this was an enjoyable listen! I liked the unique format of the book. I think I’d prefer reading the physical book, just because of the trial aspect.

I listened to this all in one go because I just had to know what happened to Mary/Polly and everyone else. This was gold. The narration was absolute perfection.

As someone who reads horror and witchy fiction, I was interested in this non fiction witchy story. However, I really struggled to become immersed in this narrative. Admittedly, I can hit or miss with non fiction so die hard fans may end enjoying this one more than me. I don't think this book has a lot of appeal to fiction readers, compare to other pieces of narrative non fiction.

I requested this one because it might be an upcoming title I would like to review on my Youtube Channel. However, after reading the first several chapters I have determined that this book does not suit my tastes. So I decided to DNF this one.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. Mary Bodine's story is one I had never heard before and as an avid true crime documentary lover that surprised me. I found this book was able to be very entertaining while also being factually dense. I would recommend this even to readers who don't normally like non-fiction writing.

Received this audiobook via NetGalley. The narration was engaging and kept me interested in the story. This book is based on the real trial of Polly Bodine, accused of murder without proof. Polly was arrested and tried for her sister-in-law and baby niece's gruesome murders and was essentially condemned because she did not conform to societal views of how a "proper" woman comports herself. Unfortunately, Ms. Bodine was no stranger to scandal-she was separated from her husband, pregnant by a lover, and drank freely in public - she did things considered unseemly for women during this era.

Ms. Bodine was the first person who was tried in the public in tabloid news stories and was exploited by Edgar Allan Poe, PT Barnum, and Walt Whitman, all of whom wrote about her case or created works that caused more shock/anger to be aimed at Polly Bodine. It was shocking to hear how the attorneys treated the witnesses and how skewed their prosecution was throughout the trial.

The author, Alex Hortis, made good use of the trial transcripts, peppering their actual words into the narration. I would recommend this audio book to anyone interested in NYC history, true crime, nonfiction, and the dawn of sensationalism in the press.

I found this to be a well researched book on a case I hadn’t heard about before. I thought the audiobook narration was great.

3 out of 5 Stars

It's quite a interesting bit of true crime but the writing style makes it a bit boring.

The right to an unbiased/impartial jury at a public trial is guaranteed by the Sixth Amendment. Polly Bodine was not only tried at court by biased individuals, but by the court of public opinion, the media, and even P. T. Barnum made a joke and circus of her trial. Polly was a woman who enjoyed gin, was separated from her husband, commits adultery, and reportedly had abortions. Edgar Allen Poe and Walt Whitman were newsmen at the time who covered her case.

Polly had been accused of killing her brother's wife, Emeline Houseman and her infant Ann Eliza. Their murders will be known as the “Christmas murders.”

I listened to the audiobook which I felt was terrific. Fans of True Crime will enjoy this book. I enjoyed hearing the court cases, the lawyers back and forth in court, the information on the judges, the jury, the way the public wanted to see her hang no matter if she was guilty or not. She was viewed as a fallen woman in the publics opinion and deserved to suffer. Dubbed The Witch of New York, the newspapers/tabloids sensationalized the case, presented Polly in the worst possible light, and made it hard to find impartial jurors. But was she innocent? Was she the villain she was painted to be? Readers can form their own opinions.

I enjoyed learning about this case and how this case gave birth to sensationalized tabloid journalism. The amount of research that went into the writing of this book was impressive. I enjoyed how it was presented. I also enjoyed how it was shown that public opinion and news media can sway jurors. Did tabloids interfere with legal justice?

I found this to be well done, interesting, and well thought out. I enjoy books that are not only educational but move me. I was not aware of this case prior to listening to the audiobook. I was also annoyed by how some of the professionals did not properly do their jobs, making sure the jurors were unbiased.

This was a gripping, well thought out, wonderfully narrated true crime book.

#TheWitchofNewYork #NetGalley #SpotifyAudiobooks #AlexHortis #TrueCrime

I actually listened along to the audiobook. As a voracious consumer of historical crime podcasts, it was a treat to listen to hours of impeccable research on or relating to a single case. The intersections of popular culture and social issues of thetime of the time mixed with the journalistic detail throughout helped keep a tedious amount of detail fresh.

This was such an interesting read! Those who are fans of true crime and history look no further. I have never heard of the case of the Polly Bodine murder before, and my mind was blown at the names associated with the coverage of this case. Poe! Barnum! The list goes on.

I never considered the beginnings of tabloid/sensationalist journalism, but despite that this was so informative. And my jaw literally dropped many times while listening. Seems like, when it comes to selling a story, not much has changed.

I thought this was a very good book. It was so interesting learning about the tactics tabloid papers used in 1840s and compare them to today. It seems a lot of the same tactics are still used to this day. This book was very informative about a case that I did not know anything about. Give it a listen.