Fatal: The Poisonous Life of a Female Serial Killer

Harold Schechter

nov 2012 · Distribuido por Simon and Schuster

Acerca de este libro electrónico

The shocking story of one of the most notorious female serial killers in American history from “an author who shows real mastery of the true crime genre” (NPR).

In 1891, Jane Toppan, a proper New England matron, embarked on a profession as a private nurse. Selfless and good-natured, she worked for some of Boston’s most prominent families, but they had no idea what they were welcoming into their homes.

Her dark past of tragedy, abuse, and mental illness was carefully hidden. No one who knew Jane as a nurse had any idea that she was morbidly obessed with autopsies, or that she conducted her own after-hours experiments on patients, deriving sexual satisfaction in their slow, agonizing deaths from poison.

Self-schooled in the art of murder, Jane was just beginning her career as the most prolific domestic fiend of the nineteenth century.

Acerca del autor

Harold Schechter is a professor of American literature and culture. Renowned for his true-crime writing, he is the author of the nonfiction books Fatal, Fiend, Bestial, Deviant, Deranged, Depraved, and, with David Everitt, The A to Z Encyclopedia of Serial Killers. He is also the author of Nevermore and The Hum Bug, the acclaimed historical novels featuring Edgar Allan Poe. He lives in New York State.