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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
informative
medium-paced
Kate Summerscale revisits the infamous 10 Rillington Place murders, retelling the story from the perspective of a tabloid journalist and a celebrated crime writer assigned to the case. The press reporting of the story sends the public into a frenzy, not only because of Reg Christie's monstrous crimes but also because it raises the question of a previous miscarriage of justice. Was the wrong man hanged 3 years ago? Of course, the only thing worse than a miscarriage of justice is the establishment trying to cover it up.
I was already very familiar with this case and I don't think the book shed any new light on whether Christie was responsible for the crimes Timothy Evans was hanged for. Despite Evans' posthumous pardon, questions still remain and although Summerscale presents likely explanations, nothing is conclusive. We will probably never know for sure.
However, what is perhaps more fascinating than the account of the case itself is the depiction of Notting Hill in the 1950s, a grim picture of slum housing, smog, rationing, pawnshops, prostitution and backstreet abortions. Violent crime was on the rise and people still lived with the grim legacies of war. The social and cultural mores are intriguing, if disturbing, a world in which misogyny and racism thrive. I hadn't fully appreciated the extent of the resentment towards immigrants. It's ironic how worked up the local people got about black people sharing their living space, whilst a white serial killer was storing dead bodies right under their noses.
I loved all the little details, such as the reference to the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh being driven past Rillington Place on Coronation Day and the residents holding a street party in the hope of reversing some of the bad publicity.
It is a well-written, meticulously researched and compelling read.
I was already very familiar with this case and I don't think the book shed any new light on whether Christie was responsible for the crimes Timothy Evans was hanged for. Despite Evans' posthumous pardon, questions still remain and although Summerscale presents likely explanations, nothing is conclusive. We will probably never know for sure.
However, what is perhaps more fascinating than the account of the case itself is the depiction of Notting Hill in the 1950s, a grim picture of slum housing, smog, rationing, pawnshops, prostitution and backstreet abortions. Violent crime was on the rise and people still lived with the grim legacies of war. The social and cultural mores are intriguing, if disturbing, a world in which misogyny and racism thrive. I hadn't fully appreciated the extent of the resentment towards immigrants. It's ironic how worked up the local people got about black people sharing their living space, whilst a white serial killer was storing dead bodies right under their noses.
I loved all the little details, such as the reference to the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh being driven past Rillington Place on Coronation Day and the residents holding a street party in the hope of reversing some of the bad publicity.
It is a well-written, meticulously researched and compelling read.
A very addictive read but felt it fell apart a little toward the end and didn’t tie the different threads together.
I had the opportunity to read this book through Pigeonhole.
Despite being an avid listener of True Crime podcasts, and knowing the name Kate Summerscale, I've never actually read one of her books. I've now discovered that “Narrative Non-Fiction”, and particularly Kate Summerscale is a style I love.
It reads like a novel, but is a true amalgamation of the various sources. Not only do we learn about the murders at Rillington Place, but also about the lives of those covering them, the social and political events of the time, and the effect that these crimes ultimately had on the English legal system.
There are no gratuitous descriptions of the violence and the bodies, and we learn full backgrounds of the murdered women, once dismissed as "just" prostitutes, the Less Dead.
I'm off to find other books by Kate as I'm now hooked on her style.
Despite being an avid listener of True Crime podcasts, and knowing the name Kate Summerscale, I've never actually read one of her books. I've now discovered that “Narrative Non-Fiction”, and particularly Kate Summerscale is a style I love.
It reads like a novel, but is a true amalgamation of the various sources. Not only do we learn about the murders at Rillington Place, but also about the lives of those covering them, the social and political events of the time, and the effect that these crimes ultimately had on the English legal system.
There are no gratuitous descriptions of the violence and the bodies, and we learn full backgrounds of the murdered women, once dismissed as "just" prostitutes, the Less Dead.
I'm off to find other books by Kate as I'm now hooked on her style.
dark
sad
medium-paced
dark
informative
mysterious
sad
medium-paced