Ted Bundy: Conversations with a Killer

Ted Bundy has been dead for 30 years. A 4 part series on Netflix lets you hear some of the interviews but more about what theAuthors thought of him. Sociopath, psychopath, sexual deviant and murderer. Manipulative liar. Using his life as a diversion from getting caught. Ho-hum. The real people close to the case on film talking about what that experience was like is there ( on Netflix, not in the book) as well and that’s very interesting.A better book would have been transcripts of all the tapes. Or better yet - the tapes themselves. I gave the book 5 stars because you do get an opportunity to hear him talk about himself hidden as a 3rd person narrator - an idea the interviewer came up with that let his subject say something about what he may have done and how he thought about it in fantasy and reality. It was compelling to hear Bundy speak about the transition of fantasy alone to fantasy superimposed on reality. He is very articulate in his ability to describe nuanced mental events. At these moments the description has an unintended effect of him losing a grasp on the reality of the women he abducted as alive. His quick use of blunt force and ligature looks less like his intent was to inflict pain and more like his intent was to quickly produce a carefully selected dead female. This looks like what he was admitting.in those last hours before he died and what he found most personally shameful and most horrifying to his listeners.

Pretty much a rehash of what we already know.

No real discussion of the crimes Bundy committed. No confessions by him.. just a look into a very manipulative man who was able to compertmanalize his life.

The best thing I like about this book is that Bundy talks in the third person. The interviews and questions are deep. The responses are insightful and refreshingly “psychological” and anyone interested in psychology, law, serial killers, and who has a little voyeurism in them, will like this book.Another reason I liked it and might read it again is that I can read “Disposable Futures: the Seduction of Violence in the Age of Spectacle” (by Evans and Giroux), “Seventeen Contradictions and the End of Capitalism” (by David Harvey) [also available from Amazon] and this book about Ted Bundy, and I can go from one book to another, jump back and forth between all three, and it’s like reading one continuous stream of consciousness, like reading one book without interruption!Neoliberalism, predatory capitalism and a psychopathic killer: it’s all the same story, just different names – maybe a different emphasis here or there, but there’s similar motives, means and opportunities to commit crimes and avoid detection. It doesn’t matter if it’s Wall Street bankers, secret global trade deals or raping and murdering young girls: the only thing missing are the alibis, and Bundy never had any either.

If you are Interested In True Crime and Serial Killers, this Is a Great book for your Collection ! I recommend you buy the Ed Kemper book as well !

When I heard Netflix was planning a show based on this book of transcribed audio tapes, I decided to jump the gun and get the information instead of waiting for the show.What's unique and engrossing is you get the killer's actual words, unfiltered--amazing.Without actually confessing, he tells us how he escalated from reading pornography based on violence against women, to being a chronic peeping tom, to finally acting out on his rape fantasies.He murdered the first rape victim (and 30+ more) because he said he was afraid of getting caught, but by reading through the lines it's obvious violence was his primary target from the very beginning.He admitted there was a type of woman he hunted--young and attractive, walking alone.There is also discussion of his girlfriend-turned wife, Carole, who, unbelievably, believed in his innocence.Quite an interesting read.

I want to clarify my last review. I did not look closely at the condition stated by the seller. The Book is exactly as stated. I apologies for the poor review. My mistake.

I enjoyed the insight on how Ted Bundy thinks and how manipulative he could be. On a more personal level, some of the things he said are eerily similar to the way I operate. For example, when he said he used to fantasize about having an endless supply of socks and underwear so he never had to worry about a clean pair being available. I impulsively buy a new pack of each every two or three months, long before I've had to throw any out. I could go a month or more without washing laundry and never run out of clean socks or underwear. Many times throughout the book, I found myself thinking, had I been the right age, at the right time, in the right place, I would have gotten along with Ted, and wondered if I'd have made a suitable victim, although he probably wouldn't have "gone there" with someone who was a true friend.Similarities aside, I was more interested in the details of the crimes, the investigation, trial, and sentencing. In that respect, this book was not what I had hoped for or expected. Any time the interviewers got too close to the topic at hand, Ted would veer in the other direction. At times it got so painfully slow and repetitive, I found myself skipping entire paragraphs, then going back to re-read just in case I missed something interesting or important.If all you're interested in is Ted Bundy: The Man, this is a great book with plenty to offer, although according to one reviewer, it's nothing new. I wouldn't know, as this is the first book on Bundy that I've read. It just wasn't what I was looking for, and I guess I shouldn't hold that against it.

