Butcher, Biter, Spy cover art

Butcher, Biter, Spy

 Preview
Try Premium Plus free
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Unlimited access to our all-you-can-listen catalogue of 15K+ audiobooks and podcasts
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

Butcher, Biter, Spy

By: Ryan Green
Narrated by: Steve White
Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £11.99

Buy Now for £11.99

About this listen

On the bloodstained floor lay an array of butcher’s tools and a body without a throat, torn out by Fritz's “love bite”...

Deemed psychologically unfit to stand trial for child abuse, Fritz Haarmann was locked up in a mental asylum until a new diagnosis as “morally inferior” allowed him to walk free. His insights into the criminal underworld convinced the police to overlook his “activities” and trust him as an informant.

What harm could it do?

When the dismembered and ravaged remains of young men began to wash up on the banks of the river, a war-torn nation cowered under the threat of the man known as the Butcher, Vampire, and Wolf Man.

The hunt for the killer was on, and he was hiding in plain sight.

Butcher, Biter, Spy is a chilling retelling of one of the most brutal killing sprees in German history. Ryan Green’s riveting narrative draws the listener into the real-live horror experienced by the victims and has all the elements of a classic thriller.

CAUTION: This audiobook contains descriptive accounts of torture, abuse, and violence. If you are especially sensitive to this material, it might be advisable not to read any further.

©2022 Ryan Green (P)2023 Ryan Green Europe Germany Murder True Crime Crime Exciting Scary Espionage War
All stars
Most relevant

Listener received this title free

A book about a complete monster and his kills. Cleverly written, with layer upon layer of escalating abominations undertaken by a man who used the tumultuous period between the two world wars in Germany to satisfy his perversions. Superbly narrated in an almost casual tone, it belies the horrors contained in the story.

Cleverly written

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Listener received this title free

I have found I am much more interested in older or European killers' stories as they are less formed by the search for the ultimate freedoms that some Americans seek.
This story tells the story of post-WWI Germany as it recovers from conservatism and tries to find its place, forming various subcultures. One man finds himself living his dream, making money from petty crimes while spending it in the lavish camp clubs of 1920s Germany. Eventually rationing starts to kick in harder and he has to find alternative ways to supply his black market "meat".
The story was quite long in the telling before he started to murder, his crimes suddenly moving up a notch as he worked his way through young men new to the city and looking for money or somewhere to sleep. The historical context set a much better scene than some of Green's books as a country in turmoil allowed the darker side of people to flourish. The idea that rich people throughout Germany could have been paying a fortune for human flesh is quite amusing.

A more interesting killer's story

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.