer Cookbook: Last Meals pairs serial killer trivia with the recipes of the meals these killers ate during their final hours. With full-color photos, chilling true crime facts, and easy-to-follow steps, you’ll be cooking up killer meals in no time. This collection of recipes is both delicious and surprising, and spans breakfast staples to indulgent desserts, including:
Seared Steak, Hash Browns, Toast, and Fried Eggs (given to but not eaten by Ted Bundy, serial killer) Chicken Parmesan and Alfredo Pasta (eaten by Ruth Snyder, murderer) Justice, Equality, and World Peace (eaten by Odell Barnes, murderer) Mac and Cheese (eaten by Gustavo Julian Garcia, murderer) And much more!
Seared Steak, Hash Browns, Toast, and Fried Eggs (given to but not eaten by Ted Bundy, serial killer) Chicken Parmesan and Alfredo Pasta (eaten by Ruth Snyder, murderer) Justice, Equality, and World Peace (eaten by Odell Barnes, murderer) Mac and Cheese (eaten by Gustavo Julian Garcia, murderer) And much more!
120 pages, Paperback
Published April 21, 2020
108 people are currently reading
338 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
June 10, 2020
Finished the book, 2 stars. The book consists of short bios of serial killers going back to the 19thC They have all been brought up in abusive homes it seems. Well so was I. As far as continuing the cycle of abuse is concerned, I reserve that for authors who write crap books,and then either themselves or their publishing companies go all out to get amazing ARC pre-publication reviews and tread a fine line between marketing and a scam. and extremely simple recipes for dishes no cook would actually buy a cook book for: cole slaw, 'robust' garden salad or banana pudding.
Here is the banana pudding recipe. Place 6 vanilla wafers in a circle on a plate and place 1 in the middle. Top with sliced banana and follow with prepared banana-flavoured pudding. Top with whipped cream and more sliced bananas.
As far as the trivia is concerned, there was nothing interesting, and where the crimes were horrific, the author declines to detail them saying they were too horrible or this a book about food. She limits her analysis of the criminals, the crimes and the food to, "yuck', 'uggh' and 'delicious'.
What saves this book from a 1 star rating are three things. Firstly, there is one really good recipe I'd love to try if I wasn't on a diet , non-churn icecream. The author gives this recipe with variations in five different chapters, one would have been enough but it does sound delicious and very easy: (my mother would have given me a "look" and said sancimoniously, "a taste on the lips is an inch on the hips."
Whip two cups of heavy cream (double cream to Brits) until it peaks, fold in a can (tin) of sweetened, condensed milk and some flavouring, vanilla etc, freeze.
The second plus point was the very poignant sentence, Indiana served [Eric] Wrinkle's meal three days prior to the execution because death row inmates tend to lose their appetite."
The third reason is that I reserve 1 star ratings for books that seek to persuade the reader that something really evil is good like homophobia, white supremacist crap, anti-vaccines etc, and this book is certainly not that. It's major faults are it doesn't live up to the title and looks cobbled together without any original research in about a week or so.
____________________
Notes on reading
Here is the banana pudding recipe. Place 6 vanilla wafers in a circle on a plate and place 1 in the middle. Top with sliced banana and follow with prepared banana-flavoured pudding. Top with whipped cream and more sliced bananas.
As far as the trivia is concerned, there was nothing interesting, and where the crimes were horrific, the author declines to detail them saying they were too horrible or this a book about food. She limits her analysis of the criminals, the crimes and the food to, "yuck', 'uggh' and 'delicious'.
What saves this book from a 1 star rating are three things. Firstly, there is one really good recipe I'd love to try if I wasn't on a diet , non-churn icecream. The author gives this recipe with variations in five different chapters, one would have been enough but it does sound delicious and very easy: (my mother would have given me a "look" and said sancimoniously, "a taste on the lips is an inch on the hips."
Whip two cups of heavy cream (double cream to Brits) until it peaks, fold in a can (tin) of sweetened, condensed milk and some flavouring, vanilla etc, freeze.
The second plus point was the very poignant sentence, Indiana served [Eric] Wrinkle's meal three days prior to the execution because death row inmates tend to lose their appetite."
