I normally don't mind books that are more entry-like instead of a complete narrative, but for some reason this title didn't work as well for me. I think it was the randomness of the entry formatting, i.e., some had timelines, some had 'judgements', and some had fictionalized conversations. This inconsistent style made the book less pleasant to read and harder to get through for me, but ymmv. Thanks to NetGalley and Cranthorpe Millner Publishers for the free e-book.

I do like when the weatherris windy and wet outside to curl up with a fluffy blanket, tea and a book of something dark and this book did not disappoint For women i knew about to women i didn't this book kept me entertained over a weekend!

How many women in this book did you already know of?

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All views are my own.

This was a very interesting read. I really liked it. I always enjoy this type of story. I would definitely recommend this book and I would definitely read it again.

Princess Fuzzypants here: This book is an interesting and eclectic collection of wicked women all the way from the Bible to modern times. It looks at their wicked deeds and tries, as much as possible, to put it into perspective. It also looks at whether these women truly deserve to be called wicked.

It would be hard to feel a huge amount of empathy for these women although most of them came from abject poverty and were willing to do whatever was needed to escape that poverty. In a few cases, the treatment that they received from the people upon whom they sought revenge almost makes their own wicked deeds if not justified, at least understandable.

Another take away I got from the stories was that many of these women who were so labelled were often strong women who fought against the restraints that the male dominated societies in which they lived inflicted upon them. It does not exonerate them from what they did, but in many cases, from our modern perspective, it does help us to understand some of the motivation.

Four purrs and two paws up,

This was well written and well researched, but probably won't stick with me for long in a saturated market of women serial killers podcasts/books, etc.

I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

I loved this book. It had interesting stories and the women who were talked about are mostly new to me. I really enjoyed all the information I learned

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of "Wicked Women of Yore" in exchange for an honest review. This was a fun, fast paced book about selected "wicked" women from history. The candidates for this honor existed from biblical to modern times, lived in a variety of regions of the world, and committed crimes ranging from fraud to cold blooded murder. The twenty three women this book covers provides a brief account fo their lives and crimes. It's a good way to prompt interest and provide a launching pad to discover further reading on these women. I highly recommend this book if you enjoy women's history or true crime.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I'll be honest, this is a solid 2-stars for me. I'm not sure what I was hoping this book would be, but what I read wasn't it. I love that this highlights so many (in)famous women throughout history, many of whom most Westerners are unaware of, but I can't help but being disappointed and at times a little disgusted by this book. The disappointment stemming from the lack of thought-provoking discussion after presenting the history of these women, and the disgust stemming from the subtle ways in which this book managed to put (these) women down when throughout their tales its clear that they've been kicked enough when they were alive. To be in this book it is obvious that these women were not saints, however I found it aggrivating how their lives and their actions/reasoning for their actions were presented in this novel.

A collection of stories of varied individuals, sometimes truely evil to the more mundane ladies who have made poor life choices.I liked how the book went in a timeline from the Bible to about the early two thousands and while I enjoyed the question at first asking if these ladies were really wicked or not by the end I found it a bit monotonous.Some were,some weren't but I kinda felt I was reading a book on morals.Otherwise,it was nicely written, detailed and organised and I would no doubt in the future read this author again.

Much thanks to Netgalley for sending me a copy in exchange for my honest review.

Wicked Women of Yore is a fascinating compendium of many women who were to an extent wicked, some very obviously more than others. Beginning with Biblical Old Testament and spanning thousands of years to Bonnie Parker in 1933, the Nonfiction book gives insight into the lives of these women and their dastardly deeds and motives, from impoverished to wealthy. The author poses thought-provoking questions in each chapter, especially "Was she really a wicked woman?" and compares them with other women in the book. Those discussed include usurpers, connivers, pirates, manipulators, gangsters, bandits, nymphomaniacs, killers and others.

Many of us are familiar with Biblical Lot's wife and daughters as well as Jezebel and Salome. Mary Ann Cotton is renowned for her depravity. But we may be less familiar with Roman Messalina who valued power and status above everything so she stopped at nothing to obtain it or Hungarian Countess Elizabeth Báthory who was rumoured to have lured, tortured and murdered dozens. Another very different story is about Sarah Russell who sold makeup for loads of money to the gullible. Though I'd read of her before, one of the most intriguing stories is that of Guilia Tofana of Italy who manufactured poison to sell with detailed instructions. It's impossible to think of what went through her mind as she sold each batch. And those who bought it! But the most wicked in this book is Ilse Koch, whose very name makes me shudder.

If you are intrigued by Nonfiction accounts of real women in the past who were often cunning in their plans to get ahead regardless of repercussions, usually with criminal and/or disastrous results, this book is for you.

My sincere thank you to Cranthorpe Millner Publishers and NetGalley for providing me with an early digital copy of this arresting book.

I am a big fan of history books and books that take a look at historical women.

