A.R.R - The Wicked Wives by Gus Pelagatti

The Wicked Wives by Gus Pelagatti

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Time taken to read - 2 days

Blurb from Goodreads

"Wicked Wives" is based on the true story of the 1938 Philadelphia murder scandals in which seventeen wives were arrested for murdering their husbands. Mastermind conspirator Giorgio DiSipio, a stunning lothario and local tailor who preys upon disenchanted and unfaithful wives, convinces twelve of them to kill their spouses for insurance money. The murder conspiracy is very successful until one lone assistant D.A., Tom Rossi, uncovers the plot and brings the perpetrators to justice. "Wicked Wives" is a story made for Hollywood, combining murder, corruption, treachery, love, lust and phenomenal detail as it vividly captures Depression-era Philadelphia.

My review

What a tangle of deceit, sex, lies and of course murder. Wicked wives is about a group of women who kill their husbands for reasons ranging from murder, sex, love of another man or a combination of all. The man in the middle of it all is Giorgio DiSipio, catering to the neglected wives needs and getting them to do his bidding.

The book goes between the guilty parties movements before the murders and the time leading up to it and then where the investigation kicks off and all the key players involved in it. The chapters are fairly short so it is easy to dip in and out of the book or get through a fair chunk in one sitting.

The language is a lot more modern and crass than I would expect for that era but it only helps paint the crude picture of the depravity going on. Fairly easy to read and it keeps your interest going with a good twist at the end - I think this would make a great movie, 3/5 for me.

Thanks to the author for giving me the opportunity to try his work.

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