The third reason is that I reserve 1 star ratings for books that seek to persuade the reader that something really evil is good like homophobia, white supremacist crap, anti-vaccines etc, and this book is certainly not that. It's major faults are it doesn't live up to the title and looks cobbled together without any original research in about a week or so.
____________________
Notes on reading
March 16, 2023
The book briefly covers a variety of offenders convicted of murder, sentenced to death and executed. It contains both ordinary and bizarre last meal requests. Each is followed by a recipe or two based on the meal. The recipes are for the most part simple to follow with easy to obtain ingredients. It will appeal to readers of true crime and cooking.
September 10, 2023
Really interesting trivia/ cook book on a niche topic.
This is not a deep dive into true crime, nor is it a cook book of amazing recipes. It’s a very niche type of book, that crosses over trivia about death row inmates’ last meals and recipes to make them. I love books that do crossover genres.
The trivia is very interesting, and very specific. You get to know about the tastes, eating habits, quotes, final moments of these prisoners and their food. For instance one prisoner said he would save his pecan pie “for later” which was later cited as evidence that he lacked mental capacity.
Some interesting facts:
- Lawrence Russel Brewer requested a huge meal with many dishes (too much to write out here) but refused to eat it, saying he wasn’t hungry. Because of this Texas banned last meal requests.
- Robert Anthony Buell requested a single unpitted olive as his last meal.
- Mona Fandey (a former pop singer in Malaysia) requested no final meal but was brought a standard KFC meal, which seems like a standard in many prisons around the world. She was executed by hanging in 2001 (surprising that hanging was still happening that late).
- John Wayne Gacy sold artwork (mostly of clowns) from prison. He also ate KFC as his last meal.
- Ronnie Lee Gardner requested to be killed by firing squad, because of his Mormon background (spilling of blood brings redemption). He ate lobster and apple pie.
- Ricky Ray Rector - after shooting a police officer he shot himself in the head, surviving but giving himself brain damage. At the time (1992) it wasn’t clear if this kind of brain damage classified him as lacking mental capacity. His final meal was fried chicken and pecan pie. He didn’t eat the pie and as he walked to the execution chamber, told the prison guard he was saving it for later, a moment that was later cited as evidence that he lacked mental capacity.
- Pablo Lucio Vásquez said he killed a boy (and drank his blood) because the devil told him to. Somehow this didn’t get him classified as mentally ill. He ate steak and butterscotch brownies (in Texas, after last meal requests were banned).
- Francis Crowley requested steak, French fries, ice cream AND melted ice cream. (Melted ice cream recipe included in the book).
- Thomas J. Grasso requested spaghettiOs but received canned spaghetti. His final statement was “I did not get my spaghettiOs, I got spaghetti. I want the press to know this.”
- many methods have been used to execute those on death row: gas chamber, lethal injection, electric chair, hanging, firing squad.
- lethal injection is the norm in most places in the US but you can request the electric chair if you want.
- Many people request lobster. Many also request ice cream.
- Some are not hungry when it comes time to eat their last meal.
- several of the people who ended up on death row have low IQ, questionable mental capacity and some have been suspected to have given false confessions.
This last point is interesting. The book does not take an opinion or political stance, it just shares trivia. But it is interesting that this happens. Joe Arridy (1939) is a case like this - his confession may have been a false confession due to mental illness.
Really interesting book! I like that the food is positioned on prison trays, it adds an eerie atmosphere to the photography and really allows you to visualize this as a last meal. I read this book mainly for the trivia and the photography, but if you throw a Halloween party or other creepy themed event, this could be a good cook book or even trivia based party game. (Ie guess which killer requested this as a final meal?)
This is not a deep dive into true crime, nor is it a cook book of amazing recipes. It’s a very niche type of book, that crosses over trivia about death row inmates’ last meals and recipes to make them. I love books that do crossover genres.
The trivia is very interesting, and very specific. You get to know about the tastes, eating habits, quotes, final moments of these prisoners and their food. For instance one prisoner said he would save his pecan pie “for later” which was later cited as evidence that he lacked mental capacity.
Some interesting facts:
- Lawrence Russel Brewer requested a huge meal with many dishes (too much to write out here) but refused to eat it, saying he wasn’t hungry. Because of this Texas banned last meal requests.
- Robert Anthony Buell requested a single unpitted olive as his last meal.
