The Elements of Murder: A History of Poison (Paperback)

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• This item: The Elements of Murder: A History of Poison by John Emsley

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• Molecules of Murder: Criminal Molecules and Classic Murders by John Emsley

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• Molecules at an Exhibition: Portraits of Intriguing Materials in Everyday Life by John Emsley

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Molecules of Murder: Criminal Molecules and Classic Murders by John Emsley 5.0 out of 5 stars (2)  £12.71

Molecules at an Exhibition: Portraits of Intriguing Materials in Everyday Life by John Emsley 4.6 out of 5 stars (5)  £6.99

Nature's Building Blocks: An A-Z Guide to the Elements by John Emsley 5.0 out of 5 stars (10)  £8.44

Poisons: From Hemlock to Botox and the Killer Bean of Calabar by Peter Macinnis £13.95

Bad Science by Ben Goldacre 4.6 out of 5 stars (140)  £4.85

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Review
"A delightful potion of chemical erudition, forgotten science history and ghastly murder schemes.... Reading The Elements of Murder is like watching a hundred episodes of CSI, but without having to sit through the tedious personal relationships of the characters.... Along the way the bodies pile up as Emsley relates spectacular case histories of poisonings, accidental and criminal.... Emsley mines what he calls 'the darker side of the periodic table' with consumate skill."--Dick Teresi, The New York Times Book Review
"A fascinating anecdotal history of killing by five elements--mercury, arsenic, antimony, lead and thalium.... With something of interest on almost every page, it combines the satisfactions of a detective story, intriguing snippets of history, popular science, unsolved mysteries and murder. A powerful brew." --P. D. James, Sunday Telegraph
"Emsley captures the creepy common ground of science and homicide.... Beyond the scandals and celebrities, what makes 'The Elements of Murder' such a charming read is the absurdity of its anecdotes.... Hitchcock could make many films from this book."--Brenn Jones, San Francisco Chronicle
"Fascinating, wide-ranging and, let's not mince words, macabre new history of poison.... A truly guilty pleasure."--Wall Street Journal
"The list of the famous who may have been poisoned by one of these devious toxins is a long one, from Pope Clement II to Mozart. Emsley has dug up the dirt on these and a rogue's gallery of lesser-known cases.... If the golden age of poisoning is gone (replaced, to be sure, by other forms of mayhem), in Emsley's book it's still very much alive."--Laurence A. Marschall, Natural History
"Emsleyretells enough juicy and lurid (and sometimes famous) stories of murder by poison to enthrall both true-crime fans and budding mystery writers.... The author certainly knows his stuff."--Booklist
"Emsley hits a bull's eye in this fascinating, wonderfully readable forensic history of five deadly chemicals (mercury, arsenic, antimony, lead and thallium) and their starring role in that most intoxicating drama of pure evil: murder. A deeply knowledgeable chemist with a gift for making accessible the dry and bewilderingly arcane, Emsley's at his best in case studies of infamous poisoners and their victims."--Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"I heartily recommend that this book be read and added to the library of every chemist, toxicologist, and avid crime fiction reader, wherever they may be around the world. This book is an absolute delight and, for the price, a bargain to boot."--Chemical and Engineering News
"Both as a natural history of poisons and as a near-encyclopedic who-used-what-how reference, the book fascinates. The glossary and bibliography are most helpful. So dangerous is the world that many readers will choose to stay home, working on that special sauce for mother-in-laws meat loaf."--Foreword Magazine
"This absorbing volume is equal parts chemistry, history and mystery, but you don't need to be a scientist, historian or murderer to appreciate all three facets."--BookPage (Beach Reading Selection)


Review
Meticulously researched, this book reads like a novel and a reader could pick up enough colourful anecdotes on which to dine out for some time. (The Lancet )

The Elements of Murder contains as much malice and murder as any thriller, but without the mystery -Empsley explains it all as lucidly a Sherlock Holmes

Endlessly fascinating book...Every page reveals delights and horrors...It is the perfect book to take on a long-haul flight (Telegraph )

The Elements of Murder is full of such intriguing nuggets...Emsley must have been an outstanding chemistry teacher. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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4 Reviews 5 star:  (1) 4 star:    (0) 3 star:  (1) 2 star:  (2) 1 star:    (0)           Average Customer Review 3.0 out of 5 stars (4 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Most Helpful Customer Reviews   4 of 4 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars Just what the Doctor ordered., 8 Feb 2007 By  OvalTom "OvalTom" (London) - See all my reviews I really enjoyed reading this book. It struck an excellent balance between scientific insight and salacious gossip. What a combination! I was reading this in my hospital bed needing something demanding enough to save me from terminal boredom, but that I could pick up in short bursts. Just what the Doctor ordered. Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)   3 of 3 people found the following review helpful: 2.0 out of 5 stars It didn't meet my expectations., 3 Sep 2006 By  G. Bowtell "G. Bowtell" (London) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)    This review is from: The Elements of Murder: A History of Poison (Hardcover) This book was promising. My advice would be to read the introduction which is well written and interesting and ignore the rest of it. Everything that followed the introduction was of such a poor quality that I could not believe the author of the introduction to be the same as for the main body of the book. For reasons best known to the author there were digressions into vitriolic judgements on the sexual proclivities of King Charles and some quite unsustainable remarks about Isaac Newton. What a shame! I was really looking forward to this book, and whereas the introduction had some very nicely written paragraphs the main body of the book was in ungainly prose. I didn't read much beyond the third chapter -perhaps it improved. For something much more worthwhile read Poisons: From Hemlock to Botox and the Killer Bean of Calabar by Peter Macinnins. Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)   11 of 15 people found the following review helpful: 2.0 out of 5 stars A Cheap 'Cut and Paste' Effort. , 27 Nov 2006 By  RJ Lane (United Kingdom) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)    The concept of the book is clever: it takes the main heavy metal elements and discusses their uses and misuses, in respect of murder. The result, however, is disappointing. It appears to have been written across a weekend by taking a few very basis facts and then pasting in chunks of `off the shelf' (often rambling) criminal biography. Considering Emsley is a scientist most parts of the book are so un-scientific to be exasperating. I quote just two examples: in respect of the possibility of lead ingestion being the cause of gout (in the 1800's) `there is no reason why this could (cause gout) but it does' (!). Equally the madness of King George III he attributes to lead (despite a mass of contrary research on this subject - which he fails to quote), `because he was fond of lemonade and sauerkraut' (allegedly high in lead). Readable, but a really cheap `put-together'. Mr Emsley, please spend a little more time Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this) Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review › See all 4 customer reviews...		Most Recent Customer Reviews 3.0 out of 5 stars Oddly Unsatisfying John Emsley is one of my favourite science writers and I came to this tome with high hopes of being thoroughly entertained, but finished it with a vague sense of disappointment... Read more Published on 24 May 2007 by Jon D Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews › See all 4 customer reviews...

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