The Bungalow Murderer: Patrick Mahon and the Killing of Emily Kaye

by Jonathan Oates

Genres: Nonfiction, True Crime

216 pages, Paperback

Expected publication April 30, 2026

About the author

Jonathan D. Oates is a historian and prolific author on the subject of the Jacobite campaigns from 1689-1746. His focus is on military matters, the British Army and its commanders, and especially the English dimension of the period. This is his seventh book on the topic and he has also written about thirty articles on aspects of Jacobitism, anti-Jacobitism, and the military campaigns. He has also edited three volumes of relevant material; the memoir of a loyalist Scottish officer, the letters of the Duke of Cumberland, as well as a memoir of an eighteenth century Leeds schoolmaster. There are a number of other similar books in the pipeline, including one on sieges of the 'Forty Five. The author studied History at Reading University in 1988-1991, obtaining a First Class degree with a thesis about the 'Fifteen, and then a doctorate from the same place in 2001, covering responses in north eastern England to the two major eighteenth century rebellions. He has been employed as Borough Archivist for the London Borough of Ealing since 1999. He has also had books published about criminal, local, and family history, especially in and around London.

Reviews

[Acantha · Rating 4 out of 5]

A deeply insightful book that is not for the faint of heart, but should be at the top of all true crime buffs TBR.

A murder that is famous for apparently inspiring the creation of a 'murder bag', a forensics kit used at crime scenes. For all that its known for this, we only touched on the 'murder bag' in the first appendix, which is a shame that such a crucial piece of police procedure is relegated to a near after thought and little effort put into discussing how accurate it is, that this bloody crime inspired such improvements.

This was a gruesome tale, less so in the manner of death (which is still up for debate) but in the manner in which the murderer disposed of his victim. Emily was dismembered, burnt and boiled, with her head never being recovered. Various times were given by Mahon as to how long it took him to destroy her head, and plenty of fanciful legend evolved around it and I cannot even imagine the smell and horror such a disposal would have created.

Upon examining some fabric, it is announced that it previously held 'raw human flesh' and I don't know why exactly, but somehow that is more chilling than simply human flesh.

His wife is weirdly really hard to accept. Like many wives of murders, she stood by him, refusing, probably for her own sake as much as his, to believe that he could have willingly done such a thing and had no hesitation in blaming everything on the victim. It was deeply unsettling to read snippets of letters she wrote, insulting Emily and protecting Mahon. They added much needed context but still, as with some of the other woman in this tale I had to keep reminding myself this was a real case and these people chose to act like this.

Emily is portrayed here sympathetically but not overly so. She did willingly have an affair with a married man, apparently uncaring of the effect it would have on his wife and child, but that doesn't justify her brutal death.

This case is also noted for the involvement of Sir Spilsbury, who was often called a real life Sherlock Holmes and an important figure in the history of crime prevention.

All in all, a well researched book that referenced often to primary sources and gave voice to both killer and victim.

~Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in return for an honest review~

[Sarah Higginbottom · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really unsettling but well-researched true crime read. I already knew a bit about the case, but this book added so much detail and context that made it feel disturbingly real. I appreciated that it didn’t rely on sensationalism and that Emily Kaye was treated as more than just a footnote in her own story. It’s a slower, more thoughtful read rather than a fast-paced thriller, but I actually liked that. Grim, informative, and worth reading if you enjoy historical true crime.

📚I was able to read an advanced copy of title thanks to NetGalley, Jonathan Oates and Pen & Sword📚
📚All reviews and opinions are entirely my own📚

[Sheila · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a free copy of, The Bungalow Murderer, by Jonathan Oates, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This was a heavy read about the murder of Emily Kaye in the 1920's. This was a brutal crime, that I have never heard of before reading this book.