This book is an interesting fictional account of the the Lizzie Borden axe murders. Some parts definitely read as historical fiction, but other parts seem a bit fake. If you don't know much about the case, you will find this very interesting, but if you know a lot, you will find some discrepancies. Overall a good read and the cover of this book is on point.

Let’s begin with the cover. While not at all unpleasing to the untrained eye, this “Lizzie” is styled more in the Edwardian fashion (1901-1910) rather than the proper Victorian look of the time. The font choice and color, however, I greatly approve of.

On to the actual book itself. While there were some minor points of characterization of the Bordens that I personally disagreed with, this is a fictionalized version of events, and we cannot be sure one way or the other what they were truly like. It is nothing against the author’s skill as a writer, which I found to be quite to my stylistic liking, merely a difference in opinion.

As a self proclaimed Borden scholar —the case has been of special interest to me for nearly fifteen years now— it did irk me that some facts were incorrect, stating Emma was ten years older than Lizzie instead of nine, for example, and the incorrect spelling of Lizbeth as “Lisbeth” when Lizzie officially changed her name.

I will give credit where it is due, however, and say that the author did her best work in making the dialogue feel authentic of both the time period and to what we know was factually said by those involved. And her description of events that we were never privy to made for a compelling narrative that seems, at least for the most part, quite plausible. And the feminist slant, while welcome, and likely how Lizzie must have felt, began to feel a little overplayed at times.

If you read this and are not familiar with the case, I do advise you to remember that this is a fictionalized version of true events, one which does provide some missing context and enhancement to both the town of Fall River and its inhabitants, but should not be taken as a primary factual resource. However, if reading this sparks an interest in the case itself, then it will have done its job well.

For such a famous case, I had a hard time reading this book, it read more as a non fiction vs a historical fiction.

Diane Fanning, Lizzie, Level Best Books Historia, March 2025

Thank you to Level Best Books Historia and NetGalley for the ARC of this book.

Lizzie Borden took an ax and gave her mother forty whacks
When she saw what she had done she gave her father forty-one
Lizzie Borden got away
For her crime she did not pay.

Everyone interested in American crime has likely come across this little ditty about the Lizzie Borden case. In Lizzie, Edgar Award nominated true crime writer Diane Fanning turns to fiction to examine the murders of Andrew and Abby Borden, the father and stepmother of Lizzie and her older sister, Emma Borden. On August 4, 1892 Andrew and Abby were murdered in their home. Only Lizzie
and Bridget Sullivan, the Borden's housekeeper were in or near the house at the time.

Fanning follows Lizzie from the day of the murders through her arrest, the preliminary hearing, her pretrial incarnation, trial, acquittal, and her post trial life. Throughout the novel, Lizzie, who adopts the name Lisbeth after her acquittal, seems perfectly aware that she killed her father and stepmother, but appears to believe she had sufficient reason.

It is difficult to write a suspenseful novel about so well known a case. One of the ways Fanning builds suspense is by allowing the reader to wonder when sister Emma will finally discover that Lizzie really is the guilty party. It takes rather a long time to get to this point.

In the interim, Lizzie portrayed as an early feminist, railing against a society controlled by men, who are allowed to exercise complete control over women in all but the rarest of circumstances. She has yearned for the sort of freedom that two murders and exoneration by a jury (of men) has given her. While her desire for a just society (of sorts) may be laudable, repeated ad nauseum her complaints about the opposite sex grow wearisome.

For readers who want a fresh take on the Borden murders, Lizzie may be a good choice. I would not recommend Lizzie for readers not already intimately familiar with Lizzie and the murders.

Lizzie is an interesting novelisation of the life of Lizzie Borden and I really enjoyed the opening chapters, however once the trials began the pace began to drag and the aftermath of the verdict was incredibly slow and particularly uninteresting. This is a case I've heard of in passing and somehow always assumed that Lizzie had been convicted, probably because my knowledge of it was tied to the children's nursery rhyme about forty whacks. I was therefore completely in the dark as to actual events and the novel was both informative and unexpected.

