A review by mwgerard
Story of a Murder: The Wives, the Mistress, and Dr. Crippen by Hallie Rubenhold

dark informative sad medium-paced

4.5

Read full review: https://www.mwgerard.com/reviews-very-english-murders/

The story of the Crippens never seems to truly fade away. Or if it does, it resurfaces after a brief respite. In some respects, it was so utterly incredible it can barely be believed. In other ways, it has all the elements of classic mystery novel. The characters and motives are so universal they could just as easily appear in an Agatha Christie novel as a Chaucer story (if he had ever decided to dabble in crime writing). Where Erik Larson focused on the fervor of chase and the brilliance of the technology that allowed them to be captured in Thunderstruck, Rubenhold stays closer to the hearth.

Hawley Harvey Crippen was a quack doctor who made money selling “patent” medicines in the late Victorian and early Edwardian period. It was a prodigious time for these “wellness” fads and a rising middle class with at least a little disposable income were caught up in the Victorian obsession with physical health and standards.

How could a civilized, educated, professional man, who lived in a ten-room suburban house with a verdant garden, dismember his spouse’s body and then continue with his ordinary existence, catching the tramcar to his office and attending the theater?  ~Loc. 4490

Crippen married his wife, Cora, whose dream was to become a stage performer. she changed her name to Belle Elmore and enjoyed a decent amount of success in music halls and theatres of turn-of-the-century London. Enter Ethel, the smart, indispensable typist at the office. She quickly became Crippen’s assistant and office manager for his fake patent schemes. The two began an affair.

For a number of years, the arrangement suited the pair, especially as Belle devoted herself even more to performing. But at some point, they wanted to be married and Belle stood in the way. When she “disappeared” after a sudden trip to California, her friends and colleagues immediately suspected Crippen and his mistress knew more than they were saying. Tales of Crippen and Ethel’s escape and trials entranced the reading public for months.

Edwardian newspapers loved a terrifying tale of true crime, and the story of what had been uncovered at 39 Hilldrop Crescent contained all the elements that readers relished. … Their narrative was both sensational and Gothic. It was not simply the dastardly, spine-tingling act of murder and dismemberment that drew public interest, but its characters and scenarios. ~Loc. 4498

Rubenhold reframes the daring crime around the women in Crippen’s life. His first wife Charlotte, who also died unexpectedly, is given her proper place in the story. He was never accused of her death, but looking back on it, it seems unlikely he was entirely innocent of that either. Belle (or Cora) is front and center under the limelight as she would have wanted. She is not merely a body to be found in the basement. She has a lively personality and strident spirit on the page. Crippen underestimated her closeness with fellow performers (at his own peril).

For her part, Ethel is far from just “the mistress.” Whether she knew of Crippen’s plans or helped him commit murder, she certainly helped him avoid authorities, participated in the escape, and refused to answer questions during the trial. She maintained her would always love him, even when the full scope of his deeds were known.

As Rubenhold did in The Five, the victims (and especially) the women, are given a proper place in the story and not just stock characters. She seeks to untangle the truth through newspapers, magazines, court records, and even interviews of Ethel’s grown children.

My thanks to Dutton for the e-galley. Read via NetGalley.