A great way to discover and discuss new an d classic true crime writing&mdash\;from murder\, to robbery\, heists and arson&mdash\;we touch on every aspect of humanity's darker instincts.
\ nThis month we will read "Long Haul: Hunting the Highway Serial Killers " by former FBI assistant director Frank Figliuzzi.
\nFrom Amazon
\n"A true-crime masterpiece." \;&mdash\;Don Winsl ow
\nA Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award Finalist (Best Fact Cr ime)
\nFrom the FBI&rsquo\;s former assistant director\, a shocking journey to the dark side of America&rsquo\;s highways\, revealing the FBI Highway Serial Killings Initiative&rsquo\;s hunt for the long-haul trucker s behind an astonishing 850 murders&ndash\;and counting.
\nIn 2004\, the FBI was tipped off to a gruesome pattern of unsolved murders along Am erican roadways. Today at least 850 homicides have been linked to a solita ry breed of predators: long-haul truck drivers. They have been given names like the &ldquo\;Truck Stop Killer\,&rdquo\; who rigged a traveling tortu re chamber in the rear of his truck and is suspected to have killed fifty women\, and &ldquo\;The Interstate Strangler\,&rdquo\; who once answered a phone call from his mother while killing one of his dozen victims. The cr isis was such that the FBI opened a special unit\, the Highway Serial Kill ings Initiative. In many cases\, the victims&mdash\;often at-risk women&md ash\;are picked up at truck stops in one jurisdiction\, sexually assaulted and murdered in another\, and dumped along a highway in a third place. Th e transient nature of the offenders and multiple jurisdictions involved ma ke these cases incredibly difficult to solve.
\nBased on his own on- the-ground research and drawing on his twenty-five-year career as an FBI s pecial agent\, Frank Figliuzzi investigates the most terrifying cases. He also rides in a big-rig with a long-haul trucker for thousands of miles\, gaining an intimate understanding of the life and habits of drivers and th eir roadside culture. And he interviews the courageous trafficked victims of these crimes\, and their inspiring efforts to now help others avoid sim ilar fates.
\nLong Haul \;is a gripping exploration of a violent\, disordered world hiding in plain sight\, and the heroes racing to end the horror. It will forever unsettle how you travel on the road.\n
Shortlisted for four 2025 True Crime Awards
\nWe meet on the third Monday of every other month starting in January. View and pr int the list of books and check out WPPL's Book Discussion page for more book and movie clubs!
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