A woman is killed by her partner or ex-partner every four days in the UK.

Domestic homicide is a pandemic so pervasive that the soaring figures cause weary resignation rather than alarm. For thirty years, Professor Jane Monckton Smith has been fighting to change this. A former police officer and internationally renowned professor of public protection, she lectures on sexualised and fatal violence; works with families bereaved through homicide: and trains police and other professionals on how to best handle cases involving coercive control, domestic abuse, and stalking.

Killers do not snap and lose control

Her ground-breaking research led to the creation of the eight-stage homicide timeline, laying out identifiable stages in which coercive relationships can escalate to murder and revolutionising our understanding of them.

There are signs, if you know how to see them

In this book, Monckton Smith shares a glimpse into a world of toxic masculinity and coercive control, one in which the tools are shame and fear, helped along by a media and justice system who are far from shedding sexist notions of men and women’s roles in society.

Drawing on disciplines including psychology, sociology and law, she talks to victims, their families, and killers, putting together pieces to the puzzle of how these relationships can end in murder, and bringing to light the reasons why – for so many of us – there is no such thing as the safety of one’s own home.

Based on research with frontline professionals and domestic abuse and homicide victims, this book argues for a re-conceptualisation of the female victim to enhance safety management and encourage a deeper understanding of the emotional dynamics and social structures which perpetuate violence.

Summary:
Protect yourself by learning how to trust – and act on – your instincts with the No 1 bestselling guide to personal safety, from security expert Gavin de Becker. A carjacker lurking in a shopping centre car park. An abusive husband pounding on the door. A man taking the seat next to you on an empty carriage. These days, it seems that no one is safe from the spectre of violence. But according to Gavin de Becker, you can feel safer, act safer, be safer – if you learn how to listen to your sixth sense about danger.In this unprecedented guide, Gavin de Becker, the man Oprah Winfrey calls the US’s ‘leading expert on violent behaviour’ , shows you how to spot even subtle signs of danger – before it’s too late. Shattering the myth that most violent acts are unpredictable, de Becker, whose clients include top Hollywood stars and government agencies, offers specific ways to protect yourself and those you love from daily threats, including: how to act when approached by a stranger; when you should fear someone close to you; what to do if you are being stalked; how to uncover the source of anonymous threats or phone calls; the biggest mistake you can make with a threatening person; and more. With The Gift of Fear , you can learn to spot the danger signals others miss. It might just save your life.

About the Author:
Gavin de Becker is internationally regarded as a leading expert on the prediction and management of violence. In 1985, de Becker received a special award from the US Attorney General and the director of the FBI in recognition of his work in threat assessment. He is also the author of more than forty articles and white papers, co-author of CONFIDENTIAL REPORT TO MANAGEMENT: UNDERSTANDING AND PREVENTING WORKPLACE VIOLENCE and the contributing-author of STALKED.