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A review by happentobeshort
The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold
dark
informative
sad
medium-paced
5.0
Oh man this was AMAZING. I picked it up on a whim after seeing someone I follow on instagram post about it, especially since I've had a life long interest in the Victorian age AND the Jack the Ripper saga. And up till now, my most in depth reading had been via the podcast Unobscured (https://www.grimandmild.com/unobscured) that did a MASSIVE deep dive into the cultural and societal landscape at the time of the murders. However like Rubenhold states, most of these accounts (podcast included) don't focus much on the victims themselves and push the common knowledge that they were all sex workers. This gives these women their agency back and reveals the misogyny that was at work at the time of their death, and how their deaths were investigated.
At times the book reads like a historical fiction novel as Rubenhold tries to get us to understand these women and the choices they made in their lives, but it is still based in as much fact as possible. Unfortunately a lot of these 'facts' are assumptions based on the information that was collected at the time, or based on Rubenhold's investigations, but nothing (in my opinion!) is exaggerated for drama.
ANYWAY I super super SUPER recommend this book to anyone with an interest in the Victorian era, or who listens/reads about real life murder and crime, or even an interest in the history of London.
Also the audiobook production was excellent!! There's even little musical interludes that made me feel like I was listening to a big podcast production rather than an audiobook!!!
At times the book reads like a historical fiction novel as Rubenhold tries to get us to understand these women and the choices they made in their lives, but it is still based in as much fact as possible. Unfortunately a lot of these 'facts' are assumptions based on the information that was collected at the time, or based on Rubenhold's investigations, but nothing (in my opinion!) is exaggerated for drama.
ANYWAY I super super SUPER recommend this book to anyone with an interest in the Victorian era, or who listens/reads about real life murder and crime, or even an interest in the history of London.
Also the audiobook production was excellent!! There's even little musical interludes that made me feel like I was listening to a big podcast production rather than an audiobook!!!