NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • NOW A TNT ORIGINAL SERIES • “A first-rate tale of crime and punishment that will keep readers guessing until the final pages.”—Entertainment Weekly “Caleb Carr’s rich period thriller takes us back to the moment in history when the modern idea of the serial killer became available to us.”—The Detroit NewsWhen The Alienist was first published in 1994, it was a major … The Alienist was first published in 1994, it was a major phenomenon, spending six months on the New York Times bestseller list, receiving critical acclaim, and selling millions of copies. This modern classic continues to be a touchstone of historical suspense fiction for readers everywhere.
The year is 1896. The city is New York. Newspaper reporter John Schuyler Moore is summoned by his friend Dr. Laszlo Kreizler—a psychologist, or “alienist”—to view the horribly mutilated body of an adolescent boy abandoned on the unfinished Williamsburg Bridge. From there the two embark on a revolutionary effort in criminology: creating a psychological profile of the perpetrator based on the details of his crimes. Their dangerous quest takes them into the tortured past and twisted mind of a murderer who will kill again before their hunt is over.
Fast-paced and riveting, infused with historical detail, The Alienist conjures up Gilded Age New York, with its tenements and mansions, corrupt cops and flamboyant gangsters, shining opera houses and seamy gin mills. It is an age in which questioning society’s belief that all killers are born, not made, could have unexpected and fatal consequences.
Praise for The Alienist
“[A] delicious premise . . . Its settings and characterizations are much more sophisticated than the run-of-the-mill thrillers that line the shelves in bookstores.”—The Washington Post Book World
“Mesmerizing.”—Detroit Free Press
“The method of the hunt and the disparate team of hunters lift the tale beyond the level of a good thriller—way beyond. . . . A remarkable combination of historical novel and psychological thriller.”—The Buffalo News
“Engrossing.”—Newsweek
“Gripping, atmospheric . . . intelligent and entertaining.”—USA Today
“A high-spirited, charged-up and unfailingly smart thriller.”—Los Angeles Times
“Keeps readers turning pages well past their bedtime.”—San Francisco Chronicle
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You will live and breathe in the streets of 1900 New York City and you will dive into the psychology of a criminal mind as the team pieces together forensics – physical and mental – of a murderer, of a society, and of the victims.
very good
This book is full of history. It’s well written and is a good example of the time and view of women.
Read this years ago and just loved the atmospheric quality. Very hard to put down. I haven’t watched the television series but i hope it stayed as close to the book as possible.
A great book. He capture the mores and ethics of turn-of-the-century NYC brilliantly.
Read this book!
Caleb Carr’s writting is superb. The characters are intricately developed. The historical inputs make the reader wants to know more. The plot will leave you on edge, chaper after chapter.
A great book with a historical view of New York City.
Excellent introduction to forensic science and its use in solving crimes.
The beauty about this book is the manner in which it sucks you into the seedy underbelly of New York in the last decade of the nineteenth century, and the research and information we get as readers is startlingly comprehensive: criminology, alienism (nascent psycho-analysis and psychiatry) and detailed corruption. Theodore Roosevelt is name-checked and plays a significant role in the story.
I would recommend this unreservedly. It is a totally believable and often surprising journey into the labyrinth of horrific crime.
A great thriller.
Read it when it first came out and read it again before the series came to TV. It is great. The best of his books.
It’s a non stop who dun it. Murder mystery that once you start you will not be able to put down once you start the book.
Great read
Leaves you wanting more!!! Understanding of the history behind investigative procedures help us understand the thinkers from the past that accelerated the processes we use today.
Pity this author does not write more frequently. His books are jewels of literature.
the book is so much better than the serialisation
Just too gory and cruel for me!
Well written with compelling characters, story and historical setting.
Love this historical era.