Reviews tagging 'Murder'

The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold

92 reviews

abi_sarah's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective slow-paced

4.0

An expertly written documentary of the lives of the women killed by Jack the Ripper. The amount of research that went into writing this book is clear from the offset and the writing is engaging, emotional and empathetic. You really start to grow attached to the women and feel a profound sadness and heartfelt sympathies for the way society dictated that they lived their lives and subsequently the end that met them. 

Hallie Rubenhold really sets the scene of Victorian London and effortlessly introduces each of the victims with the societal norms and prejudices which forced them - in most cases - to live largely unhappy lives. She describes what it’s like to live in workhouses and what little privacy there is for those who live in them - perhaps explaining why now we value privacy so much as a society.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Addiction

Moderate: Alcohol, Drug abuse, Alcoholism, and Drug use

Minor: Physical abuse, Rape, Pregnancy, Sexual violence, Chronic illness, Miscarriage, Terminal illness, Sexual assault, and Grief

tlholmes's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

Women’s history, non fiction 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Child death, Domestic abuse, Police brutality, Trafficking, Classism, Death, Grief, Sexism, Chronic illness, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Violence, Pregnancy, Murder, Death of parent, Misogyny, and Alcoholism

desert_side_notched's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Murder, Death, and Violence

Moderate: Classism

eve81's review against another edition

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Terminal illness, Pregnancy, Pandemic/Epidemic, Sexism, Abandonment, Addiction, Alcoholism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Infidelity, Murder, Grief, Misogyny, and Injury/Injury detail

laurareadsbig's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad fast-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Alcoholism, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Infidelity, Murder, and Child death

caribbeangirlreading's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Classism, and Sexism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

Minor: Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Domestic abuse, Death, Murder, and Trafficking

dominicangirl's review against another edition

dark emotional informative sad slow-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

beccalou's review against another edition

dark informative slow-paced

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction and Alcoholism

Moderate: Murder and Rape

tiernanhunter's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Medical content, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicide attempt, Violence, Abandonment, Abortion, Child abuse, Child death, Infertility, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, Trafficking, Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Miscarriage, War, Classism, Death, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Sexual harassment, Blood, Grief, Infidelity, Addiction, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, Rape, Terminal illness, and Mental illness

siobhanward's review against another edition

dark informative medium-paced

4.0

I had this on my TBR years ago and then dropped it because I didn't like the writing style. I remember there being a lot more conversations in the book (i.e. "so and so woke up and said x to her mother"), but that was not something in the book at all. Everything was either cited from primary sources (either specific to the women or general for the time), or was posed as a hypothetical ("she likely..." or "it's possible.."), so I have no idea what I was thinking?

Anyway, I'm glad I wound up trying this again because it was a great and informative read. I loved how Rubenhold told the women's stories, focusing on their lives rather than their deaths. It was a new angle for the Jack the Ripper story and it was well done. I'm really glad I didn't miss out on this one in the end!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Murder, Death, Violence, and Miscarriage

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Gore, and Alcoholism

Minor: Death of parent