An interesting premise but left me disappointed.

This book just wasn’t what I thought it would be. It felt more like a scaffold for the author’s art, as opposed to an in-depth analysis and exploration of the history of murder ballads.

Aside from a couple of ballads that were better researched than the rest, most of the analyses were cursory descriptions of the chosen variants with a few opinions thrown in—every time the author brought up something interesting, it was immediately skimmed over. I also found that the lack of cohesion or of a clear theme made the whole book feel disjointed. I suppose this works for a coffee table book though—you can open it to any page and just start reading.

What I really felt was missing were the threads connecting all of these variants; they were mentioned vaguely and by name, but not in their historical or regional contexts, which made their inclusion feel almost meaningless. I wish the author had given us more information or omitted them entirely.

Despite my issues with it, I’m glad this book introduced me to something I knew nothing about. I found myself frequently looking up different variants and their associated histories/folklore to learn more about them, and enjoyed the reading experience overall.

Loved this book! I read mainly on my kindle so any books I have around my house are mostly for my own enjoyment/entertainment. I'd definitely get this one as a coffee/guest book because every story is so detailed but easy to read through. From the history and growth of each ballad to the noting notable recordings / who is credited with transcribing it. This author clearly loves getting into this topic and doing her research! It felt like I was reading messages from a friend who had gone down a rabbit hole and I really enjoyed the casual writing style.

Katy Horan's "Murder Ballads" is a beautiful and lovingly researched look into our age-old obsession with death as told through song. Murder Ballads- a subgenre of folk music that centers on ill-fated maidens, jeaous lovers, and violent ends- have been passed down through generations, adapting over time to suit location and circumstance. Horan traces these songs to their roots and unpacks the true stories that inspired them. I was happy to see that issues such as gender, race, and sexuality were not brushed over. The victims in these songs (and often their real-life counterparts) are treated with care and respect. The text is accompanied by Horan's haunting illustrations, which look straight out of a dark fairytale in the best way and truly bring the lyrics to life. This is a book I would be delighted to have on my shelf.

This is such a niche little book but it was so up my alley I can't express how excited I was to find it. The art is beautiful, the songs are interesting, and the historical exploration is so interesting.

Murder Ballads is a collection of twenty true crime ballads with illustrations to accompany each one.

Before each ballad includes a summary about the crime and what had happened.

The book itself isn’t too long, I read it in one sitting myself, and I really enjoyed it the entire time and would recommend it to anyone who also enjoys anything true crime related.

A beautifully illustrated, meticulously researched collection of folk songs.
Before reading this book I never realised that so many folk songs had a basis in well documented real life events.
The style of illustration is really evocative of each song and the book is so informative about the origin and evolution of each song.
Before starting the book I made a playlist of the songs included to listen to whilst reading.
Thank you NetGalley for the eArc

This is so fascinating. The author weaves real stories with folklore, art and music. I feel these stories on a deep level because they come from the darkest kinds of situations and emotions. i love the artwork too. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this.

This book was hauntingly beautiful. Actually! It's the most beautiful book I've ever seen/read.

The stories and insight behind the ballads are well laid out, well researched, and incredibly thought provoking. The words on the page are beautiful and it's obvious they were chosen with delicate craft, but it's the art, the illustrations that really take this book to another level. Katy is truly a gifted artist. Her illustrations made me feel more than the ballads themselves.

I loved it!

When I was in college, I had to take classes in things other than my major, so I took an English literature class in ballads. Ballads are the true folk tradition, passed down and changed, and forgotten about, or remembered forever. Some ballads have persisted into the modern world, which is pretty amazing.

This collection has some ballads that people have probably heard of, such as Frankie and Johnnie as well as Stagolee. Each ballad is given a backstory, followed by lyrics and drawing of the victim.

It is an odd sort of book, but if you like to find out where certain murder ballads came from, this is kind of a cool book.

This book will be published on the 29th of April 2025. Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

A beautiful collection of lyrics and folklore accompanied by the incredible artwork of Katie Horan! This was a book that I savored slowly! I’m excited to check out that recommended reading list at the back of the book!