- Mona Fandey (a former pop singer in Malaysia) requested no final meal but was brought a standard KFC meal, which seems like a standard in many prisons around the world. She was executed by hanging in 2001 (surprising that hanging was still happening that late).
- John Wayne Gacy sold artwork (mostly of clowns) from prison. He also ate KFC as his last meal.
- Ronnie Lee Gardner requested to be killed by firing squad, because of his Mormon background (spilling of blood brings redemption). He ate lobster and apple pie.
- Ricky Ray Rector - after shooting a police officer he shot himself in the head, surviving but giving himself brain damage. At the time (1992) it wasn’t clear if this kind of brain damage classified him as lacking mental capacity. His final meal was fried chicken and pecan pie. He didn’t eat the pie and as he walked to the execution chamber, told the prison guard he was saving it for later, a moment that was later cited as evidence that he lacked mental capacity.
- Pablo Lucio Vásquez said he killed a boy (and drank his blood) because the devil told him to. Somehow this didn’t get him classified as mentally ill. He ate steak and butterscotch brownies (in Texas, after last meal requests were banned).
- Francis Crowley requested steak, French fries, ice cream AND melted ice cream. (Melted ice cream recipe included in the book).
- Thomas J. Grasso requested spaghettiOs but received canned spaghetti. His final statement was “I did not get my spaghettiOs, I got spaghetti. I want the press to know this.”
- many methods have been used to execute those on death row: gas chamber, lethal injection, electric chair, hanging, firing squad.
- lethal injection is the norm in most places in the US but you can request the electric chair if you want.
- Many people request lobster. Many also request ice cream.
- Some are not hungry when it comes time to eat their last meal.
- several of the people who ended up on death row have low IQ, questionable mental capacity and some have been suspected to have given false confessions.
This last point is interesting. The book does not take an opinion or political stance, it just shares trivia. But it is interesting that this happens. Joe Arridy (1939) is a case like this - his confession may have been a false confession due to mental illness.
Really interesting book! I like that the food is positioned on prison trays, it adds an eerie atmosphere to the photography and really allows you to visualize this as a last meal. I read this book mainly for the trivia and the photography, but if you throw a Halloween party or other creepy themed event, this could be a good cook book or even trivia based party game. (Ie guess which killer requested this as a final meal?)
September 21, 2021
Aren't you curious as to what killers will have as their last meal in prison? I never knew I needed to know! ... and now I kinda wish I didn't. Who only wants ONE PITTED OLIVE as their last meal? Ok, ok, we already know these killers (not all serial btw) are psychopaths but food is food y'all. WTF. But hey, as a person who loves reading about this subject matter AND loves to cook - well, this just seemed like an absolute must have.
Some of the recipes look great and others are beyond simple and there are a lot of ice cream recipes - not sure we needed every one of them or a recipe for MELTED ice cream. Um.... Yeah. I did enjoy reading about the different killers but there was nothing new to me that I didn't already know. Except for their food orders, or non orders.
So where do I stand with this one? I'm not really sure. I'm going to try cooking most of these recipes but giving a harsh no to the pitted olive debacle. Needs more blood and less ice cream in my opinion. Gonna just run it down the middle. 🤷
Some of the recipes look great and others are beyond simple and there are a lot of ice cream recipes - not sure we needed every one of them or a recipe for MELTED ice cream. Um.... Yeah. I did enjoy reading about the different killers but there was nothing new to me that I didn't already know. Except for their food orders, or non orders.
So where do I stand with this one? I'm not really sure. I'm going to try cooking most of these recipes but giving a harsh no to the pitted olive debacle. Needs more blood and less ice cream in my opinion. Gonna just run it down the middle. 🤷
August 2, 2022
Short, and some Disturbing, sad back stories on murderers and their Last Meal requests. CookBook is quick, easy read with mostly comfort food recipes… most that I’ll try.
Weird premise for a cookbook but it works! Very interesting & foods you grew up on-with minimal ingredients.
Weird premise for a cookbook but it works! Very interesting & foods you grew up on-with minimal ingredients.
June 29, 2021
The main title is a bit of a misnomer - but the subtitle fixes that. Not all the people profiled in this unique cookbook were serial killers. Many were mass murderers or just committed a murder so heinous that they have become famous/infamous because of it.
