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bristoni74 's review for:
The Five: The Lives of Jack the Ripper's Women
by Hallie Rubenhold
I was excited to read this book given my interest in Jack the Ripper since I was a teenager but it was DNF. I felt this author had a narrative she wished to tell - "the victims weren't all prostitutes" and then told a story to suit that narrative. I only read the first 2 victims stories, before I put this book aside because she seemed to push her view that the victims were from "good" and "respectable" families, as if somehow being a prostitute means you aren't worthy of as much empathy if you are murdered. Whilst it seemed well researched and I liked the inclusion of the cultural and societal values and attitudes to women at times the author's own values, feelings and assumptions came through. Good non-fiction writers can make their work engaging by sticking with facts and not assumptions! I also felt at times the author was patronising. The victim's stories were enough on their own without feeling as a reader that the author was telling me what I needed to feel and think about these women, and tried so hard to demonstrate they weren't prostitutes (as if it matters!) to have our respect.