Maureen Callahan (2)Reseñas

A terrifying look into the life of Israel Keyes, his victims, and the way that he was ultimately captured.

All I know is that I will never go to a coffee kiosk in Anchorage, Alaska ... ever.

I've never heard of this guy? And he killed people all over the country and maybe all over the world? This should have been a really chilling, terrible story, but it was told very drily and all after the capture of the killer. It's still very readable because of the slow unraveling of details during the investigation. I wish the incompetence and corruption of the Anchorage police and prison were covered more, that seemed like a really important detail tacked on in the last pages. So while this is no I'll Be Gone in the Dark, it's still a great true crime chronicling.

American Predator (2019) by Maureen Callahan. This is a true life telling of “The hunt for the most meticulous serial killer of the 21st century.” Author describes Israel Keyes and law enforcement's bungling of his case and she tells it in a most neutral way. The story was horrifying and one wonders what or when it could happen to someone we know.

For as much as I was anticipating this book I was not impressed with it. Israel Keyes was certainly a very disturbed individual but he played law enforcement the whole way through. He made a lot of demands to protect his identity for the "sake of his daughter" but in return law enforcement essentially got nothing. The prosecutor played the case extremely poorly and careless but no one could stop him. Considering this took place in the 21st century one would think this kind of carelessness would not have been allowed to continue. I'm glad I read it (I guess) but I would not recommend it to anyone.

CW: descriptions of animal killing, rape, murder, suicide details, descriptions of bloody scenes and dead bodies

Well that was quite traumatic in parts but that's to be expected in a book about a serial killer.

This is one of the first true crime books I have read so I didn't really know what to expect. Not knowing anything about this killer worked in my favour as it was all new information to me. I have to say I thought it was utterly disturbing how wrong detectives and police got things throughout this investigation. An interesting look into the mind of a serial killer but I wasn't blown away by this book.

Truly one of the most riveting as well as frightening true crime books I have read since "The Stranger Beside Me." The story of serial killer Israel Keyes and the descriptions of his depravity will horrify even the most veteran true crime reader. This book is written in an easy-to-follow narrative that will make it impossible for readers to put down. Keyes is the stuff of nightmares to be sure. I could not put this book down!

(1) Not sure this book is an auspicious start to 2022. True crime story of a serial killer caught in 2012; someone no one has ever heard of, likely purposefully to avoid glorification. A crazy man raised by a family that jumped from cult to cult, survivalist-types in the woods. No good can come from that. Otherwise all the classic sadistic markers of one who takes pleasure in rape, the fear and pain of others, and murder. Horrible.

I have the day off and often I go for a hike in some public forestlands with just my dog. Umm ... no, not today. This book was not particularly artfully written as not much is really known about this person who ultimately committed suicide in jail. The matter of fact way the author laid things out did contribute to the dread I felt reading it.

I don't have much to say otherwise - not the best of this genre. A genre I hate myself for reading. And yet.

The Invisible Killer

Unfamiliar with American serial killer Israel Keyes? You won’t be after you read Maureen Callahan’s combination police procedural, psychological study, and exposé of police mishandling of certain aspects of the case. Investigating any complex case can be a messy business, as the falderal over the high profile Jeffrey Epstein sexual abuse and suicide case currently stands as an example.

Keyes was a prolific killer (but how prolific is anybody’s guess given the mismanagement mentioned above and explained later). He killed for personal pleasure, which included the control he exercised over his victims. He thoroughly planned his killings, understood how spreading his killings out over various states would allow him to extend his hunts for years without detection. He even prepared killing kits that he hid in various parts of the country against the day he would need them in commission of a crime. A self-employed construction worker, he financed his sprees mainly by robbing banks, but also with ransom efforts. He rarely hunted near home, which was Anchorage, Alaska, until he killed his last victim, Samantha Koenig, an eighteen-year-old kiosk barista, a murder that proved his undoing.

