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3.52 AVERAGE
3.52 AVERAGE
dark
informative
medium-paced
informative
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
What initially started as an interesting and engaging read was soon lost to the author talking in circles about the same thing over and over. Drawing in examples or ideas that had little to nothing to do with Nilsen as a killer (and deviated painfully from the case and seemed a tasteless attempt to make Nilsen into a sympathetic character). Too much analysis that bogged down what could have been a far more interesting study of a killer.
Truly the last 100-150 pages were a struggle for me to get through. Would have DNF'd at chapter eight but I'm a stubborn fool.
Truly the last 100-150 pages were a struggle for me to get through. Would have DNF'd at chapter eight but I'm a stubborn fool.
Informative but incredibly outdated.
It was interesting to read excerpts from Dennis' own diaries; drawings too. The same goes for his past, and the way he warped his memories with fantasies.
An incredibly intriguing book until you get to the last chapter ('Answers'). It's an incredibly fat and wordy chapter, covering almost every basis that could be said to cause Dennis to murder.
From a psychological perspective, it's incredibly interesting to see the way different disorders were treated, spoken about and diagnosed 40+ years ago. It is, unfortunately, not exactly the most polite way to talk about people with mental illnesses.
I really disliked the way the author referred to "autistic children" or "semi autistic child", and related them to cold blooded killers. Autism =/= cold hearted and a murderer.
It's a good basis to gain some understanding of Nilsen, and does a good job of emphasising that people like Nilsen are a rarity.
I'm not sure I feel Masters would've been the best person to write such an intense breakdown of Nilsen, given the fact he personally met with him and chatted with him frequently enough to gain enough information to write 300+ pages on him. Whilst I know, according to this book, Nilsen was never said to be a psychopath, that doesn't mean he's not a good manipulator. Nor does it mean Masters wouldn't have been somewhat biased when writing about him.
I'm conflicted on a lot of it, but as information it is good. As a book, it's very dense, very information heavy, repetitive at times, slow on some chapters, and plain frustrating in others.
It was interesting to read excerpts from Dennis' own diaries; drawings too. The same goes for his past, and the way he warped his memories with fantasies.
An incredibly intriguing book until you get to the last chapter ('Answers'). It's an incredibly fat and wordy chapter, covering almost every basis that could be said to cause Dennis to murder.
From a psychological perspective, it's incredibly interesting to see the way different disorders were treated, spoken about and diagnosed 40+ years ago. It is, unfortunately, not exactly the most polite way to talk about people with mental illnesses.
I really disliked the way the author referred to "autistic children" or "semi autistic child", and related them to cold blooded killers. Autism =/= cold hearted and a murderer.
It's a good basis to gain some understanding of Nilsen, and does a good job of emphasising that people like Nilsen are a rarity.
I'm not sure I feel Masters would've been the best person to write such an intense breakdown of Nilsen, given the fact he personally met with him and chatted with him frequently enough to gain enough information to write 300+ pages on him. Whilst I know, according to this book, Nilsen was never said to be a psychopath, that doesn't mean he's not a good manipulator. Nor does it mean Masters wouldn't have been somewhat biased when writing about him.
I'm conflicted on a lot of it, but as information it is good. As a book, it's very dense, very information heavy, repetitive at times, slow on some chapters, and plain frustrating in others.
A straightforward, no-frills account. A pity, I might have liked some frills. Nilsen is a better and more poetic writer than his biographer, who simply hangs grimly on his coat tails.
Alright beach fodder. Improved on by the audiobook and subsequent series.
Alright beach fodder. Improved on by the audiobook and subsequent series.
Very interesting take but also quite boring in the way it's all written
dark
informative
reflective
tense
slow-paced
dark
reflective
slow-paced
Reading this book was a lot! This book is a reprint of the 1985 book, containing a forward written for a 2017 reprint by Masters, which helped frame the context the first edition was written in.
I found the language used by Masters problematic, and lacked a tenderness when discussing the victims of Nilson - however I am mindful that this reflects the attitudes at the time (1980s) of unemployment queer folk and may not reflect Masters personal attitude towards them.
It is evident that Masters had the opportunity to know and attempt to understand Nilsen as this is reflected in the selection of Nilsens self-reflections. However I found a lot of the book speculative, especially in the final chapter 'Answers' when discussing a religious explanation for Nilsens actions.
It is a complicated case, and the struggle to categorise and explain Nilsen is evident. I do feel that the repeated use of Personality Disorder to explain Nilsen is problematic, as is also the disease model Mental Health conditions are based on, which is well addressed in the Post Script by Anthony Storr.
Overall it made for a complicated and interesting read, and Masters speculations do prompt the reader to consider their own attitudes towards Nilsen.
I found the language used by Masters problematic, and lacked a tenderness when discussing the victims of Nilson - however I am mindful that this reflects the attitudes at the time (1980s) of unemployment queer folk and may not reflect Masters personal attitude towards them.
It is evident that Masters had the opportunity to know and attempt to understand Nilsen as this is reflected in the selection of Nilsens self-reflections. However I found a lot of the book speculative, especially in the final chapter 'Answers' when discussing a religious explanation for Nilsens actions.
It is a complicated case, and the struggle to categorise and explain Nilsen is evident. I do feel that the repeated use of Personality Disorder to explain Nilsen is problematic, as is also the disease model Mental Health conditions are based on, which is well addressed in the Post Script by Anthony Storr.
Overall it made for a complicated and interesting read, and Masters speculations do prompt the reader to consider their own attitudes towards Nilsen.
dark
informative
slow-paced