This chilling follow-up to Cornish Murders brings together more murderous tales that shocked not only the county but made headline news throughout the nation. They include the brutal slaying of Elizabeth Seaman in Penzance in 1845, the murder in the course of a robbery of Robert Drew near Launceston in 1862, the slaughter of the entire Mortimer family in Saltash in 1901, and the suspicious death of a farmer near Liskeard in 1952, which was initially believed to be a tragic suicide until the results of the post-mortem examination were received.

Some of the murderers were undoubtedly insane at the time of their crimes, such as John Stickland, who killed his daughter at Hayle in 1868. Others, like the killer of Jessie Rickard at Castle an Dinas in 1904, committed suicide rather than face the inevitable consequences of their acts. Some crimes, such as the 1958 murder of a holidaymaker in Newquay, remain unsolved, in spite of the best efforts of the police.

John Van der Kiste and Nicola Sly’s well-illustrated and enthralling text will appeal to everyone interested in true-crime history and the shadier side of Cornwall’s past.