Callahan begins at the end, in the manner Keyes liked relating some of his murders, with Samatha’s murder. The case began as a missing person, followed by suspicion of her boyfriend and father, and finally as the abduction it really was. This became apparent when the abductor contacted Samantha’s father asking for a ransom, which officially brought in the FBI. Eventually, Keyes was stopped and arrested in Texas through the efforts of local police and the Texas Highway Patrol. Once in custody and back in Alaska a lengthly interview process began, revealing that Keyes had murdered victims throughout the U.S. As to how many, that question has never been answered, because while in the Anchorage Correctional Complex, Keyes managed to kill himself, a startling outcome, as he had often intimated he would end things if the authorities would not grant his request for a quick conviction and execution.

Keyes proved to be a wily adversary to the FBI agents and Anchorage police who interviewed him. He often was able to gain control over the process, which satisfied his own personal need for controlling situations and which also provided him with gratification teasing the authorities, reliving aspects of the murders he revealed to them, and gaining certain perks for himself, again allowing him to manipulate the situation to his advantage. Though Keyes appears to have placed an expiration date on his so-called cooperation with authorities, this period might have been extended if there hadn’t been as much contention among the police themselves, and if their interrogations had been more considered, measured, with clear objectives in mind. A principal wrench in this appears to have been Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Feldis, currently in private practice. Though Feldis would act as prosecuting attorney when the case came to trial, he inserted himself into interviewing Keyes and assumed the role of lead. This was problematic for several reason, but two will suffice. Feldis had no experience or finesse in interviewing criminals, a serious problem given Keyes’ nature. Then there was the potential conflict of being the attorney who would prosecute (imagine being called as a witness in the case you are trying). In short, opportunities to identify more of Keyes’ victims and the full extent of his crimes, not to mention clearing open cases nationwide and bringing closure to families, vanished because authorities could not gain an upper hand on Keyes.

This is a book for true crime fans, particularly those fascinated by serial killers. It’s also an excellent book for people with a general interest in our justice system, particularly some of its glaring weaknesses. Something apparent to and exploited by Keyes should also be apparent to readers, and that is the fact that most law enforcement agencies still tend to operate discretely. It all may look like a unified force from the outside, but after reading American Predator, you’ll be asking yourself how much really falls through the cracks, like Israel Keyes, who might not have been captured but for his violating his own rules of hunting and killing innocent victims.

The Invisible Killer

Unfamiliar with American serial killer Israel Keyes? You won’t be after you read Maureen Callahan’s combination police procedural, psychological study, and exposé of police mishandling of certain aspects of the case. Investigating any complex case can be a messy business, as the falderal over the high profile Jeffrey Epstein sexual abuse and suicide case currently stands as an example.

Keyes was a prolific killer (but how prolific is anybody’s guess given the mismanagement mentioned above and explained later). He killed for personal pleasure, which included the control he exercised over his victims. He thoroughly planned his killings, understood how spreading his killings out over various states would allow him to extend his hunts for years without detection. He even prepared killing kits that he hid in various parts of the country against the day he would need them in commission of a crime. A self-employed construction worker, he financed his sprees mainly by robbing banks, but also with ransom efforts. He rarely hunted near home, which was Anchorage, Alaska, until he killed his last victim, Samantha Koenig, an eighteen-year-old kiosk barista, a murder that proved his undoing.

Callahan begins at the end, in the manner Keyes liked relating some of his murders, with Samatha’s murder. The case began as a missing person, followed by suspicion of her boyfriend and father, and finally as the abduction it really was. This became apparent when the abductor contacted Samantha’s father asking for a ransom, which officially brought in the FBI. Eventually, Keyes was stopped and arrested in Texas through the efforts of local police and the Texas Highway Patrol. Once in custody and back in Alaska a lengthly interview process began, revealing that Keyes had murdered victims throughout the U.S. As to how many, that question has never been answered, because while in the Anchorage Correctional Complex, Keyes managed to kill himself, a startling outcome, as he had often intimated he would end things if the authorities would not grant his request for a quick conviction and execution.

Keyes proved to be a wily adversary to the FBI agents and Anchorage police who interviewed him. He often was able to gain control over the process, which satisfied his own personal need for controlling situations and which also provided him with gratification teasing the authorities, reliving aspects of the murders he revealed to them, and gaining certain perks for himself, again allowing him to manipulate the situation to his advantage. Though Keyes appears to have placed an expiration date on his so-called cooperation with authorities, this period might have been extended if there hadn’t been as much contention among the police themselves, and if their interrogations had been more considered, measured, with clear objectives in mind. A principal wrench in this appears to have been Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Feldis, currently in private practice. Though Feldis would act as prosecuting attorney when the case came to trial, he inserted himself into interviewing Keyes and assumed the role of lead. This was problematic for several reason, but two will suffice. Feldis had no experience or finesse in interviewing criminals, a serious problem given Keyes’ nature. Then there was the potential conflict of being the attorney who would prosecute (imagine being called as a witness in the case you are trying). In short, opportunities to identify more of Keyes’ victims and the full extent of his crimes, not to mention clearing open cases nationwide and bringing closure to families, vanished because authorities could not gain an upper hand on Keyes.

This is a book for true crime fans, particularly those fascinated by serial killers. It’s also an excellent book for people with a general interest in our justice system, particularly some of its glaring weaknesses. Something apparent to and exploited by Keyes should also be apparent to readers, and that is the fact that most law enforcement agencies still tend to operate discretely. It all may look like a unified force from the outside, but after reading American Predator, you’ll be asking yourself how much really falls through the cracks, like Israel Keyes, who might not have been captured but for his violating his own rules of hunting and killing innocent victims.

Review to come

My review of this book can be found on my Youtube Vlog at:

https://youtu.be/nz02IJLRfOU

Enjoy!

True crime about a not well known serial killer. . Appears much research was done and written in a clear, easy to follow style.

I am a huge fan of true crime podcasts and documentaries and I especially enjoy going down the rabbit hole and diving into a series about a specific event or person. I had previously read and listened to a lot about Israel Keyes because of one his crimes happened just a few towns over from us. I wasn't sure if this book would seem repetitive but after a few of my friends kept recommending this I decided to go for it.

I really don't read a lot of true crime novels because I have found some of them to be a little dry in the past but I have to hand it to Maureen Callahan! Not only did she write an engrossing book that read almost like fiction, but I learned a lot of new things about Keyes that I had not heard about before.

It does feel a little strange to be raving about this type of genre, but if you are interested in this kind of topic, I think you would just find this book fascinating. I won't go into too many details but if you are interested in the backstory of Keyes as well as the behind the scenes moments in the investigation of his crimes, you will love this. I had a hard time putting it down and Callahan is truly given at weaving these stories together in an informative and engaging manner.

American Predator (2019) by Maureen Callahan. This is a true life telling of “The hunt for the most meticulous serial killer of the 21st century.” Right on the cover the book is offering a lot and therefor has a lot of explaining to do. And it does.
Israel Keyes is the central figure of the story. He is almost totally anonymous in the annals of crime yet he is also, as one prosecutor described him, “a force of pure evil.” He made his home in Alaska and that is where he made his mistake. For at least once he decided to abduct and kill a young woman near where he lived. It was through meticulous investigation and a short series of lucky breaks, that his name came to the attention of local authorities. Then came the involvement of this Ms. Callahan and the FBI.
As a team the background of Keyes was explored including his frequent trips to the lower 48 and the grim finds uncovered along his path.
The most monstrous thing was the “Kill Kits” Keyes had amassed and hid across the landscape of the states he visited. Driving or flying south meant he could kill without an indication of his true home base. The “Kill Kits” allowed him to be ready within a few hours of when he found inspiration for his twisted pleasures.
Here is a detailed revelation of the determination of several key law enforcement personnel and how they captured this killer. How many has he done away with we may never know. But the thought is chilling.

Never a true crime fan, I've been dabbling over the last year, starting with true crime podcasts and now a few audiobooks. American Predator was particularly interesting because I had never heard of Israel Keyes or his crimes. His particular habits were truly horrifying and this book ended up being a bit more horror-like than I expected. The story was riveting and compelling. I'd recommend it.

Fascinating and infuriating. It's so frustrating to read about the ways bureaucracy in law enforcement hinders investigations. The writing really worked well for me, and the story was gripping and frightening. If you're curious about serial killers, I think this is a well researched and compelling read that will leave you unsettled. A small warning, it does have a very abrupt ending that I didn't expect as I knew nothing of the case beforehand, and it left me wanting to know more.

This book tells the story of serial killer Israel Keyes. Instead of beginning with the first murder and continuing until he is caught, this begins with the last victim in Alaska and shows the hunt and capture and then reveals the extent of the crime. Completely undetected for years, Keyes escaped notice by traveling. Unfortunately the book's style bored me. I'm thankful to be done with it.

American Predator is a terrifying read that freaked me out, angered me, and made me sputter not-so-nice words.

I knew nothing about Israel Keyes before reading this book. The man was a prolific, intelligent, psychopathic killer, yet his existence was the best kept secret in the true crime world until Maureen Callahan dug up all the dirt.

And, oh, the dirt! Keyes's case is a lesson in how badly the FBI and local law enforcement can screw up when they put egos before justice. Callahan uncovered a tangle of incompetence at every level of the investigation. I had no idea she'd had to fight the Department of Justice in court for the right to see the case files. After reading this, I can understand why they wanted it all to stay buried. Huge props to the author for not backing down.

This book is well written, insightful, and one that will stick with me for a very long time.

Good story, but possibly not in the way it was intended. At least, not the way I read it.

The author focuses on the FBI agents and the police department's investigation, which keeps you at a distance from 'the most meticulous serial killer' ... in an attempt to avoid scaring the reader? I've no idea. What it did for me was make me not really care, certainly not about the criminal, but not really about the crimes, either.

The style is just-the-facts-ma'am, cut and dried, first this then that... and a fair amount of complaining about interference among the law enforcement and prosecution entities.

I read a fair amount of true crime, and the majority of it is not well-written. This was just okay.

Fans of true crime books will undoubtedly enjoy Maureen Callahan's meticulously researched work. In all candor, I'm not a huge fan of this genre. Hence, the author isn't to fault for my becoming a bit restless by the last third of the book. If I was chronicling the devious deeds of one of the nation's lesser-known serial killers, I probably would have spared readers from the some of the step-by-step investigative details. Then again, that's what true crime tomes are all about. "American Predator" provided insights into a killer I never recalled hearing about prior to reading this book.½

A truly frightening profile of a serial killer who most of us never heard of and was the ultimate monster. Israel Keyes carried out his mayhem in the most calculating way and was only caught through a slip up in this process he considered invincible.

The law enforcement officials that stepped in, the Anchorage and the FBI, then engaged him and they to were ultimately defeated by their own ineptness. Keyes dictated terms to them through the entire process of his interrogation and they were only able to extract really minimal info on what he had pulled off. They surmise he was involved in about 12 or so murders. He was able to pull the plug on them by taking his own life while in custody. Much like the Jeffery Epstein suicide debacle highlighting the sloppiness that exists in these institutions.

The author's writing style is crisp, pointed and suspenseful keeping me on the edge of my chair and prompting page turning that was difficult to turn off. The very creepy take from this story is that there may be more of this ilk roaming around poised to strike against anyone that crosses their path. Truly frightening stuff as I stated.

This review can also be found on my blog.

Wow, this one was definitely a doozy. I picked up American Predator for week one of the #FridayFrightAThon 2019, hosted by Melanie, Amy, Jen, and Chelsea. It hadn’t really been on my radar before that, but I thought it sounded intriguing and decided to participate. And oh boy, intriguing doesn’t even begin to cover it!

The book starts with a deep dive into the disappearance of Samantha Koenig, who had gone missing in Anchorage, Alaska. Detailing the investigation start to finish, Callahan reels us right into the story. Police finally tracked down Israel Keyes, who reveals to them his extensive history of crime. The story becomes more and more compelling as we learn about Keyes’ past, motives (or lack thereof?), and methodology.

I got literal chills reading this because it was so impossible to fathom someone this cold-blooded and calculated really existing. As the blurb mentions, it is truly amazing that Keyes is not more well-known! He is a fairly recent serial killer (arrested in 2012) and is frighteningly intelligent and good at what he does. Honestly, if not for a few slip-ups, it’s hard to say whether he would have ever been caught. There is even information hinting that he possibly “[began] biohacking his own body in his quest to become the perfect serial killer” through surgeries he traveled all the way to Mexico to receive.

