Nulla è come sembra a Broughty Ferry, tranquillo paesino sulla costa scozzese. Jean Milne, ad esempio, è una matura zitella che vive sola in una lussuosa villa di ventitré stanze (quasi tutte chiuse) ed è, per i suoi concittadini, un modello di rispettabilità. Eppure, quando viene trovata brutalmente assassinata nella sua abitazione con i piedi legati e il cranio fracassato, l'immagine pubblica, che così a lungo ha resistito, comincia a incrinarsi. Chi può avere ucciso in maniera tanto feroce una signora così riservata? E perché, di colpo, conoscenti e testimoni diventano elusivi e reticenti? E chi è l'uomo che, su carta violetta, le ha scritto, alla vigilia dell'assassinio, una lettera a dir poco personale? La notizia del crimine si diffonde rapidamente per tutta la Gran Bretagna, suscitando nei lettori delle gazzette una curiosità così morbosa che la polizia si sente subito sotto pressione: bisogna trovare un colpevole e bisogna trovarlo in fretta, anche a costo di qualche procedura non proprio scrupolosa. A indagare, con i più moderni ritrovati della scienza investigativa (siamo nel 1912), viene chiamato da Glasgow l'ispettore Trench, un esperto per i casi più difficili, affiancato dall'attento sergente Frazer, agente della polizia locale. Man mano che i due scavano nella vita della signorina Milne, i segreti della sua esistenza vengono a galla. E alla fine sarà uno shock per tutti. Basato su una storia vera, e ricostruito grazie a una meticolosa ricerca negli archivi della polizia e nei giornali dell'epoca, questo caso viene riaperto con sapiente talento narrativo e tocchi di britannico humour. - See more at: http://www.sonzognoeditori.it/autori/...
Born in Dundee, Andrew Nicoll has lived all his life within the same few streets by the sea. Once a forester, now a journalist, Nicoll has covered the Scottish Parliament for 'The Sun' for the past ten years. A poet and short story writer before he turned novelist, Nicoll has published numerous stories and poems over the years. His first novel, 'The Good Mayor,' was written during eighteen months of commuting to work by rail. Published by Black & White in the U.K., by Harper Collins in Australia, and by Bantam in the Unites States (September 09), 'The Good Mayor' has been sold to 17 nations and translated into 13 languages. Andrew Nicoll was awarded the Saltire Prize for the First Book of the Year in 2009, and is working to complete a new novel.
Based on a true unsolved murder this is a brilliantly insightful fictional account of, well, as it says – the life and death of Jean Milne.
Using the police reports and various information available, Andrew Nicholl weaves a highly compelling and absolutely addictively written tale of hidden secrets, small town intricacies and a truly horrific murder.
They do say that truth is stranger than fiction and this case I think bears that out – Jean Milne, to all intents and purposes, was a highly respectable lady living a highly respectable, if quiet, life. But as the police begin to dig beneath the surface it becomes apparent that there was lot more to her than that…
Andrew Nicholl writes with a sharp, meticulous style that keeps you embedded into the story – one of those books that keeps you thinking about it every time you are away from it, that gives your brain a workout whilst being highly entertaining. He brings the characters and the setting to absolute life, the personalities and the attitudes, it is all beautifully done.
There is a great twist in the tale – whether or not the case is now solved to all intents and purposes you’ll have to decide for yourself, but I was intrigued by the ending that the author applied. The whole novel is intensely fascinating, atmospheric and basically a darned good read.
A small town in Dundee is thrust into the spotlight with a trip back in time to see where one of the most iconic and infamous murders of 1912 took place, a murder which remains unsolved to this day.
Broughty Ferry The Jewel in Dundee’s Crown” according to the tourist website, is a beautiful town on the banks of the Firth, some four miles outside of Dundee itself. Known as the seaside resort, it ironically has both a secret life as the Jean Milne of the title - Broughty Ferry was the home of Dundee’s textile bosses, a thriving fishing industry and a castle. A place for relation and to lead a nice quiet life, so Jean Milne thought.
