The Five

The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper

By: Hallie Rubenhold

Narrated by: Louise Brealey

Length: 10 hrs and 20 mins

Publisher's summary

Five devastating human stories and a dark and moving portrait of Victorian London - the untold lives of the women killed by Jack the Ripper.

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 coffeehouses and 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. The person responsible was never identified, but the character created by the press to fill that gap has become far more famous than any of these five women.

For more than a century, newspapers have been keen to tell us that ‘the Ripper’ preyed on prostitutes. Not only is this untrue, as historian Hallie Rubenhold has discovered, it has prevented the real stories of these fascinating women from being told. Now, in this devastating narrative of five lives, Rubenhold finally sets the record straight, revealing a world not just of Dickens and Queen Victoria but of poverty, homelessness and rampant misogyny. They died because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time - but their greatest misfortune was to be born a woman.

©2019 Hallie Rubenhold (P)2019 Bolinda Publishing Pty Ltd

Entertaining, enlightening but speculative

it's an important story to tell but it feels like the author fills in the gaps a bit too much at times to make a more compelling case.

Sad but interesting

This book was very sad and tragic. But i think it’s important to remember the victims and not just the serial killer. And i liked the way it brought up the topic of prostitusion.

¡Revealing!

This astonishing book is an authentic and unique journey to victorian London! It is the history of 5 remarkable women whose voices finally emerged from the absolute obscurity. It has been a real honour listening to this enlightening book and learning about these 5 distinctive women. This book has altered me in a positive and strange way. After listening to their sorrowful stories, you can't just carry on with your life as if you've never heard of Polly, Annie, Elizabeth, Kate and Mary Jane. Maybe their story will stay with you. I really can't recommend this book more!!
In reference to the narration: Absolutely Superb!

Fascinating and tragic

Absolutely superb historical account of those whose lives were somehow forgotten in the story

well worth giving a listen

This is probably one of the best audio books I've listened to. It is so in depth and is so respectful to the canonical 5 and really drills in that they were real women with lives and families and not just a sex worker who fell victim to Jack the Ripper.

Fantastic and gripping

a very thoughtful and insightful book I loved to listen to, with a superb performance.

The story you think you know, but don't.

Turn history on its head. The women each have unique histories and what I thought I knew about them was mostly false. Amazing research has gone into this book. The stories are brilliantly written and the narrator is compelling.

Excellent and Emotional

Excellent research work of these five women and an emotional review of a woman's life in the 19th century