Ted Bundy. 
 My goodness. 
 He's America's most fascinating serial killer--smart, talented, with a loving family and a steady girlfriend. The Stranger Beside Me debunks some of the more prevalent Bundy myths, but adds layers of complexity to the already creepy story you know. Rule and Bundy worked side-by-side at a suicide hotline, all the while Rule is researching the so-called "Ted" killings in Washington state. For a writer, a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence, like John Berendt in Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. 
 Required reading for those of you who talk about serial killers over dinner.