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Summary: Not for weak stomachs....
Review: Mind Hunter begins with a very chilling first few paragraphs, and from then on, John Douglas leaves nothing to the imagination, but for a good reason. Beginning with how stressed he had become about his 150 cases across the country, he jumps back and forth from the FBI in the time of Hoover to what he helped it become today. After a brief chapter of how he became involved in the FBI, the changes that took place, and other backround information on himself and his occupation, he starts to give examples of various serial killers. It is in the description of these serial killers that detail, as brutal and disgusting as it might seem, is vital. Without Douglas' description of the act of each specific killer he's interviewed and delt with, he wouldn't be able to reasonably explain the approaches he uses for interrogations, or conclusions, which would seem like psychic guesses if he hadn't have taken the time to explain why he's able to make such extreme generalizations. What is meant by this is that simply by examing the victim and the crime scene meticulously, Douglas, in most cases, will come up with the killer in the smallest of details; if he's ever off of description, it's usually just with the killer's age. Mind Hunter is very very graphic. Even some who can tough out the most gruesome movies might not be able to stand this book, simply because there are no pictures, just descriptions, and, unlike a movie, you can not hide your eyes to something you see in your mind.
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Summary: Inside the mind of a killer
Review: John opens up a world that is dangerous and extremely interesting. This book offers a stunning look behind the curtain at what goes on in the mind of a killer. His methodology is fascinating and his accuracy in portraying UNSUBS more so. I was glued to the pages. I think I read this book in a day and a half. When I was done I went to the store to buy everything else this guy wrote. His work is excellent!
Rating: 
Summary: A Must Have in any True Crime Library
Review: One of 4 or 5 books I call a must have, and one of two on that list by John Douglas. This is probably Douglas' second best work behind Journey Into Darkness, but since it was his first effort, it can be forgiven. Douglas is quite simply not only a genious when it comes to profiling criminals, but also a genious at putting you into his shoes and helping you right into his mind. I've read Ressler (one of Douglas' mentors) and Hazelwood, both of whom wrote similar books, but neither of them at their best match the readability of Douglas' worst efforts (but this isn't his worst).This is an excellent text on the myriad of cases and situations faced by an FBI profiler when profiling was in its infancy. Douglas truly shows his genious when describing the cases, his thought processes, and the results. Though Douglas does tend to pat himself on the back occasionally, he does so sparingly, and, well, deservingly. After all, he was the best.
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Summary: Amazing!!!!
Review: This is a wonderful book. If you're interested in the Thomas Harris novels, then this is a book for you. It's insightful and grabs your attention from the first page. The book is littered with stories of killers and why they kill. It also gives a view of a man consumed by the daily grind of catching killers.
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Summary: The title says it all.
Review: This is one of the best books on the subject. I do not mind the personal tidbits about the authors life, because this type of work at some point can get to you and by letting us into the minds of the killers he shows us the damage is not only to the victims and the victims family but to anyone the killer's life touches. Excellant read from a pro.
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Summary: We thoroughly enjoyed this book--
Review: My son and I listened to the unabridged book-on-tape, and I find myself disagreeing with some of the reviewers. We completely enjoyed this inside look into profiling and behavioral science. Mr. Douglas does have a background -- a BA and an MA, I believe -- in psychology, plus a world of experience he's developed over the years. And he certainly does explain how he reaches many of his conclusions -- including the "stutterer" one -- explaining that he was sure the perp had a disability of some kind, and then going through how he eliminated other possible disabilities. And he comes to the knowledge that the perpetrator was black (in the Atlanta child murders case, I assume) because of long experience that tells us that serial killers (who seldom are black) don't cross racial lines. Yes, this book also contains a life story, but we found that interesting too. And we enjoyed being able to begin figuring things out along the way, from the principles and clues he provides. Perhaps this book might not be satisfying to someone who already knows a lot about the subject, but we really enjoyed it.
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Summary: Just the facts, please.
Review: I agree with the other reviews that have been posted previously. While the book is an interesting read based on John Douglas' accomplishments, it doesn't really give an "inside" look on serial killers and how to draw behavorial conclusions based on the evidence. I have no idea how he determined that killer was black or white - "it was just a gut feeling." He'll say things like "Based on the photos I looked at and the M.E. report, I determined that the killer drove a BMW with a Jack in the Box antenna ball and has a speech stutter ... " And that's it. What we the readers are missing are photo descriptions and details of the crime scene to comprehend how he came to the conclusions he did. (I recommend "The Evil Men Do" for a good illustration - you figure out what happened and then they tell you if you're right.) I'm interested in behavior science and would like to know how Douglas gained the unique insight he had. I'm onto his second book, "Journey into Darkness" and while it's slightly better, I've noticed that some of the cases are repeated in a more edited form. I realize he wants to illustrate a couple of points for those who may have missed his earlier book. Yes, it's a good book, but read it knowing that it'll focus on his life in the FBI, his failed marriage, and his health problems. Don't expect to gain profound understanding of how criminals work because there really isn't anything to look at - just his word that he was right in most of his assessments.
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Summary: Tid Bits into a Serial Killers Mind and its Unveiling
Review: Mind Hunter offers its readers a brief, yet intreging glimps into the mind of the most profound serial killers across the country and the hard working men and women who have helped bring them to justice. John Douglas sets the scene of what life as an FBI agent has to offer. This includes its benefits, hardships, recognition, and cognitive patterns, only to name a few. While explaining his life as an FBI agent, Douglas (and Olshaker) slowly begin(s) to incorporate crime scenes, serial killers, and FBI profiling tactics into each chapter. Some crimes are explained in grizzly detail, while others leave you with more questions than answers. The main focus of the book appears to be analyzing the minds of serial killers(as the title would imply), being empathetic to the victims (or putting yourself in their shoes),and in doing this, coming up with a profile of your potential killer(s). Yet, from my point of view, people read this type of book to try and understand how people can commit such hynous crimes, and in trying to understand, we what to know every single detail that went on during that crime in order to figure it out for ourselves. Although that may sound sick, that is essentially how Douglas and other FBI agents are able to solve these crimes -by becoming (in as sense) serial killers themselves. In my opinion, Douglas should have added more detail about the crimes, but I'm sure other books have already done that. I still give it five stars because the mind is a powerful thing and I think Douglas (as well as other FBI agents) has a great mind. One so powerful that it reaches a step above that of a killer. As I've found from many books, a killer in the making thinks of its every step, every move, every scenario and it takes a lot of hard work and dedication to always be one up on a killer.
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Summary: Highly Overrated
Review: The positive reviews here and the promise of a good story enticed my purchase of the tapes. Unfortunately, this title was very disappointing. I found the reading insipid relative to the several stories of brutal serial killings. One must be quite patient listening to the author's personal history, which is not entirely relevant. It's a wonder the bad grammar passed the editors--or is this perhaps self-published?
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Summary: More of a bio than "inside the FBI's.."
Review: John Douglas spends a lot of time talking about the cases and the workload, and his criss-crossing the country. I wish it went more into the details of each crime, spending a little more time on the details. I began Mind Hunter expecting a lot more than I received. The book is interesting but it really lacks insight as to how the FBI actually arrived at their profiles. Most of the time a quick summary of the crime would be given then the author would describe the killer without ever explaining how he came to the conclusions he did, and take credit for solving it. It left me with more questions then answers, and knowing a lot more about John Douglas than profiling. It's only 384 pages so its worth reading to the end, just know it's more about John Douglas the the "inside" story.
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