THE WITCH OF NEW YORK: THE TRIALS OF POLLY BODINE AND THE CURSED BIRTH OF TABLOID JUSTICE by @alexhortis5. This book came out in March of this year!

Thank you to the author, @netgalley and the publisher, @spotify audiobooks for the audio-ARC.

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Mary Polly Bodine has been accused of murdering her sister-in-law Emaline and infant niece. Before her trials can even begin and certainly during each of them, the tabloid news outlets that were starting to blossom at the time became the forefront for American citizens looking to glean any information about her past, gossip about her and speculation on her guilt/innocence.

In the vein of THE LIZZIE BORDEN TRIALS, this book was an interesting discussion of sensationalistic and tabloid news in the early 19th century and how the media can be a beast of its own making. Due to the competition for the most sensational gossip with the dawn of such institutions as the NY Herald, Bodine barely had a chance at a fair trial, however I am not entirely convinced either way as to her guilt or innocence. At the time, this story attracted commentary from Edgar Alan Poe, PT Barnum and Walt Whitman to name a few contemporaries of Bodine's trials. Her story was certainly all the rage!

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If you like true crime stories, especially those that focus on the often double standards that women face in the justice system compared to men, especially at the time of these crimes. Parallels are drawn to today's still ruthless tabloid justice forcing us to question its place in our contemporary world.

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This or that:

Type of witch:
Good Witch or Bad Witch

What you are cooking:
Frog or Spider

Your weapon/transpo of choice:
Broom or Staff

Your Familiar:
Black Cat or Crow/Raven

💚SMASHBOT💚

#bibliophile #booknerd #booksta #booklover #bookreview
#truecrimebooks #thewitchofnewyork #bookish #witchy

This reminds me of the writings like Kate Winkler Dawson or Kate Summerscale, two of my favorite historic nonfiction authors. The story is set, a neighbor discovers the burnt remains of a young woman and her infant daughter. Suspicion is immediately cast at Polly Bodine, the sister-in-law. Polly is pregnant with an illegitimate child, and is also considered a woman of ill-repute. The newspapers run wild with the story, throwing fictitious and bizarre claims about her, with small bits of truth thrown in. She is originally declared guilty, mostly due to the papers' insane accusations, but is brought forth in another trial where the defense attorney team slowly tears away all the evidence of her guilt and focuses on how they only believer her guilty because of her unwomanly behavior. The biggest issue the trial runs into is finding jurors that aren't already influenced by the newspapers and famous celebrities of the time. This brought a lot of issues of the court to light, from the information being leaked and made up by newspapers, to using a woman's reputation against her, to yet again bringing the accusation of witchcraft against a person, and finally the decision of the death penalty which is debated to this day. While Polly was found not-guilty the penalty of the public was a lifetime of shunning. She didn't seemed to care though and lived her life quietly and successfully.

A well plotted and described case read by a narrator who kept it flowing and brought the insanity of this case to light. I look forward to more from Hortis in the future.

The cover was the first thing that attracted me to this book. The subject matter of this book is very insteresting and the author does a good job bringing Polly Bodine story to life as well as the rise to tabloid journalism. However, the book sometimes gets bogged down in excessive detail, which slowed the pace down for me making it challenging for me to stay fully engaged. While the subject matter was fascinating, it made it harder for me to connect with the story. Overall, it's a worthwhile read for history buffs, but it may not fully captivate those looking for a more story-like feel.

I really had trouble with this one. The story itself and life of Polly was fascinating, but the writing fell a bit flat for me. I found the pacing inconsistent and it felt a bit like listening to a textbook at times.

This was my first non-fiction, true crime book that I have listen to, or even read for that matter. I was pleasantly surprised as to how much I loved this book. I know a little bit about how news stations/newspapers/magazine owners defame and sometimes, depending on the owners, gang up on events and portray a certain image, but this books opened my eyes on how it began. Very enjoyable!

Well this was absolutely fascinating and entertaining! What an ordeal for this woman! I will admit that it did get a bit repetitive with three trials, but I thought the author did a good job of showing the differences without rehashing everything that was already covered in her previous trials. 💯 recommend this one!

Audio: 3/5 Enjoyable, performance was good.

Poor Polly! Her trial for the murder of her sister in law, Emmeline, and her baby niece was put on trial for capital murder. Polly was no saint. She was a divorced woman who drinks, is an adulterer, has had abortions, so she presents as the perfect villain.

This is the 1843 and what was then the penny press, runs with articles about Polly and more or less convicts her in the press., and we thought this was a modern age travesty! She is tried three times over in Staten Island, Manhattan, and Newburgh. Even some famous names entered the hysteria surrounding the Christmas murders, like Edgar Allen Poe, Walt Whitman, PT Barnum, and later James Fennimore Cooper.

It became a media circus something we are so use to today. The media drove this trial and no matter how talented the defense team was, it didn't really matter as Polly was already convicted by the frenzy created by hucksters.

This was a frightening story for the reason that people were convinced by the press not by the evidence which at times was very strong that she murdered wantonly.

Was she guilty? Only a jury should decide not the press!
Fascinating material that was at times presented in a laborious way.

The Witch of New York: The Trials of Polly Bodine and the Cursed Birth of Tabloid Justice by Alex Hortis is a true crime book that takes place in New York between 1844 and 1846. Polly Bdoine is accused of murdering her sister in law and her niece on December 25, 1943 when their remains are found under the bed of the house that was burned to the ground. This book follows Polly three trials which lasted from June 1844 to April 1846. During this time both Edgar Allan Poe and P.T. Barnum made money from Polly Bodine's trail from writting articles in newspapers to making a wax likeness of Polly as an attraction for his circus. This is just one example in history where a woman didn't get a fair trail due to the information that was printed about Polly Bodine and her lifestyle choice. This is a must read for anyone who likes both history and true crime.