I can't wait to see what the finished copy of this book will look like. The ebook is beautiful, it reminds me a bit of a coffee table book, lots of easy to digest information on a unique topic. In this case, lore around ballads about murdered people. I thought this was really fun and neat and this book had me looking up songs to try and listen to someone signing the pieces. The art after each song/representing each song is so unbelievably beautiful. I will probably buy this book when it comes out to put in my collection because it's so unique, easy to read and enjoyable.

An interesting and informative collection of Murder Ballads. These aren't retellings of the songs but instead more of a quick historical look at the origins of each song and how they moved across the world. It also explains the misogyny, racism and classism that was present in these ballads, that might go unnoticed to most people. What I found pretty interesting was learning that a lot of these ballads had been turned into songs by popular American singers, this made me curious and I decided to look up a few of the songs and surprisingly found them on Spotify.

The Art was interesting, it reminds me of this other artist I follow but these are more sinister, they aren't mind blowing but I like knowing that the Author also provided the art included.

I'd recommend this for someone who has an interest in history or wants to learn more about Murder Ballads. I will say some off the informations did start to feel a bit repetitive but I guess that should be expected when it was a dive into what makes these songs murder ballads and a lot of them had similar connections, and origins.

"Murder Ballads is a guide to the origins and cultural impact of murder ballads as a music genre, covering its roots in patriarchal violence and white supremacy, as well as its contemporary relationship to true crime."

This is a really interesting look at song lyrics and their history, folklore, and some really cool artwork. Each song is explained, put into historical context, and given new life to a modern reader. I also appreciated the collection of notable recordings of the ballads and the bibliography for further research, if you choose.

Definitely recommend this for fans of history, music, and true crime!

I received a free ebook copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.

A stunning compendium of Murder Ballads with cultural and historical context. Well written, beautifully illustrated, this should be required reading.

It's a book I am dearly looking forward to owning a hard copy of.

Gorgeous, this will stay with me for a long time.

This was a very quick read with beautiful artwork accompanying the macabre tales inside. Each murder ballad that was referenced began with a short description of the story behind it—I found it interesting how some of the ballads had concrete stories that could be traced to real life events while others are more of a mystery and compiled of bits and pieces of past lore. I had no idea how many murder ballads have been remade into modern songs over the years, with even Kurt Cobain being referenced. The author also brought up some ballads that highlighted POC and issues of racism in how ballads were passed down.

That being said, some of the information felt a little dry when they would get into the details of the ballads being remade by different artists and a lot of the information just seemed very surface level. I suppose this is a good intro into learning about the topic, and they certainly give a ton of resources if you are interested in learning more.

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC! I am leaving an honest review by choice.

Katy Horan's "Murder Ballads" masterfully weaves together musical history, true crime, and folklore into a captivating exploration of these haunting songs. Each of the twenty featured ballads comes alive through Horan's stunning folk horror-inspired illustrations, which perfectly complement the thorough research into their origins and evolution. The balance between academic insight and accessible storytelling makes this more than just another coffee table book – it's a thoughtful examination of how these dark tales have been preserved and transformed through generations.

What truly sets this collection apart is how Horan contextualizes these ballads within their broader cultural framework, acknowledging their complex history while celebrating their enduring impact on modern music. The included playlists and recording recommendations are a brilliant touch, inspiring readers to explore these songs beyond the page. While some might wish for even deeper dives into certain ballads, this beautifully curated collection serves as both an art book and a compelling historical document that will fascinate anyone interested in the darker side of musical tradition.

Thank you to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

1. That forward by Irish writer Sinéad Gleeson is *everything* !
2. I loved seeing a quote from Hurray for the Riff Raff’s “The Body Electric” on the first page <3

Clearly I did not read the synopsis of this closely, because I was pleasantly surprised by Murder Ballads being so much more than a thoroughly researched and BEAUTIFULLY illustrated non-fiction book about the musical storytelling tradition found across genres and cultures (although it is that also).

