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Little Deaths

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Little Deaths

By: Emma Flint
Narrated by: Graham Halstead, Lauren Fortgang
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About this listen

Heart-poundingly suspenseful, Little Deaths, inspired by a true story, is a gripping novel about love, morality and obsession.

It's the summer of 1965, and the streets of Queens, New York shimmer in a heatwave. One July morning, Ruth Malone wakes to find a bedroom window wide open and her two young children missing. After a desperate search, the police make a horrifying discovery.

Noting Ruth's perfectly made-up face and provocative clothing, the empty liquor bottles and love letters that litter her apartment, the detectives leap to convenient conclusions, fuelled by neighbourhood gossip and speculation.

Sent to cover the case on his first major assignment, tabloid reporter Pete Wonicke at first can't help but do the same. But the longer he spends watching Ruth, the more he learns about the darker workings of the police and the press. Soon, Pete begins to doubt everything he thought he knew.

Ruth Malone is enthralling, challenging and secretive – is she really capable of murder?

'A lightning fast, heart-pounding, psychologically resonant crime novel that effortlessly transcends genre.' – Jeffery Deaver, author of the Lincoln Rhyme series

 Crime Crime Thrillers Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Mystery Psychological Suspense Thriller Thriller & Suspense Exciting Heartfelt

Critic reviews

A phenomenal achievement. Little Deaths is one of those so-very-rare accomplishments: a lightning fast, heart-pounding, psychologically resonant crime novel that effortlessly transcends genre. If you believed that literary fiction can't be a one-sitting read, think again (Jeffery Deaver)
Utterly atmospheric and with style to burn, Emma Flint's Little Deaths is a novel that troubles and transfixes from its simmering first pages all the way to its searing final words (Megan Abbott)
Wrenching and real and deeply moving. I fell fast and hard under the spell of this lush, moody, film noir of a novel (Chris Bohjalian)
A stunning feat . . . Ruth Malone's descent into hell is a riveting tale of bad luck, heartbreak and prejudice, written with the pace of a thriller and the rich detail of a historical novel (Jane Casey)
A gripping read that is at the same time deeply real. A beautifully written and realized debut. I absolutely loved it.
All stars
Most relevant
Even though I had to have a day off from listening to it, I got so entwined that I got emotional about the unfairness. It was still a brilliant book, so we'll written.
I think knowing it was based on a true story and only in the decade before I was born made my hackles rise. You'd think that sexism was more diluted, but this is another example of it not being.
I read a review online that I didn't agree with. Without any spoilers, and if you listen to the book, take her mothers personality into account when you view how she acts. I think it explains a lot.
Lastly the narration was great.

It pulls on your emotions

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This was a really great listen that kept me gripped all the way to the end! The contrast between Ruth being heartbroken for her children's deaths set against the prejudice and misogynist opinions of the police force is done really well and makes you realise the struggle women had (and often still do) back in the 60's for being independent, wearing certain outfits or having relationships with men out of wedlock.

We are told right at the beginning that Ruth went to prison for deaths of her children and therefore the books focus is about how the police came to convict her. I think the real questions this book makes you ask if what was Ruth really on trial for in the end? The murder of her children or her behaviour as a woman deemed inappropriate by a world run by men.

It was such a fascinating listen and the dual narration of the book between Ruth and the Journalist covering the story worked perfectly. I would highly recommend!

A gripping listen from start to finish!

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One of the best I've listened to. The story was gripping and although I guessed who the guilty party really was it in no way detracted from the enjoyment. It my first experience with this author but I look forward to reading or listening to more of her work. Highly recommended!

An excellent listen

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What a stunning book, the authors descriptive powers make the character's come alive and keep you in their presence until the last chapter.

Excellent thanks

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Any additional comments?

This story is based on real events in 1960s New York and concerns the disappearance of two young children from their mother Ruth's apartment in Queens. They are later found dead and Ruth is charged, after a blundering, masochistic investigation by local police, with their murder.

Ruth protests her innocence but her subsequent behaviour is interpreted by the police, her local community and the wider world as evidence of her guilt. No-one seems to consider that her behaviour might be her way of handling her grief. A local reporter is first persuaded to report the case in a sensationalist way but as he begins to observe Ruth and question her friends and neighbours, he begins to fall under her spell. He is gradually persuaded of her innocence and sets out to help prove it, even at the expense of his dream job.

The problem Ruth faces is that she is an intelligent, frustrated woman who is trapped in a life of domesticity and motherhood. She loves glamorous clothes, make-up and looking 'just right' but from the moment she moved into her neighbourhood her neighbours, young and old, have formed negative opinions of her. She is separated from her loving but boring husband and although she loves her children she struggles to cope with everyday life and the role of single mother. Her use of alcohol as a prop, her frequent trips to bars and clubs and her many boyfriends and active sex life all provide talking points for the neighbours when the police are looking for witnesses and evidence against her.

Ruth is eventually charged with murder but the case is rooted in misogyny and failure to investigate other possible suspects in any meaningful way. Is she being charged with murder on the basis of her lifestyle and morality or on hard evidence?All well and good so far. But then comes the trial and we discover that the piece of evidence which the police claim to be a clincher is actually very suspect. Maybe things were different in 1960s America, but the witness (and the defence lawyer's response to the evidence) certainly would be laughed out of court today, I feel.

But my main criticism of this story is that there was a huge plot hole/contrivance towards the end of the trial which I am amazed the book's editor did not address. At a key point the story dissolved into farce for me because I could not believe that lawyers would let various claims go unchallenged.

Having said that, the final half hour of the story was brilliant; the denouement was a surprise I did not see coming. Deftly written, poignant, moving and sympathetically narrated.In many ways Emma Flint's novel is an accomplished and interesting read. The quality of the writing was great and the story was compelling. I could see it all going on in my head and could happily watch it on TV or in the cinema ( with plot revisions.)

A Glamorous Suburban Housewife v The Legal System

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