In 1911, two sisters traveled to Seattle to meet a "doctor" named Linda Hazzard. The sisters didn’t seem very sick, but when they arrived, Dr. Hazzard told them they didn’t have a moment to lose – they needed to begin her treatment right away.

A few months later, one of the sisters wrote a letter to her old governess. “I am wonderfully better in fact,” she said, “getting stronger by leaps.” But her handwriting was messier than usual, and her sentences ran together and overlapped.

You can find Gregg Olsen’s book, Starvation Heights, here.

Say hello on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Sign up for our occasional newsletter, The Accomplice. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts: iTunes.com/CriminalShow.

Listen back through our archives at youtube.com/criminalpodcast.

We also make This is Love and Phoebe Reads a Mystery.

Artwork by Julienne Alexander. Check out our online shop.

Episode transcripts are posted on our website.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Internet Anywhere Debriefing

Escape the Technocracy

Course modules overview and structure

The AI-powered Podcast Player