This cookbook gives a bit of a history on a famous murderer then lists their last meal. The author then takes at least one part of the final meal and presents a way to make it in your own home.
Some I cannot wait to try. Others seemed a bit of a "eh" or "you seriously could have picked something else from the menu to present". There were also a great many "no churn ice cream" recipes and frankly one was enough.
But all in all a interesting very topic specific book that will be a great addition to my cookbook collection
This cookbook gives a bit of a history on a famous murderer then lists their last meal. The author then takes at least one part of the final meal and presents a way to make it in your own home.
Some I cannot wait to try. Others seemed a bit of a "eh" or "you seriously could have picked something else from the menu to present". There were also a great many "no churn ice cream" recipes and frankly one was enough.
But all in all a interesting very topic specific book that will be a great addition to my cookbook collection
August 3, 2023
This is the first cookbook I’ve been more interested in the backstories than the actual recipes! However, the recipes are mostly typical recipes with nothing new or exciting, and there were many times the author skipped over many details of the killers’ crimes (which she warned she would do, but it still detracted for me a bit.) There were also lots of typos which always bothers me in finished books.
April 8, 2025
Interesting little book. Some of the recipes sound good, some were very simplistic which is okay but also not quite what I expected from the forward. This book is also a *really* good example of photography matters
December 28, 2024
So much KFC! Interesting, quick, “junk food” read. I appreciate the disclaimer that the author avoided gory details to help us maintain our appetites but I would have liked more deets.
August 4, 2021
We had got this book a bit ago for a project on the death penalty that my daughter was doing for school. She made a slide show for last meals.
It has great little short info write ups about each prisoner and why they ended up on death row as well as their last meal of course. I haven’t tried out an of the recipes because that are mostly really basic items that I already know how to make but that wasn’t really the reason for getting the book.
It has great little short info write ups about each prisoner and why they ended up on death row as well as their last meal of course. I haven’t tried out an of the recipes because that are mostly really basic items that I already know how to make but that wasn’t really the reason for getting the book.
April 24, 2021
The title is misleading. There are fewer serial killers & more murderers from the late 1800's to early 1900's & later killers (Bundy, Gacy, Wuornos) in this so called serial killer cookbook on their last meals before execution. (There was a brief synopsis of the killer(s) but nothing new or interesting & the author states that she didn't go into details because it's gross or icky. Seriously??
The recipes (which were crappy & could be taken from any cookbook) were basic. Here's are example: Pablo Lucio Vasquez 8/11/77-4/6/16 Homemade Fruit Punch: Juices (cranberry, pineapple, orange, lime) white lemon lime soda. Orange, lime, & lemon wedges. Mix it all together.
Gary Carl Simmons Jr 11/18/62-6/20/12 Strawberry Milkshake 4 scoops no churn fresh strawberry ice cream, 1/4 cup chopped strawberries, & 1 cup whole milk. Place all ingredients into a blender & mix until smooth.
Charles Peace 5/14/1832-2/25/1879 Oven Baked Bacon 1 pound thick sliced bacon. Preheat oven to 400, line baking sheet with foil. Bake 18-22 min depending on how crisp you like it. Remove from rack & place on paper towel lined plate
Needless to say, book was not worth reading & didn't have any information that you haven't already read before.
The recipes (which were crappy & could be taken from any cookbook) were basic. Here's are example: Pablo Lucio Vasquez 8/11/77-4/6/16 Homemade Fruit Punch: Juices (cranberry, pineapple, orange, lime) white lemon lime soda. Orange, lime, & lemon wedges. Mix it all together.
Gary Carl Simmons Jr 11/18/62-6/20/12 Strawberry Milkshake 4 scoops no churn fresh strawberry ice cream, 1/4 cup chopped strawberries, & 1 cup whole milk. Place all ingredients into a blender & mix until smooth.
Charles Peace 5/14/1832-2/25/1879 Oven Baked Bacon 1 pound thick sliced bacon. Preheat oven to 400, line baking sheet with foil. Bake 18-22 min depending on how crisp you like it. Remove from rack & place on paper towel lined plate
Needless to say, book was not worth reading & didn't have any information that you haven't already read before.
