This book investigates the complex and often dangerous relationship between rape and murder, exploring how these acts are linked in narrative and meaning. The author, Jane Monckton Smith, draws upon police investigations, press reporting, and entertainment media, alongside historical and modern case studies of sexualized murder. The central argument posits that a significant linkage has evolved, allowing murder of women to be characterized as rape and redefining women's fears as solely sexual vulnerability. This connection has profound implications for how violence against women is investigated and how societal fears are constructed.

The book critically examines the societal and narrative constructions that link rape and murder, arguing that this dangerous association has significant repercussions. By analyzing various forms of storytelling—from police reports to media and entertainment—it challenges conventional understandings of violence against women and the fears associated with them. The work suggests that characterizing murder as rape and framing women's fears as purely sexual vulnerability has profound implications for both criminal investigation and broader societal perceptions. This perspective offers a critical lens through which to understand and address gendered violence.