Fatal Females: Women Who Kill

by Micki Pistorius

In Fatal Females, investigative psychologist and former police profiler Micki Pistorius examines the minds and motives of women who kill. Throughout history the view seems to have prevailed that it is not in women’s nature to commit violent crime, but Pistorius shows that this is in fact not the case.

She examines more than fifty documented cases of South African female killers, categorised according to the nature of the crime – for example, infanticide, spree killings, stalkers, poisoners – and she presents her new hypothesis to explain the psychology of that rare individual, the female serial killer.

Genres: Nonfiction, True Crime, Africa, South Africa, Psychology

298 pages, Paperback

First published December 28, 2005

About the author

Micki Pistorius, who has a doctorate in psychology, spent six years as a profiler with the South African Police Service. As head of their investigative psychology unit, she was involved in more than thirty serial killer cases and participated in the training of more than a hundred detectives in the investigation of serial homicides. She is regularly invited to lecture in France and still acts as a consultant to different South African agencies.

She is the author of Catch me a Killer, Strangers on the Street, Fatal Females, and Profiling Serial Killers and other crimes in South Africa,all published by Penguin. Her first novel, Sorg, was published by Penguin in 2006.
Micki’s official website is available at www.mickipistorius.co.za.

Reviews

[Amanda Patterson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Micki Pistorius's first book, Catch me a Killer, was my 'bible' when I wrote my first crime novel. I interviewed her and read and re-read everything she'd written.

Pistorius is an investigatve psychologist and an internationally acclaimed police 'profiler'. She is invited to France annually where she speaks to international audiences on this subject. The FBI has consulted her. Pistorius is not a writer, or a woman, to be taken lightly.

This gives the subject matter of Fatal Femals - Women who Kill an interesting slant to begin with.
Pistorius begins by proposing that society and the law should treat both men and women who kill in the same way. She says, "...if a human being - be it male or female - transgresses by committing interpersonal violence...that person should be brought to book on an equal basis, regardless of gender."

The book is divided into chapters with titles like, Children who Kill, Infanticide and Female Serial Killers. The subject matter is riveting but Pistorius fails to make the women who kill, and their stories, half as interesting. I can only surmise that Pistorius wants to present the material in a scinetific factual way.

But what made Catch me a Killer good was the fact that Micki Pistorius was emotionally and psychologically involved. I don't think she is here.

One of the most interesting aspects of the book is how Pistorius deals with the subject of female serial killers. For many years, most profilers, believed there were none. Here, we are given a hypothesis. Interesting – especially with the release of Monster, starring Charlize Theron.

However, this book is a must for fans of True Crime and anyone interested in the phenomenon of murder, be they psychologists, policemen, criminologists or laymen.

The photographs of these 'killers' stand in stark relief contrast to the crimes these women committed, making us aware once again that a killer is not always an unknown monster somewhere out there.

Reviewer: Amanda Patterson ©

[Ilze de Kock · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolute must if you are a South African crime junkie

[Nadia · Rating 1 out of 5]

Getting through this book was absolute torture. This writer proofs that having completed a doctor's degree in psychology, don't necessarily provide insight. Unfortunately she 'murdered' this book with her comments. What could have been an excellent book, and started out as 5 star, quickly plummeted to one star only.

I found the South African law, case studies as well as history from eg. the Victorian era, informative and enjoyable.

I have to question however whether the writer has been in a abusive relationship and had the courage to leave, which I will gladly applaud her for if that was the case. Still, being a psychologist, she should be aware that no two people are the same, no situation is exactly alike, all people doesn't have a support network, IQ differs as well as EQ, which I feel the writer lacks in this book as well.

In the case of not having been in an abusive relationship before, it is easy to judge, and sit and throw peanuts from the side.

On page 25 for instance, 'They should leave before they find themselves in a situation where they are forced to resort to killing.' That is so easy to say.

On page 26, 'They offer other excuses -they have no skills, do not earn enough money, cannot provide for their children. But millions off other women are able to divorce their husbands and support themselves and their children.' This is actually giving me chills running down my spine... Then I can argue a totally absurd and downright stupid argument that if certain men can be billionaires, so could all the others?

Do the writer have the slightest idea of the statistics of South Africa and how many people are jobless and looking for jobs? So if one woman can do it, so can someone without matric, battered, no self esteem, no decent clothes, no family or support network, stay at home mom with no work experience the past 10 years and 3 small children that needs care. I mean, come on woman, lift your lazy butt, colour that bruised face en get on with it while the abuser is searching to kill you. Just don't breath to deep with that broken ribs and internal scars. At least you have a piece of paper in your hand to keep him away from you...

And so the book continues, with a lot of questions asked in comments to either fill the book or proof ignorance. Arguments that just don't make any sense at all. Maybe, being part of the police service put everything in black and white, right or wrong, no empathy, no understanding.

Speaking under correction on specific dates, but I am not going to search for the page now, but asking why a farm worker didn't go to the police(I think it was the 80's) to report a possibility of a murder that might take place. Picture it, farm worker, farm clothes, worn out vellies, hat folded in his hand, dirty of farm work, walking into the police station during the apartheid era to report a possible murder that he heard about via the grapevine? I think not.

The end of the book feels rushed, page 279 to 288 filled with facts and ends of with only one case study for all of it.

If you decided to read the book, and doesn't want to be utterly frustrated, I suggest you skip the comments, but not even that will safeguard you. It could have been an amazing book, especially if the writer kept her remarks for herself, added cases for the facts at the end of the book and maybe add some more photos.

The writer should have left, divorced, ran away, before her murderous comments.

[Natashja Isted · Rating 5 out of 5]

The references to some killers/murders up to 100 years back, the fact that they all took place in South Africa and comparing them with the more recent cases as well as the many, many case studies is why I couldn’t put this book down very easily. Reading about why female killers kill and the psychology behind it is extremely interesting. Very well done, I really enjoyed this book. Now, on to the next Micki Pistorius book that’s waiting for me!

[Chante Daries · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not bad

Compared to her other books this one isn't that great. It's very interesting but not well written. Towards the end it feels very rushed which is sad because the information is so interesting.

I enjoyed it nonetheless.

[Lara Crafford · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5

[Silma Parker · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting subject matter, but I didn't enjoy the writing and couldn't get drawn in. I gave up pretty quickly so not sure if it got better later on in the book.

[Julia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Vooral veel casussen, maar niet heel helder beschreven en in het hoofdstuk over stalkers ineens een verdiepingsslag over typen en persoonlijkheidskenmerken.

[Phillipa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Factually, I guess, this was pretty interesting. But there was something about the writing style used in this book that really did not capture me. I really struggled thru the last few chapters. It was told in such a matter-of-fact style that I really wasn't connected or gripped at all by the book. I did find it quite interesting that I could not remember a single one of these women or cases (although most were in the late 90s) except Daisy de Melker (which I knew about before).

[Vanessa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting look into female serial killers, particularly in South Africa. Not wonderfully written, but interesting nonetheless.

[Lynn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting read but not a great book.

[Marissa Dry · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very interesting subject matter, though I find it badly written. Hercomments on the case studies seems rushed and reads like a lecture to a class of teenagers.