Crippen: A Novel of Murder

Description

It's July 1910: The grisly remains of Cora Crippen, music hall singer and wife of Dr Hawley Crippen, are discovered in the cellar of 39 Hilldrop Crescent, Camden. But the Doctor and his mistress, Ethel Le Neve, have vanished, much to the frustration of Scotland Yard and the outrage of a horrified London. Across the Channel in Antwerp, the SS Montrose sets sail on its two week voyage to Canada. Amongst its passengers are the overbearing Antonia Drake and her daughter Victoria, who is hell-bent on romance, the enigmatic Mathieu Zela and the modest Martha Hayes. Also on board are the unassuming Mr John Robinson and his seventeen-year-old son Edmund. But all is not as it seems...

Promotion info

The spectacular third novel from the bestselling author of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas.

Reviews

"Starred Review." Had Charles Dickens been around to turn his talents to fictionalizing the classic Crippen murder case, the result might well have been close to this superb, multifaceted novel from Irish author Boyne ("The Thief of Time"). The crime, a cause in 1910, is probably best remembered for its denouement, which featured a race across the Atlantic by Scotland Yard Insp. Walter Dew in pursuit of his suspects aboard a cruise ship. Boyne brings all the characters in this drama to life, skillfully shifting perspectives and using flashbacks and flash-forwards. While his depiction of Hawley Crippen, a quack and self-proclaimed doctor with a disturbing taste for butchery, and his mistress is admittedly speculative, the author's imaginings of their inner lives and motivations are plausible. His version of the events of the night when Crippen's harridan wife met her gruesome death is convincing, despite the lack of historical support. Boyne is to be commended for his ability to alternate between Wodehousian humor and Edwardian noir. "(Mar.)" - PW "Publishers Weekly starred revview" (01/01/2006)

Author description

John Boyne was born in Ireland in 1971. He is the author of seven novels and two children's books, including the international bestsellers Mutiny on the Bounty, The House of Special Purpose and The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, which won two Irish Book Awards, topped the New York Times bestseller list and was made into a Miramax feature film. His books are published in over forty languages. He lives and writes in Dublin. For more information on John Boyne and his books, see his website at www.johnboyne.com

Stock Information

General Fields

• ISBN : 9780552777438
• Publisher : Transworld Publishers Ltd
• Imprint : Black Swan
• Publication date : August 2011
• Dimensions : 198mm X 127mm X 32mm
• Produced in : United Kingdom
• Availability date : December 2011
• Product Type : books

Special Fields

• Illustrations : port.
• Pages : 512
• Dewey classification : 823.92
• Bind : Paperback
• Author : John Boyne