Summerscale whicher

The authors have created a sort of anti-Book of Virtues in this encyclopedic compendium of the ways and means of power. Everyone wants power and everyone is in a constant duplicitous game to gain more power at the expense of others, according to Greene, a screenwriter and former editor at Esquire Elffers, a book packager, designed the volume, with its attractive marginalia.

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Cushing Strout, The Sewanee Review. Peter Cunningham, Irish Times. Library Journal. Britt Peterson, The American Scholar. Kirkus Review. To play, press and hold the enter key. To stop, release the enter key. Now a major TV drama. The Suspicions of Mr Whicher official site. He also erected high fences around his home and added No Trespassing signs. What soon became clear, however, was that the killer knew the layout and sleeping arrangements in the house. Little point erecting fences and warning notices when a murderer lurked within rather than without.

Summerscale is very good on the mores of the time. An Englishman's home was, indeed, very much his castle. The middle classes were in the ascendant. The railway had arrived at nearby Trowbridge just 12 years earlier, bringing jobs with it. Murders were supposed to happen on the desperate streets of London, not in the bedrooms of well-tended rural children. The local police were reluctant to disturb the Kents. Summerscale tells us that there was "some hesitation in intruding on the family privacy".

They were also resistant to interference from London. Jack Whicher was one of the eight original Scotland Yard detectives. Summerscale describes them as "all-seeing little gods". This was certainly the public's perception, though the apparent failure of the Road Hill House inquiry would lead to scepticism and a souring of relationships. Whicher was 45 and had a string of successes behind him.

The Metropolitan police detective branch had been in existence for 18 years, and Whicher, as a detective rather than one of the uniformed "peelers" , worked undercover. Two years before Road Hill House, he had apprehended a thief who had made off with a Leonardo da Vinci.

He had also aided the hunt for some revolutionaries who had attempted the assassination of Napoleon III in Paris. Dickens whose character of Bucket in Bleak House was broadly based on Whicher's friend and boss Charley Field knew Whicher and had eulogised the new breed of detective as "models of modernity" in several magazine articles and stories.

Until now, the trend in fiction had been for crime stories about dashing crooks. Jan 15, Lori rated it really liked it. Four-year-old Saville Kent is murdered in his own home.

Although originally placed in the hands of local police, the matter is turned over to Jack Whicher who almost immediately suspects daughter Constance of the crime. However, charges do not stick. Whicher is discredited. The crime is confessed a few years later. The crime is interesting because of its influence on the new detective genre of fiction.

The author informs readers of the future lives of the major characters in the case. While it is interesting, the writing is not flawless. I dislike the "hidden endnotes" employed in this work. Publishers need to quit using them. Give credit where credit is due, and let the reader know credit is being given.

Aug 13, Sharon rated it it was amazing Recommends it for: anyone who loves detective novels and true crime. Shelves: true-life-stories , history. The crime shocked all of England. Three year old Saville Kent, son of the second family of a well to do British Government Official was found murdered, his small body stuffed in an outdoor privy.

This was the infamous Road Hill murder and the man who lead the investigation was Mr. Jonathan Whicher.

The story filled the tabloids of the time and was discussed everywhere from pulpits to the halls of Power. The unhappy events inspired not only modern forensic investigative methods but also open up a The crime shocked all of England. The unhappy events inspired not only modern forensic investigative methods but also open up a new genre of fiction-the detective novel.

The book captures the essence of the Victorian era and the narrative is easy to follow, allowing the reader to step back in time and experience the sensationalism that ran rampant at the time. If you are interested in true crime, forensic methods of investigation or are trying to write the greatest detective novel ever this book might be a valuable resource for you. May 24, Kemper rated it liked it Shelves: crime-mystery , non-fiction.

Very interesting book. Does a nice job of showing how authors of late 19th century England got fascinated by detectives and how this case influenced their detective fiction which in turn influenced the modern detective fiction. Lots of interesting period details and it shows how little people have changed. If you substituted blogs and Fox News for the tabloid papers and letters people wrote to the police, the hysteria and ignorance surrounding a crime in can still be seen in modern day medi Very interesting book.

