Set in 1897 New York City, the story follows Dr. Laszlo Kreizler and his team as they track a woman suspected of kidnapping the infant daughter of a Spanish diplomat. Moving through the slums of the Hudson River and the courtrooms of the city, the investigation centers on Libby Hatch, a suspect who defies the gender norms of the Victorian era. The narrative utilizes early forensic psychology and behavioral profiling to analyze how childhood trauma and social expectations shape a person capable of serial infanticide.
History enthusiasts and fans of criminal psychology read this book to see the origins of modern profiling applied to a period setting. The reader gains a visceral understanding of late nineteenth-century urban poverty, the limitations of the early American legal system, and the medical theories that preceded modern psychiatry. It provides a detailed look at how investigators used inductive reasoning and observation to solve crimes before the advent of digital technology or advanced DNA testing.
- Published
- 1997
- Language
- EN
