The Dexter Novels

What came first? The chicken or the egg or in this case, the novel or the show? Jeff Lindsay's rule oriented serial killer first appeared in novel form. If you've watched all of the Showtime series and are afraid you'll just be re-reading what you've already seen; don't. Although the first book and the first season are very similar, the endings are quite different and the two depart and go their own way. The novel version of Dexter is more sinister and the voice of the Dark Passenger constantly reminds the reader, Dexter is not compassionate, he's not a good guy- he's a serial killer.  If you're having Dexter withdrawal or just hate the way the tv series ended, pick these thrilling novels up. Dexter is now appearing in graphic novels too!

Behind the Gates of Gomorrah: A Year with the Criminally Insane By Stephen Seager

Have you ever wondered what happens to a criminal who is found unfit to stand trial? I can't say it was a question that kept me up at night but when I picked up Behind the Gates of Gomorrah: A Year with the Criminally Insane, promising a dark version of Orange is the New Black, it definitely crossed my mind and decided I should find out. What does happen to the criminally insane is frightening but not as scary as what happens to those charged to care for them.

Dr. Seager chronicles his first year at California's Gorman State Hospital where he watches colleagues (and himself) get beaten, attacked, threatened and demeaned only to have their attacker return after they are found, yet again, to be unfit to stand trial. His eye-opening account is not preachy. Seager saves his rant on the flawed system as an afterword to the book. Instead, he paints a picture in hard facts and lets the reader decide how they feel about Gomorrah and the system itself.

Psychopath Test

The Psychopath Test By Jon Ronson

Much like me, you've probably called a boss, an ex-friend, maybe even a stranger a psychopath or its sister term, a sociopath. But what do these terms really mean and how would you truly know if the person in front of you was a psychopath?

Jon Ronson travels down the rabbit hole where he encounters Scientologists, LSD wielding psychologists, psychopathic CEO's and a whole network of individuals looking to find a cure for the incurable.

The Psychopath Test, written like an edge of the seat Law and Order episode, had me wondering if psychopaths really did rule the world or just the prison yard. Full of handy information and facts about psychiatry that will surprise and possibly shock the reader, Psychopath Test is a book worth picking up.


Further Reading: "Voluntary Madness" By Norah Vincent and "A First-Rate Madness: Uncovering the Links Between Leadership and Madness" By Nassir Ghaemi.