A fascinating, delightfully morbid collection of murder ballads and their origin stories. Some you may have heard, others not, but I find the common thread so amazing: people simply telling/singing a story that continues to remain in the popular culture for centuries. It was interesting to learn which iterations of the ballads seem to endure the most, despite their grisly nature and (perhaps unsurprisingly) misogynistic themes.

Accompanied by folky, evocative art, this book is sure to leave you with a creepy, uneasy feeling -- and the urge to YouTube some old folk tunes.

(The *only* downside to this book is that I fell down the rabbit hole of Google after reading about all of the ballads based on true stories!)

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for providing me with a free eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is beautifully written and powerfully described, offering wonderfully detailed accounts of the stories behind each individual murder ballad. These tales will intrigue you and evoke strong emotions, making you feel deeply connected to the narratives. The writing is straightforward and easy to read, allowing you to leisurely turn the pages. However, it is also interesting and captivating enough that you could easily read it in one sitting, as I did. It is an absolutely gripping collection, and I plan to own a physical copy when I get the chance.

The text is insightfully written and provides detailed information about each ballad. It includes data on the various artists who have recorded each ballad, specifying when they recorded it, which album it appears on, and the title of the song under which it was released.

Each ballad provides different versions of the backstory for each character. Since there are various interpretations depending on where you grew up, it’s interesting to see the version of the story you were told alongside those of others.

“Murder Ballads” explores the history and significance of morbid songs recorded by artists like Bob Dylan and Elvis Presley. Many of the featured songs are rooted in real-life events and have evolved through the generations. The book delves into the stories behind the crimes that inspired these songs, bringing attention to notable recordings by musicians such as Jerry Garcia, Harry Belafonte, Nirvana, Johnny Cash, Sammy Davis Jr., Bon Iver, Kate Bush, Ma Rainey, and Shovels and Rope. The narratives and music highlight ongoing themes of misogyny, racism, and classism over the centuries.

This unique book combines stunning illustrations with the lyrics of classic murder ballads, along with researched explanations detailing the origins of each song. The artwork is exceptional, featuring not only full-sized illustrations that serve as portraits for each song but also intricate details that fill the pages. It is worth noting that some of the artwork is quite graphic, reflective of the subject matter.

Additionally, the book includes lists of notable performances for each song, adding another layer of interest. After an initial read-through, the plan is to revisit the book alongside the music for a deeper experience.

Katy Horan, the illustrator and interdisciplinary artist, has thoroughly researched the narratives behind 20 murder ballads from both “Black America” and Renaissance Europe, covering mythological themes as well as real-life murders. Murder ballads typically document transgressions and betrayals of trust, providing a gripping lens into societal issues.

Not being a native English speaker I didn't know any of the songs presented here, so that was culturally interesting.

Each one presents what the song is about and then goes into the roots of it. Where it comes from and what was changed to make the song more palatable. Then there are lyrics of a version of the song and an art piece. My favorites art pieces were the full page ones that told the story in it.

I found some of the stories very interesting, with the different ways dehumanization happens depending on the race, gender, or sexuality of the people involved, and how their stories are twisted to fit a narrative.

Thank you to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for providing an ARC. All thoughts are my own.

This book was absolutely brilliant. The thoroughly researched and documented history of twenty murder ballads was fascinating to read about. The combination of literary analysis, history and folklore was only enhanced by the art accompanying the different chapters.
I already had an interest in violence against women in nursery rhymes, but as a French native, I discovered some ballads I didn’t know anything about with a keen appreciation. The reading is neither too dense, nor too long, making it the perfect way for beginners to dive into this specific lore.

4/5 ⭐️

A well researched and nice addition to the growing works on murder ballads. I'm decently versed in the topic of murder ballads and thought Horan did a nice job of giving some background on each of the ballads, provided the lyrics, and included illustrations she did to accompany each of the ballads.

Thank you to NetGalley, Katy Horan, and Andrews McMeel Publishing for my early access to this.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book. I really enjoyed reading the history of these ballads. Although there were a number of them that I was unfamiliar with, the lore was fascinating, as was seeing the changes made to the songs across countries and time. For a fan of the genre, this book would be a welcome addition to a home library. 3.5 stars

A haunting and fascinating, though brief, look at murder ballads throughout history. I’ve always been intrigued by songs of this nature but never knew it was a genre of its own with a name and everything! From Nick Cave, Johnny Cash, Elvis Costello, and Nirvana — a multitude of artists have covered and recreated such songs.

I very much enjoyed and appreciated the exploration of Black artists and their contributions to the genre. I mourned for the real women who inspired these stanzas and songs, who were referred to crudely and often without empathy or factuality. Very much interested in reading further on the topic and will be listening to more renditions of these stories for sure!

Gorgeous illustrations were throughout and I’m super keen to grab copies of Literary Witches & the accompanying deck!

Oh this book was such a delight!! I didn’t know any thing about murder ballads before picking up “murder ballads” by katy Horan. Im so happy that I chose to. This informative work talks about music, women, and history. It combines such lush stories.

An interesting premise but left me disappointed.

This book just wasn’t what I thought it would be. It felt more like a scaffold for the author’s art, as opposed to an in-depth analysis and exploration of the history of murder ballads.