Where I think Fanning really lets herself down though is in the relaying of the unreliable narrator in Lizzie. Parts of the novel seem intended to cause doubt and leave you unsure as to whether Lizzie actually committed the crimes she was on trial for. If this tone had been kept throughout, it would have kept the reader on their toes. However at other points, Fanning makes a clear cut case - using 'evidence' that never became apparent in real life - to confirm that Lizzie was 100% responsible for killing her father and step-mother. An example of this is Lizzie's hiding place for the axe and stolen belongings - a lot is made in the novel of her hiding place under the bed, despite this never being found by the police who tore the place apart looking for evidence.

Whilst I can understand the authorial need for a clear narrative and answer to 'who done it', Fanning goes too far in this endeavour and doesn't manage to capture the uncertainty and lack of actual evidence that let to Lizzie being acquitted. It's written as a fictionalised biography, but a fictionalised biography would recognise that Lizzie may actually be as Not Guilty as the jury proclaimed her. I don't think this novel therefore does Lizzie or the case justice.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for my free review copy of this title.

The story was well written and is a historical true crime fiction. I would say going into the book, my knowledge of the Borden murders was minimal. I did enjoy a different take on the telling of the crime but did find some of the dialogue to be a bit uninteresting and parts of the story struggled to maintain my attention.

As a kid obsessed with the Borden Murders, I ran to pick this one up.

Fanning takes the axe-wielding legend and spins it into a fictionalized tale that’s both chilling and compelling. The prose is sharp as a hatchet (pun most definitely intended), slicing into Lizzie’s mind with a finesse that had me hooked from the first page. I mean, who doesn’t want to peek inside the head of a woman who maybe chopped up her folks?

Lizzie herself is a firecracker: brooding, complex, and oh-so-tempting to root for, even when you’re side-eyeing actions. Despite it's great qualities, it sometimes felt like Fanning was tiptoeing around the gore instead of leaning into it. And this left me deflated like a balloon left over from a birthday weekend.

It's good, but I just wanted more darkness, especially given the subject matter.

The premise of this book is amazing!
Parts of the writing was brilliant!

I got to 66% and the main part of the book was over.
There are some serious writing errors

I really wanted to love this book. It had so much potential, it was so well researched but writing needs work

I didn’t post a review

I found this book interesting but it started off rough. The book did improve as I read it. I have not read anything else about Lizzie Borden and found myself looking up information as I read so it did engage me. The dialog and reactions after the killing were so awkward and fake feeling. They lacked emotion.

Sometimes it seemed like the book didn't know whether it wanted to be a non-fiction or fictional retelling of the LIzzie Borden story. I've read quite a few Lizzie Borden books both fiction and nonfiction and I am always interested in discovering new details, theories and perspectives about the case through both types of books but I never felt like there was that much insight into Lizzie's mindset besides the occasional mention of women's independence. Everything felt like it was being told from an outsiders point of view as if it we were reading an article rather a fictional retelling. A little more nuance to the story and how Lizzie was feeling as well as the perspectives of the people around her who were also involved with the case would have made for a bit more of a well-rounded story. Even though the Lizzie Borden story has been told many times before in different ways, there's usually a hook to the story or theory that drives the story along and it felt like this story was missing that unfortunately. I think the author did a great job at researching the Borden story but the actual storytelling fell a bit flat for me.

As someone who used Lizzie Borden as a research topic in high school, and took a trip to Fall River a few years ago, I was excited someone had taken the story and novelized it (is that a word?). The story is intriguing and given that it is one of those mysteries that will likely never, ever be truly solved, it really lends itself to a potentially exciting book.

It is very, very clear this author did a ton of research for this book. However, that research has not been molded into a cohesive story. I wanted to give it the benefit of the doubt, but the story relies so heavily on the research done that it felt like I was reading a textbook, kinda. The writing was very formulaic while also feeling like one giant ramble/tangent. It was like the author felt like every single bit of research they did absolutely had to be included - often at the detriment of story. In order to turn the Borden saga into a novel, there are obvious liberties that will have to be taken (dialogue, for example), but everything felt so stilted that I just could not continue.

DNF @ 30%

🌟🌟🌟
Lizzie by Dianne Fanning

True crime fictional novel based on the Borden Murders in Massachusetts 1892.