If you substituted blogs and Fox News for the tabloid papers and letters people wrote to the police, the hysteria and ignorance surrounding a crime in can still be seen in modern day media coverage. Jan 20, Becki rated it really liked it. This book really went beyond what I was expecting from it.

Aside from re-telling the mystery of a 3 year old's murder, the author also delved into the life and thoughts of one of the first and greatest dectectives, Mr. Since I had never heard of this detective or this murder before, it was shocking to realize how many famous books were so greatly influenced by the story. For instance, Dickens was highly interested in this case, and Lady Audley's Secret was quite heavily based upon the m This book really went beyond what I was expecting from it.

For instance, Dickens was highly interested in this case, and Lady Audley's Secret was quite heavily based upon the mystery. Summerscale did a great job putting this story into the context of the Victorian era, and easily and interestingly described some of the details that are now lost to us, so you don't have to have an intricate knowledge of the Victorian era to enjoy this book.

I felt that she did a great job investigating each character, and beyond that, was able to get "into" their heads to try and unravel exactly what occurred, and why. I also enjoyed reading the epilogue and discovering just what happened to each character once the mystery had been solved.

One of the children of the family ended up being a great scientist, publishing the first book about the great coral reef and discovering a number of things about underwater animals.

I also like the author's interpretation of what happened, especially since we have much more information and hindsight than Whicher did at the time. I expected a detective story set in the Victorian era and instead I got this great and extremely accurate historical novel that percolate into current times.

I enjoyed reading about Mr. Whicher and I suffered with him when the public opinion dragged him down. But what I enjoyed the most is being taken through the genesis of something we take for granted nowadays: the police force. The tale is surprisingly modern: the media jumped on the story from the start, complaint about the detective work an I expected a detective story set in the Victorian era and instead I got this great and extremely accurate historical novel that percolate into current times.

The tale is surprisingly modern: the media jumped on the story from the start, complaint about the detective work and actively work to diminish his reputation. They also violated the privacy of the household as much as they could for the pleasure of their readers. Self-proclaimed experts dashed to help. The public had been entertained for quite a while right after the murder, and again many years later, when the killer finally confessed.

Please note that the story is very well detailed. I don't think the descriptions of victorian life are too long or out of place, but they are there: if you're looking for something exciting ad fast-paced, please look further.

Personally the thing I liked the most are the link to the literary world of the time and the presence of Dickens and Collins on the background. Shelves: biography-memoirs , uk , british-authors , read-in , my-most-amazing-books , crime-mystery-thrillers , victorians , historical , non-fiction.

What a fascinating book this was. I expected to read about the true story of one of the most shocking crimes in 19th century England but I hadn't bargained for also getting a fantastically written and hugely interesting social commentary of Victorian times and attitudes and behaviours with regards to the emergence of Police Detectives in this country.

Mr Whicher, the Detective called in to this particular case, was one of the first ever Scotland Yard Detectives which came with its own share of su What a fascinating book this was. Mr Whicher, the Detective called in to this particular case, was one of the first ever Scotland Yard Detectives which came with its own share of suspicion and mistrust.

The case in question was of the murder of a 3 year old boy, one of several children of a well-to-do family in a country house in Wiltshire. In June , the young boy was found to be missing from his cot in the morning and later that day his body was discovered with his throat slit and a stab wound to his chest down the servants toilet outside in the grounds.

It soon became apparant that the purportrator was one of the people inside the house on that night which consisted of the boys family, the nursemaid and housemaid. Whicher was called in to find out which one of the family murdered the three year old while the whole of England became obsessed with the drama, writing into the newspapers in their thousands offering their opinion on who committed the crime.

While I found the unravelling of this story fascinating in itself, I was also delighted to see so many references to some great Victorian authors inclduing Charles Dickens, Wilkie Collins and Mary Elizabeth Braddon.

