It may be of some satisfaction to you, Gentlemen of the Jury, to know that you have been engaged in one of the most remarkable trials that is to be found in the annals of the Criminal Courts of England.Mr Justice Grantham, Judge at the Old Bailey
This is a vintage whodunit set in Edwardian London at a crossroads in time, as social revolution and psychiatry posed new questions for the Law and for the first time the Media were co-opted to run a killer to ground.
The year is 1907: 22-year-old Emily Dimmock lies murdered in her Camden Town flat, her head all but severed from her body. With not a thread or stain or fingerprint to point to the perpetrator, a young artist is manoeuvred into the shadow of the scaffold.
The tale is told verbatim by witnesses presided over by the author, who draws on his own experience as a Judge at the Old Bailey to get inside the mind of the outspoken but irresolute Mr Justice Grantham. The result is as compelling today as it is definitive of the era in which the murder was committed.
The book is illustrated with two maps and 27 photographs, 10 of which are in full colour
Anyone who is a fan of true crime will gobble up this vintage case, brought to life via the pen of Paul Worsley and the eyes of the judge presiding- beautifully detailed, extremely absorbing, giving all the information required to make up your own mind.
The telling of this story is both matter of fact and colourful, physical evidence is thin on the ground and there were a lot of firsts here – it is fascinating all the way through, a character drama set in a time gone by.
Whether the enigmatic possible killer is guilty or not, well I had my own thoughts on the matter as did the judge, jury and public of the time. Paul Worsley adds his own insight and experience into the mix and the whole book is highly addictive.
Recommended.
You can purchase The Postcard Murder (Pilot) Here.
Happy Reading!