Red-Haired Ash Reads

While this book has an interesting topic, it didn’t end up being exactly what I expected. When you think of axe murders, you think of people like Lizzie Borden (Ch. 9),  the Axeman of New Orleans, or maybe if you are a true crime buff, Elifasi Msomi  (The Axe Killer). Instead this book is a collection of killings that are not really axe murders, as we think of them. 

This first part of this book, until the chapter about Borden actually, focuses mainly on political executions, early killings that were done with something sharp, and some stories based on myths. I really struggled with the majority of this book and considered DNF many times. I stuck it out hoping it would get better. Instead I found myself skimming most of these stories because the author spends very little time actually talking about axes and axe murders. Borden’s chapter was the first that really felt like it focused wholly on axe murder. 

While I know this is the author’s personal opinions on axe murders, it would have been nice if she had at least explained how she viewed axe murder to begin with so the reader knew what they were getting into. I wasn’t expecting so much of this book to be about murders that might have involved an axe or other sharp object, or just political beheadings. 

Overall, this book wasn’t what I was expecting. I think it was an interesting concept but the author didn’t present the information in a cohesive way that showcases axe murders. 

TW: Discussions of murder; violence; gore; racism; pedophilia; graphic child death; homomisa and conversion therapy; 

*ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*

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