This particular case has also been reported to have been the basis for subsequent rather famous novels such as Dickens' The Mystery of Edwin Drood , Collins' The Moonstone and Braddon's Lady Audley's Secret all of which contain themes from this particular story. Dickens who was also an aquaintance of Mr Whicher even wrote letters to Collins offering his theory on what took place that night. This book is completely non-ficiton to point that only recorded conversations and facts are included which seems to be the reason there are alot of negative reviews about it - perhaps it seemed too dry for some.

And while this is more of a why-dunnit than a who-dunnit , there are still a few surprises along the way that caught me off-guard. I thoroughtly enjoyed this book; infact I could barely put it down. Summerscale stuck to the facts without trying to sensationalise the story any more than it already was by putting words in peoples mouths and the result was a hugely enjoyable novel about a shocking crime and its repercussions in Victorian society.

Highly recommended. May 14, Karen rated it it was amazing. Whicher by Kate Summerscale is an account of a real Victorian murder mystery investigated by Jack Whicher, one of the first nine Scotland Yard detectives. In an upper middle class country home, a terrible murder occurred.

Three-year-old Saville Kent was discovered dead in a privvy, his throat slashed. A drawing room window had been found open, but it quickly became apparent that no maurading stranger had broken in and committed the dire deedonly one of the family could The Suspicions of Mr.

A drawing room window had been found open, but it quickly became apparent that no maurading stranger had broken in and committed the dire deedonly one of the family could logically have been the murderer. Though Whicher was certain he knew which family member was to blame he could not prove his case. The press lambasted him and as a result his career was mostly ruined. This is a must-read for those who adore the Victorian era with all of its double standards--even as the public shrieked over the horror of the murder, they ate up newspaper accounts on it like crazy; and even though Whicher was the only one with a clue pun intended of what was going on, they threw him to the wolves.

One of the great pleasures of the book is reading the wonderful Victorian lingo, taken from the historical documents on the case. The book is also a treat for any lover of the Victorian era in general. Some readers have commented that they found the book "too dry" but I found it not just readable but fascinating.

May 26, Sara rated it really liked it Shelves: true-crime , narrative-nonfiction , historical-true-crime. You could not pay me to travel back in time and hang out with the Victorian's but damned if the whole time period isn't endlessly fascinating to me. This is an elegant, somewhat mechanical, historical true crime book that has a little something for any fan of the genre. There's shocking, truly horrific murder. There's a wealthy upstanding family that turns out to be anything but. We get a cast of increasingly sinister suspects.

And most interestingly to me, the reader is given a ring side seat t You could not pay me to travel back in time and hang out with the Victorian's but damned if the whole time period isn't endlessly fascinating to me.

And most interestingly to me, the reader is given a ring side seat to the literal birth of modern day murder investigation as well as the barest hint of what will eventually become criminal profiling. When four year old Saville Kent is found brutally murdered his father, the wealthy Samuel Kent, demands the assistance of a new sort of police men, a detective. The horrific nature of the crime, multiple suspects, the inability of the local costabulary, and Kent's connections bring Detective Whicher to the scene and it isn't long before he has a suspect.

If only he could find any proof to go with it. This might as well be a novel for all of its twists and turns and shocking revelations. There's almost nothing I find more interesting than the inner workings of criminal investigation.

I get such a kick out of being taken back stage to see how everything plays out. So its doubly interesting to scratch that itch and also watch the actual job of detection taking shape in real time.

Nobody had ever thought to investigate crimes before now. Either you caught your bad guy in the act or you were more or less out of luck. What Whicher and his colleagues did was entirely new. They talked to people, got a feel for everyone involved in the crime as much as they followed the tangible clues.

Some people found this fascinating, there are quite a few references to Charles Dickens and Wilkie Collins modeling characters after Whicher and his colleagues. Some found the idea of strangers invading the sanctity of a home to tear it apart looking for low life criminals absolutely appalling. The journey through the investigation, Whicher's role in it, and the final, truly shocking reveal is worthy of any classic detective story and I wouldn't dream of spoiling it. Most true crime fans already know how terrific this book is, but if like me you somehow missed it up till now, this is one for the ages.

May 03, Heidi rated it did not like it. I'm so disappointed in this book. I happened upon it at the library and thought it looked fantastic. Who doesn't love a Victorian murder mystery?