When thinking back to her childhood, Kerri Rawson is able to recall fond memories with her father, Dennis Rader. To other residents of Wichita, KS, Rader seemed like a model citizen. Little did they know the darkness he held within. Over the course of three decades, the infamous serial killer dubbed BTK (“Bind, Torture, Kill”) murdered 10 innocent victims to satisfy his chilling sexual fantasies. It wasn’t until Rader was arrested in 2005 that his family made the connection. Author and daughter of Dennis Rader, Kerri Rawson shares details from her childhood with a serial killer father, the impact the revelation had on her life, and how she learned to overcome the traumatic discovery.

In her memoirs, A Serial Killer’s Daughter: My Story Of Faith, Love, And Overcoming, and Breaking Free: Overcoming The Trauma Of My Serial Killer Father, Kerri Rawson discusses how she navigated through the traumatic discovery of her father’s secret life. With the help of therapy, faith, and family, Kerri could forgive her father for what he did to her, and ultimately learned to become herself again. Now, she works to help others by providing a voice for victims of trauma, crime, and abuse.

Follow Emily on Instagram: @realemilycompagno