Broughty Ferry has more millionaires in it than any other square mile on God’s green Earth. They fled here from Dundee, that sink if iniquity and depravity, to breathe deep of our clean sea breeze.
The brutal murder is shocking and then the investigation begins into just who Jean was and what kind of life she really did have. The investigation lead by Detective-Lieutenant John Trench is painstakingly recreated and facts and fiction mingle in the small town with the big secrets. Sergeant John Fraser , the first man on the scene narrates most of the events.
Broughty Ferry has a small town mindset and so finds it hard to have all the attention that such a murder brings. The rivalry between the local police and the Dundee forces show how little things have changed from that time. The gossip and scandal are very real. Sgt Fraser comments that soon the news and grief 'would be flying through every street in the Ferry'!
Broughty Ferry is a spotlight on a small community with a big scandal at its heart. And the secret life of Miss Jean Milne is a journey into its dark side.
It took me a couple of chapters to really get into this, but it never quite reached the peak which I was expecting. Whilst the true crime case it is based on is an interesting and intriguing one, the denouement which the author has reached, after his extensive research, feels a little odd. The novel did not sustain my interest as much as I had anticipated, and whilst nicely written, it could do with some tightening up here and there. A few of the sections felt too drawn out, and my interest waned in consequence. A wee bit disappointing.
La vita segreta e la strana morte della signorina Milne è tratto da una storia vera: il romanzo si basa su un delitto realmente avvenuto – ma rimasto irrisolto – in una piccola città scozzese, sobborgo di Dundee. Andrew Nicoll, scrittore e giornalista, ha ricostruito quanto accaduto grazie a una meticolosa ricerca negli archivi della polizia e tra gli articoli dei giornali dell'epoca.
È il 1912 e siamo in Scozia a Brought Ferry – piccola cittadina normalmente tranquilla. Normalmente, appunto, fino a quando un cittadino preoccupato non si rivolge alla polizia perché, dice, c'è qualcosa che non va in casa della signorina Milne, vecchia (non poi tanto vecchia) zitella rispettata da tutti in paese, ma soprattutto conosciuta per via delle sue abitudini un po' "eccentriche". Impossibile che, grazie al suo vestiario, passi inosservata. Il cittadino preoccupato è Slidders, il postino, che riferisce alla polizia che la signorina Milne non ritira la posta da almeno tre settimane. Nessuno risponde alla porta e nessuno sembra aver ritirato l'opuscolo pubblicitario della Chiesa di Scozia che giace, ancora, nello stesso identico posto. È vero, la signorina è solita allontanarsi per lunghi periodi, ma le sue gite sono sempre note a tutti – polizia inclusa. Generalmente, infatti, prima di allontanarsi da Brought Ferry e recarsi a Londra per lunghi periodi, è solita consegnare le chiavi della propria casa alla polizia locale.
Questa volta, invece, c'è qualcosa che non va, insiste Slidders. E, in effetti, qualcosa che non va c'è davvero e se ne accorgerà anche la polizia quando rinverrà il corpo privo di vita. Non c'è dubbio alcuno: la signorina Milne è stata brutalmente assassinata. È a questo punto che il narratore, il sergente John Fraser, racconta al lettore lo svolgersi delle indagini raccontando la vicenda in prima persona. Fraser referisce ogni dettaglio e ogni impressione al lettore, senza che nulla venga tralasciato, esattamente come nei classici gialli di una volta, dove il lettore è messo a conoscenza di tutti gli elementi del caso. S'indaga, così, nella vita della signorina Milne cercando di capire chi fossero le persone con cui intratteneva una corrispondenza, quali parenti avesse ancora in vita, di quali nemici si era circondata.
