From the new FBI Files series comes the riveting account of how Kathy Puckett, an FBI agent with a PhD in psychiatry, connected disparate clues to identify Theodore Kaczynski as the Unabomber. Over the span of almost 18 years, Kaczynski, who blamed the Industrial Revolution and technology for the destruction of simple life, mailed or placed 14 bombs targeting researchers and scientists across the U.S. Puckett's education, keen eye for details, and dogged persistence reading, rereading, and comparing words and writing styles in Kaczynski's notes, essays, and manifesto, led her to suspect strongly that he was the Unabomber. However, it was a tip from Kaczynski's brother, David, that truly gave the FBI the final clues to his identification. Denson's well-written, well-researched book (with photographs) engages readers from the beginning and builds suspense as the case hits dead-ends again and again. His lengthy interviews with Puckett, two other FBI agents, and one U.S. Forestry agent supply important background and insight into how they solved the case, grounding this true-crime account firmly in facts.

A female FBI agent is at the center of the search for the bomber who evaded capture for almost two decades.Beginning in 1978, a series of serious bombings around the United States thwarted the FBI's ability to apprehend the persons responsible. By the time special agent Kathleen M. Puckett was recruited, the FBI had been working for years to achieve that goal. Puckett had a positive reputation, and her background in the Air Force and her work in counterintelligence made her a sought-after prospect—but that didn't save her from sexist microaggressions. "Puckett didn't want to be respected as a female agent. She wanted respect as an agent. Her day would come." In fast-paced prose, Denson recounts how Puckett, a white woman, was determined to learn all she could about the case, diligently studying the old files and visiting the scenes of the attacks before the publication of the Unabomber's manifesto in the New York Times and the Washington Post helped break the case. This page-turning true-crime narrative takes readers behind the scenes of the detailed work, decision-making, and sometimes luck that go into solving difficult cases. The writing is lively, and the principal players are fully dimensional. The author's note gives insight into his own intriguing process.This is the first in a series that will look at the important cases of the FBI, and it's a highly auspicious opener. (timeline, additional facts, sources) (Nonfiction. 8-12)