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(2/5 stars)
While I enjoyed the format presented in this book of short snippets about female serial killers, I was disappointed in a few areas. This books needs good, professional edit. There are many repetitive words, some grammar issues, and it does interfere with the overall readability. Just because a book is shorter than a novel doesn't mean it can survive without being well edited.
My second issue is how vague the book is. It discusses two female serial killers: Delphine LaLaurie and her house horrors, and the notorious Blood Countess, Elizabeth Bathory. I found LaLaurie's story to be fascinated but felt it lacked a lot of details. I was disappointed in the lack of source citation, where the author got his information and did his research. For example, LaLaurie allegedly suffered a head injury that some attribute to her behaviour. When did it happen, and how? And how was it treated that leads people to believe this? And who believes this? Did this come from psychologists and doctors or is it mere speculation? As for the deaths of the kids, what were their symptoms? And in what years did they happen? The author says there is "no proof but no doubt" about LaLaurie's guilt but there wasn't enough present in this book to convince me either way. She also allegedly killed her mother and husband - but it's not stated how the mother died.
The Bathory case is one I have studied prior. This part of the book felt very rushed, most of the details skipped right over and again, little presentation of evidence or how sadistic of a woman Elizabeth Bathory was.
I just don't feel like I got a comprehensive understanding of these cases in reading this book. Us true crime readers like being presented with enough evidence to come to our own conclusions and be convinced of guilt or innocence. We live for mentally solving cases as we read along, especially when it's a case we haven't encountered before. I think this book, and the author's interest in serial killers, has lots of potential, as short reads are popular. But this book needs a good edit, polish, and a lot more details on the cases to keep readers engaged.
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