Sebbene la vicenda sia raccontata tendenzialmente in prima persona dal sergente Fraser, vi sono delle volte in cui il punto di vista della narrazione cambia poiché Fraser non si trova in compagnia degli altri personaggi e non può, quindi, raccontare quanto sta accadendo. Così ci si trova a conoscere meglio il testardissimo commissario capo Sempill e l'affascinante lungotenente investigatore Trench, chiamato ad aiutare la polizia locale nel barcamenarsi tra i tantissimi sospetti e le poche certezze che riguardano il caso. Due approcci diversi alla vicenda, quello del commissario capo Sempill e quello del lungotenente Trench, e soprattutto due diversi metodi di investigazione: Sempill, più interessato a chiudere il caso il prima possibile e Trench, interessato invece a mettere dietro le sbarre la persona giusta, incurante della stampa e delle pressioni esterne. Metodi di investigazione che porteranno a scoperte diverse, ma tutte utili alla risoluzione del caso con un finale che, ve lo assicuro, lascia di stucco il lettore. Nonostante la mia passione per il poliziesco e il legal thriller, posso ammettere di non aver avuto idea alcuna di come si sarebbero concluse le indagini fino al termine del romanzo. Un'altra caratteristica che ho apprezzato tantissimo, oltre al perfetto intreccio narrativo che nulla fa percepire al lettore, e che ha reso la lettura di questo libro ancora più emozionante (sì, sì, i gialli vecchio stile mi emozionano sempre, lo ammetto senza provare vergogna) è la presenza, all'interno del romanzo, di deposizioni e documenti rinvenuti dalla polizia. Il pezzo forte, perché c'è anche un pezzo forte, è la dettagliata illustrazione della scena del crimine che trasporta il lettore direttamente all'interno di una partita di Cluedo.
Descrizioni dettagliate ed eleganti, nel pieno stile dell'epoca, e un tocco un po' british mantengono alta la curiosità del lettore per tutta la durata del romanzo. Mi ci voleva proprio un bel libro così. Adesso che ho conosciuto Nicoll sarà il caso di procurarmi anche il suo precedente romanzo, pubblicato sempre da Sonzogno.
This is a murder mystery story with a difference. It is based on a genuine unsolved murder which happened in Broughty Ferry, now a suburb of Dundee, in 1912. Andrew Nicoll has brilliantly brought together police reports, witness statements and newspaper articles from the actual investigation. As the title suggests, the lady herself is already dead at the beginning of the book, so we learn of her life through these police investigations into her murder. A very intriguing character, Miss Milne is a well-to-do spinster living alone in large house in Broughty Ferry. She seems every inch the prim and proper church-going lady, very set in her ways, but as we learn, she does indeed have a secret life. Rather than being prim and proper it seems she enjoyed many liaisons with various men on her travels to London and occasionally bringing them to her home.
Andrew Nicoll vividly describes the murder scene so the reader is in no doubt just how brutal the murder was. Sergeant John Fraser is the narrator for the most part and he is investigating the crime with the help of Detective John Trench, famous at that time for having solved another high-profile case. They work together interviewing the various witnesses, many of whom come forward following the offer of a reward. Trench, in particular, is convinced that a foreigner or madman must have carried out the murder given its brutality. So when a Canadian conman, Jack Warner, is arrested in London, it seems that he may be their man. Warner protests he has never been in Scotland and was in fact abroad at the time of the murder. Fraser and Trench must investigate his claims to see if he is telling the truth or not. Despite wanting to solve the murder, and being under huge pressure to do so, they don't want to see an innocent man hang.
There was quite a bit dry humour in the book which is perhaps unexpected given the grisly murder. The not so friendly rivalry between the Broughty Ferry police and Dundee police forces was well highlighted, with Sgt Fraser determined that they did not need help from the bigger force. Coming from a suburb of Edinburgh which used to be a town in it own right, I can well understand their need to retain their own identity and their pride in their local community. I also thought it was really amusing that Sgt Fraser didn't want to use a neighbour's phone to report the crime in case she was so distressed she needed to share the news with her friends and that before long distress 'would be flying through every street in the Ferry'!
