- Paperback: 308 pages
- Publisher: Pennant Books Ltd (12 Jan 2009)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 190601521X
- ISBN-13: 978-1906015213
- Product Dimensions: 23 x 15.2 x 2.6 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 172,980 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Product Description
In December 2008, the Old Bailey bore witness to a modern-day Jack the Ripper. Robert Clive Napper was finally brought to book for the most horrifying unsolved crime of recent times: the July 1992 murder of Rachel Nickell. Yet in the mid-1990s Napper had been committed to Broadmoor mental hospital as a grave and immediate risk to the public , after the monstrous murders of a mother and child. After he invaded the home of Samantha Bisset and her little daughter Jazmine, in 1993, the scene was so hellish that the police photographer could not return to work. Samantha s mother went to her grave insisting that the murderer of her loved ones also killed Rachel. Evidence linked Napper to the Green Chain Rapes , a series of up to 70 violent sex crimes along a footpath of the Thames. So why the press later demanded was this predatory psychopath not apprehended earlier for the Wimbledon Common killing? In KILLER IN THE SHADOWS, forensic psychologist Laurence Alison draws upon more than a decade of exposure to the Nickell case. First involved in the rebuttal of evidence against suspect Colin Stagg, Alison and co-author Marie Eyre trace the case from its grim origins to Napper s conviction. Both a case study for the criminologist and an introduction to criminal psychology for the layperson, KILLER IN THE SHADOWS examines the mindset of the sexual psychopath, the impact upon victims families and the decisions faced by police officers expected to know the unknowable. Disturbing and compassionate, this illuminating analysis also asks if, now that time and technology have caught up with him, Robert Napper has concealed yet more crimes behind his dead-end wall of insanity . . . Laurence Alison is Professor of Forensic Psychology at the University of Liverpool. His previous books include The Forensic Psychologist s Casebook. Marie Eyre works with Prof. Alison at the Centre for Critical Incident Research, and has contributed to a number of academic publications and research papers.
From the Publisher
It may be useful to link this book to 'Monster' by Allan Hall, published by Penguin books, as well as 'The Complete History of Jack the Ripper' by Phillip Sugden. The former is a useful link since it covers a case of a sadist, the latter useful because the Napper case is a modern day jack the Ripper.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fascinating account of this horrendous case,
By
This review is from: Killer in The Shadows: The Monstrous Crimes of Robert Napper: 1 (Paperback)
In December 2008 justice was finally served for the infamous and brutal murder in July 1992 of Rachel Nickell, killed in broad daylight in front of her young son on Wimbledon Common by Robert Napper. Napper has been confined in Broadmoor hospital for the criminally insane for the murders of Samantha and Jazmine Bissett for a number of years, and finally DNA evidence instigated him admitting to killing Rachel - a crime for which he had watched an innocent man spend time in prison and become a national pariah.
This is an excellent book which not only tells the story of the crime and long fight for justice, but also looks at the psychology of the killer in some depth. As another reviewer says, this means the book works on many levels and is accessible to both the general reader and the true crime "buff" like myself, with the balance between detail and a readable writing style spot on. The style of the authors is highly readable and so the account holds the attention from the start. The book also includes some more "interactive" parts where the reader can get involved and is challenged to assess their own attitudes to crime and investigative skills. This was an element of the book which I have never seen elsewhere before and which I really enjoyed, and it certainly made me think in depth about the issues raised as a result. The account presented is very balanced, not the type of sensationalist "journalistic" style of writing which fills some true crime books and which one might have expected from an account of such an infamous case. Even the discussion of other crimes which may have been committed by Napper is very reasonable, balanced and takes into account the evidence, or lack of, which connects him to the crimes. The do not speculate on how many crimes Napper may have committed, only linking him to a case where they feel there is evidence to do so, and also making clear which aspects of those cases point away from Napper being involved. The writers are both academic psychlogists, and the psychology of Napper and to some extent the police involved in the case, is examined in depth. However, the book does not at any point feel like an academic textbook and is very accessible to all readers. Readers of a sensitive nature should be aware that there is some gruesome detail in this book, but this is written in as sensitive a way as possible and is not at all sensationalist - it is purely used where necessary to illustrate points about the psychology of the killer. It is an emotionally powerful book to read because of the nature of the murders involved, but this makes the book all the more worthwhile in my opinion. This is one of the best true crime books I have read and well worth picking up.
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A good read,
By Kunmo (England) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Killer in The Shadows: The Monstrous Crimes of Robert Napper: 1 (Paperback)
This book will give you an insight into the mind of a killer; an insight into the Police and their procedures and the justice system. The authors show how the investigation of a crime can quickly head down the wrong avenue and how the over reliance of one particular opinion can ruin the lives of others. This book is sensitively written and shows disturbingly just how some people can degrade into killers. `Killer in the Shadows' isn't your average crime book, and is not a literary sideshow of horrors to indulge certain readers grim fascination with murder. This is a very good read indeed.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent examination of a notorious case,
By Scaramouche (Leeds, England) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Killer in The Shadows: The Monstrous Crimes of Robert Napper: 1 (Paperback)
Firstly, I think there should be some distinction between this book and others in the 'true crime' genre; this one isn't written by journalists, it is written by two experts in the field of forensic psychology research, and it shows.
The thing that most impressed me about the book is probably the last chapter; so many crime books focus on the 'gory' details, but this one ends with a sensitive examination of what happens after the crime, after the trial and after the media spotlight, and explores how those left behind try to pick up the pieces. I think this demonstrates most clearly the sense of humanity that runs through the book; it is so easy from newspaper reports in the mass media to forget that every victim was a real person who was loved and is missed. The book, understandably given the authors, approaches the topic from an academic standpoint, but this doesn't put non-psychologists at a disadvantage, as the explanations are clear and well thought-out, even when examining some complex issues around the development of offending behaviour. Not only does the book explore issues relating to Robert Napper, but also provides some insight into sexual offenders and murderers in general, which is again accessible to academics and the general public alike. One small point to make to Amazon, however; I'm not sure, given Professor Alison's defence of Colin Stagg against the heavily criticised sting operation which was led by discredited psychologist Paul Britten, it's such a great idea to be advertising Britten's 'Picking Up the Pieces' book on the same page! For further deconstructions of why this is such a bad idea on Amazon's part, there are a couple of excellent chapters on the Stagg case in Professor Alison's book 'The Forensic Psychologist's Casebook'; this is far more academic in tone to 'Killing in the Shadows', but still written in an accessible way and highly recommended for anyone wishing to broaden their understanding of the case, and of the subject of forensic psychology in general. In particular, the chapter featuring Canter and Alison's deconstruction of Britten's involvement and the way this shaped the police investigation into Stagg manages to be both eloquent and well-argued, without losing the entirely appropriate sense of anger at the way Britten's involvement damaged the profession. In short, 'Killing in the Shadows' should appeal to anybody with an interest in offender behaviour and police investigations.
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