Mothers Who Murder by Xanthe Mallett

What is it about?

All of these women are notorious, but are all of them deadly?Child murder: A social taboo and one of the most abhorrent acts most of us can imagine. Meet the women found guilty of murdering their own children. They represent some of the most hated women in Australia. The infamous list includes psychologically damaged, sometimes deranged, women on the edge. But, as we will see, accused doesn't always mean guilty. Among the cases covered is that of Kathleen Folbigg, accused and found guilty of killing four of her children, even with a lack of any forensic evidence proving her guilt; Rachel Pfitzner, who strangled her 2-year-old son and dumped his body in a duck pond; as well as Keli Lane, found guilty of child murder though no body has ever been found.Dr Mallett goes back to the beginning of each case; death's ground zero. That might be the accused's childhood, were they abused? Or was their motivation greed, or fear of losing a partner? Were they just simply evil? Or did the media paint them as such, against the evidence and leading to a travesty of justice.Each case will be re-opened, the alternative suspects assessed, the possible motives reviewed. Informed by her background as a forensic scientist, Xanthe offers insight into aspects of the cases that may not have been explored previously. Taking you on her journey through the facts, and reaching her own conclusion as to whether she believe the evidence points to the women's guilt.Hear their stories.

My Thoughts....

I gave this book 3 out of five stars.

This book was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 

I found the subject of this book fascinating. Each chapter covered a different criminal case involving the death of a child or children allegedly by the hand of their mother. The author discusses each case, presents facts, trail transcripts and medical reports. She provides alternate theories and lots of background information regarding the child and the parents. There is a lot of discussion around medical issues. I found the author to be very thorough in her writing. At times it was quite repetitive. However, it was very interesting despite being horribly sad.