I purposely didn't read into the case before I read the book as I didn't want to know what happened. There was a huge twist at the end which I did not see coming at all. This part of the story is perhaps not factual, but who knows? Maybe Andrew Nicoll has solved the mystery? This was an excellent read, a real page-turner for me and so well written from the shocking murder at the beginning to the equally shocking and unexpected ending. An intelligent crime novel with secrets, passion and great characters - just a great murder mystery.
I found it quite challenging to get into this book initially. The beginning seemed a bit sluggish, and it was hard to fully engage with the story.
However, as the plot progressed, it grew increasingly captivating, especially with the introduction of Mrs Milne is a truly intriguing character. I appreciate that the narrative is based on the real-life demise of a person, drawing from historical records. It effectively dispels the notion that individuals from the past were dull and uninteresting, particularly the women. It vividly portrays them as complex and compelling individuals, much like people are today.
The conclusion took me by surprise - none of the suspects I had considered matched the actual outcome. The author's skillful storytelling eventually drew me in, despite the slower-paced sections. Overall, I found the book to be an enjoyable read once I pushed past the sluggish start.
Agatha Christie ci ha insegnato molto su come scrivere un buon giallo, ma lo scrittore britannico Andrew Nicoll ha saputo far tesoro di tutti i suggerimenti e dei meccanismi narrativi alla base del successo di un romanzo. Le aspettative su questo romanzo giallo erano tante anche per il singolare e lunghissimo titolo (La vita segreta e la strana morte della signorina Milne), che sembrava anticipare qualcosa di molto intricato e particolare. La vita segreta che, già dal titolo, veniva attribuita alla signorina Milne era intrigante, ma non quanto l'attesa e le motivazioni dietro la sua misteriosa morte. Chi è la signorina Milne. Tanto per cominciare il suo nome completo è Jean Milne e, prima di morire era una matura zitella, che viveva da sola in una lussuosa villa con ventitré stanze (quasi tutte chiuse). Per i suoi concittadini, rappresenta un modello di rispettabilità ed integrità. Quando viene trovata brutalmente assassinata nella sua abitazione con i piedi legati e il cranio fracassato, però, l’immagine pubblica che tutti avevano di lei comincia a incrinarsi. Tutti abbiamo un segreto e c'è chi ne ha più di uno. Ogni segreto tende a rendere più interessante la nostra esistenza: figuriamoci quando si tratta di un personaggio letterario che, grazie alla fantasia dello scrittore, può avere segreti davvero scottanti e inediti. Si scopre così che nel tranquillo paesino di Broughty Ferry, sulla costa scozzese, nulla è come sembra. È l'anno 1912 e le indagini non sono semplici come oggi. Mentre gli interrogativi si rincorrono, aprendosi a nuove domande più che a una rassicurante soluzione, Andrew Nicoll delinea una storia intricata, ricca di personaggi i cui destini si intersecano. Tutti hanno segreti. A indagare viene chiamato da Glasgow l’ispettore Trench, esperto in casi difficili o impossibili, affiancato dall’attento sergente Frazer, agente della polizia locale. Man mano che i due scavano nella vita della signorina Milne, i segreti della sua esistenza vengono a galla, uno dopo l'altro e sono davvero tanti. Alla fine sarà uno shock per tutti, lettore compreso, scoprire quale è la brutale realtà. A intrigare di più il lettore c'è il fatto che questo giallo è basato su una storia vera ed è ricostruito grazie a una meticolosa ricerca negli archivi della polizia e nei giornali dell’epoca.
The Secret Life and Curious Death of Miss Jean Milne was a book group read for me. I wasn’t too excited by the blurb and found the cover off-putting, but once I got into it, I was pleasantly surprised. This is the story surrounding a true- life unsolved murder which took place in a seaside town near Dundee in 1912. Andrew Nicholl has added his personal, most likely solution based on the evidence gathered during his research, and these final few chapters read slightly differently to the rest of the book. Entertaining, interesting, if sometimes long drawn out, this is a decent read.
