Mrs Mort's Madness: The True Story of a Sydney Scandal

by Suzanne Falkiner

Four days before Christmas in 1920, Dorothy Mort shot her lover dead in cold blood. The tragic end to her affair with dashing young doctor, cricket star and War hero, Dr Claude Tozer, scandalised Sydney. Dorothy’s respectable husband was devastated.

Following a trial that mesmerised the public and sent the media into a frenzy, the troubled North Shore mother of two and budding actress was declared ‘not guilty on the ground of insanity’.

After nine years in Long Bay Gaol, Dorothy was released and returned to live quietly with her husband ... But was she really mad, or bad, or neither? And what was the secret that her husband kept for the rest of his life?

In an absorbing blend of investigative non-fiction and biography, Suzanne Falkiner delves into the case that has intrigued Sydney for almost 100 years.

‘Suzanne Falkiner’s Mrs Mort’s Madness is not a cricket it is a carefully assembled but highly readable account of a sensational crime. … Nearly a century after it transfixed Sydney, Suzanne has at last rounded the story out.’ –Gideon Haigh

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction

308 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 10, 2014

Reviews

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sydneysider's might have more knowledge of this true crime case, although given we're talking about 1920, it could be that it's slipped from memory there as well. Suzanne Falkiner has used a combination of the facts of the case, and both the victim and perpetrator's life and fleshed that out with non-fiction elements, expanding on the facts to create a logical, and believable narrative.

Working with some materials from the time including newspaper reports and legal / court documents, the story combines the true facts with a storytelling style that attempts to create a scenario that may or may not explain the events that occurred. This makes MRS MORT'S MADNESS more of a hands-off possible suggestion based on the evidence, rather than a exact retelling of events, or reporting of evidence from witnesses or involved parties. Obviously with this sort of non-fiction narrative woven into true facts, there is no guarantee that any conclusions can be drawn, and fortunately this author shies away from that. Rather the reader is left to consider the facts as they are, and the story as it's built, and decide for themselves if Dorothy Mort was mad or bad, innocent or guilty, and whether there was official interference or likely to be more to the story.

Let's face it, after 100 years or so, theories are only ever going to be that, and MRS MORT'S MADNESS certainly builds an interesting theory. It tells that in an engaging and interesting style and could very well drive readers who like their firm and fast conclusions absolutely mad. Definitely, even after reading this book, this reader has no idea what the truth of the matter is.

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[Sally · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would not normally have picked this up but my father in law was very excited about it as he is a relative of the Morts, so I read it at his request. Unfortunately this isn't the most gripping story. I felt as if the author could not quite get a grasp on what she was trying to say or how she wanted to say it, there is a blend of historical, journalistic and narrative writing here and as a result it doesn't flow very well. She also jumps backward and forwards quite a lot, retreads story that has already been covered and, I felt, used a great deal of dramatic license without backing it up with any evidence until the end, even then it's a bit thin. Cricket plays a part in the story and there is way too much about it for my liking, not having ANY knowledge of the game, the reference to scores and where the teams were on what day etc were boring and frankly irrelevant. There are also frequent asides about the history of mental illness and drugs etc but they don't fit in nicely and she never really links it up to the story in any direct way. I am still not sure if she was trying to make a comment on the case or not.

This is interesting enough but it's messy.

[Peter Greenfield · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was like a look back at history through the eyes of someone doing very good research. It's impact being entrenched in the sporting life of a few Australians, find I'm giving it four stars for the in-depth research done to uncover the crime.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

A disappointingly inconclusive story about an apparently infamous 1920 Sydney murder of a well know cricketer and doctor by his married lover.

Most of the text is a rehashing of what seems to be already existing material gleaned from newspapers and legal and court documents, with a healthy dose of imaginative flourishing in an attempt to flesh it out.

There are no interviews with the remaining family of either the victim or the the eponymous Mrs Mort and subsequently there is a lot of rehashing and repetition. Perhaps there is no family left or they were unwilling to contribute to a scandal which they probably all would rather forget. Tantalisingly, we are told that Mrs. Mort's grandchildren did not even know of the murder until their middle years, but there is no information offered as to why this was so or how the author found that out.

Further, it's clear that Mrs. Mort was dealt with very favourably by the police, justice and penal system, for reasons unstated.

Either there was a lot more research which could have been done to make this a more satisfying read, or there is not enough material left or available to do so. Either way, we are left with a fairly disappointing evaluation of this story.

[Patricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is such a great read! It is gripping at every page and Suzanne Falkiner has mastered the skill of translating dry, boring facts into a tragic thriller. It is difficult to know where the truth begins and finishes, such is the author's talent for making credible every piece of this story. A book is all the more exciting when the reader knows the locations and Suzanne Falkiner has seen to it this with the accuracy of an author who actually visits the sites and follows them up. Creative non-fiction is a difficult genre within which to write with credibility and fidelity to the original story. Suzanne Falkiner has succeeded on both counts.

[Trena · Rating 2 out of 5]

Never heard of this case before. There was no conclusion to the convoluted story. Very odd indeed.