Telling the story of these five women is a very noble undertaking. The book is packed full of details about what life was like during the Victorian Era, and the storyline is very information-driven. I am so thankful I was fortunate not to have lived during such a bleak period. Women were subjected to insane hardships if they didn’t follow the marriage-to-baby life path. In comparison, men can literally get away with abuse and murder while their character somehow remains intact. The most depressing connection the author made is that thousands of cases of violence against women continue to happen today, mentioning Rapist Brock Turner as a prime example. While this book is very well-researched and written, I am not a history buff. I almost DNF this book several times because the content is a little dry, but that is only my personal reading preference. So please take my rating with a grain of salt.