Murder Ballads is incredibly interesting and so much more than the “Gift Book” I imagined it might be (Read: a Gift Book is a sub-genre I made up that includes coffee table books and any book compelling enough in premise to warrant gifting to someone you know, like books about bartending and certain Boss Girl self-help novels). I think it masterfully achieves what it sets out to do, offering a new sense of agency amongst the misogyny-laden tropes and a “safe space in which to grieve for the women in the rivers.”

Thanks for the ARC <3

5/5

As an illustrator, history lover, and true crime fan, I love the concept of this book. As it turns out, murder ballads are hit or miss for me. I would love to see a book about a different topic written with the same care and style. I do appreciate all the research that must have gone into this!

My thanks to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for an advance copy of this illustrated guide to the history of songs about love and betrayal, hate and murder, and why these songs serve as warnings to us all, for the heart will almost always overwhelm the mind, leaving the soul to deal with the consequences.

My parents were big music lovers before I was born. My father was a little bit of a taper, recording shows that he would see with my Mom when they were courting, and later when they were married. Having a child meant they put away their childish things, and music was sadly one of these things. However they had a big collection of records, and lots of reel to reels that I was able to explore as I got older. This was later, as my first music was AM sounds, but as my taste evolved, and my brother began to like songs outside of the mainstream also we would listen to these old songs. Many were Irish and folk tunes, and a sadder lot of music one couldn't find. I don't mean the performances, these were songs about the dead. Dead fighting in wars, fighting for freedom, of dead by a lovers hand. I was enthralled, especially listening to these songs as my parents heard them live. So much sadness, so much evil. And yet full of beauty. I like story songs, and my goodness did these tell a story. A story that seems to keep touching ears and hearts even in some cases hundreds of years later. Murder Ballads: Illustrated Lyrics & Lore by Katy Horan is a history of select songs, complete with lyrics and illustrations by the author that try to track down the truth behind these songs that even now have the power to shock and awe listeners.

The book begins in one of the best places on Earth Brooklyn. An artist, Katy Horan is at a pub listening to a friend's band when Horan hears a song about two sisters, one of which killed the other in a fit of jealousy. Horan was an artist finding their way in art, and this song spoke to Horan, and began an interest in songs known as muder ballads. Popularized by many folk acts from Boiled in Lead, Steeleye Span, roots rockers like the Grateful Dead and goth gods like Nick Cave these are songs usually based on violent acts, acts that seemed beyond the usual muder. Most of these songs deal with women getting into trouble, as they would say, and murdered by the father of the trouble, who didn't want to marry. Or a woman who just had enough and shot a man to stop him from taking revenge on her. These songs are poetic in nature, sad, violent, and sometimes weird. Horan looks at many of the popular ballads, tracks down the history of the song, and the participants involved. Horan also includes lyrics, usually to the most popular version, as many ballads have been adapted and altered to fit moods or cultural times.

I was going to write this is a fun book, and for a certain segment this will be. I really enjoyed it. I love to read about how art is created, and how many of this songs had real counterparts in the world. These songs are sad in many places, but to read about the real victims, those who were murdered, and those who had to life with the legacy of the song they were the basis of give listeners even more of an emotional punch. Also the art that Horan has created is amazing. Many are as disturbing as the songs. A violent beauty in a way that explains why these songs are still so popular. Horan also adds a nice listing of different versions of the songs, so one can hear how these songs changed, or were adapted over the years.

This is a book that will appeal to many different readers. True crime fans will love the history, music fans will like the creation of the songs, and the playlists. Artists will enjoy the pictures inside, and maybe gain some inspiration for their own work. And all will enjoy all the work that Horan has done. I look forward to what Katy Horan has planned next.

This is genuinely so cool and would be the perfect addition to any home in Appalachia, or anyone into a darker side of history and music. Not only is it informative, but the illustrations are beautiful. I will likely be ordering a copy to have in my home. This was awesome.