Genres: History, True Crime
Formats: E-Book, Paperback
Age Groups: 18+

In April 1876, Charles Bravo, a young London barrister, died in agony at his Balham home after ingesting a lethal dose of antimony. His death shocked Victorian society and set in motion one of the most baffling and sensational investigations of the nineteenth century. Despite two lengthy inquests, the question of who poisoned Charles Bravo was never answered. Three suspects fell under the scrutiny of investigators — his wife Florence, her companion Mrs Jane Cox, and her former lover Dr James Gully — yet the truth remained tantalisingly out of reach. Even Agatha Christie, the queen of crime fiction, was captivated by the case and offered her own theory. Yet the mystery defeated even her. This is the story of a complex investigation, a household of secrets, and three people who each had reason to want Charles Bravo dead. Over a century later, the case is still officially unsolved and...

Genres: History
Formats: E-Book, Paperback
Age Groups: 12-15, 18+

Born to immigrant parents, in the slums of 19th century Manchester, Jerome Caminada overcame the odds to become one of the city’s finest police detectives. A master of disguise, with a keen eye for detail and ingenious methods of deduction, Detective Caminada pursued notorious criminals through the seedy streets of Manchester’s underworld. Known as a ‘terror to evil-doers’, he stalked pickpockets and thieves, ruthless con artists and cold-blooded killers. Through his groundbreaking detective work, he captured an escaped political prisoner, confronted his own Professor Moriarty, played a pivotal role in the nationwide Fenian dynamite conspirators, and exposed a cross-dressing ball. At the peak of his dazzling career, and using methods worthy of his fictional counterpart, Detective Caminada solved his most famous case, the Manchester Cab Mystery, which established him as one of the most formidable detectives of the Victorian era and a real-life Sherlock Holmes.

Genres: True Crime
Formats: E-Book
Age Groups: 12-15, 18+

Detective Jerome Caminada was a Victorian super-sleuth and a real-life Sherlock Holmes. A master of disguise and an expert in deduction, he pursued ruthless criminals through the dangerous streets of nineteenth century Manchester's underworld. Detective Caminada's biographer, Angela Buckley, presents a second anthology of his most intriguing cases, which includes fraudsters, arsonists, burglars and child killers. In the second volume of his memoirs, published in 1901, Detective Caminada recounted how he tackled the notorious scuttles, tracked Fenian dynamite conspirators and solved the Manchester Cab Mystery. Bearing all the hallmarks of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, this is a real treat for lovers of historical crime.

Genres: Memoir
Formats: E-Book
Age Groups: 12-15, 18+

Detective Jerome Caminada was a Victorian super-sleuth and a real-life Sherlock Holmes. A master of disguise and an expert in deduction, he pursued ruthless criminals through the dangerous streets of nineteenth century Manchester’s underworld. Detective Caminada’s biographer, Angela Buckley, presents this unique anthology of his most fascinating cases, including quack doctors, forgers and con artists. In the first volume of his memoirs, published in 1895, Detective Caminada recounted how he tackled anarchists, caught an escaped political prisoner and faced his nemesis in a deadly confrontation. Bearing all the hallmarks of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, this compelling collection is essential reading for all lovers of historical crime.

Genres: True Crime
Formats: E-Book, Paperback
Age Groups: 12-15, 18+

When Patrick O’Connor went missing in August 1849, his friends were suspicious. The London dock worker was last seen in the company of Swiss-born Maria Manning and her husband in Bermondsey. By the time police officers discovered his remains under the kitchen floor, the couple had fled. This shocking crime sparked a race against time to bring these cold-blooded killers to justice. After almost a decade of unsolved murders in the capital, could Scotland Yard detectives find the murderous pair and restore public confidence in their sleuthing skills? The search for the Mannings spread beyond England and was closely followed by the Victorian public, including prominent writers such as Charles Dickens who was haunted by the case and later immortalised some of the key characters in Bleak House, which was published just four years later. To this day, the Bermondsey Murder remains a legendary crime in the history of Scotland...