Deadlier Than the Male

At least one of them is mad, they're all bad, and most of them are dangerous to know. They're a first 11 with a difference – 11 Australian women criminals whose names and reputations are synonymous with lawless, dangerous and often violent behaviour. Sadistic killers and a corpse mutilator; an armed robber and a matriarch; drug dealers and escape artists – all dressed in skirts and high heels.

Their exploits have become the stuff of legend over recent decades, often overshadowing the crimes of their less colourful male counterparts. A couple of them are irredeemably evil, others more misguided than malevolent. A number of them turned to crime because they loved the wrong men; others because they couldn't abide the boredom of a conventional, nine-to-five existence. They include a tragic figure who murdered all four of her children, a meat worker who turned her home into an abattoir, and a quiet librarian who pulled off Australia's only aircraft-assisted prison break-out.

Brought together for the first time between the covers of one book are unforgettable figures like The Lesbian Vampire Killer, The Boot Bitch, The Matriarch, and The Angel of Death...