I actually became interested in Bundy through a video I watched a few years back. It was a series hosted by the world-famous Christian child psychologist James Dobson. Dobson was actually the last person to interview Bundy (just hourse before his execution), and the insights he gained there and the words of Bundy had a deep effect on my mind.I remember years later working in a home with young adults with Asperger's Syndrome. One young boy in particular had a thing for gory horror movies and would watch them as soon as he got up and pretty much until he went to bed. I must admit this freaked me out, and in an attempt to dissuade him from this abnormal activity I showed him various videos on YouTube ranging from Bundy's last interview to news coverage of the Columbine High School Massacre of '99. It had a positive effect on him too, but my manager didn't agree and told me that he couldn't differentiate between fantasy and reality. When I commented that the real danger is letting him watch depraved horror movies (where he frequently punched the air and exclaimed "yeah!" when the bad guy would rip one of his victims open or some other on-screen atrocity) he paused and said "You've got a point". Anyway,Anyway, I got the impression that he was sincere at the time, and so did Dobson when interviewing him. But from further reading and watching, it would appear that Bundy was always trying to play people, to gain an advantage (in this case an extension of life on his death sentence).To be honest this is the first book on Bundy I have read, and perhaps I should have read Michaud's first book "The Only Living Witness" for a more general understanding of his case.Having been addicted in the past to various things, I could certainly pick up on some of Bundy's psychology, but I just don't feel I could get into it the way someone with more awareness of the case maybe could. Bundy was a clever person. He knew the law and he knew a fair bit of psychology. He was totally addicted to his perversion. There are a lot of people like Bundy who perhaps never gain the courage to act out their sick fantasies or they are addicted to something less destructive or less extreme. I could certainly pick up on what he was saying in regards to the addictive nature of his crimes of passion.Bundy was adamant in wanting the world to know he was smart, totally sane and was not a perverted sicko on the extremes of society, but a certain product of society of which there were more. The impression one is left with is that Bundy spent long hours meditating on why exactly he had ended up like this; the causes and effects.I have "The Only Living Witness" which I will read next. And I would probably suggest you read that first.

From someone who studied criminology and psychology and who has read extensive books on Ted Bundy as he is quite interesting to read about, I found this book highly disappointing.I purchased the book expecting Ted Bundy to explain what he was thinking and feeling and why he done the crimes, but what I found was something completely different. Ted refuses to talk about what he done or admit to it, but instead the researchers ask him to explain what he thinks was going through the mind of the person that he thinks committed the crime...However, as this sounds like a great trick, Ted does not always tell the truth. It is interesting why he says the crimes were committed, how and what was going through the "killers'" mind, but what he says has to be taken with caution as he is a manipulator and does not always tell the truth as anyone who knows the crimes will know - some lies the researchers will even point out.Personally, I find books about him more interesting than this book. Don't expect too much. I wouldn't say it is an easy read as he does get quite technical as he has studied psychology himself and whether he is actually telling what he is thinking or showing off his academic knowledge is another question to ask.I agree with one review that says the book leaves you with more questions than answers. I put the book down without learning much

I was quite disappointed with this book, Ted Bundy in his own words, he did everything but admit to the murders of those poor girls, he is a coward, I kinda lost interest in the book as it wasn't going anywhere really, the only living witness is far better book to read

Love the book it really a good read

Great read, especially as TB always spoke in the Third person.