What I am reading.

The Alienist by Caleb Carr

As for my current reads-the book that I am most enthralled with is entitled The Alienist, by Caleb Carr. It is most akin to that Johnny Dep movie, From Hell. Only this story takes place eight years after the Jack the Ripper murders of London. In 1896 New York City is being plagued by a new serial killer. New York's finest are at a loss as to how to catch this monster. It is up to a small group of unlikely detectives, that include an alienist( the 19th century term for a criminal psychologist), a newspaper reporter for the Times, a female secretary working for the NYPD and two cutting edge forensics specialists. Together they race against time to create a profile for the madman they seek, ever aware that the longer he is out there, the more victims will be on their conscience.

This is not a new book. I believe it was copyrighted in 1994. I picked it up for free at the Ramona library's discount book store( they have a give away cart out in the hall). Though the genre of this novel would no doubt be classified as historical fiction/ mystery, the details of the murders are very gruesome and the concept of the deviant personality always strikes me as just another aspect of the broader horror genre. Therefore, I am quite drawn to this line of storytelling and highly recommend this book to those with tastes similar to my own.

Thank you for tuning in, Book Marketing Network!

Until my next blog,

"Stay classy San Diego", Ron Burgundy