The Interpretation of Murder

The Interpretation of Murder – Jed Rubenfeld

In 1909, Sigmund Freud arrives in New York for his only visit to the United States, accompanied by his protégé Carl Jung, to deliver a series of lectures that will introduce psychoanalysis to America. But his arrival coincides with a shocking crime. A beautiful young heiress is found murdered in her luxury apartment, and soon afterward a second young woman, Nora Acton, is attacked but survives, left unable to speak or remember what happened.

The Interpretation of Murder, the debut novel by Jed Rubenfeld, a professor at Yale Law School, follows Dr. Stratham Younger, a young American physician and admirer of Freud, who is asked to treat Nora using the new methods of psychoanalysis. With guidance from Freud himself, Younger tries to help her recover her memories and identify her attacker. Working alongside Detective Jimmy Littlemore, a determined police officer, he becomes caught up in an investigation that leads through the high society, construction sites and seedy underworld of early twentieth-century Manhattan.

As the case unfolds, the novel weaves in real historical figures and events, including tensions between Freud and Jung and opposition to Freud’s ideas among American physicians, and offers a vivid portrait of New York during a period of rapid growth and change.

Combining historical fiction, psychological thriller and murder mystery, the novel explores themes of desire, memory, repression and the workings of the mind.

Clever and atmospheric, The Interpretation of Murder is a compelling read for fans of historical mysteries and literary thrillers. It contains violence and mature themes, and is intended for adult readers.