The Stranger Beside Me
Ann Rule · first published 1980 · ISBN 9780451203267
Rule knew Ted Bundy before he was convicted. They worked together at a suicide hotline, and she didn't realize her friendly coworker was one of America's worst serial killers until his arrest. This book is her firsthand account of that double life, mixed with courtroom testimony and interviews with survivors and investigators.
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The Best True Crime Books
Rule brings something no other true crime writer could: personal experience alongside professional reporting. She's not just documenting Bundy's crimes, she's grappling with the fact that she was fooled by someone she trusted. That personal stake makes the investigation more rigorous, not less.