Murder by poison alarmed, enthralled, and in many ways encapsulated the Victorian age. Linda Stratmann’s dark and splendid social history reveals the nineteenth century as a gruesome battleground where poisoners went head-to-head with authorities who strove to detect poisons, control their availability, and bring the guilty to justice. She corrects many misconceptions about particular poisons and documents how the evolution of issues such as marital rights and the legal protection of children impacted poisonings. Combining archival research with a novelist’s eye, Stratmann charts the era’s inexorable rise of poison cases both shocking and sad.
**
Review “Poisoning, Linda Stratmann makes clear in this extravagantly detailed history, was one of the great fears of the 19th century… Filling her pages with case after case, she pursues her subject with the dogged persistence of a laboratory analyst.”—Andrew Holgate, Sunday Times
(Andrew Holgate Sunday Times 2016-03-20)
“ The Secret Poisoner chronicles an amazing array of poisonings… Stratmann is highly skilled at combining brevity with colour, her rapid succession of poisonings soon coalesces into an overall pattern.”—Craig Brown, Mail on Sunday
(Craig Brown Mail on Sunday 2016-03-27)
“A riveting history on the employment of poisons and the rise of regulations on them . . . mystery readers will be intrigued by the murderous methods and their effects on victims.”— Library Journal
( Library Journal )
“Linda Stratmann makes a fine job of chronicling the cat-and-mouse contest between poisoners on the one hand and science and law on the other…ghoulishly fascinating”—Jacqueline Banerjie, TLS
(Jacqueline Banerjee TLS 2016-04-21)
About the Author
Linda Stratmann is an expert on Victorian crime and the author of several nonfiction books, including Yale’s The Marquess of Queensberry . She lives in London.

motw/The Secret Poisoner_ A Century - Linda Stratmann.epub

motw/The Secret Poisoner_ A Century - Linda Stratmann.pdf

4909_WEB.indd

Stratmann, Linda;

San Francisco Museum of Modern Art

Brandywine River Museum

Mariners' Museum, The

United States, United States of America

Connecticut, 2016

1, PS, 2016

producers:
Acrobat Distiller 8.0.0 (Macintosh)

Memory of the World Librarian: Slowrotation

"The book club, BBC Radio 2"--Jacket.
Includes bibliographical references and index.

Murder By Poison Alarmed, Enthralled, And In Many Ways Encapsulated The Victorian Age. Linda Stratmann's Dark And Splendid Social History Reveals The Nineteenth Century As A Gruesome Battleground Where Poisoners Went Head-to-head With Authorities Who Strove To Detect Poisons, Control Their Availability, And Bring The Guilty To Justice. She Corrects Many Misconceptions About Particular Poisons And Documents How The Evolution Of Issues Such As Marital Rights And The Legal Protection Of Children Impacted Poisonings. Combining Archival Research With A Novelist's Eye, Stratmann Charts The Era's Inexorable Rise Of Poison Cases Both Shocking And Sad-- The Devilish Dumplings -- Smothered In Onions -- The Greatest Refinement Of Villainy -- Arsenic And Old Graves -- The Suspicious Of Mr Marsh -- French Porcelain -- This Troublesome World -- Getting Away With Murder -- Alarm And Indignation -- The Essex Factor -- Tobacco Kills -- Nil By Mouth -- The Palmer Act -- Expert Witnesses -- Deadly Doctors -- Matrimonal Causes -- Sleight Of Hand -- Disappearing Poison -- Our American Cousins. Linda Stratmann. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.

Cover page 1
Halftitle page 2
Title page 4
Copyright page 5
Dedication 6
Epigraph 7
Contents 8
List of Illustrations 10
Author’s Note 12
Introduction The Awful Sentence of Death1 30
chapter one The Devilish Dumplings 34
chapter two Smothered in Onions 47
chapter three The Greatest Refinement of Villainy 62
chapter four Arsenic and Old Graves 77
chapter five The Suspicions of Mr Marsh 91
chapter six French Porcelain 105
chapter seven This Troublesome World 118
chapter eight Getting Away with Murder 132
chapter nine Alarm and Indignation 146
chapter ten The Essex Factor 160
chapter eleven Tobacco Kills 173
chapter twelve Nil By Mouth 185
chapter thirteen The Palmer Act 200
chapter fourteen Expert Witnesses 216
chapter fifteen Deadly Doctors 232
chapter sixteen Matrimonial Causes 246
chapter seventeen Sleight of Hand 262
chapter eighteen Disappearing Poison 275
chapter nineteen Our American Cousins 288
Epilogue Dangerous Drugs and Cruel Poisons 303
Glossary 314
Notes 317
Bibliography 338
Index 347

2025-10-27