This is one of the most interesting books I have read in a long time. A tale based on a true life murder that happened more than 100 years ago. Broughty Ferry Constabulary are investigating the brutal murder of Miss Jean Milne, found with her head bashed in and her feet tied. She was a lady of easy virtue, boasting sometimes of the men in her life and pretending to be younger than her years.
I loved the propriety of this novel and felt that I had to sit straight-backed to read it.
I loved the description of the ‘motor-car’ being a confidence trick and a ‘flash-in-the-pan.
Despite being about a brutal murder this tale is a simple and delightful read. The investigation is told as it happened and how Mr Sempill and Detective Lieutenant Trench discover the secrets about the murder.
Andrew Nicoll is a fabulous writer and captured my imagination, I was completely entranced, and although I thought about the case and made up my own mind about ‘whodunnit’ nothing could have prepared me for the ending of this story.
It is not a book to be rushed, but one to be savored, it is not intense but it is fascinating to read.
This is truly one of my favorites this year. It’s a brilliant little gem of a read.
Anything set in my neck of the woods is sure to pique my interest. Throw the story of a true unsolved murder in and it goes without saying I am going to read this book. I was drawn straight into the world of Miss Jean Milne and Broughty Ferry through the eyes of the policeman narrator and found many of Andrew Nicoll's descriptions and much of his imagery exquisite. I was unsure about the switch in narration and felt that while some chapters, such as the one about the young woman who was conned, were wonderfully written but they really didn't advance the book. However Nicoll then goes on to pull the whole thing off in spectacular fashion, having peppered the earlier narrative with just the right amount of hints, serving up an entirely plausible solution, making this book a keeper and one I will read again.
« Mi sento di consigliare il romanzo di Andrew Nicoll per essere diretta testimonianza del detto Nulla è mai come sembra; voltando l'ultima pagina del libro forse inizierete ad osservare i vostri vicini con occhi diversi, ponendo colorati accenti lì dove prima osservavate solo ordinaria e noiosa normalità. E' una lettura capace di affascinare sotto molteplici aspetti e che nella sua contraddittorietà permette di entrare nel vivo di una vicenda che è più vicina a noi di quanto potremmo mai immaginare. Una lettura frenetica e piacevole che mi sento di condividere e consigliare agli amanti del genere poliziesco e a quanti vogliono immischiarsi in faccende di polizia, ma senza perdere faccia e reputazione.. »
This book is quite detailed in its telling of the evidence and could probably have been a few pages shorter. It is told in the language of the time which I enjoyed and the characters are quite humorous at times. The surprise ending was clever and a great way to wrap the story up.
I've never felt more bamboozled by a book in my life. First the title suggests that this book is going to be about an interesting woman and then you get to read it and discover that 90% of the story is about how inefficient the police are at discovering how Miss Milne ended up dead in her house. I finished reading it by sheer pride on my part and I did not enjoy it.
Not rating because I skimmed the second half. Interesting local history details, and it was enjoyable to read about this time period, but while the mystery intrigued me the characters didn't. I'd definitely like to watch it as a nice long one-off crime drama episode.
I love historical fiction and when I saw this book on Amazon, I was instantly attracted to the hauntingly beautiful cover depicting this mysterious lady going up the stairs, and I downloaded a copy. Now, years later, browsing through my library for something different to read, I came across this cover again and decided to finally give this book a go.
As I began to read, I immediately realised that I was reading a true story. This wasn't fiction at all, but a 100-year-old unsolved murder mystery. Miss Jean Milne, a wealthy spinster living alone in a huge mansion in Broughty Ferry (now a suburb of Dundee, Scotland), was found brutally murdered in the hall of her house in November 1912. Written from the pov of Sergeant John Fraser, one of the police officers investigating the case, this book takes out of mothballs and re-studies all the evidence gathered by the police at the time and the statements collected from the many witnesses who thought they've seen something on the night of the murder.
