What do you think?
Rate this book
Freud #1
The Interpretation of Murder by Jed Rubenfeld (15-Jan-2007) Paperback
FAST SHIPPING
Paperback
First published August 28, 2006
427 people are currently reading
7649 people want to read
About the author
Jed Rubenfeld
11 books207 followersJed Rubenfeld a summa cum laude graduate of Princeton University and magna cum laude graduate of Harvard Law School is the author of the hystorical and psychoanalytical novel Intepretation of Murder.
His experience in both Shakespearean Plays and his thesis on Sigmond Frued helped him to make an anlytical yet fictional work; Intepretation of Murder.
A master in the field of Law, he has proved himself to be also a master in fiction and thus making a mark in the history of literature through his psychoanalytical novel Intepretation of Murder.
His experience in both Shakespearean Plays and his thesis on Sigmond Frued helped him to make an anlytical yet fictional work; Intepretation of Murder.
A master in the field of Law, he has proved himself to be also a master in fiction and thus making a mark in the history of literature through his psychoanalytical novel Intepretation of Murder.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,492 reviews
July 14, 2019
5 "Lions and Tigers and Freud, Oh My!!
Twists and turns along with Carl Jung -why oh why!!
A vixen, an ingénue, some psychiatrists and a sexy detective too!!
Complex, delicious, fun and macabre- you won't go wrong if you give this a try" STARS !!
6th Favorite Read of 2015
This is just what the doctor ordered as a salve to my recent brain numbing with young adult books.
I have not enjoyed a historic literary thriller like this in many years. The last book that I enjoyed this much in this genre was "The Alienist" by Caleb Carr that I read in the late nineties.
This book had it all. A twisting and clever plot, historical interest, a primer on psychoanalysis and the Oedipus complex, fascinating characters and it was a thrilling ride from beginning to end.
I studied psychoanalytic theory in depth in University and this reignited my passion for Freud and especially Jung. This author knows his material inside and out and has done meticulous research to combine history with fiction.
I will not give away any more detail as I would love for you to take a ride into your subconscious by reading this most extraordinary book.
I will leave you with a quote by Freud:
"Illusions commend themselves to us because they save us from pain and allow us to enjoy pleasure instead. We must therefore accept it without complaint when they sometimes collide with a bit of reality against which they are dashed to pieces"
No I will leave you with a quote by Jaidee:
"I am completely satisfied" and no that was not a Freudian slip of the tongue - or was it?
Twists and turns along with Carl Jung -why oh why!!
A vixen, an ingénue, some psychiatrists and a sexy detective too!!
Complex, delicious, fun and macabre- you won't go wrong if you give this a try" STARS !!
6th Favorite Read of 2015
This is just what the doctor ordered as a salve to my recent brain numbing with young adult books.
I have not enjoyed a historic literary thriller like this in many years. The last book that I enjoyed this much in this genre was "The Alienist" by Caleb Carr that I read in the late nineties.
This book had it all. A twisting and clever plot, historical interest, a primer on psychoanalysis and the Oedipus complex, fascinating characters and it was a thrilling ride from beginning to end.
I studied psychoanalytic theory in depth in University and this reignited my passion for Freud and especially Jung. This author knows his material inside and out and has done meticulous research to combine history with fiction.
I will not give away any more detail as I would love for you to take a ride into your subconscious by reading this most extraordinary book.
I will leave you with a quote by Freud:
"Illusions commend themselves to us because they save us from pain and allow us to enjoy pleasure instead. We must therefore accept it without complaint when they sometimes collide with a bit of reality against which they are dashed to pieces"
No I will leave you with a quote by Jaidee:
"I am completely satisfied" and no that was not a Freudian slip of the tongue - or was it?
February 10, 2019
Psychoanalysis
The Interpretation of Murder is an intelligent and considered crime thriller, probably trying to create the first instance of 'serial killer profiling' before the science was developed. The murder of a young woman is followed by a similar attempt using the same modus operandi, however, this lady (Miss Acton) survives but it leaves her with amnesia. Detective Littlemore needs to find out what she knows before the killer strikes again or comes back to finish the job. Littlemore works with her doctor, Dr Younger, to assist in the case. Dr Younger is acquainted with Sigmund Freud and quite fortuitously involves him to help in the case. This creates an interesting and intriguing perspective and introduces a new dynamic to the typical murder mystery. I felt quite drawn to the idea that Freud could have assisted in a murder investigation. I can’t attest to the accuracy of the science of psychoanalysis but from a plot perspective, I felt it was weaved in quite well and wasn't heavily applied. I quite like the notion that Freud when visiting New York in 1909, assisted a murder investigation using his newly famed techniques.
There is also a great attempt to recreate the atmosphere and landscape of New York City at the turn of the last century and perhaps this was overemphasised, almost to the point that the author had invested a lot of time researching that period, and wasn’t going to be short-changed.
The narrative has a more sedate pace than most murder mysteries but I think that’s the pace of a deep-thinking and analysing Freud. Freud's contribution provides some benefit in solving the crime and finding the killer.
This wasn’t the best murder mystery but still provided an entertaining read. I would recommend the book.
The Interpretation of Murder is an intelligent and considered crime thriller, probably trying to create the first instance of 'serial killer profiling' before the science was developed. The murder of a young woman is followed by a similar attempt using the same modus operandi, however, this lady (Miss Acton) survives but it leaves her with amnesia. Detective Littlemore needs to find out what she knows before the killer strikes again or comes back to finish the job. Littlemore works with her doctor, Dr Younger, to assist in the case. Dr Younger is acquainted with Sigmund Freud and quite fortuitously involves him to help in the case. This creates an interesting and intriguing perspective and introduces a new dynamic to the typical murder mystery. I felt quite drawn to the idea that Freud could have assisted in a murder investigation. I can’t attest to the accuracy of the science of psychoanalysis but from a plot perspective, I felt it was weaved in quite well and wasn't heavily applied. I quite like the notion that Freud when visiting New York in 1909, assisted a murder investigation using his newly famed techniques.
There is also a great attempt to recreate the atmosphere and landscape of New York City at the turn of the last century and perhaps this was overemphasised, almost to the point that the author had invested a lot of time researching that period, and wasn’t going to be short-changed.
The narrative has a more sedate pace than most murder mysteries but I think that’s the pace of a deep-thinking and analysing Freud. Freud's contribution provides some benefit in solving the crime and finding the killer.
This wasn’t the best murder mystery but still provided an entertaining read. I would recommend the book.
June 18, 2020
i'm pretty neutral about this book. it was a fine sortof historical mystery with all the requisite elements like red herrings and dubious intentions and misread signals and girls tied up and whipped, but...eh. and i'm torn, because it is a perennial table book, but i think i might have to regulate its inclusion from now on, because in my opinion, it is all right but no great shakes. maybe people who are really into freud would like it more than i. this is me being too early for class and writing in the computer lab...maybe i will let my impressions ferment and write a more full-bodied review this evening. now i must learn!
nope - nothing fruitful came from the fermenting. and i didn't learn anything except that this teacher presupposes a certain computer-vocabulary which i lack, and i am skeered that i will not be the best student in this class. and now i am ill and have a fever and i can only assume i caught swine flu from my computer class. rrrr
come to my blog!
nope - nothing fruitful came from the fermenting. and i didn't learn anything except that this teacher presupposes a certain computer-vocabulary which i lack, and i am skeered that i will not be the best student in this class. and now i am ill and have a fever and i can only assume i caught swine flu from my computer class. rrrr
come to my blog!
January 3, 2012
I did not just like this book, I LOVED it. And on so many levels. I found it clever, informative, well written and even humorous at times. The characters were interesting and I was kept guessing even when I pretty much decided I knew what was going on. This was really a page turner, especially when they were down in the caisson. I could so visualize that. This is my new "You gotta read this book" recommendation. The Freud, Jung and Shakespeare inclusions was an added bonus. Loved the early 1900 terminology and if I were an underliner and highliter of books, the book would all be marked up. Brilliant.
November 18, 2019
When I sit down to what I hope will be a great meal, I look forward to the side dishes, but it's the main course that is central. Don't get me wrong, I love potatoes, but give me the steak! Interpretation of Murder is a side dish and not a potato side dish, more like peas or carrots or something.
Reading the author's notes at the end of the book gave me a better appreciation of the novel. I respect that it was well-researched, but to borrow from the same analogy, I like a little history with my story, not the other way around. This book was sort of textbookish, though not quite as much as the "Devil in the White City", which was also not as good as I'd hoped.
The author (or publisher or someone) goes out of his or her way to compare this book to "The Alienist". It compares, but palely. I didn't really care that much about the characters. Most of the characters were based on real historical people, but the character I liked the most was the detective, who was completely fictional.
I'm torn on rating this one. It's either a two or a three star. It's interesting, but not too. It's well-researched and I like that, but I don't like it enough to make that criterion carry enough weight to help it sail to the top of my rating scale. It was an obvious copy of a great book. If it would have been a great copy then I would have given it a higher rating. I guess I'll have to go with a two star. It might have got a three and probably earned it except that I expected more out of this book. It disappointed me.
I would recommend this to you if you go to a beach house with your friends and you either forgot to bring something to read or finished what you brought and the library of the house you rented consists only of old Highlights Magazines and decorative books about ships.
Reading the author's notes at the end of the book gave me a better appreciation of the novel. I respect that it was well-researched, but to borrow from the same analogy, I like a little history with my story, not the other way around. This book was sort of textbookish, though not quite as much as the "Devil in the White City", which was also not as good as I'd hoped.
The author (or publisher or someone) goes out of his or her way to compare this book to "The Alienist". It compares, but palely. I didn't really care that much about the characters. Most of the characters were based on real historical people, but the character I liked the most was the detective, who was completely fictional.
I'm torn on rating this one. It's either a two or a three star. It's interesting, but not too. It's well-researched and I like that, but I don't like it enough to make that criterion carry enough weight to help it sail to the top of my rating scale. It was an obvious copy of a great book. If it would have been a great copy then I would have given it a higher rating. I guess I'll have to go with a two star. It might have got a three and probably earned it except that I expected more out of this book. It disappointed me.
I would recommend this to you if you go to a beach house with your friends and you either forgot to bring something to read or finished what you brought and the library of the house you rented consists only of old Highlights Magazines and decorative books about ships.
February 15, 2009
Sigmund Freud, along with his protege Carl Jung, arrives in New York for a series of lectures at Clark University in Massachusetts. A young woman is murdered, apparently by a serial killer. Another young woman, Nora Acton, is suffering from amnesia after another attack by the same criminal. Dr. Stratham Younger, a high society Freud acolyte, undertakes a psychoanalysis of Nora, in the hopes of unraveling the mystery.
I wanted to like The Interpretation of Murder. I really did. It had an intriguing premise: a murder mystery, set in 1909 New York City, with Freud, Jung, and Ferenczi as characters. (I realize this description is probably more or less congruent with some people's vision of Hell, but it's right up my alley.) But if there's anything worse than a mystery that isn't especially clever, it's a mystery that thinks it's clever when it isn't, and this mystery is nowhere near as clever as author Jed Rubenfeld thinks it is.
Rubenfeld has ambition, but unfortunately, doesn't have the writing chops to keep up with it. The reader forges ahead, puzzled, as Rubenfeld throws out approximately one zillion plot lines, none of which seems to have much to do with the other. Freud, Jung, and Ferenczi arrive and talk a lot about various psychoanalytic theories and analysands. Younger psychoanalyzes Nora (Hey! Doesn't Nora rhyme with "Dora"? My word, I think it does! What a coincidence) and talks a lot about his family life and his fascination with Hamlet, in more or less equal measure. We learn a lot about the history of turn of the century New York and the dynasties that ran it. Then a sinister series of anonymous letters threatens to ruin Freud's reputation. Harry Thaw, confined in an insane asylum in New Jersey after murdering architect Stanford White, receives mysterious visitors wearing signet rings. And so forth.
Unfortunately, Rubenfeld isn't a skillful enough novelist to craft these plot lines into something coherent, so the reader is given, well, a series of plot lines that eventually lurch to an end. (In fact, I'm still at a bit of a loss as to what Freud and Jung were doing there at all.) Add to this sorry mess a host of clunky dialog, points of view that shift clumsily (sometimes in the span of two paragraphs), and a lot of pedestrian writing, and you're left with nothing more than a run-of-the-mill mystery doing its best to masquerade as something far more sophisticated than it actually is.
I gave this novel two stars instead of one simply because the book's premise was enough to keep me turning the pages until the end (and also because Rubenfeld is obviously no fan of Jung, which makes him okay in my book).
I wanted to like The Interpretation of Murder. I really did. It had an intriguing premise: a murder mystery, set in 1909 New York City, with Freud, Jung, and Ferenczi as characters. (I realize this description is probably more or less congruent with some people's vision of Hell, but it's right up my alley.) But if there's anything worse than a mystery that isn't especially clever, it's a mystery that thinks it's clever when it isn't, and this mystery is nowhere near as clever as author Jed Rubenfeld thinks it is.
Rubenfeld has ambition, but unfortunately, doesn't have the writing chops to keep up with it. The reader forges ahead, puzzled, as Rubenfeld throws out approximately one zillion plot lines, none of which seems to have much to do with the other. Freud, Jung, and Ferenczi arrive and talk a lot about various psychoanalytic theories and analysands. Younger psychoanalyzes Nora (Hey! Doesn't Nora rhyme with "Dora"? My word, I think it does! What a coincidence) and talks a lot about his family life and his fascination with Hamlet, in more or less equal measure. We learn a lot about the history of turn of the century New York and the dynasties that ran it. Then a sinister series of anonymous letters threatens to ruin Freud's reputation. Harry Thaw, confined in an insane asylum in New Jersey after murdering architect Stanford White, receives mysterious visitors wearing signet rings. And so forth.
Unfortunately, Rubenfeld isn't a skillful enough novelist to craft these plot lines into something coherent, so the reader is given, well, a series of plot lines that eventually lurch to an end. (In fact, I'm still at a bit of a loss as to what Freud and Jung were doing there at all.) Add to this sorry mess a host of clunky dialog, points of view that shift clumsily (sometimes in the span of two paragraphs), and a lot of pedestrian writing, and you're left with nothing more than a run-of-the-mill mystery doing its best to masquerade as something far more sophisticated than it actually is.
I gave this novel two stars instead of one simply because the book's premise was enough to keep me turning the pages until the end (and also because Rubenfeld is obviously no fan of Jung, which makes him okay in my book).
August 7, 2020
3.5 stars despite the shape changing mystery and the evolutionary war of psychology.
The author has a lot going on in the book. We have New York of 1909 - an exquisite setting with blue flame lights, caissons, Madams and balls. We have the who's who of Psychology debating the innermost working theories on Psychoanalysis - Freud and Jung being the forerunners.
We have a murder mystery and an attempted murder - grounded in psychoanalysis and detective work keeps changing colors. On top of this we are trying to understand Hamlet's To be or not to be. Most of these are real events across time built into the narrative.
The author trundles on admirably making sure the book is intellectually stimulating for almost 75% of the book. Frued's Oedeipal complex as the foundation of psychoanalysis was something I knew, but in application, it was a different interpretation.
At around 80% I started feeling the book itself was a ink-blot test with changing forms but then it crash landed with a rather undoing explanation which was clever, but not logical.
When I read the author's notes on the historical liberties taken - I felt admiration for the author's efforts. There are too many real people/incidents in this work of fiction and bending of timelines was a necessary piece of genius.
It was an intellectual read slightly let down by the climax.
The author has a lot going on in the book. We have New York of 1909 - an exquisite setting with blue flame lights, caissons, Madams and balls. We have the who's who of Psychology debating the innermost working theories on Psychoanalysis - Freud and Jung being the forerunners.
We have a murder mystery and an attempted murder - grounded in psychoanalysis and detective work keeps changing colors. On top of this we are trying to understand Hamlet's To be or not to be. Most of these are real events across time built into the narrative.
The author trundles on admirably making sure the book is intellectually stimulating for almost 75% of the book. Frued's Oedeipal complex as the foundation of psychoanalysis was something I knew, but in application, it was a different interpretation.
At around 80% I started feeling the book itself was a ink-blot test with changing forms but then it crash landed with a rather undoing explanation which was clever, but not logical.
When I read the author's notes on the historical liberties taken - I felt admiration for the author's efforts. There are too many real people/incidents in this work of fiction and bending of timelines was a necessary piece of genius.
It was an intellectual read slightly let down by the climax.
September 12, 2020
Such a disappointment. I really thought I'd like this because initially it looked like it might be a blend of history, psychology, literature, & criminal investigation. Those things did provide some satisfaction, but at times it read as if the author had simply copy/pasted his college papers on Freud or Hamlet into the text, resulting in a dry, disjointed lack of continuity.
Mostly what ruined this story was the unnecessarily detailed descriptions of the sadistic sexual assaults, described in prolonged lip-smacking detail. Yuk.
Also repellent is the therapist's subsequent eroticization of his patient, the very young female victim who'd been assaulted & traumatized. In addition to portraying the disturbing lack of ethics on the part of the therapist (our hero?) as if this is no problem, clearly the author has no clue about the state of a survivor after a traumatic attack. Directly after a sadistic sexual assault, suddenly the victim is hot for her rescuer? Absurd.
This novel started with a great idea for an intricate historical/psychological mystery but was ruined by drying it out, dumbing it down, & injecting gratuitous torture porn.
Mostly what ruined this story was the unnecessarily detailed descriptions of the sadistic sexual assaults, described in prolonged lip-smacking detail. Yuk.
Also repellent is the therapist's subsequent eroticization of his patient, the very young female victim who'd been assaulted & traumatized. In addition to portraying the disturbing lack of ethics on the part of the therapist (our hero?) as if this is no problem, clearly the author has no clue about the state of a survivor after a traumatic attack. Directly after a sadistic sexual assault, suddenly the victim is hot for her rescuer? Absurd.
This novel started with a great idea for an intricate historical/psychological mystery but was ruined by drying it out, dumbing it down, & injecting gratuitous torture porn.
December 30, 2019
More reviews on https://mohammedsreview.wordpress.com
The story is set on 1909 Manhattan, New York when Sigmund Freud and his companions was visiting USA to attend a conference at the Clark University. When a dèbutante is found dead on her own penthouse and the very next day another young beautiful heiress Nora Acton is found strangled to a chandelier and viciously wounded and top of this she can't talk and enable to recall the recent events that happened to her. Dr. Stratham Younger who will now perform the psychoanalysis on miss Nora acton to find the puzzles that will make a full picture and help to identify the criminal.
Most of characters are from real world and most of the story is based on real facts. The story is mostly narrated from a first persons(Dr. Younger) point of view. Loved the way how the author have managed to link the neurological theories to solve a murder case from two perspectives. One from Dr. Statham Younger influenced by Sigmund Freud himself, and another from the detective Jimmy Littlemore's perspective.
Sigmund Freud undoubtedly one of the most influential man from the last century, and probably and controversial theory he had give is about Oedipal Complex in his famous book that published back in 1899 The Interpretation of dreams. Oedipal complex is the core of this story. Sigmund Freud along with Carl Jung , Sándor Ferenczi and Abraham Brill did travel to attend a conference at the Clark University which "The Triumvirate" (Consists of Charles Dana, Bernard Sachs and M. Allen Starr ) did try to prevent Sigmund Freud to attend the conference cause they had oppose idea about Oedipal Complex, though they failed in the process. Nora Acton who is one of the main characters of this novel is based on Sigmund Freud's Case book of Dora. Also George B. McClellan who served as New York city mayor at that time had a important role in this plot. There are other historical characters who had a significant role on the overall settings. It's evident that a lot had happened at 1909 at the New York city and everything and every signal people who were part of these event had some sort of their share on this whole plot. It's amazing how the author have managed to use all those historical characters and real events that happened to stage a fictional murder case. Incredibly complex plot, use of the real characters,use the neurological terms,liked the detailing of the story,sometimes it may seem to make the story becoming sluggish but the this book demands those detailing's. it's simply worth reading.
Rating : 3.9/5
The story is set on 1909 Manhattan, New York when Sigmund Freud and his companions was visiting USA to attend a conference at the Clark University. When a dèbutante is found dead on her own penthouse and the very next day another young beautiful heiress Nora Acton is found strangled to a chandelier and viciously wounded and top of this she can't talk and enable to recall the recent events that happened to her. Dr. Stratham Younger who will now perform the psychoanalysis on miss Nora acton to find the puzzles that will make a full picture and help to identify the criminal.
Most of characters are from real world and most of the story is based on real facts. The story is mostly narrated from a first persons(Dr. Younger) point of view. Loved the way how the author have managed to link the neurological theories to solve a murder case from two perspectives. One from Dr. Statham Younger influenced by Sigmund Freud himself, and another from the detective Jimmy Littlemore's perspective.
Sigmund Freud undoubtedly one of the most influential man from the last century, and probably and controversial theory he had give is about Oedipal Complex in his famous book that published back in 1899 The Interpretation of dreams. Oedipal complex is the core of this story. Sigmund Freud along with Carl Jung , Sándor Ferenczi and Abraham Brill did travel to attend a conference at the Clark University which "The Triumvirate" (Consists of Charles Dana, Bernard Sachs and M. Allen Starr ) did try to prevent Sigmund Freud to attend the conference cause they had oppose idea about Oedipal Complex, though they failed in the process. Nora Acton who is one of the main characters of this novel is based on Sigmund Freud's Case book of Dora. Also George B. McClellan who served as New York city mayor at that time had a important role in this plot. There are other historical characters who had a significant role on the overall settings. It's evident that a lot had happened at 1909 at the New York city and everything and every signal people who were part of these event had some sort of their share on this whole plot. It's amazing how the author have managed to use all those historical characters and real events that happened to stage a fictional murder case. Incredibly complex plot, use of the real characters,use the neurological terms,liked the detailing of the story,sometimes it may seem to make the story becoming sluggish but the this book demands those detailing's. it's simply worth reading.
Rating : 3.9/5
October 7, 2023
Very clever story. Romps along at a good pace. Having Freud and Jung around in 1909 US to help a detective and doctor (Freudian) solve a murder is intriguing. Another book finally read. Was given to me by a work colleague whilst on first assignment to Craiova Romania - 12 years ago😂Well I suppose life got in the way. Need to check out more by this author.
August 2, 2010
SWEET GREEN HELL
Her entire body glistened in the unbearable August heat. Her long legs were bare, as were her arms. Her elegant shoulders were nearly bare as well. The girl’s consciousness was fading. She tried to speak. There was a question she had to ask. It was there; it was gone. Then she had it again. ‘My name,’ she whispered. ‘What is my name?’
"... So, is Nora still a victim when she is empowered by a sympathetic listener?"
Feel like there's class conflict in the book: psychoanalysis versus interrogation, Jung versus Freud; Acton versus Banwell; Chong versus Leon; Malley and Betty, etc. Or interest and smart bout how has the author's mix of fact and fiction, remembering me with previous New York novels, such as The Alienist, Ragtime, Dreamland: A Novel, Paradise Alley, etc.
So, let's open the door...
Jed Rubenfeld takes his place in literary entertainment with grand eloquence in his first novel, The Interpretation of Murder, published by Henry Holt. This dandy psychological murder mystery is chockfull of history, biography, and geography. This would overwhelm a lesser writer, but Rubenfeld’s mastery of the subject matter, pacing, and sheer storytelling verve propels the reader into New York 1909, and puts the reader into the chase for a vicious, sadistic killer.
The novel begins as Dr. Sigmund Freud arrives in New York to deliver a series of lectures on the – at that point – very controversial subject. Dr. Stratham Younger, an American psychoanalyst, is appointed by the university to act as liaison officer for Dr. Freud. Several key members of Freud’s group of therapists are with him, including Carl Jung, the father of psychoanalysis’s most ambitious student, who ultimately tries to overtake his mentor’s glory.
Soon after Dr. Freud’s arrival, Dr. Younger is summoned to a case involving an attack on 17-year-old Nora Acton, daughter to two influential people in the city’s high society circles. The victim of a sadist, Nora was choked, whipped, and cut with a knife. The experience has left her with amnesia and bereft of voice. Dr. Freud offers the opinion that her case would be an excellent choice for Dr. Younger.
As he pursues therapy with the young woman, Dr. Younger finds himself entranced with Nora’s beauty and vulnerability. However, Nora’s returning memory proves false when she accuses the mayor’s friend, George Banwell with attacking her. Banwell is a married man and a rejected suitor of Nora’s who – she says – won’t take no for an answer. However, the night Nora was attacked, Banwell has the perfect alibi: he was with the mayor.
The mystery continues getting richer and deeper as Littlemore proceeds on a parallel course that turns up other clues. As it turns out, Nora wasn’t the only woman attacked, tied up, strangled, and whipped in such a manner. At least one other woman was, and she’s now dead. However, her body has gone missing from the morgue. Littlemore doesn’t know if the corpse was sold to the medical schools or if its disappearance is part of a cover-up.
Rubenfeld sets each scene with deft assurance. While reading the novel, I easily could imagine the city. I stood on the docks and awaited Dr. Freud’s ship, and could even smell the man’s harsh cigar smoke. As the story progressed from the luxury hotels and high society events to the narrow, twisting alleys, and to houses of prostitution and police holding cells, those scenes filled without thousands of extras came alive.
In the afterword, Rubenfeld acknowledges using the New York City geography as he needed to, but very few changes took place. The book is elegantly resourced and researched according to the time, place, and social mores. Rubenfeld’s depiction of Freud is based on a familiarity with the man through a thesis he wrote while at Princeton. Later, at Julliard, Rubenfeld studied Shakespeare, and Hamlet – which maintains a presence throughout the novel as well – becomes a topic that will interest many readers even if they’re not well-versed in the subject.
Taking his marks from the current successful thriller-writers, Rubenfeld gracefully intertwines Dr. Stratham Younger’s first-person narrative with third-person viewpoints of other characters (including the marvelous Detective Littlemore). The book would have been interesting through the eyes of Dr. Younger alone, but by building in the larger cast of characters, each with their own parts to play, the story takes on added dimensions that really incite the reader to turn pages.
An investment of time is required through the first quarter of the book. Rubenfeld sets a number of things into motion and takes time to make his New York expansive and deep, the characters rich and vibrant .(Detective Littlemore creeps in from nowhere, it seems, and very nearly succeeds in taking over the book at one point.) But after that initial investment, you need to block out the time to finish the novel because you’re in for a late night. Rubenfeld exercises a siren call, working dexterously with a small cast of suspects, pulling blind after double-blind, with enough twists and turns to satisfy a James Patterson or Jeffrey Deaver fan.
The Interpretation of Murder is truly a magnificent book - sprawling, epic, and jaw-dropping all at the same time. Anyone who can put it down 150 pages from the end has more willpower than I. After Littlemore figured out how Seamus Malley met his death, the plot simply explodes into action, and I had to struggle to keep up with all the twists and turns, which ultimately made perfect sense.
The mystery is satisfying, but so is the commentary on society at the time, the resistance of scientific thinking to psychoanalysis, and even the relationship between Freud and Jung. I can only hope Rubenfeld gets more opportunities to return to this exciting world and bring his readers more adventures of Dr. Younger and Lieutenant Littlemore.
Her entire body glistened in the unbearable August heat. Her long legs were bare, as were her arms. Her elegant shoulders were nearly bare as well. The girl’s consciousness was fading. She tried to speak. There was a question she had to ask. It was there; it was gone. Then she had it again. ‘My name,’ she whispered. ‘What is my name?’
"... So, is Nora still a victim when she is empowered by a sympathetic listener?"
Feel like there's class conflict in the book: psychoanalysis versus interrogation, Jung versus Freud; Acton versus Banwell; Chong versus Leon; Malley and Betty, etc. Or interest and smart bout how has the author's mix of fact and fiction, remembering me with previous New York novels, such as The Alienist, Ragtime, Dreamland: A Novel, Paradise Alley, etc.
So, let's open the door...
Jed Rubenfeld takes his place in literary entertainment with grand eloquence in his first novel, The Interpretation of Murder, published by Henry Holt. This dandy psychological murder mystery is chockfull of history, biography, and geography. This would overwhelm a lesser writer, but Rubenfeld’s mastery of the subject matter, pacing, and sheer storytelling verve propels the reader into New York 1909, and puts the reader into the chase for a vicious, sadistic killer.
The novel begins as Dr. Sigmund Freud arrives in New York to deliver a series of lectures on the – at that point – very controversial subject. Dr. Stratham Younger, an American psychoanalyst, is appointed by the university to act as liaison officer for Dr. Freud. Several key members of Freud’s group of therapists are with him, including Carl Jung, the father of psychoanalysis’s most ambitious student, who ultimately tries to overtake his mentor’s glory.
Soon after Dr. Freud’s arrival, Dr. Younger is summoned to a case involving an attack on 17-year-old Nora Acton, daughter to two influential people in the city’s high society circles. The victim of a sadist, Nora was choked, whipped, and cut with a knife. The experience has left her with amnesia and bereft of voice. Dr. Freud offers the opinion that her case would be an excellent choice for Dr. Younger.
As he pursues therapy with the young woman, Dr. Younger finds himself entranced with Nora’s beauty and vulnerability. However, Nora’s returning memory proves false when she accuses the mayor’s friend, George Banwell with attacking her. Banwell is a married man and a rejected suitor of Nora’s who – she says – won’t take no for an answer. However, the night Nora was attacked, Banwell has the perfect alibi: he was with the mayor.
