The Book of Cold Cases

In The Book of Cold Cases, St. James uses Beth’s story, ranging from 1960 to 2017, to illustrate societal perceptions of women in America in the past, and compare them to attitudes in the present. She explores the feminine ideal of the past, which portrayed women as kind, nurturing, emotional, and serving as support to the men in their lives. St. James understands that it might be difficult for a modern reader to fully understand exactly how restrictive and misogynistic these feminine ideals of American culture were. By taking the reader back in time, St. James manages to convey the difficulties Beth and other women faced socially, and even though Beth was in a position of relative privilege due to her wealth and beauty, those privileges came with their own disadvantages, such as a distinct lack of compassion for her personal tragedies. As Mariana says, “‘Are you bitter or are you sweet?” (162). St. James reinforces this idea with society’s treatment of Beth, who once she failed to fit the feminine ideal was deemed “bitter” and shunned.

Beth briefly and succinctly sums up the attitude of the police toward her during the Lady Killer investigation: “‘I had tits and an ass, so I wasn’t a real person'” (61).