May 16, 2022
When I saw this book sitting on the library shelf, I was immediately intrigued! It's equally fascinating and morbid. I found the stories of the different murderers interesting and their last meals was incredibly fascinating. The recipes are nothing to write home about- they are your basic, run of the mill foods. The key aspect of this book were the backstories and last meal tidbits! Interesting and unique. 3.5 stars
April 27, 2024
A little disappointing! The concept held so much potential but then totally missed. The photos of the food were bad and the recipes repetitive. Also there is a big difference between murderers and serial killers. And I believe you can without making it too gross or gory add a little more detail about each person
May 23, 2025
Basic
It is very basic. It only has a few lines to describe the killer and then what the had for their last meal. The recipes are basic as well with 5 different recipes for ice cream along with a recipe for a baked potato. I got some good laughs predicting what recipe would follow the stories though!
It is very basic. It only has a few lines to describe the killer and then what the had for their last meal. The recipes are basic as well with 5 different recipes for ice cream along with a recipe for a baked potato. I got some good laughs predicting what recipe would follow the stories though!
December 19, 2020
***SPOILER*** Either everyone wanted ice cream or the author wanted an excuse to make a LOT of ie cream. There were actually a few things in here i didn’t know so it was pleasantly surprising and a quick read. You’ll learn, and eat well.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 22, 2021
Very fun book and I appreciate the pictures and linking to other recipes (a lot of death row inmates wanted a lot of the same things!!)
Read
December 26, 2021Book
December 31, 2021
High on novelty, but still an interesting read.
May 1, 2022
Really fun!
February 16, 2023
Interesting but gross and disturbing at the same time. Makes me not want eat my favorite meal ever again now that I found out it was murderer’s last meal…
April 14, 2023
Very lousy cookbook. So many times the recipes were way off from what the prisoners ordered. And the information on the killers wasn't much better. Waste of time.
September 4, 2023
It was interesting to read the little summaries of the serial killers, but half of the book entailed ice cream recipes. ☹️
May 21, 2024
honestly interesting
I find this to be interesting just to see what some of the inmates chose to eat as their last meals. Some of the meals I wouldn’t mind trying.
I find this to be interesting just to see what some of the inmates chose to eat as their last meals. Some of the meals I wouldn’t mind trying.
September 14, 2024
Interesting concept for a recipe book but I like it.
Want to read
April 21, 2025Cutting is for Last Requests
By Giles Smith
By Giles Smith
November 21, 2025
This was really interesting and some of the recipes sounded delicious. I might have to save them for later
August 10, 2024
so so
Short snippets on different killers that you can find in any google search. Recipes are basic at best. A quick 15 minute read.
Short snippets on different killers that you can find in any google search. Recipes are basic at best. A quick 15 minute read.
June 21, 2021
How many times can you put the same recipe for ice cream in a book and still pretend it is a cookbook? The trivia was bland and the recipes boring. It advertises two things but delivers none.
April 25, 2024
What a bizarre serial killer book - the last meals of some of death row's most infamous killers. Recipes (or variations) are included. I enjoy watching Forensic Files, Dateline, etc. so when this showed up in a Facebook feed, i looked it up on the library website and found it on Hoopla - how could i not have instant gratification about the book's contents? Chapters are organized by murderer name, and covers the last century or so. It gives a very brief summary of the killer's background and crimes (the author keeps it to minimum details or no details for some of the gruesomer crimes), the last meal they requested, a picture of meal or part of the meal highlighted on a prison tray, and a recipe. Quirky trivia info but not detailed as to try not to glorify the murderers, covering US and a few other countries seriously bad people. A few of the names I had never heard of - Mona Fandey from Malaysia? - but it is always disturbing to read what evil people do and their backgrounds that lead to said evil. The recipes aren't the actual recipes used for the meals, which the author tells the reader upfront. One recipe included is a baked potato, another is homemade fries. Other recipes include cold cut sandwiches, butterscotch brownies, herb baked chicken quarters, deep fried shrimp, homemade German schnitzel, green onion and peppercorn drop biscuits, and no churn ice cream using sweetened condensed milk. My husband has made the no churn ice cream recipe forever, and the author includes many flavor creations. The recipes in the book aren't special, but it was an interesting read.
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews