Book Review
A Hunger to Kill by Kim Mager with Lisa Pulitzer
True Crime | Non-Fiction
Reader’s Thoughts:
A Hunger to Kill is the true-life account of Kim Mager, a Detective tasked with interviewing a man accused of kidnapping a local woman. Through Kim’s skillful interviewing, it quickly became apparent that the police were dealing with a disturbed predator who had murdered and abused multiple women. In this book, Kim recounts her actions and interviews with Grate to help bring justice for the victims, closure for the families, and knowledge and awareness of how to stop those who may commit these sorts of atrocious crimes in the future.
While this story may be infamous in Ohio, A Hunger to Kill was my introduction to this case. As someone who frequently reads true crime, I was intrigued to see a book told from the perspective of an investigating detective, particularly with an emphasis on the interviews that took place after the arrest. This personal recounting gave an interesting insight into how police collect confessions, and what it takes to get a suspect to trust and open up to a detective.
The book is a very detailed exploration into the crimes and subsequent investigation of the serial killer, Shawn Grate. It can be graphic in its descriptions (trigger warnings: rape and violence) but I also appreciated the sensitivity, respect, and level of care the author had for the victims.
A Hunger to Kill is a chilling and informative non-fiction account with a very simple and straightforward writing style. My one critique is that as the author moved back and forth between the memoir and true crime chapters, the narrative occasionally felt a little clunky. When it comes to true crime written by a lead detective, I think personal memoir elements lend authenticity to the author. I like how they provide further understanding of the research that went into the case, as well as a deeper connection to the author and insight into their motivation. While we got that here, the book didn’t feel as balanced between the two genres as I’d have liked.
Overall, I thought this was an interesting, yet disturbing and intense book. I appreciated both the author’s honesty and heart behind writing the book as she focused on finding justice for the victims. For true crime readers, or those interested in this specific case, this book makes for an informative and insightful read into the investigation of a serial killer.
Recommended for:
True crime readers
This post contains affiliate links; as an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Advance e-copy of the book provided courtesy of the publisher, St. Martin’s Press. All opinions expressed are my own.
About the book:
(From the publisher): On September 13, 2016, in the small town of Ashland, Ohio, emergency dispatchers received a 911 call from a terrified woman who claimed to be kidnapped. The man holding her hostage was Shawn Grate, a serial killer whom the press later dubbed “The Ladykiller.” A key to his conviction and death sentence were Grate’s extensive recorded confessions―all extracted by one woman: Detective Kim Mager.
As an experienced specialist in sex offenses, Detective Mager was one of the officers assigned to Grate’s case upon his arrest. Grate immediately latched onto her, repeatedly demanding to speak to her and presumably convinced that he could somehow exercise his power over her in much the same way that he’d overpowered and controlled his female victims.
He was wrong.
Over a period of eight days, Mager conducted one interview after another, risking her life by sitting alone in the interview room with a malevolent predator. Using brilliant psychological strategy in a lethal game of wits, Mager successfully elicited his damning confessions to five murders, kidnapping, and multiple sexual assaults of women across Ohio.
Deeply personal and shocking, A Hunger to Kill takes readers behind the scenes of one of the most appalling criminal cases in American history from the woman who stopped his murderous rampage in collaboration with New York Times bestselling author Lisa Pulitzer.