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Morbidly Curious Book Club: NOVA Chapter (Northern Virginia)

The MCBC NOVA Chapter is a localized chapter of The Morbidly Curious Book Club. An 18+ non-fiction macabre-focused book club diving into the darker parts of your library, whether it be true crime cases, morally ambiguous medical practice, spirits and ghosts, or death. We discuss 1 book around the end of each month. You will see the book we are reading in the 'Currently Reading' tab, and the meeting time on the 'Meeting' tab. We ask beforehand that you check trigger warnings on all books we discuss. It is safe to assume they will be touching on many tough subjects. Some may be easy to miss. Proceed with caution. You do not have to commit to anything. Come and join as you may and discuss at your own will. Even if you weren't quite able to finish the book!

All That Is Wicked: A Gilded-Age Story of Murder and the Race to Decode the Criminal Mind

Acclaimed crime historian, podcaster, and author of American Sherlock Kate Winkler Dawson tells the thrilling story of Edward Rulloff—a serial murderer who was called “too intelligent to be killed”—and the array of 19th century investigators who were convinced his brain held the key to finally understanding the criminal mind.

Edward Rulloff was a brilliant yet utterly amoral murderer—some have called him a “Victorian-era Hannibal Lecter”—whose crimes spanned decades and whose victims were chosen out of revenge, out of envy, and sometimes out of necessity. From his humble beginnings in upstate New York to the dazzling salons and social life he established in New York City, at every turn Rulloff used his intelligence and regal bearing to evade detection and avoid punishment. He could talk his way out of any crime...until one day, Rulloff's luck ran out.
 
By 1871 Rulloff sat chained in his cell—a psychopath holding court while curious 19th-century "mindhunters" tried to understand what made him tick. From alienists (early psychiatrists who tried to analyze the source of his madness) to neurologists (who wanted to dissect his brain) to phrenologists (who analyzed the bumps on his head to determine his character), each one thought he held the key to understanding the essential question: is evil born or made? Eventually, Rulloff’s brain would be placed in a jar at Cornell University as the prize specimen of their anatomy collection...where it still sits today, slowly moldering in a dusty jar. But his story—and its implications for the emerging field of criminal psychology—were just beginning.
 
Expanded from season one of her hit podcast on the Exactly Right network (7 million downloads and growing), in All That Is Wicked Kate Winkler Dawson draws on hundreds of source materials and never-before-shared historical documents to present one of the first glimpses into the mind of a serial killer—a century before the term was coined—through the scientists whose work would come to influence criminal justice for decades to come.

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320 pages

Average rating: 6.31

276 RATINGS

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Community Reviews

CreativeBean
Jan 10, 2025
5/10 stars
In summary, OK - not great. Struggled with the writing style, use of too many superalitives and fictionalised in parts. The author's unnecessary commentary on modern American politics in the penultimate chapter had nothing to do with the tale of Edward Rulloff nor with Criminology/Psychology for that matter.
Crtn.dunn
Feb 05, 2025
3/10 stars
Not a fan. Lots of information that just fluffed an 1800s murderer’s meaningless biography. The only race was mine to finish the book at 1.7 speed.
BMC
Jan 16, 2025
7/10 stars
An interesting story but I didn't connect with the writing.
LuluLaGhoul
Mar 24, 2025
10/10 stars
Kate Winkler Dawson can write no wrong. Love her and this book!
SurfPrincessRachel
Feb 07, 2025
8/10 stars
Very fascinating look at nature va nurture and the effects on the brain in regards psychopathy. Excellent storytelling.

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