The mystery continues getting richer and deeper as Littlemore proceeds on a parallel course that turns up other clues. As it turns out, Nora wasn’t the only woman attacked, tied up, strangled, and whipped in such a manner. At least one other woman was, and she’s now dead. However, her body has gone missing from the morgue. Littlemore doesn’t know if the corpse was sold to the medical schools or if its disappearance is part of a cover-up.
Rubenfeld sets each scene with deft assurance. While reading the novel, I easily could imagine the city. I stood on the docks and awaited Dr. Freud’s ship, and could even smell the man’s harsh cigar smoke. As the story progressed from the luxury hotels and high society events to the narrow, twisting alleys, and to houses of prostitution and police holding cells, those scenes filled without thousands of extras came alive.
In the afterword, Rubenfeld acknowledges using the New York City geography as he needed to, but very few changes took place. The book is elegantly resourced and researched according to the time, place, and social mores. Rubenfeld’s depiction of Freud is based on a familiarity with the man through a thesis he wrote while at Princeton. Later, at Julliard, Rubenfeld studied Shakespeare, and Hamlet – which maintains a presence throughout the novel as well – becomes a topic that will interest many readers even if they’re not well-versed in the subject.
Taking his marks from the current successful thriller-writers, Rubenfeld gracefully intertwines Dr. Stratham Younger’s first-person narrative with third-person viewpoints of other characters (including the marvelous Detective Littlemore). The book would have been interesting through the eyes of Dr. Younger alone, but by building in the larger cast of characters, each with their own parts to play, the story takes on added dimensions that really incite the reader to turn pages.
An investment of time is required through the first quarter of the book. Rubenfeld sets a number of things into motion and takes time to make his New York expansive and deep, the characters rich and vibrant .(Detective Littlemore creeps in from nowhere, it seems, and very nearly succeeds in taking over the book at one point.) But after that initial investment, you need to block out the time to finish the novel because you’re in for a late night. Rubenfeld exercises a siren call, working dexterously with a small cast of suspects, pulling blind after double-blind, with enough twists and turns to satisfy a James Patterson or Jeffrey Deaver fan.
The Interpretation of Murder is truly a magnificent book - sprawling, epic, and jaw-dropping all at the same time. Anyone who can put it down 150 pages from the end has more willpower than I. After Littlemore figured out how Seamus Malley met his death, the plot simply explodes into action, and I had to struggle to keep up with all the twists and turns, which ultimately made perfect sense.
The mystery is satisfying, but so is the commentary on society at the time, the resistance of scientific thinking to psychoanalysis, and even the relationship between Freud and Jung. I can only hope Rubenfeld gets more opportunities to return to this exciting world and bring his readers more adventures of Dr. Younger and Lieutenant Littlemore.
September 25, 2024
Kitap çok akıcı ama bende beklediğim etkiyi yaratmadı. Geçen gün bir arkadaşımın kitaplığında görmüştüm ve polisiye tarzını çok sevdiğim için okumaya karar vermiştim ama okumasam birşey kaybetmezdim.
March 25, 2023
The Interpretation of Murder is a clever historical murder mystery, published in 2007, and set in Manhattan in the year 1909. It has famous real life individuals like Freud and Jung becoming involved in a fictional crime. I got it from a book fair years ago, and it’s sat on my unread bookcase ever since, until I picked it somewhat at random to contribute to Book Club.
In 1909, Freud and three associates arrived in New York by ship for a lecture tour that was to introduce his theories - considered shocking at the time, to a willing new audience. He is met by a young psychiatrist eager to learn from him, Stratham Younger. Then a beautiful young woman is found dead in her luxury apartment, and another is attacked the next night - she survives but cannot speak, so the police ask Dr Younger to use the new science of psychoanalysis to determine what happened. The more he learns, the greater the danger, as powerful factions close ranks to protect their own interests.
This had a complicated and unpredictable plot with multiple mysteries and conspiracies entwining to deliver an ultimately satisfying story. It’s told partly from Younger’s first person perspective, the rest is in third person, and there are a lot of characters to keep track of - the afterword explains which are real, and which he made up, as well as which events, but don’t read this until the end because it contains spoilers. It incorporates extensive research about the architecture and evolution of the city, as well as throwing in treatises on psychoanalysis, theories about Shakespeare, corruption in city politics, the building of the Manhattan bridge, and the lives of the rich and famous of the time. This does slow the pace down, but unlike some reviewers I found it all quite interesting - especially the caisson, about which I had no idea.
While the blurb implies a major role for old Sigmund in solving the murder, his role is actually quite minor - there’s a likeable detective, Littlemore, who joins forces with Younger to work it all out. I was kept guessing about what was going on until each reveal - as usual in this kind of novel there’s a bit too much coincidence and suspension of disbelief required, but I enjoyed it. Others have criticised the misogyny, racism and homophobia displayed, but I’m pretty sure that was standard for the time - it’s okay to feel angered by it but we shouldn’t pretend it didn’t happen. Overall I’d recommend this if you have an interest in the history of psychiatry or of New York itself, and like the crime fiction genre.
In 1909, Freud and three associates arrived in New York by ship for a lecture tour that was to introduce his theories - considered shocking at the time, to a willing new audience. He is met by a young psychiatrist eager to learn from him, Stratham Younger. Then a beautiful young woman is found dead in her luxury apartment, and another is attacked the next night - she survives but cannot speak, so the police ask Dr Younger to use the new science of psychoanalysis to determine what happened. The more he learns, the greater the danger, as powerful factions close ranks to protect their own interests.
This had a complicated and unpredictable plot with multiple mysteries and conspiracies entwining to deliver an ultimately satisfying story. It’s told partly from Younger’s first person perspective, the rest is in third person, and there are a lot of characters to keep track of - the afterword explains which are real, and which he made up, as well as which events, but don’t read this until the end because it contains spoilers. It incorporates extensive research about the architecture and evolution of the city, as well as throwing in treatises on psychoanalysis, theories about Shakespeare, corruption in city politics, the building of the Manhattan bridge, and the lives of the rich and famous of the time. This does slow the pace down, but unlike some reviewers I found it all quite interesting - especially the caisson, about which I had no idea.
While the blurb implies a major role for old Sigmund in solving the murder, his role is actually quite minor - there’s a likeable detective, Littlemore, who joins forces with Younger to work it all out. I was kept guessing about what was going on until each reveal - as usual in this kind of novel there’s a bit too much coincidence and suspension of disbelief required, but I enjoyed it. Others have criticised the misogyny, racism and homophobia displayed, but I’m pretty sure that was standard for the time - it’s okay to feel angered by it but we shouldn’t pretend it didn’t happen. Overall I’d recommend this if you have an interest in the history of psychiatry or of New York itself, and like the crime fiction genre.
August 27, 2022
I read this sometime in 2011/12. It did start great but got too contrived, and the ending wasn't as interesting. But I do remember the book vaguely, so that's 3 stars.
April 27, 2020
Kitabı psikoloji açısından akademik bir eser beklentisiyle okursanız hayal kırıklığına uğrarsınız ama kurgu açısından çok başarılı bulduğum, psikoloji; özellikle psikanalizle ilgili bilgilerle iyi süslenmiş, dönemin yapısını, yaşam şeklini çok güzel betimlediği için film izler gibi okumayı sağlayan iyi bir kitaptı. Bazı noktalarda kopukluklar, anlatımda bir karmaşa (çeviriden kaynaklı da olabilir) vardı ama içine daldıkça bunları tolare edebildim. Psikolojik kurgular sevenler için bulmaca tadında ve zengin bir roman olduğunu düşünüyorum.
July 4, 2023
I read this book in translation under its Polish title “Feud’s secret”, which in turn probably helps to solve the secret of my interest in this book … But I wasn’t disappointed despite the fact that it actually is something of an interpretation of a murder… It is a very interesting concoction of psychoanalysis and the turn of the century New York high society mystery-murder-drama. This is a time when psychoanalysis is new, Freud’s theories are both discussed and questioned and New York’s is a gigantic building ground, with its sky scrapers raising towards the sky one after one. It is also a time of Freuds first and only visit to The United States to give lectures at one of the Universities. At the same time, someone starts attacking rich young beautiful women and psychoanalysis becomes an important tool to solve, or maybe complicate the reasons for the crime.
I’d admit to occasionally feeling that it is too much - too long and too winding. But now, that I‘ve finished, I suddenly feel quite abandoned. I miss the twists and turns, the conflicts of interests, the lies and conscious omissions…. So the only logical conclusion, is that it must have been a good book.
I’d admit to occasionally feeling that it is too much - too long and too winding. But now, that I‘ve finished, I suddenly feel quite abandoned. I miss the twists and turns, the conflicts of interests, the lies and conscious omissions…. So the only logical conclusion, is that it must have been a good book.
December 5, 2007
Is it possible to be totally gripped and bored rigid at the same time ? That’s how I was for most of this book, the writing style I found stilted at first but the murder plot kept me going. Ultimately this was a bit of a let down as the plot was so convoluted, all the loose ends were tied up ‘Columbo’ style at the end. The best character was detective Littlemore, he was the only one I had any feeling for, in fact Littlemore and Younger as a detective duo were great. This book is to Psychoanalysis and Freud ,what The Da Vinci Code is to Holy Grail devotees!
July 24, 2017
I devoured this book in the sense that it was easy to read and lots of plot twists to keep you interested. the factual parts added a touch of realism to a fictional story, even if some weren't accurate for the time ( a point the author acknowledges).
My rating is to reflect that this genre is not my favourite and this book would not change my opinion.
My rating is to reflect that this genre is not my favourite and this book would not change my opinion.
December 17, 2008
Very disappointing...last time i listen to blimin' Richard and Judy!!!
July 2, 2012
Quite a long period of time had passed since I read a whodunit. It was more of an impulse that made me pick up this book while walking the shelves at the library. I remember reading the blurb on the back page and thinking back to Caleb Carr's Alienist and then deciding on giving this one a try.
It is an extremely light and breezy read. I was juggling three books at the same time and could only get to this by late Friday and even then could finish it by a Sunday evening. Contrary to my own prejudice, even after having real life intellectual giants like Jung & Freud as part of the star cast, the mystery at the center of the plot was pretty straight and bland. One reason could be that even after branding this as a mystery starring Freud, the psychoanalyst and his even more famous protege continue to be more of an awe inspiring drapery hung in the background than being actively involved in the goings on. I guess there was only so much artistic freedom that the author wanted to use in his plot. I am not much familiar with either Jung or Freud ( their literature or their personalities) but here in this plot Jung is more of a petulant and sulking child almost all the time. He behaves like a patient with perennial constipation for someone with an extremely perceptive mind. I do not know how much of that is true ! As for the rest of the plot, I follow the golden rule for a whodunit : Don't ask, Don't tell ( unless you have read the book !)
I rate it two stars for this is not my kind of mystery. But this is a pretty good book to pass a dull afternoon if you are in the mood for a bit of deduction in the historic setting. The background is detailed out well and the image of NY in the 1900's is very much alive in these pages.
It is an extremely light and breezy read. I was juggling three books at the same time and could only get to this by late Friday and even then could finish it by a Sunday evening. Contrary to my own prejudice, even after having real life intellectual giants like Jung & Freud as part of the star cast, the mystery at the center of the plot was pretty straight and bland. One reason could be that even after branding this as a mystery starring Freud, the psychoanalyst and his even more famous protege continue to be more of an awe inspiring drapery hung in the background than being actively involved in the goings on. I guess there was only so much artistic freedom that the author wanted to use in his plot. I am not much familiar with either Jung or Freud ( their literature or their personalities) but here in this plot Jung is more of a petulant and sulking child almost all the time. He behaves like a patient with perennial constipation for someone with an extremely perceptive mind. I do not know how much of that is true ! As for the rest of the plot, I follow the golden rule for a whodunit : Don't ask, Don't tell ( unless you have read the book !)
I rate it two stars for this is not my kind of mystery. But this is a pretty good book to pass a dull afternoon if you are in the mood for a bit of deduction in the historic setting. The background is detailed out well and the image of NY in the 1900's is very much alive in these pages.
