S. F. Prescott

Gripping and insightful. I couldn’t put this down.

Jana Monroe had a distinguished 22-year career in the Federal Bureau of Investigation where she held a variety of field investigative and operational roles across the United States, including more than five years as a criminal profiler at Quantico, Virginia. Her career culminated with Monroe pioneering as one of few women in the FBI Executive Leadership ranks: She served as special agent in charge in Phoenix, Arizona, and Los Angeles, California, two of the largest FBI field offices in the United States, and was the first assistant director of the FBI Cyber Division, based in Washington, DC. After retiring from the Bureau, Monroe entered the private sector and now serves as the vice president of global security for Herbalife. She lives in Arlington, Texas.

Published October 10th, 2023.

As soon as I read BSU (Behavioral Science Unit) I was hooked, but once I discovered Monroe coached Jodie Foster for her role in Silence of the Lambs I was obsessed. An inside scoop of the FBI’s famous BSU to the personal experience of a female special agent, every single aspect of this book fascinated me. True Crime is a favorite genre of mine, purely for the psychological aspects to better understand what motivates a person to commit a violent offense. But also to learn about the brave individuals who put their lives at risk every day for the sake of others. This book delivered on every level.

Jana’s perspective was fascinating and well-rounded, since her career in the FBI took her down many different avenues over two decades including being the first female profiler in the behavioral science unit, and the first female Assistant Director of the Cyber Division. It was also interesting to follow her journey as she branched off into the private sector where she still works now.

Her encounters with celebrities were engrossing, and I particularly enjoyed reading about her role in coaching one of my favorite actors, Jodie Foster, whom was sent to Quantico to research her role playing Clarice Starling in Silence of the Lambs. Looking back, I can see the influence Jana had, particularly in the scenes filmed inside the facility where it’s a predominantly male oriented space. It definitely brought a sense of authenticity to the movie that might not exist if not for her insight. I also enjoyed reading the brief mention of the bureau’s relationships with writers researching the subjects studied in the BSU such as Thomas Harris and Patricia Cornwell. I also share a mutual interest with the author when it comes to the types of women who fall in love and/or marry serial killers before and while they’re incarcerated, a topic she touches upon but doesn’t dive in too heavily. Perhaps this could be her next book.

My favorite parts of the book centered around the dangerous serial murderers she was often tasked with shaping a profile for. I also loved reading about her relationships with the other agents she worked with, including John Douglas, whose books I’ve read and enjoyed. Although her job obviously entailed chasing the darker aspects of life, this book does not go into the grisly details, and Jana manages to keep a boundary between the reader and the extreme violence she submerged herself in for decades.

The book was fast paced, tightly-written, and clear and descriptive without being too gory. Every chapter was different and flowed expertly from one unique experience to the next. I’ll probably refer back to it and reread some parts in the future.

For readers who enjoy true crime, criminal psychology, dark topics. If you’ve enjoyed books by John Douglas, Paul Holes, or Michelle McNamara then pick this one up.

Synopsis:

Jana Monroe was no ordinary cop: a cofounder of—and, at the time, the only female agent in—the world-renowned FBI Behavioral Sciences Unit at Quantico, over the course of her career she consulted on more than 850 homicide cases. Through her work, she and her BSU colleagues crossed paths with Ted Bundy, Jeffrey Dahmer, Edmund Kemper, Aileen Wuornos, and hundreds of other murderers; were at the Branch Davidian Compound in Waco; traced the Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh’s tracks; and, in the wake of 9/11, headed up a new and expanded FBI headquarters in Las Vegas.

But to the people who know her best, Monroe is the BSU analyst upon whom the film character of Clarice (Jodie Foster) in The Silence of the Lambs was modeled; she even helped train Foster for the role. Over the course of an utterly astonishing and, until now, relatively anonymous career in shaping law enforcement and intelligence analysis, her legacy is without parallel yet not known to the public. Hearts of Darkness is Monroe’s incredible story and will have Monroe—now retired from the FBI—finally stepping out from the shadows to tell the range of gripping, sometimes gruesome, and always remarkable tales from the top moments of a life chasing the monsters among us. Within its pages, Monroe offers insight into the cases that have stayed with her most—from the infamous to lesser-known ones that readers will be introduced to for the first time in the book—offering new insight into the minds of some of the world’s most infamous and terrifying serial killers, as well as the psychological impact her work had on her day-to-day life. Hearts of Darkness will shock, enthrall, educate, and examine both extremes of human behavior—good and evil—as well as the daily norm found in the middle of this spectrum.