Customer Reviews

Mistresses of Mayhem: The Book of Women Criminals

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

If you are looking for solid facts, this is not something you need to invest in. I agree with several other reviewers in that I noticed that the infamous Elizabeth Bathory had her name mutilated by the author as Bathroy and not just a typo! Even though the Bathory issue was NOT a typo, I found several of those as well. Another thing that was in error was with the Susan Smith excerpt...the author states that she drove her children into a river. I live in SC and know for a fact that Susan Smith drove her children into a lake. Horribly written with a lot of the word "um" in the pages (which I find very irritating) and what appears to be a lot of "fluff" that just isn't necessary. I am currently reading the book from the prospective that these are just stories and looking at the book that way makes it almost entertaining.....but still not factual.

Great concept for a book, but not well executed. Too many typos (Countesss Elizabeth Bathory, the "Blood Countess," is listed as having the last name of "Bathroy," just as one example), showing that the book was not proofread very well . The author also uses web sites and magazines for sources, many of which have erroneous information about these women.

Better research techniques, and a decent editor would have helped immensely. I was very disappointed.

This is a decent guide for those who are unfamiliar with various female criminals, though more serious students of crime may find it wanting. My quibbles: 1) some of the entries, e.g., Lizzie Borden, are too brief to do their subjects justice; 2) though there is a general bibliography, one really has no way of knowing what sources she used for individual cases, which would be helpful for the controversial ones; 3) some of her facts are wrong, e.g., she repeatedly refers to Elizabeth Bathory as Elizabeth Bathroy; 4) there are occasional stupid errors, e.g., "had their fingers pulled off with hot pinschers" (pg. 15); 5) the writing is sometimes awkward, e.g. "[the police] were lucky enough to come by some great DNA samples." (pg. 118). On the plus side, I can't think of any females that were not included. Verdict: a mixed bag.

I thought this was a very interesting book. Once I picked it up, I could not put it down! The author has a very interesting and entertaining writing style. The book is full of great information, but it isn't dry like an encyclopedia. Also, the the crimes of the women are talked about, but within the context of their lives. The author doesn't make excuses for the women, but she does flesh the women out--they are more than women who did bad things. The two scariest women were probably The Blood Countess and Kate Webster. I recommend this book to anyone interested in reading about women criminals and people who are interested in women's life stories as well.

No one is perfect but a non-fiction is no use if you cannot trust the accuracy of the information in it. In Mistresses of Mayhem, Ms. Hornberger makes mistakes so blatant that it calls the whole book into question. One wonders if she did any research at all or just read up on the criminals on the Court Tv Website. She misnames Countess Elizabeth Bathory (the so-called female Dracula) as Bathroy. (No it is not a typo. It is spelled that way all through the book.) In the famous Diane Downs case already well documented by Ann Rule in Small Sacrifices and made into a tv movie seen by many, she misidentifies the daughter who died as Christie who might be surprised by this since Christie not only survived but testified against her mother. (Cheryl is the daughter who died but Hornberger describes Cheryl as testifying at the trial.) Simple proofreading could have corrected these mistakes. Good research would have made proofreading and this review unnecessary.

I read this book and was sorely disappointed. As an avid true crime fan, I was very disappointed. This author had witnesses's names wrong as well as pertinent facts about the case. I knew more than she did about most of the women she wrote about. Don't waste your money unless you don't care if the book is fact-based. This book was thrown together without any research, or so it appears.

An easy read packed with interesting information, this well-written book about women criminals reminds us that we should be afraid...yes, very, very afraid, of the some members of the female sex, too. Life's not all about *male* mass murderers, you know! Ms. Hornberger takes us on an exciting tour behind the Most Wanted female faces we may have heard about or seen plastered on the post office wall.

Kudos to Ms. Hornberger for a job well done. Now, excuse me while I go double-lock my front door.

Really scary!!! This author has a way of painting the truly villainous picture of these criminals. I can't wait for the next book by Ms. Hornberger.

First off, I was amused at two authors for the book - Francine Hornberger and Francine Homberger. A quick check verified my conclusion that the letters "rn" must have appeared like an "m" so we have two variations of the same name, which is Hornberger in other booksellers' Web sites. This is not a review as I did not read it. I subscribe to Zooba and had selected this title, based on its description alone, as one of the books on my list, but Zooba e-mailed me to let me know the book was no longer available. I then went to Amazon's Web site to look into their price, but after reading these reviews I think I will not order it. That error in which of Diane's daughters survived was particularly bad. Thank you all for taking the time to write your reviews and warnings. One thing I checked on the internet was Elizabeth's last name and found Bathroy used in a number of sites, though more for the fictional character (such as in the movie Daughter of Darkness) based on the real person. One site mentioned the Brie family and included the name Lady Hera Bathroy, changling sister to Elizabeth, followed by Lady Elizabeth Bathroy Creed (my mother). I do own Dracula Was a Woman: In Search of the Blood Countess of Transylvania, by Raymond T. McNally, in whose blood-curdling book the name used is Elizabeth Bathory.