The author skilfully paints a rather vivid but at the same time bleak picture of life at the time. Thanks to his descriptions I really felt I went back in time by a century and could truly see Broughty Ferry, London and other places through the eyes of the various historical characters in the book. Andrew Nicoll spares no details in depicting the crime scene. We are told exactly how the poor woman was murdered, where she was found and in which position and from where the various items of evidence have been collected. It was as if I were there too, in the house, on the streets investigating. Some scenes are so well described in harrowing detail that I found myself wincing as I was reading, namely when the victim's body was removed from the crime scene and taken for the post-mortem. I have nightmares because of those scenes alone I can tell you. Yes, those images will remain with me for a long time, especially knowing that it was all for real, not just an invented story.
It seems that Miss Milne was a small, fragile lady who led and seemed to enjoy a solitary lifestyle with not even a maid or gardener ever setting foot in her huge house. She was a respectable lady devoted to church affairs. However she was known for her eccentric habits, pretending to be younger than she was and boasting of the various nice gentlemen she had some kind of intrigue going on with. She frequently left home for long periods of times, sometimes without telling anyone that she was leaving or where she was going. She loved to go to London, far away from the local gossip, where most probably she freely interacted with other strangers.
So, who could have killed Miss Milne? Was it one of these men she met in London and sometimes invited to her house? Or was it someone much closer to home? The case remains unsolved, and it's evident that, under the command of Chief Constable Sempill, even though extensive, the investigation left much to be desired, with important evidence not properly followed up or blithely overlooked. The author, however, seems to have made his own detection work and instead of ending the book with the murder unsolved, he has come up with, in my opinion, a very plausible but shocking solution. Could he be right? Could that really be the person who killed Jean Milne? Will we ever know the truth?
This was a great book that I thoroughly, thoroughly enjoyed reading and I highly recommend it.
- Ho ricevuto una copia di questo libro dalla casa editrice in cambio di un'onesta recensione -
Con un lungo flashback, veniamo accompagnati nel passato (due anni prima, per la precisione) dal sergente Fraser. È lui che ci assiste durante le indagini della polizia, fornendoci tutti i dati per procedere all'identificazione dell'assassino e muoverci di pari passo con le autorità. Mi mancava il giallo vecchio stile, quello nei quali viene fornito al lettore oggi piccolo dettaglio, ogni più piccola minuzia della scena del crimine e della fase investigativa… ma in cui tutto potrebbe essere di fondamentale importanza per la soluzione del caso. E così, ti ritrovi a sondare, assieme alla polizia, la casa della vittima, chiedendoti perché quell'oggetto era lì proprio in quella posizione. Non solo: c'è anche una mappa della scena del delitto da potersi studiare (cosa che ho, ovviamente, fatto a lungo e con concentrazione... lo so, mi esalto troppo per queste piccolezze). Così, strizzi gli occhi e cerchi di registrare quanti più elementi possibili nella speranza che ti saranno utili per risolvere il caso e magari arrivare alla soluzione anche prima della polizia.
Detto questo, la narrazione procede molto bene, velata anche da una certa ironia, alternando vari punti di vista e vari narratori. Tendenzialmente, si procede in prima persona, ma talvolta il narratore onnisciente scalpita per dire la sua, proponendoci estratti di corrispondenza della polizia o stralci di vita dei personaggi che affollano la pittoresca cittadina di Broughty Ferry. Altre volte poi prende completamente il controllo per permetterci di seguire i continui spostamenti della polizia, che impazzisce alla ricerca del folle assassino.
For this book, Nicoll turns to a tale set in his own back yard – the genteel Broughty Ferry, just outside Dundee. And how beautifully he brings it to life. A small town in which the Chief of Police is a big fish, where the lower classes go unremarked by those of a higher social profile and where the local sergeant, who is the narrator of our tale, sees all those he encounters in his daily work as his ‘flock’.
