Top of the Pops

[Error: unknown template qotd]

The Smiths' "Hand in Glove" (live Europe 1985)

The Haunting of Road Hill House

Kate Summerscale, The Suspicions of Mr Whicher, or the Murder at Road Hill House, 2008
The cover of this book promises only a murder mystery, yet the contents inside deliver much more: the reader gets an indepth reconstruction and study of various elements surrounding a notorious murder in Victorian England - the killing of a child that cast suspicion on all the people who lived at the murder scene (Road Hill House) and which became a national obsession (somewhat similar to all unsolved child murders/disappearances since then, like the abduction of Madeleine McCann for example.) Summerscale looks at the case using the techniques of classic murder mystery novels, including the use of red herrings and the arrival of a brilliant up-and-coming detective, Mr Whicher, which is ironic since the murder at Road Hill House inspired the birth of the genre. The role played by the period's newspapers is examined as well as new forensic scientific techniques, the changing of social mores and the effect the case had on all involved in the long run. If you love crime stories, you MUST read this book.

I hope Summerscale turns her attention next to Jack the Ripper because it's about time someone conclusively solved that puzzle!