This is one of my favorite books out of the True Crime genre. My aunt introduced me to Ann Rule and this is the first book of hers that I have read. I know that it’s a little strange to have an interest in serial killers but as a psychology major in college I was always interested in forensic psychology and this feeds right into that interest.
In The Stranger Beside Me, Ann Rule writes from an interesting perspective as she knew Ted Bundy when they worked together at a suicide hotline. Through the years, including the time when he was dealing with legal issues and in jail, he kept in touch with Ann Rule through letters and phone calls. He did this while knowing that she had been commissioned to write a book about the “Ted” killings whenever the killer was found.
This background gives the story a more personal note while still maintaining the professional outsider perspective when describing the crimes as she found out about them. It shows first hand that Ted Bundy was able to act in such a way that many people doubted he could be capable of the horrific killings that took place accross at least five states. The number of women he killed was numbered between 36 and over 100 yet many people still believed in his innocence til the day he was executed in Florida in 1986. Yet in some of the “afterwards” in later versions of this book parts of his confessions are detailed.
If this is the type of book that you are interested then I highly recommend it. Although read it in company as it can make you scared to walk across the street.
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