I went into this book knowing nothing about the Borden murders, which actually helped me enjoy the novel without any preconceived notions.
The beginning of the book, up to the trial, was really engaging. I thought the story was well-written, and the author did a great job of highlighting the societal injustices and gender biases that women like Lizzie faced during that era. The author highlighted the patronising attitudes and double standards that relegated women to secondary status.
However, I felt the post-trial section dragged on a bit - there was a lot going on, and it could have been wrapped up earlier. Overall, though, the ending was well-done.
Worth a read.
Thank you netgalley and Level Best Books for the chance to read and review this book.

The author has clearly done a lot of research for this book, which shows. The issue is that the book has not been able to combine that true history and facts into a cohesive novel. The book comes across as more of a series of facts stated rather than a story telling. The occasional dialogue feels forced and placed to remind you this is a work of fiction rather than a true crime non fiction work. I hope with revision, this story can really find its place. As it is now, it is trying to straddle the line between fiction and non fiction, attempting to blend the two, and it is not working.

I grew up a true crime girlie like watching Americas Most Wanted at the age of 5, and listening to unsolved murder podcast. My biggest critique of this book was that it read very informative almost lecture like at points because the author was trying to get the history and the facts into the story which I get but it also kind of took me out of the fiction side of it (Also unpopular opinion but I’m not sure Lizzie did it which may have swayed my rating) i originally rated it 2 stars because I was being biased over that but looking back at it as a work of fiction instead of nonfiction I think 3 stars is a fairer rating.

This book for me was great re-imagining of the tale of Lizzie Borden by taking the historical facts and adding a very plausible back story. I enjoyed the how the author used the woman's right movement and the lack of autonomy for unmarried women as both Lizzie's motivation and her defense strategy. On one hand, is she a cold-blooded killer or an advocate for herself, albeit amidst blood and violence. I previously only knew the bare bones of her story so I enjoyed learning more about the whole case including her sister and the trial and what happened after she was exonerated.
I have to say I ended up rooting for Lizzie by the end and I did look up the case after I finished the book. I like how the author used just enough reality in crafting this clever adaptation of the Lizzie Bordon story.

Lizzie, by Diane Fanning, offers an interesting perspective on Lizzie Borden's story. This presentation of details is well-researched and presented in an interesting and informative way. Though your theory on who committed the murders is probably not going to be changed by Fanning, there is still that shadow of a doubt that does not allow a guilty sentence. I appreciate NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the ARC ebook I read and reviewed. All opinions are my own.

The novel is another historical fiction view of the story of Lizzie Borden, the murder of her parents, the trial, and aftermath. Parts of the retelling make it sound like Lizzie was a victim, while others made it seem like she was a crafty killer who got away with the brutal murders of her father and stepmother. She was also determined to not need a man or be placed under his thumb, while understanding her sister needed to find love.

I did enjoy this version of her story, up to and during the trial. Her life after the trial seemed rushed and just an add on. It was interesting, and at parts I felt for her and her sister being made to feel like they lived in a fishbowl with others wanting to look.

I know I have some students who will be interested in reading. I recommend the book to those interested in true crime, Lizzie's story, and/or historic fiction, or women's fiction.

I was given the opportunity to read this novel by NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

What a fantastic book! The first one I have read by this author but definitely can't wait to read more! The characters stay with you long after you finish the book. Highly recommend!

Historical fiction about the Lizzie Borden case/scandal. It was ok. Thanks to Level Best Books and NetGalley for this advanced copy.

‘Lizzie’ - Diane Fanning

4 stars

“Lizzie Borden took an ax and gave her mother forty whacks. When she saw what she had done she gave her father forty-one.”

I grew up hearing this rhyme. I’ve been fascinated ever since. I’ve read several books and watched movies spinning the gruesome tale of the brutal ax murders that took the lives of Lizzie Borden’s father, Andrew Borden, and step-mother, Abby. I was half expecting yet another version of the same books and movies that I’ve seen. I was so very wrong. ‘Lizzie’ by Diane Fanning is a fresh take on this subject.

Diane Fanning’s masterful account includes a new theory as to how Andrew Borden’s coat was found folded/rolled up behind his head as he was said to be fastidious and wouldn’t have done so. This book includes an intriguing possibility of how and why.

This telling also delves deeper into the aftermath of Lizzie’s life following the trial. Ms. Fanning seems to have researched more thoroughly the events surrounding and following the murders.

Thank you NetGalley and Level Best Books - Historia for the ARC I received. This is my unbiased, honest and voluntary review.