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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
This was tongue in cheek but yet very informative book. The author uses a light touch but still manages to convey some big ideas. An entertaining and different read.
While this book detailed some crimes I'd never heard of before, it wasn't all that compelling to read. In all the true crime books I've read, this book was incredibly dry, overlong and a little cringe-y at times. The embellishments sounded as though the author was trying to be a showman and add some drama to the bleak material which made sense when discussing the way newspapers of the time sensationalized crime, but not so much when it was simply detailing sentencing or trials.
The women all fell into 2 categories - brutally violent or poisoners. That's it. I thought the author went with women that influenced the way the public views female killers today. The murderous grandmothers, heartless black widows and brutal noblewomen. However, I only recognized 5 of the crimes (Nannie Doss, Mary Ann Cotten, Bathory, the Bloody Benders and the women in Hungary). This book doesn't detail the most famous female killers that influenced other sensationalized archetypes of female killers: Aileen Wuornos, Judy Buenoano, Dorothea Puente, or really anyone that was around post 1950? It was very odd.
Perhaps their intent was to talk about women that aren't as well known. Except, these famous cases influenced the way female killers are viewed today. Even more so than some of the women that were noted here.
This book ultimately felt really, really repetitive because of the reoccurring methods, motives and the author continuously driving home the point that the women's appearances determined their media coverage and if they couldn't make the crime exciting and erotic, the press would criticize the women for being homely and evil. Truly, I thought this book went around in circles repeatedly.
So, while I think this would've made for an interesting essay, as a book, it was overlong and kind of boring. Not a recommend from me.
The women all fell into 2 categories - brutally violent or poisoners. That's it. I thought the author went with women that influenced the way the public views female killers today. The murderous grandmothers, heartless black widows and brutal noblewomen. However, I only recognized 5 of the crimes (Nannie Doss, Mary Ann Cotten, Bathory, the Bloody Benders and the women in Hungary). This book doesn't detail the most famous female killers that influenced other sensationalized archetypes of female killers: Aileen Wuornos, Judy Buenoano, Dorothea Puente, or really anyone that was around post 1950? It was very odd.
Perhaps their intent was to talk about women that aren't as well known. Except, these famous cases influenced the way female killers are viewed today. Even more so than some of the women that were noted here.
This book ultimately felt really, really repetitive because of the reoccurring methods, motives and the author continuously driving home the point that the women's appearances determined their media coverage and if they couldn't make the crime exciting and erotic, the press would criticize the women for being homely and evil. Truly, I thought this book went around in circles repeatedly.
So, while I think this would've made for an interesting essay, as a book, it was overlong and kind of boring. Not a recommend from me.
informative
sad
medium-paced
Interesting and enjoyable. A good intro since I don't know much about the subject.
dark
emotional
informative
medium-paced
informative
#popsugar2018 book that was gifted or loaned
#readharder book of true crime
#readharder book of true crime
This was a long and interesting audiobook that I’d really like to have a physical copy of simply because I feel like I’d be able to remember more of it if I could annotate it. But as an audiobook, the narrator was great.
This book was packed with profiles of female serial killers, but my favorites were the stories of Kate Bender and her killer family, and the poison network of Nagyrév. Solo serial killers are interesting, but there’s really something ‘next level’ about killers who work together in a pack. I’d love to see either of these stories turned into movies or miniseries.
This book was packed with profiles of female serial killers, but my favorites were the stories of Kate Bender and her killer family, and the poison network of Nagyrév. Solo serial killers are interesting, but there’s really something ‘next level’ about killers who work together in a pack. I’d love to see either of these stories turned into movies or miniseries.
dark
emotional
informative
medium-paced
I keep resituating at my desk– moving my cup of tea from the left to the right, repositioning my notes– and I can tell this is going to be a difficult review. No one is at fault. It’s just that the subject of true crime, and especially women’s roles in it, is endlessly complex. I’m not sure even Telfer, who approaches her topic with great aplomb, could do more than scratch its surface in just under 300 pages. The result is a hunger for more variety and in-depth analysis.
To read the rest of this review, visit The Macabre Librarian at:
https://macabrelibrarian.wordpress.com/2019/08/08/review-lady-killers/
To read the rest of this review, visit The Macabre Librarian at:
https://macabrelibrarian.wordpress.com/2019/08/08/review-lady-killers/