A lady of slightly uncertain years who resides alone in a grand house and is certainly not short of money is found brutally murdered. From there, the tale is one in which the police set out to find the murderer, the motive and the means.
Nicoll triumphs in the beautifully written detail of these lives as he explores the hitherto secret life of Miss Jean Milne, those she encountered and finds suspects and witnesses -almost too many of the latter to countenance.
Here, too are the beautifully observed politics and aspirations of small town life and all the suspicions and neuroses of those who regularly come into contact with bigger, neighbouring cities. The bones of a real murder mystery are taken and re-shaped to tell the story in a way which keeps the facts accurate, but which fleshes out the characters and takes you with them on their journey.
The tale is told in a way which slightly makes me think of a Fred Vargas novel (that’s a compliment, by the way). There is such a beautiful, lyrical quality to Nicoll’s writing – in all his novels – that it never fails to lure you into his enchanted world.
I did not find this book to be enthralling. Rather, I found it to be annoyingly pompously written. I have to admit that I only read the first 10 or so chapters and the last 10 or so chapters. Not particularly interesting.
Very interesting to read this as Jean is on my family tree. I really didn't know much about this story besides the newspaper articles before. Great to learn more details but I'm not sure how I feel about the author's conclusion. Part of me hopes that's not the real truth.
You can translate this review on: http://labibliotecadidrusie.blogspot.it/ Voto: 2,5/5 (5/10) Stavolta voto bassino, lo so, ma in questo romanzo tante cose non mi hanno convinta o non mi sono piaciute. Prima di tutto l'incipit. E' il protagonista che rievoca un'indagine a cui ha partecipato qualche tempo prima. L'ho trovato inutile, in quanto disgiunto dal resto. Pone l'attenzione sull'ispettore Trench, ma gli accenni che si fanno alle sue indagini vengono scarsamente chiariti. Come personaggio non è approfondito e rimane marginale per tutto il libro nonostante la voce narrante lo introduca come se fosse il suo mentore. Il titolo è tutto riferito alla signorina Milne, la vittima, ma di fatto la sua vita non è che sia eviscerata granché. Metà del libro è dedicata al commissario Sempill (e non è chiaro se sia venerato o vilipeso) e all'accusato che cerca di scagionarsi. L'assassino lo si può intuire molto prima della fine (soprattutto se si sono letti alcuni libri di Agatha Christie), ma di fatto salta fuori all'improvviso nelle ultime 10 pagine a spiegare, con un racconto noioso e lunghissimo, il come e il perché. Anche per quanto riguarda i personaggi manca di chiarezza. Della voce narrante sappiamo poco o niente. Stessa cosa per l'ispettore Trench. Il commissario Sempill è descritto come un uomo che incute timore, ma per buona parte del libr viene canzonato. Il signor Walker (e tutti gli altri nomi con cui si fa chiamare), non è minimamente tratteggiato. Inutile tutta la parte dedicata a Nancy (di cui si finisce per sapere più che di Jean Milne). E la signorina del titolo? Niente. E' morta e sepolta quindi ci vengono riferiti un paio di pettegolezzi e nulla più. Lo stile è così english da essere una noia mortale. Come se non bastasse non passa pagina senza che venga sottolineata l'assoluta correttezza di questo o quel gesto, o qualche norma di comportamento, o l'educazione di Tizio, Caio o Sempronio. Ricapitolando ho avuto l'impressione di trovarmi davanti una brutta coperta patchwork, formata da tanti pezzi messi insieme senza logica, che alla fine non danno vita ad una forma coerente e comprensibile.
