The Last Victim: A True-Life Journey into the Mind of a Serial Killer by Jason M. Moss
I was excited when The Last Victim was suggested for me to read by one of Goodreads many lists of books. I do not remember which list I was perusing when I came across it, but the synopsis was enough for me to want to read it ASAP. After finishing Watch Me Disappear, I dived right into this book, and was quickly disappointed.
The Last Victim is the true accounts of Jason Moss sending letters, talking on the phone, and in one case, meeting in person, with convicted serial killers. Moss sent messages to Charles Manson, Richard Ramirez, and John Wayne Gacy, among others. He would pose as someone they would be interested in, whether that be someone interested in spreading the killers message, or even posing as a potential victim. By doing this, he was able to gain the trust of these killers and learn things that others had not. But what he was not expecting was the mental and emotional toll it would take on him and those around him.
So I had some issues with a few things, but they all sort of revolve around him being 18 when he starts. He is in his first semester of college and still living at home. He says he has only been on one trip outside the state of Nevada. Despite him saying that he can read people very well and play off of their emotions, he is a bit on the sheltered side and still pretty naive. Every 18-year-old thinks that they can take on the world and come out the other side unscathed. Having been that 18-year-old only 10 years ago, I can attest to that, and I got my ass handed to me. Granted, he does too, but his actions at 18 seem a bit more life risking than my actions at 18, and that is saying something. His parents express concern that they do not what him having interactions with serial killers, but he basically ignores what they have to say and does it anyway. He also involves his brother in this by having his brother copy out letters to Gacy, causing his brother to have nightmares.
While his cocky behavior annoyed me through the entire book, he makes a comment about Charles Manson that still annoys me. "After corresponding with Manson for only a short time, however, my interest in him diminished. He was not a 'real' serial killer to me, but more of a cult leader who got others to do his killing for him" (p. 118). While Manson may not have pulled the trigger or stabbed the knife himself, he convinced others to do his killings, which is just as dangerous. And while other killers usually have a motive, Manson never really did. Helter Skelter does not explain everything that Manson did; he controlled people because it was fun. If you cannot understand the severity of that trait, you need to rethink some things.
Jason Moss took his life in 2006. Throughout the book, he talks about how different he is, and how his work with these convicts changed his life. I cannot help but wonder if this project continued to inflict mental damage after ending it, or if it was inevitable. I think knowing this going in affected how I read the book; I knew that no matter how the book ended, Moss' story would not end well.
I had a hard time with the book overall. Nothing in it really sat right with me. The more I thought about an 18-year-old faking a personality to talk to a convicted murderer, the more upset I became. His personality and actions during this time made me sick. And knowing that it would all result in him taking his life saddened me deeply. Nothing about this book was right, and I do not think anyone learned anything from the experience, especially when you consider what the ending is. It just was not worth it.
Rating: 1/10
Author: Jason M. Moss
Genres: Non-Fiction, Psychology, True Crime
Dates Read: July 18-23, 2019
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| (Source: Kelsey Darling) |
So I had some issues with a few things, but they all sort of revolve around him being 18 when he starts. He is in his first semester of college and still living at home. He says he has only been on one trip outside the state of Nevada. Despite him saying that he can read people very well and play off of their emotions, he is a bit on the sheltered side and still pretty naive. Every 18-year-old thinks that they can take on the world and come out the other side unscathed. Having been that 18-year-old only 10 years ago, I can attest to that, and I got my ass handed to me. Granted, he does too, but his actions at 18 seem a bit more life risking than my actions at 18, and that is saying something. His parents express concern that they do not what him having interactions with serial killers, but he basically ignores what they have to say and does it anyway. He also involves his brother in this by having his brother copy out letters to Gacy, causing his brother to have nightmares.
While his cocky behavior annoyed me through the entire book, he makes a comment about Charles Manson that still annoys me. "After corresponding with Manson for only a short time, however, my interest in him diminished. He was not a 'real' serial killer to me, but more of a cult leader who got others to do his killing for him" (p. 118). While Manson may not have pulled the trigger or stabbed the knife himself, he convinced others to do his killings, which is just as dangerous. And while other killers usually have a motive, Manson never really did. Helter Skelter does not explain everything that Manson did; he controlled people because it was fun. If you cannot understand the severity of that trait, you need to rethink some things.
Jason Moss took his life in 2006. Throughout the book, he talks about how different he is, and how his work with these convicts changed his life. I cannot help but wonder if this project continued to inflict mental damage after ending it, or if it was inevitable. I think knowing this going in affected how I read the book; I knew that no matter how the book ended, Moss' story would not end well.
I had a hard time with the book overall. Nothing in it really sat right with me. The more I thought about an 18-year-old faking a personality to talk to a convicted murderer, the more upset I became. His personality and actions during this time made me sick. And knowing that it would all result in him taking his life saddened me deeply. Nothing about this book was right, and I do not think anyone learned anything from the experience, especially when you consider what the ending is. It just was not worth it.
Rating: 1/10
Author: Jason M. Moss
Genres: Non-Fiction, Psychology, True Crime
Dates Read: July 18-23, 2019
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