Aside from a couple of ballads that were better researched than the rest, most of the analyses were cursory descriptions of the chosen variants with a few opinions thrown in—every time the author brought up something interesting, it was immediately skimmed over. I also found that the lack of cohesion or of a clear theme made the whole book feel disjointed. I suppose this works for a coffee table book though—you can open it to any page and just start reading.

What I really felt was missing were the threads connecting all of these variants; they were mentioned vaguely and by name, but not in their historical or regional contexts, which made their inclusion feel almost meaningless. I wish the author had given us more information or omitted them entirely.

Despite my issues with it, I’m glad this book introduced me to something I knew nothing about. I found myself frequently looking up different variants and their associated histories/folklore to learn more about them, and enjoyed the reading experience overall.

Loved this book! I read mainly on my kindle so any books I have around my house are mostly for my own enjoyment/entertainment. I'd definitely get this one as a coffee/guest book because every story is so detailed but easy to read through. From the history and growth of each ballad to the noting notable recordings / who is credited with transcribing it. This author clearly loves getting into this topic and doing her research! It felt like I was reading messages from a friend who had gone down a rabbit hole and I really enjoyed the casual writing style.

Katy Horan's "Murder Ballads" is a beautiful and lovingly researched look into our age-old obsession with death as told through song. Murder Ballads- a subgenre of folk music that centers on ill-fated maidens, jeaous lovers, and violent ends- have been passed down through generations, adapting over time to suit location and circumstance. Horan traces these songs to their roots and unpacks the true stories that inspired them. I was happy to see that issues such as gender, race, and sexuality were not brushed over. The victims in these songs (and often their real-life counterparts) are treated with care and respect. The text is accompanied by Horan's haunting illustrations, which look straight out of a dark fairytale in the best way and truly bring the lyrics to life. This is a book I would be delighted to have on my shelf.

This is such a niche little book but it was so up my alley I can't express how excited I was to find it. The art is beautiful, the songs are interesting, and the historical exploration is so interesting.

Murder Ballads is a collection of twenty true crime ballads with illustrations to accompany each one.

Before each ballad includes a summary about the crime and what had happened.

The book itself isn’t too long, I read it in one sitting myself, and I really enjoyed it the entire time and would recommend it to anyone who also enjoys anything true crime related.

A beautifully illustrated, meticulously researched collection of folk songs.
Before reading this book I never realised that so many folk songs had a basis in well documented real life events.
The style of illustration is really evocative of each song and the book is so informative about the origin and evolution of each song.
Before starting the book I made a playlist of the songs included to listen to whilst reading.
Thank you NetGalley for the eArc

This is so fascinating. The author weaves real stories with folklore, art and music. I feel these stories on a deep level because they come from the darkest kinds of situations and emotions. i love the artwork too. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this.

This book was hauntingly beautiful. Actually! It's the most beautiful book I've ever seen/read.

The stories and insight behind the ballads are well laid out, well researched, and incredibly thought provoking. The words on the page are beautiful and it's obvious they were chosen with delicate craft, but it's the art, the illustrations that really take this book to another level. Katy is truly a gifted artist. Her illustrations made me feel more than the ballads themselves.

I loved it!

When I was in college, I had to take classes in things other than my major, so I took an English literature class in ballads. Ballads are the true folk tradition, passed down and changed, and forgotten about, or remembered forever. Some ballads have persisted into the modern world, which is pretty amazing.

This collection has some ballads that people have probably heard of, such as Frankie and Johnnie as well as Stagolee. Each ballad is given a backstory, followed by lyrics and drawing of the victim.

It is an odd sort of book, but if you like to find out where certain murder ballads came from, this is kind of a cool book.

This book will be published on the 29th of April 2025. Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

A beautiful collection of lyrics and folklore accompanied by the incredible artwork of Katie Horan! This was a book that I savored slowly! I’m excited to check out that recommended reading list at the back of the book!

I can't wait to see what the finished copy of this book will look like. The ebook is beautiful, it reminds me a bit of a coffee table book, lots of easy to digest information on a unique topic. In this case, lore around ballads about murdered people. I thought this was really fun and neat and this book had me looking up songs to try and listen to someone signing the pieces. The art after each song/representing each song is so unbelievably beautiful. I will probably buy this book when it comes out to put in my collection because it's so unique, easy to read and enjoyable.

An interesting and informative collection of Murder Ballads. These aren't retellings of the songs but instead more of a quick historical look at the origins of each song and how they moved across the world. It also explains the misogyny, racism and classism that was present in these ballads, that might go unnoticed to most people. What I found pretty interesting was learning that a lot of these ballads had been turned into songs by popular American singers, this made me curious and I decided to look up a few of the songs and surprisingly found them on Spotify.

The Art was interesting, it reminds me of this other artist I follow but these are more sinister, they aren't mind blowing but I like knowing that the Author also provided the art included.

I'd recommend this for someone who has an interest in history or wants to learn more about Murder Ballads. I will say some off the informations did start to feel a bit repetitive but I guess that should be expected when it was a dive into what makes these songs murder ballads and a lot of them had similar connections, and origins.