An interesting amalgam of two different historical crime genres. True Crime tales, especially those from the Victorian period, often sound more promising on the cover than the contents actually deliver. These often focus on unsolved crimes, but in trying to stick to what actually was reported as the investigation was carried out, it can make for a rather dull boring account that doesn't really lead anywhere, and all that is gained is an insight into how people lived in those days and how the police operated. I am thinking here of books such as 'The suspicions of Mr Whicher'. On the other hand, historical novels that feature a crime, and investigation, can be just as gripping as a modern crime/thriller novel, but with the added interest of unfamiliar way of life being depicted. Everyday pieces of equipment for example will be described in more detail than would have been needed for a contemporary audience. These books can be very satisfying, but I sometimes feel a little cheated to think that its just a story and didn't actually happen. The most recent example I have read was 'The unseeing'. This one is a bit of both, indeed the best of both! Its based on a true unsolved case, with all the original characters appearing, with dialogue invented that supports the recorded investigations. But with the author taking the liberty to offer a lovely twisty 'solution' to the murder, which fits the evidence, is almost certainly not true, but nevertheless makes this book memorable and different. To say any more would need a spoiler alert. It reads like an interesting crime novel rather than a dull recollection of events. Gives a lovely sense of what life was like at the time around Dundee and further afield, into London, Kent and even Antwerp. Definitely worth a read for the novelty alone, plus its a good well told story.
I bought this book as it was set in Scotland and I am quite interested in true stories. This book is one of the most unusual 'true crime' stories I have ever read(and I have read a few). It was not an easy read as some of the descriptions of the crime scene and the victim's body are quite detailed,but then it was taken from factual documents pertaining to the case, so be prepared for quite gruesome details. Miss Milne's own story was quite fascinating in itself, she seemed to be living a private life that would most definitely be frowned upon during that time. In a way, the whole story is quite tragic. I do not want to give too much away. Like a previous reviewer I did not envisage the 'twist' at the end of the story. If you like a good story, I thoroughly recommend this, I could not put it down.
RECE: La vita segreta e la strana morte della signorina Milne - Nicoll - Voto: 7 E' un cold case più che un giallo, la storia vera risale al 1912 ed è stato un mistero irrisolto che l'autore ha indagato ricercando negli archivi di polizia e nei giornali dell'epoca. E' incredibile e imbarazzante vedere come ha indagato (malamente) la polizia. Alla fine la verità si scopre solo nell'ultimo capitolo. Quasi 800 pagine, prolisso, ben ambientato per carità, ma in fin dei conti noioso, non certo il tipo di romanzo che non riesci ad abbandonare la sera. Insomma si può farne tranquillamente a meno.
This book is an interesting novelisation of a true crime. I enjoyed the writing and the period feel. The way in which events unfolded was rather exasperating but that apparently reflects the shortcomings of the police investigation at the time. The switching of narrators (some parts are narrated by local Sergeant John Fraser and other parts by an omniscient narrator) was a bit jarring. The ending, in which a solution is proposed for this unsolved crime, is ingenious and surprising.
Overall I found this an enjoyable book despite it feeling a bit inaccessible and oddly structured in places.
Chapter one is incredibly boring and virtually doesn’t connect to the rest of the book, how this got published knowing that publishers go by the first few sentences is mind boggling or perhaps the publishers are masons, from chapter two the book dramatically improved and was enjoyable. The author incorrectly said a pair or corsets , no one wears nor a retailer sells a pair or corsets only a corset. The book gets rather muddled and confusing and is not really worth bothering with especially the author has no skills , after all he writes for a cheap rage where quality and truth isn’t present
Ho avuto bisogno di qualche capitolo per appassionarmi e la mia parte preferita è stata la fine quando c’è stata la confessione del colpevole. Ogni volta che leggo un giallo sono sicura di rimanere sorpresa da chi è il colpevole perché non indovino mai. Mi sono piaciute molto le serie di eventi con cui hanno svolto le indagini ed anche le varie storie dei personaggi. L'ispettore Trench l’ho trovato molto bravo ed attento, soprattutto rispetto al comandante capo della polizia di Broughty Ferry che sembrava molto di provincia.