The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher

The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher: or The Murder at Road Hill House

Paperback Published on: 05/01/2009
£10.99
22 reviews
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Bookseller Reviews

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The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
Not what I expected
I was not enamoured as it was not what I had hoped for. I felt it was slightly disjointed. Interesting though.
Hannah Mulligan Ward at Woking
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
As a huge fan of crime fiction, it was fascinating to see how much influence the Road Hill case, and Jonathon Whicher had on early crime novels. This book... READ MORE
Amy Nahome at Tenterden

Synopsis

It is a summer's night in 1860. In an elegant detached Georgian house in the village of Road, Wiltshire, all is quiet. Behind shuttered windows the Kent family lies sound asleep. At some point after midnight a dog barks. The family wakes the next morning to a horrific discovery: an unimaginably gruesome murder has taken place in their home. The household reverberates with shock, not least because the guilty party is surely still among them.

Jack Whicher of Scotland Yard, the most celebrated detective of his day, reaches Road Hill House a fortnight later. He faces an unenviable task: to solve a case in which the grieving family are the suspects. The murder provokes national hysteria. The thought of what might be festering behind the closed doors of respectable middle-class homes - scheming servants, rebellious children, insanity, jealousy, loneliness and loathing - arouses fear and a kind of excitement. But when Whicher reaches his shocking conclusion there is uproar and bewilderment.

A true story that inspired a generation of writers such as Wilkie Collins, Charles Dickens and Arthur Conan Doyle, this has all the hallmarks of the classic murder mystery - a body; a detective; a country house steeped in secrets. In The Suspicions of Mr Whicher Kate Summerscale untangles the facts behind this notorious case, bringing it back to vivid, extraordinary life.

  • Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
  • ISBN: 9780747596486
  • Number of pages: 400
  • Weight: 304g
  • Dimensions: 198 x 129 x 25 mm

Customer Reviews

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The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
Fascinating.
This was clearly very well researched and although clearly billed as a fictional account of true events it reads like an expose of Victorian life and its s... READ MORE
Nocturnal bibliophile
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
Interesting but very 'wordy'!
Thought this was interesting but too much stuff and records that had nothing to do with the story. However my husband loved it!
taffiesaffie
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
This book, I suspect, had good intentions but the over ambition of the author resulted in a very distracting piece. Far from centering on the Road house mu... READ MORE
victoria murray
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
disappointing
This book started off well but ended up being very boring. I only finished it because I felt I should. Everyone else I've talked to about this book agreed.... READ MORE
Boo
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
Very disappointing
I have never read a true crime book before, but because this was based in towns close to where I live it intrigued me. The first few chapters were enjoyabl... READ MORE
Helen Freegard
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
How anyone cannot love this book is beyond me! It was fantastic, and made all the better being a true story. I found it utterly unputdownable and so grippi... READ MORE
keeley hydon
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
A Victorian murder mystery based on a true story. Well, it all sounded well. I always enjoyed reading about murder myteries or true stories, so the combina... READ MORE
Ilona
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
Superb historical documentary of police detectives
This is an amazing book. Rarely have I read a book which has been so meticulously researched. There is an unbelievable amount of detail about the origins o... READ MORE
Lance Mitchell
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
Brilliant book
I thought this was a brilliant book - a real page-turner. .All the strands - Victoran detection, the family members, the detective hmself, the social backg... READ MORE
Salbal
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
Deeply disappointing
I picked this up, hoping for a 'real-crime read' and in essence I got that, but it was spoiled by the layers of added 'flavour' and irritating diversions t... READ MORE
Amanda Fleet
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
Style Over Substance
This true crime novel start off as being a very interesting read and something of a 'page turner'; unfortunately this momentum was not sustained and I foun... READ MORE
DerekA
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
history of detection and english language
As well as a whodunnit, Summerscale gives us a fascinating history of detection in the 19th century and the evolution of the language we now use for police... READ MORE
jeanfi
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
I picked this book up expecting a tantalising and thrilling account of the murder of a three year old boy, Saville Kent, and the ensuing investigation by b... READ MORE
Ecowitch
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
HHeath
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
I found this hard work to read...
Like another of the customer reviewers I was expecting an insight into an intriguing murder story and did not get it. Unfortunately unlike the other review... READ MORE
NBurns
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
From the cover of this book it looks to be a highly engaging read, and i have to say that the majority of it was. However i feel that there a several sect... READ MORE
Erin Foy
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
I finished this book tonight - crime and non-fiction are not my favourite genres at all, but I really did enjoy this book. I liked the way it was quite no... READ MORE
Anne Cater
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
A C19th whodunnit
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... READ MORE
Boof
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
I have just finished this book, and wanted to log on and see what other people thought of it. I have sat trying to decide between three and four star ratin... READ MORE
Bradley Morris

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