While it sometimes comes up that law enforcement has not revealed all aspects of Keyes’ crimes, that’s never the sense the reader gets. Callahan so smoothly fills in the gaps that it is difficult to feel like anything is missing -- even if there are questions unanswered, that often seems to come from Keyes himself rather than a barrier the author is unable to overcome.

Callan begins her conclusion by stating, “Any one of us could have been a victim of Israel Keyes.” And that’s the sense one gets while reading this. He criss-crossed the country and he committed crimes well beyond the bounds of the United States. He was smart and he was confident, taking people in broad daylight and in well-traveled areas. He is truly far more than your run-of-the-mill serial killer, if such a thing exists. It is clear that not much was an obstacle for him.

Overall, this was a chilling and fascinating read that I’ll be recommending left and right.

I didn't know much about Israel Keyes or his crimes until I read this book. Part of that is deliberate - Keyes wanted to keep his name out of the press as much as possible, in an attempt (at least so he said) to shield his young daughter, whom he did seem to love, from her father's crimes.

Serial killers are always horrific, but I think Keyes is even more so than most. The only reason that he was ever caught was because he became sloppy. He killed someone in the city where he was living and he used Samantha Koenig's ATM card multiple times, which allowed police to track his travels across the southwest until they found him in Texas. If he hadn't done those two things - heck, if he had just refrained from using his last victim's ATM card - he would probably be out there still to this day, murdering his way across America.

I think what struck me the most about Keyes was how methodical he was. He had "kill kits" buried all over the country (and I am sure that many are still out there - and even if people find one, they'll never understand what they are holding in their hands) and he roamed the highways, targeting big cities and little towns alike. He probably drove through my town a dozen times, if not more. Keyes often targeted hikers and other outsdoorsy types in forests and parks - it made me wonder if he ever visited the parks that I know and love out here. Did he ever walk down their trails? Did he ever see ME? How many other people out there are just like him? It's creepy to think about, to be honest.

Alaska's law system comes across as looking very bad in this book. The author isn't afraid to rake the police officers who bungled the investigation into Samantha Koenig's disappearance, the prosecutor who kept butting into the interrogations, and the prison administration and officers who allowed Keyes to ultimately kill himself, over the coals. This book makes it sound amazing that any crimes are ever solved in Alaska, to be honest, especially Anchorage. I'm not sure if this is fairly deserved or not; I honestly know nothing about the Alaskan legal system.

Another scary thing to consider: the extent of Keyes' crimes will never be determined. Some think that he killed eleven people. Some think that he killed a lot more than that. There will never be a way to really know. There are victims out there right now that were labeled as accidental deaths. There are victims out there right now who will never be found.

The author's writing style was engaging. The first few chapters were a bit uneven, but once the author found her pace, it was a good read.

My heartfelt sympathies to everyone who loved one of Keyes' victims, both those known and unknown.

Israel Keyes, “one of the most ambitious terrifying serial killers in modern history.” And, if you are like me, you’ve never heard of him. And, as I kept reading, I could see why.
The whole first half of this book is about one case, that of eighteen-year-old Samantha Koenig. It's really the only case that I could see him being convicted of anything. Basically, when it all comes to a boil, Keyes admits to three murders, and there are 8 or more that he "likely" also committed. This book is mostly just Keyes toying with interviewers and investigators and hinting at things he may, or may not, have done. I guess that if you believe what he says he did, then this book is fascinating. But if he didn't do all that he claimed, then this is just one man's fantasy play. And his cover billing as "the most meticulous serial killer of the 21st century"? Well, if getting caught by following your usage of a victim's ATM card is your claim to fame, I don't think that word "meticulous" means what you think it means.½

The author introduces us to one of the most intriguing serial killers known to mankind - Israel Keyes. He was ultimately caught after kidnapping and murdering a young woman in Alaska. It was only after that crime was solved that the authorities realized he had been murdering people throughout the United States, and perhaps even overseas, for many years. This was a truly terrifying look at someone who successfully evaded the system for years while maintaining a credible image as a father and employee.