Paul Thomas Murphy

In 1871, a young, pretty servant girl was found ruthlessly beaten in a country lane. Jane Clouson died a few days later without regaining consciousness. When the son of her employer falls under suspicion for her murder, the subsequent police investigation and trial spark unrest between the working class and the middle class residents of London. Jane, unremarkable and overlooked in life, became a powerful symbol of the suffering of working class girls, and the easy power of their show more “betters.”

Pretty Jane is an engagingly written book that straddles the true crime and history genres. Murphy’s style of writing is engaging and flows well, allowing the book to read more like a novel than a history book. Murphy takes the reader along for the ride in an investigation and trial that, in the modern day, would be up there with the OJ Simpson or Casey Anthony trials. Each side bitterly fought for their desired outcome, and the legal push-pull dynamic adds to the story’s suspense. Murphy is more than willing to unwind this suspense out slowly, leaving you to tensely wait to see if there will ever be any justice for poor Jane.

Any history buff will enjoy this book. The narrative style of the writing makes this book accessible and fun for casual readers as well. If you’re a fan of Devil in the White City by Erik Larson, this book should be next on your TBR.

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. show less

A very well written book. Tells the story of the eight attacks made on Queen Victoria during her long reign
While these attacks might be only mildly interesting in themselves, the author uses them to tell more of the times - both for the poor, and for the governing elite. I came away with a much better appreciation of the Victorian era than when I started the book.

Queen Victoria apparently spent a lot of time ducking. This is the history of seven boys and men who made more-or-less serious attempts on the life of the queen. Most of them were demented, although there were one or two attempts by Irish nationalists that didn't get very far. Each of these attempts resulted in a surge of popular support for the monarchy, and Victoria and Prince Albert were sharp enough to work with that. The series of attempts also drove changes to laws governing insanity show more pleas, and contributed to the growth and professionalization of the detective police. Well-written and a pleasure to read. show less

During her reign Queen Victoria survived seven assassination attempts. [Shooting Victoria] tells the story of each of those attempts and describes how they changed the monarchy's relationship with the nation and changed the legal and political relationship between Government and monarch. Along the way [[Paul Thomas Murphy]] provides potted historical summaries, curious coincidences and trips down Victorian byways that entertain as much as enlighten. This is a wonderful book that provides a show more clear and detailed historical examination of a little-explored aspect of Victorian history and uses that to explain larger themes in the development of Victorian society. The Queen's relationships with her Government and people were not always smooth, but Murphy shows how all sides used her surviving these assassination attempts as ways to bring all sides closer together and to strengthen the monarchy in a century when republicanism was a powerful force across the globe. show less