Murder by the Book: A Sensational Chapter in Victorian Crime by Claire Harman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Murder by the Book is the true story of the murder of Lord William Russell on May 6, 1840 in the Mayfair area of London. In many ways this is a classic Victorian Age murder mystery, but it is more than that too. The prime suspect claimed, in at least one of several published confessions after being convicted, that the inspiration for the crime was a sensational novel of the time. This eventually draws in many literary figures, including Dickens and Thackeray.

The author does a great job of describing the crime and the investigation. And she does an excellent job of describing the social and literary scenes of the period. It is a fascinating story and it is well told; the book can be read in a single afternoon. There is not too much more I can say, without running the risk of spoiling it, but there are some unanswered questions about the murder and the perpetrator, and the author reviews these at the end of the book, and gives some of her own ideas on the crime and the motive.