Murder Most Rare: The Female Serial Killer

While the short, lethal careers of serial killers such as Jeffrey Dahmer and Andrew Cunanan terrorize the public and provide morbid inspiration for the entertainment industry, few people realize that it is the female serial killer, seldom heard of, who deserves most to be feared. Murder Most Rare provides startling information about the female serial murderer, who is shown to be far more deadly and determined, difficult to apprehend, and complexly motivated than her male counterpart. While serial murder by women is relatively rare, a surprising number of female serial killers are identified by the authors, nearly 100 in this century, with half of them having committed their crimes in America. By examining these women's backgrounds, motives and methods of killing, the book sheds new light on dozens of overlooked cases of murder and uncovers callous crimes and passions gone awry.

After a thought-provoking exploration of the cultural biases that have caused us historically to dismiss and ignore the criminal potential of women, Murder Most Rare divides female serial murders for the first time into seven categories: Black Widow, Angel of Death, Sexual Predator, Revenge, Profit or Crime, Team Killer and Question of Sanity. These seven types vary widely in motivation, choice of victims, weapons and methods. The authors reveal patterns that occur within the types, but stress that the complicated nature of these women's crimes makes personality profiling almost impossible―a fact that causes the jobs of homicide investigators to be difficult, indeed, sometimes impossible. This is a uniquely personal look into a dark, shocking world.

MICHAEL D. KELLEHER, who has written widely on the subject of violence, specializes in threat assessment, strategic management, and human resource management for organizations in the private and public sectors. He is the author of Profiling the Lethal Employee (1997) and New Arenas for Violence (1996), both published by Praeger.

C. L. KELLEHER is a volunteer counselor and human rights advocate.