The Literary Locations of Hallie Rubenhold
Hallie Rubenhold’s locations in literature
Hallie Rubenhold is a must read author for me. She takes cases of real life crimes and turns them on their heads. She examines every detail. Every detail from the viewpoint of the female victim or victims.
Locations in Hallie Rubenhold’s books
Locations in Hallie Rubenhold’s books
LONDON – WHITECHAPEL (1888)
A location so synonymous with one crime.
I thought I knew the story of Jack the Ripper who killed women in London 1888. We all think we know the story. However, the real story is the one behind the headlines and Hallie shows us this by introducing us one by one to the five canonical victims. We hardly hear mention of the man responsible. This is the story of the women who lost their lives to one of the most vicious murdering sprees the UK has ever seen.
The London we see here is not just the murder sites but the whole other map of locations – where the women lived, were from and who they were. That’s quite a skill to write a story about a murdering spree whilst putting the victims front and centre and the perpetrator barely out of the shadows.
Locations in Hallie Rubenhold’s books
The sites of the first seven Whitechapel murders – Osborn Street (centre right), George Yard (centre left), Hanbury Street (top), Buck’s Row (far right), Berner Street (bottom right), Mitre Square (bottom ) left), and Dorset Street (middle left) (c) Wikipedia
Hallie’s recent novel – The Story of a Murder – is out on March 27th – and this looks at another famous murder case.
Dr Crippen (1862 – 1910)
Dr Crippen was a medical man who was hanged for the murder of his wife Cora Crippen. The case is known for several reasons. However, one of the most famous ones is that he was the first criminal to be captured with the aid of wireless telegraphy.
Now, when Hallie takes you to the sites of this crime, she really takes you inside the lives of these women.
31 January 1910 – Hilldrop Crescent, London
Locations in Hallie Rubenhold’s books
Locations in Hallie Rubenhold’s books
Cora goes missing and Crippen explains her absence by saying she is in America. Later he tells people she’s died there and is now buried across the pond. Crippen has a love called Le Neve who moves into the address and starts wearing Cora’s clothes.
It’s Cora’s two amazing friends, the strongwoman Kate “Vulcana” Williams and Lil Hawthorne got onto the police. It is the story of these women that the book focuses on.
Montrose 1897 (c) Wikipedia
Locations in Hallie Rubenhold’s books
The story takes a turn when Crippen and his lover flee the country on then Canadian Pacific liner SS Montrose, bound for Canada. Police are searching the house and what they find, shocks them. They immediately boarded a faster ship, got there before them, and then arrested them.
Cora is buried here – St Pancras and Islington Cemetery, East Finchley.
Locations in Hallie Rubenhold’s books
Hallie tells the story of the three women in this story:
Crippen’s first wife, Charlotte, who died under mysterious circumstances; his mistress, Ethel, who claimed ignorance of his crime even as she escaped with Crippen disguised as his son; and Cora, the woman whose life Crippen took.
Visiting London through the eyes of the victims gives them a voice. Each woman showcases her backstory and you get to know them well. The rules and standards of being a wife, a woman in London at that time is interesting.
Locations in Hallie Rubenhold’s books
Like with Jack the Ripper, this is a very famous case but the way Hallie tells it shows you that she has understood it and understood the women who were involved. Imagine presenting and examining a case from years ago?
Remarkable
If you love to read true crime told in a very brilliant and clear way, then Hallie Rubenhold is the author to go to!
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