Review of The Wicked Wives

[Teresa Richardson 2]

[Following is a volunteer review of "The Wicked Wives" by Gus Pelagatti.]

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4 out of 5 stars

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The Wicked Wives is a story based on true events. A series of murders took place in Philadelphia in 1938; more surprising than the number of murders is the fact that they were related. All involved married women who found themselves involved with Giorgio DiSipio, all whose husbands met with untimely deaths. The story contains not only infidelity, but also insurance fraud. The deaths are not necessarily ones that draw attention from the police or even the medical examiners; many appear to have died of natural causes. Perhaps they did not draw attention because corruption seems to be running amock. That is until assistant D.A. Tom Rossi becomes involved. D.A. Rossi finds himself working to solve the murders and bring the perpetrators to justice, while also trying to maintain a personal life and keep his girlfriend, Hope Daniels, safe.

The story follows the lives of a number of women and their relationships. There were times I found it hard to keep everyone straight, sometimes needing to go back and reread sections. The details of the incidences, the plots behind them,and the thoughts behind them are intriguing. While reading it, you can almost imagine it being a movie. Knowing that the events actually happened, makes it hard to put down. To realize that seventeen women were charged in the deaths of their spouses, to learn of the deceptions involved, the corruption involved, the lengths in which people went to cover their tracks lead this reader to wonder if there have been more such cases in the history of our country. I found myself also wondering about D.A. Rossi not getting involved, how many more husbands may have been murdered?

I would rate this book a 4 out of 5. I did find it hard to put down as I wanted to see what happened next; but at times I had a hard time following the character paths and sometimes getting them confused. It was an interesting look into the minds behind the crimes; but of those directly involved, but also of those trying to solve them.

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The Wicked Wives
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