This book has a format that it follow for most entries, a photo so you can identify the person, a little snippet about their life, a mostly nonfiction look that then goes to an imagined conversation or a played out event that this person is known for, then sometimes a snippet asking if the woman really was as wicked as history plays them out to be or if it may have been skewed a bit like the life of Elizabeth Bathory who needed to collect the debt of a king, so her actions may have been overexaggerated (she was still determined to be wicked).

This would've been a five star for me, but there were just too many cases that I knew nothing about and the author didn't really make me want to care to much about them, especially with how predictable the format is.

Nice read, definitely recommend. Special thanks to NetGalley for giving me an uncorrected proof before the book went to publication.

The first few chapters were honestly a bore, I get why they started with woman from the bible but the constant quotes and time spent on them were a drag. After that things got interesting, a lot of these woman I had never heard of before and I enjoyed learning more about them but one thing became clear, the author really didn’t know what a wicked woman was or how to judge their deeds after everything

Women have been demonized throughout the ages for things they've allegedly done or not done—depending on the general mood of society at the time. They have been used as cautionary tales, scapegoats, and worse ... Are women truly so terrible, though? In Wicked Women of Yore by D. Lawrence-Young, readers are presented with the tales and facts of some of history's most infamous women, from Eve and Lilith all the way to Ilse Koch and everyone in between.

A Quick Overview

Wicked Women of Yore by D. Lawrence-Young starts off strong with a whole chapter dedicated to the infamous ladies from the Bible. We're talking Eve, Lot's Wife, Salome, Delilah, and so on. Interesting facts are presented and some thought-provoking questions are asked in such a subtle way that you cannot help but wonder whether there may have actually been some prejudice when these tales were written. We move on from the Bible to learn about Messalina, the supposed nymphomaniac and serial killer wife of Emperor Claudius in Ancient Rome, who was the victim of smear tactics. Attempts were made to rewrite history and to tarnish her reputation way back when, but did it work? We skip over a thousand years and readers are transported to the other side of the world to meet Alice Kyteler, dubbed the Irish Witch. Why? Because she was unfortunate enough to marry well a few times and inherit small fortunes, of course.

An Interesting Exploration of Historical Women

Throughout this book, we are presented with interesting women who were deemed wicked because they were supposedly manipulators, conniving, adulterous, witches, or even murderers ... However, if most of them were alive today, they'd probably not have been labeled any of those things. They would be doctors, businesswomen, "good investors", maybe just lucky. I'm not entirely sure the same would be said about Elizabeth Bathory, regardless of what modern scholars say, but with an excellent PR team, she might have been able to save her reputation. Of course, one of my favorite "wicked women" also makes an appearance in Wicked Women of Yore ... Guilia Tofana, the Italian mass poisoner, who helped abused women across Italy dispose of their husbands ... Wicked? Not in my opinion. Actions have consequences, after all, and as Velma Kelly from Chicago said: "He had it coming."

Wicked or Powerful?

The question I continued asking myself was whether any of these women were actually wicked or only deemed so because people were intimidated by the power they possessed. On the one hand, women are still demonized today for a variety of reasons—and truth be told, nobody would be surprised if a modern witch hunt occurs that targets women in particular on a global scale ... On the other hand, the saying "where there's smoke, there's fire" comes to mind. Perhaps, the history writers were exaggerating to some degree, but there may still be proof of these women's alleged wrongdoings to be found.

All in All ...

I found this book an enticing read, filled with facts and interesting commentary that remained unbiased. The images within were also a nice surprise that added faces to the names of the women in question. Readers who are looking for a thought-provoking nonfiction read that discusses women and their so-called wickedness in days gone by will find this book utterly gripping. Horror fans will also enjoy it! All in all, I loved Wicked Women of Yore by D. Lawrence-Young and would highly recommend it. :-)

I love true crim eand so I was keen to read and review this book and it didn't disappoint. I had heard about a lot of the women within this book but there was also a lot of women in the book that I hadn't heard pf and my attention and interest has certainly been piqued. I would have liked a bit more information but i Still really enjoyed what information I did get

A fascinating read - I discovered women I'd not heard of previously, and was able to explore and examine their lives through the information provided here.
However, it feels like this may have worked better as a series or split into two volumes with more detail on the subjects - it can feel a little rushed.
However - a great starting point for reading into fascinating female lives!

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I'm giving this a neutral rating because I went into it with the wrong expectations. I was expecting something along the lines of Phillip Barlag's "Evil Roman Emperors," but "Wicked Women of Yore" is a bit more casual. Credit where it's due, there were a lot of women included that I hadn't heard of before.

An interesting idea which was perhaps disadvantaged by seeking to include so many case studies as some seemed a bit rushed or underdone.

While there were a lot of women referenced in this book whose stories I wasn't familiar with, I found the overall tone of the book a bit condescending and judgmental. The inserts where the author creates conversations and fictionalised narratives of events were sometimes interesting, but overall, the book didn't achieve what I wanted it to, which was a factual account of some notorious women from history.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This had so much potential but it just wasn't put together well. It was a chaotic mishmash of quotes from literature, and would suddenly read like a fiction work, then back to a typical non fiction style. Such a shame