The U.S. lexicon in the 1950s did not include words like "mass murderer" or "serial killer"--not until Charlie Starkweather and Caril Ann Fugate came along. This is according to Harry N. MacLean's robustly researched and persuasive Starkweather, where new material and reporting update the horrific facts of America's first brush with mass murder. From January 21 to January 29, 1958, 19-year-old Starkweather--in the company of Fugate, his 14-year-old girlfriend (and potential accomplice)--brutally murdered 10 people in and around Lincoln, Neb.
MacLean (The Joy of Killing) delves into Starkweather's childhood being bullied and his "unique rage" that served his "magnetic fantasy of the outlaw gunning for his last showdown." The first victims of Starkweather's homicidal meltdown were Fugate's mother, stepfather, and baby sister, who were not discovered for nearly a week as the young couple shot, stabbed, and terrorized innocent people unlucky enough to cross their path. MacLean's "you-are-there," present-tense narrative of the murders is told through the eyes of both Starkweather and Fugate. MacLean is thorough and exhaustive in every phase of the Lincoln murders (testimony, trial, and aftermath) and boldly takes up the controversial "hostage theory" Fugate's lawyers invoked. He also shares insights on Fugate's mental state, applying a modern understanding of PTSD and brain chemistry.
Lincoln itself becomes the last victim, as "the days of paralyzing fear were now threaded into the nervous system of the community." Starkweather is definitive, gripping, and sure to stir up debate on a dark moment in U.S. history. --Peggy Kurkowski, book reviewer and copywriter in Denver