Title: THE FIVE: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack The Ripper
Author: Hallie Rubenhold
ISBN: 9781784162344
Publisher: Black Swan
Pages: 416
Source: Private Copy
Polly, Annie, Elizabeth, Catherine and Mary-Jane are famous for the same thing, though they never met. They came from Fleet Street, Knightsbridge, Wolverhampton, Sweden and Wales. They wrote ballads, ran coffee houses, lived on country estates, they breathed ink dust from printing presses and escaped people-traffickers.
What they had in common was the year of their murders: 1888.
Their murderer was never identified, but the name created for him by the press has become far more famous than any of these five women.
In this devastating narrative of five lives, historian Hallie Rubenhold finally gives these women back their stories.
Official Summary
14 May 2025
The Five is one of the most powerful and necessary historical books I’ve ever read.
Hallie Rubenhold takes the five women traditionally remembered only as victims of Jack the Ripper—Polly Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride, Catherine Eddowes, and Mary Jane Kelly—and gives them their rightful place as full human beings with stories, struggles, and voices. This is not a book about their deaths. It’s about their lives.
Rubenhold meticulously reconstructs each woman’s journey, diving deep into the social, economic, and personal circumstances that shaped them. We learn about their childhoods, families, hardships, and resilience. Some were mothers, artists, workers, or wives. None of them deserved to be reduced to a single moment of violence or labelled unfairly by the moral standards of Victorian society.
This book completely shifted the way I view true crime. It challenges the morbid obsession with killers and forces us to reckon with the human cost of sensationalism. It’s incredibly well-researched and yet deeply compassionate. Rubenhold writes with clarity and heart, refusing to let history continue to marginalize or misrepresent these women.
What stayed with me long after reading is the reminder that these women mattered—not because of who killed them, but because they lived.
The Five is an essential read for anyone interested in history, feminism, or reclaiming lost voices. It’s a sobering, beautifully written tribute that finally gives Polly, Annie, Elizabeth, Catherine, and Mary-Jane the dignity they were denied.
About the Author
Author bio from the author’s site
Hallie Rubenhold is a historian and a prizewinning, bestselling author. Her book, The Five; The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper which focused on the victims’ biographies rather than speculating on their killer has become an international sensation. Her new book, Story of a Murder; The Wives, The Mistress and Dr Crippen, published in late March 2025 is a panoramic examination of the 1910 murder of American music hall performer, Belle Elmore.
Hallie’s earlier works The Covent Garden Ladies and Lady Worsley’s Whim have been the inspiration for the television series, Harlots (BBC/Hulu) and The Scandalous Lady W (BBC).
Hallie has also written two novels, is a historical advisor for period drama, appears on TV, is a podcaster and lectures widely.
This book found its way onto my TBR because of the GoodReads challenge. Unfortunately, I only managed 5 out of 6. But what a remarkable read. I am very glad that I made time for this one.
