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Crimes That Shocked Australia
Crimes That Shocked Australia is an incredible collection of the most mysterious, bizarre, and often macabre incidents in our history. They date from the 1803 nightmare of 'The Man They Couldn't Hang' to such lingering mysteries as the disappearance of Sydney heiress Juanita Nielsen.
ISBN 0908001371
ISBN 0908001371
- GenresTrue CrimeNonfiction
438 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1982
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
March 7, 2025
4 Stars = It definitely held my interest.
If you're a true crime fan who lives in Australia, and enjoys crimes from various centuries, you'll like this. Each chapter covers one case. The first case was in 1803, and the final case was in 1975. It was written in 1982. The author keeps each case moving right along, and the chapters are just the right length.
If you're a true crime fan who lives in Australia, and enjoys crimes from various centuries, you'll like this. Each chapter covers one case. The first case was in 1803, and the final case was in 1975. It was written in 1982. The author keeps each case moving right along, and the chapters are just the right length.
July 11, 2018
Even though this isn't a new book and was written some 30 years ago it still has some very interesting cases including very well known and lesser known crimes.
March 3, 2015
I started reading this book with a mild interest, but was actually very surprised with how much I enjoyed reading up on these crimes. I felt like it was partially an education in Australian history, with the first crime detailed in 1803, and Sharpe providing details on the Australian climate at that time, as relevant to the case.
Each chapter describes one particular crime. This meant that it was basically 'bite sized' - you could easily read one crime at a time to your own enjoyment. Each crime was written as its own short story, too, with Sharpe writing to catch your attention in the first paragraph. (Though this was sometimes frustrating as it meant details were sometimes presented in a non-chronological way.)
I found some of the crimes a little boring to read, especially when they still remain an open mystery. It was like reading a book with a crappy ending - while this is the real ending, I guess I rather not have read about them to start off with. The book could've easily been reduced to 30-35 crimes and not have reduced my enjoyment of the book.
In summary: A great perspective on Australian history.
Each chapter describes one particular crime. This meant that it was basically 'bite sized' - you could easily read one crime at a time to your own enjoyment. Each crime was written as its own short story, too, with Sharpe writing to catch your attention in the first paragraph. (Though this was sometimes frustrating as it meant details were sometimes presented in a non-chronological way.)
I found some of the crimes a little boring to read, especially when they still remain an open mystery. It was like reading a book with a crappy ending - while this is the real ending, I guess I rather not have read about them to start off with. The book could've easily been reduced to 30-35 crimes and not have reduced my enjoyment of the book.
In summary: A great perspective on Australian history.
November 16, 2017
an interesting book. I enjoyed following each of the cases. also liked it wasn't grey and disn't glorify any of the people committing the crimes.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews