Well, I couldn't be more thrilled. Mum sent me this list of the Top 10 best-sellers from The Age this morning - and look at No. 3. It's Last Woman Hanged. Now, I realise it's the Military and History bestsellers - and my friend Peter FitzSimons is kicking my butt. If it was the *actual* best-sellers lists, well ... there's a rumour going around the book-selling world that Pete Evans sold 8000 copies of his Paleo diet book in the first three days! If true, he's on track to hav

Travelling in South Australia this week, it seems that all the state is abuzz with the death of a man called Kenneth Perry. Who was he? He was the last surviving husband of Emily Perry, known as The Black Widow. The case truly is bizarre. Emily was first charged in 1981 with the attempted murder of Kenneth, who was her third husband. He had become violently ill for no apparent reason. He could not stop vomiting and had trouble walking. Doctors found arsenic in his system, and

How much do you know about your ancestors? Would you be surprised - or thrilled! - to find a secret in your family tree? As regular readers will know, the process of locating Louisa's descendants was not easy - but it has been an incredibly rewarding experience. My fear, from the outset, was: how much did they know? What did they believe, about Louisa? What would they say when they found out they were descended from the last woman hanged at Darlinghurst Gaol? This wasn't like

What is Last Woman Hanged about? On one level, it's a story about a woman on trial for murder. It's about marriage, betrayal, justice, poverty, and arsenic. It's a true crime story, set in the late 19th century. That's on one level - but it's also about something much deeper, and it's the deeper issues that I talked about on Breakfast with Fran Kelly on Radio National today. It's about the fierce campaign fought by women in the 19th century to get the vote. It's about the bat

Warm thanks to the generous Robin Amadio of The Wentworth Courier for attending the lunch for 40 women at Chiswick, to celebrate the publication of Last Woman Hanged. Whether Louisa Collins was guilty or not, hanging is barbaric, and to hang a woman when no woman was even allowed to vote on capital punishment is a travesty of justice. Mia Freedman was MC, and Leigh Sales gave the speech. The theme naturally, was how far we've come. As for Matt Moran - and what he's doing at a

A thoughtful piece from Fairfax's Clementine Ford with a focus on the women who tried to save Louisa's life. I must admit, my favourite part of the research process was discovering their names. Women like Elizabeth Parsons, a cheerful and talented watercolourist from Melbourne, who went around to all her neighbours in St Kilda, trying to drum up signatures for a Women's Petition to prevent Louisa from being sent to the gallows. Women like Caroline Boyce, who gathered up signa

The formal launch of Last Woman Hanged was held in a lovely, sandstone-walled room at the Gallipoli Club in Sydney's CBD last night, Monday 27 October 2014. Our host was The Sydney Institute. We had a full house, and sold every book. Louisa's story has captured the imagination of so many people. My own family was there, as were at least 11 direct descendants of the last woman hanged, Louisa Collins. Also present: the gorgeous Rebecca Pettit and her family. Rebecca has been r

With thanks to the fine writer, Jacqueline Maley, for this article on Louisa Collins in Good Weekend magazine in The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age today ... Jacqueline's interest in Louisa's story was heartening, and her compassion toward the plight of women in the 19th century shines through her piece. She also liked my Key Lime Pie - made that morning, along with a fresh batch of scones, all courtesy of the triple-tested recipes in the Women's Weekly - which warms my ol