This book was not a favorite. In my opinion it was very repetitive. However stating this, I’m from the podcast generation, I think this might be better for people who enjoy more traditional book style of laying out the information.

I love true crime so this felt very in my wheelhouse. I also liked the title and found that very intriguing. I appreciated listening to this audiobook! It reminded me of some true crime podcasts also.

I found this case interesting and interesting that I had never heard about it. The people were interesting and I wasn't sure where it was going. I enjoyed learning about the trial. Very relevant to today too.

Thanks Netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

It’s always so interesting to me how women are villainized throughout history. As a fan of true crime and history of women accused of witchcraft (not a fan in a weird uncaring way - just curious!), I found this story extremely interesting. I did have the audio and the narrator was clean and easy to listen to

Loved this! What an extraordinary story, and such a fascinating insight into turn of the century journalism. It reminded me a little of Erik Larson's work with two big historical moments interacting with each other and impacting our modern culture all these years later. The author's research is evident, and their writing is truly gripping. The narration is simple, but effective.

On Christmas night, December 25, 1843, in a serene village on Staten Island, shocked neighbors discovered the burnt remains of twenty-four-year-old mother Emeline Houseman and her infant daughter, Ann Eliza. When an ambitious district attorney charges Polly Bodine (Emelin’s sister-in-law) with a double homicide, the new “penny press” explodes. Polly is a perfect media villain: she’s a separated wife who drinks gin, commits adultery, and has had multiple abortions. Between June 1844 and April 1846, the nation was enthralled by her three trials—in Staten Island, Manhattan, and Newburgh—for the “Christmas murders.”

This is a great origin story of how America became addicted to sensationalized reporting of criminal trials. I enjoyed listening to the narrator, the woman's cadence is perfect for the book. I was sad to hear of how a woman who wasn't an angel, was drawn through the mud and made responsible for murder. This is not only true crime, but journalism history.

I, like many other people, like true crime and consume that genre on a regular basis. This book and the murder case it portrays could maybe be seen as a base for the true crime-interest today as it seems like this case was one of the first where media and the papers was heavily involved in the whole process.

I found it quite interesting throughout.

I don't remember ever learning about Mary (Polly) Bodine before. This was an interesting 1843 murder trial and it was fascinating to see what role the newspapers played in making it difficult to find men to participate in the jury who had no preconceived notions on if Mary was guilty or not. I think something we forget in 2024 is the prejudices of the day, I didn't even think about how WHO was allowed to book a hotel room/was welcome in a town could factor in to who could be a witness in a trial - regardless of the type of trial. So the fact that some key witnesses could not participate in the second trial because they were not welcome in the town it was taking place... and how that took away some major evidence for the prosecution makes me wonder how many trials turned out differently because of factors like this. I also loved seeing young Edgar Allen Poe and Walt Whitman as newspaper reporters and can see how their viewpoints of this case hinted at the types of authors they would later become.

Erin Bennett does a good job with the audiobook narration.

Advanced Reader’s Copy provided by NetGalley and Spotify Audiobooks in exchange for an honest review.

What a fascinating story featuring the murder trial of Polly Bodine, of murdering her, her sister-in-law and her niece on Christmas night 1843, and how her case is the first to be held, and influenced by the press.

I love a good historical murder mystery, and this one definitely fits the bill. Featuring an imperfect woman, who is villainized, and made to be the scapegoat and suffers through three trials in pursuit of justice… all the while, being torn apart and falsely convicted in the penny press!

The narration by Erin Bennett is well done and suits the story. Her voice work is very easy to listen to, and her differentiation in her speaking provides a good delineation between different parts or segments of the book. This was an easy and I enjoyed the experience.

Thanks to Spotify Audiobooks and NetGalley for the audio review copy. Opinions are my own.

This is the story Polly Bodine, the first American woman put on trial for capital murder and how American became addicted to sensationalized reporting.

Polly Bodine was accused of everything in the papers, from alcoholism, witchcraft and abortions. America was captivated by her situation and the papers took advantage and created a public monster.

Parts of this tale are quite intriguing and you realize a lot has changed since this time period…BUT, a lot has stayed the same, as well. This tale does drag in many places and it is repetitive. However, I did learn quite a bit about how processes worked, or didn’t work, in this time period.

The narrator, Erin Bennett, has such a clear and true voice. She kept this story moving for me.

Need a well researched true crime…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.

I received this audiobook from the publisher for a honest review.

This audiobook was not for me. I had tried to like it. The suspense just wasn’t there for me. They just seem to read off of the court papers. If you like true crime podcast then I would give it a try. I just don’t like them.

This book covers the historical murder of a Mother and her baby that happened in the 1800's. .The aftermath is a media circus with multiple trials. While the case may have faded into obscurity over the years, there are people involved you will recognize like P.T. Barnum and Edgar Alan Poe.

One of my reading goals this year is to read fewer popcorn thrillers and replace them with true crime books. In this case, I listened to this on audio. the production was well done. The author was able to convey the history in a way that engaging and kept me reading. There were clear connections that tied in with what we saw back then and how we still see themes play out in modern times.

Such a great read for true crime lovers like myself. I had a lovely time listening to this audiobook! It felt almost as if I was as listening to one of my favorite true crime podcasts!

I was so intrigued by this case that I had never heard about before, and I was really interested to know more about all the details and the trial. I thought it was such a relevant case and absolutely one that makes us reflect on justice and the impact that media has on it nowadays!

Thank you to @netgalley and @spotify for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!