Retired judge Amirante kept asking himself "What is wrong with this guy?" after becoming the defense attorney for Chicago serial killer John Wayne Gacy, his first private-practice client. Gacy was executed by the state of Illinois in 1994 for raping and killing 33 boys and young men. Just five days after he retained Amirante, Gacy confessed everything in a rambling late-night monolog. Amirante tells Gacy's story-with Gacy's permission-by focusing on Gacy's last murder, the investigation, and the trial. Although the subject matter is quite gruesome and includes photographs showing the excavation of several of Gacy's victims from under his house, readers will find the book hard to put down. Amirante does a terrific job of keeping the story moving even during the longest section, which focuses on the trial. He reminds readers of the constitutional rights afforded to all accused in the United States but doesn't overstay his time on the soapbox. VERDICT With the spotlight on one of the most infamous serial killers of all time, this should be a popular book.-Karen Sandlin Silverman, Ctr. for Applied Research, Philadelphia (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

How do you defend a madman accused of killing 30 young men and teenagers? That is the powerful theme of this book by a retired judge and criminal attorney whose first case was defending John Wayne Gacy, a popular community figure who began a deranged killing spree in Illinois in the 1970s. Amirante, who sat on the bench of the Cook County Circuit Court until his retirement in 2005, and Broderick, a lawyer, chronicle the case from the first call from Gacy asking for help to the police grillings and searches of the Gacy home and uncovering of hundreds of human bones in a crawl space in Gacy's home. What emerges is a deep probing into Gacy's mind as it unraveled into a "detached, disconnected" madness wrapped in a maze of sexual confusion and murderous intent. "His brain was profoundly broken," writes Amirante, displaying a remarkable ability to empathize with his client. Gacy's confession, as recounted here, is astonishing. Despite Amirante's hearty defense, Gacy got a death sentence (he was executed in 1994) and his account will illuminate the case for anyone fascinated by the inner workings of a serial killer. 50 b&w illus. (Aug.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.