May 17, 2018
Freud arrives in America for a series of lectures just as a beautiful heiress is found murdered; the very next night another heiress is found bound and gagged and suffering from amnesia. It seems a perfect opportunity to try out some of the new psycho-analytic techniques, and Freud's disciple, Younger, is only too willing to step forward.
When is a murder mystery not a murder mystery? When it is an action novel that has been dunked in a large vat of philosophical musing. The last one hundred pages or so are hard to put down, and the revelation, the 'whodunit' if you will, after so many red herrings, is a gratifying surprise. The era is so well recalled here, the sexuality seems almost shocking. A little historical gem.
When is a murder mystery not a murder mystery? When it is an action novel that has been dunked in a large vat of philosophical musing. The last one hundred pages or so are hard to put down, and the revelation, the 'whodunit' if you will, after so many red herrings, is a gratifying surprise. The era is so well recalled here, the sexuality seems almost shocking. A little historical gem.
August 10, 2020
A very interesting book mixing up fact and fiction . I was much interested in psychology and psychiatry in my younger days and reading this took me back by a couple of decades. Came to meet Freud and Jung , and was thoroughly immersed in the mystery involving tortured women and villaneous men.
Would surely be pursuing the second in the series , some time soon.
Would surely be pursuing the second in the series , some time soon.
April 3, 2021
A very inventive and gripping psychological thriller, The Interpretation of Murder interweaves real-life events and characters with fictional ones to create an engrossing and entertaining historical mystery.
October 9, 2021
CW: Rape, sexual assault, casual racism/antisemitism
Read for the "Read the States" challenge for: New York
I am exhausted by the boy's clubs of literature. I really need to stop reading them because I'm almost always disappointed.
It doesn't help that I don't like Freud anyway. Why do I keep reading historical fiction about this man? (It's because he's Jewish and I want to support my fellow Jewish writers, but please, y'all, can you slow your roll?)
From the overly sexual and unnecessary comments about women's bodies - both living and corpses - to the "historically accurate" but still unwarranted casual racism bandied about my the majority of characters, I was not amused. There is also a difference between using antisemitism as a vital piece of the story to express the sociopolitical treatment of the Jews and having a really antisemitic character as a plot device. There were instances where the former could have been drawn out further into the story, but every time Jung opened his mouth, it always sounded like the latter. It was exhausting, really.
On a more positive note - it's quite clear how much thorough research Rubenfeld poured into the time period. Unfortunately, some of it came out phrased... oddly (Girls talking about lipstick in 1909? That's a bit early from what I know of cosmetics and la toilette of the time period.) while much of it was a somewhat exhaustive explanation of which buildings and bridges were built when and by whom and... It could have used some streamlining.
Read for the "Read the States" challenge for: New York
I am exhausted by the boy's clubs of literature. I really need to stop reading them because I'm almost always disappointed.
It doesn't help that I don't like Freud anyway. Why do I keep reading historical fiction about this man? (It's because he's Jewish and I want to support my fellow Jewish writers, but please, y'all, can you slow your roll?)
From the overly sexual and unnecessary comments about women's bodies - both living and corpses - to the "historically accurate" but still unwarranted casual racism bandied about my the majority of characters, I was not amused. There is also a difference between using antisemitism as a vital piece of the story to express the sociopolitical treatment of the Jews and having a really antisemitic character as a plot device. There were instances where the former could have been drawn out further into the story, but every time Jung opened his mouth, it always sounded like the latter. It was exhausting, really.
On a more positive note - it's quite clear how much thorough research Rubenfeld poured into the time period. Unfortunately, some of it came out phrased... oddly (Girls talking about lipstick in 1909? That's a bit early from what I know of cosmetics and la toilette of the time period.) while much of it was a somewhat exhaustive explanation of which buildings and bridges were built when and by whom and... It could have used some streamlining.
July 8, 2011
An absolutely phenomenal read.
August 5, 2016
One of the best books I have read for years, a real page turner that I couldn't put down!
December 6, 2017
Onvan : The Interpretation of Murder (Freud, #1) - Nevisande : Jed Rubenfeld - ISBN : 755331427 - ISBN13 : 9780755331420 - Dar 533 Safhe - Saal e Chap : 2006
February 7, 2023
I’m surprised the author acknowledges feedback on this book from his wife and two daughters when it is so filled with misogyny that I almost couldn’t finish it.
December 29, 2017
"Unhappiness is caused when we cannot let go of our memories."
A book based on Sigmund Freud, founder of pyschoanalysis? Who could expect me to resist buying and then reading it?
It lived up to my expectations. The characters were flawed but interesting and, later, loveable; the writing style was perfect for such a book; the solution to the mystery itself was one I never could have figured out on my own. Younger's analysis of Hamlet, too, was one I will probably keep in my mind for a while to come.
A book based on Sigmund Freud, founder of pyschoanalysis? Who could expect me to resist buying and then reading it?
It lived up to my expectations. The characters were flawed but interesting and, later, loveable; the writing style was perfect for such a book; the solution to the mystery itself was one I never could have figured out on my own. Younger's analysis of Hamlet, too, was one I will probably keep in my mind for a while to come.
June 30, 2025
I got interested in the book because recently in the book club we read "The Tobacconist" by Robert Seethaler. I had never before thought of Sigmund Freud as a person - I liked that. It is a good book. However, Rubenfeld makes him again a man of ideas who never walked or said anything surprising; he just there to justify Oedipus complex which is the novel's backbone.
The plot is maybe even interesting but the author has crammed all kind of things into it. I disliked the structure: it resembles a puzzle with a thousand of tiny pieces. While with a puzzle this is expected, I found it irritating that a scene was cut short as if by scissors. Adding a narrator was another mistake.
The plot is maybe even interesting but the author has crammed all kind of things into it. I disliked the structure: it resembles a puzzle with a thousand of tiny pieces. While with a puzzle this is expected, I found it irritating that a scene was cut short as if by scissors. Adding a narrator was another mistake.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,492 reviews