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    Crippen: A Novel of Murder
    Crippen: A Novel of Murder
    Crippen: A Novel of Murder
    Ebook550 pages10 hours

    Crippen: A Novel of Murder

    By John Boyne

    3.5/5

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    About this ebook

    An accomplished, intricately plotted novel, John Boyne's Crippen brilliantly reimagines the amazing escape attempt of one of history's most notorious killers and marks the outstanding American debut of one of Ireland's best young novelists.

    July 1910: A gruesome discovery has been made at 39 Hilldrop Crescent, Camden.

    Chief Inspector Walter Dew of Scotland Yard did not expect the house to be empty. Nor did he expect to find a body in the cellar. Buried under the flagstones are the remains of Cora Crippen, former music-hall singer and wife of Dr. Hawley Crippen. No one would have thought the quiet, unassuming Dr. Crippen capable of murder, yet the doctor and his mistress have disappeared from London, and now a full-scale hunt for them has begun.

    Across the Channel in Antwerp, the S.S. Montrose has just set off on its two-week voyage to North America. Slipping in among the first-class passengers is a Mr. John Robinson, accompanied by his teenage son, Edmund. The pair may be hoping for a quiet, private voyage, but in the close confines of a luxury ocean liner, anonymity is rare. And with others aboard looking for romance, or violence, or escape from their past in Europe, it will take more than just luck for the Robinsons to survive the voyage unnoticed.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMacmillan Publishers
    Release dateApr 1, 2007
    ISBN9781429901796
    Crippen: A Novel of Murder
    Author

    John Boyne

    John Boyne is the author of numerous works of fiction, including The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, a young adult novel that became an international bestseller and was made into an award-winning film. His books have been translated into forty-six languages, and he is the recipient of two Irish Book Awards, the Bistro Book of the Year award, and numerous international prizes. He lives in Dublin.

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    Reviews for Crippen

    3.5/5

    95 ratings12 reviews

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    • 4/5
      Hawley Crippen might have remained a footnote in the history of true crime without his unique capture and the skillful fictionalization of the story by the incomparable John Boyne. Hawley refers to himself as Dr. Crippen, although he lacks the education and credentials to do more than work in a homeopathic pharmacy. His third wife, Cora, calls herself a gifted singer, although she lacks the talent to become more than a dance hall performer. This couple lives in a world of pretension and self-delusion, always hoping to take a step up on what they perceive to be the social ladder. Boyne's descriptions of the society they inhabit in the early 20th century are memorable, and his characterizations of the greedy, self-serving women within this community are especially scathing. While reading this book, I was reminded at times of Dreiser's An American Tragedy when the deplorably shallow Clyde stopped at nothing to achieve his goal of fitting into society. The SS Montrose is introduced at the beginning of this novel as it prepares to sail from Antwerp to Quebec. The first-class passengers become an early focus, overseen by the pompous Captain Kendall, whose observations are pivotal to Crippen's life. These passengers are described in detail from the overbearing, self-important Mrs. Drake to the reclusive Mr. Robinson and his son, Edmund. The significance of the passage to Canada and its conclusion are significant. I didn't anticipate the ending.This book was published in 2003, so is perhaps one of Boyne's earliest works. His skill as a writer is in evidence here, as in every book he has written. No two of his books are the same, but he manages to keep his readers enthralled whatever the subject.
    • 4/5
      Once you read one of John Boyne’s books, you will probably want to read all of them. That was the case with me after I read THE HEART’S INVISIBLE FURIES. I was happy to find his older books, including CRIPPEN, a book of fiction about Dr. Hawley Crippen, an actual person who really was accused of murdering his wife in 1910. Many of the facts in this novel really did happen, and many of the characters really did exist. But, again, CRIPPEN is fiction, and most of it comes from Boyne’s imagination.And what an imagination! CRIPPEN is superb.The Crippen in the book CRIPPEN is a wimp with a questionable character, maybe a result of his questionable upbringing. As an adult, he’s more a wannabe doctor than an actual doctor. Still, he’s prepared himself as best he could to practice medicine when he leaves Michigan (where he meets and marries his second wife) for New York and then leaves there for England.Crippen’s second wife, Cora, is another wannabe. She is a not-so-good music hall singer who fancies herself great enough (with a little coaching) to sing before the queen. She is a miserable hellion and abuses Crippen both physically and verbally. So you probably won’t feel bad about the way she ends up. You may even root for the murderer.But what will keep you following this story, including Crippen’s attempt at escape on an ocean liner to Canada, is Boyne’s writing and his overall presentation. Although the word “genius” is overused in performance reviews, no other word better describes how Boyne arranges the story the way he does here. Because of this arrangement, you will be surprised again and again.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 4/5
      It took me so long to get into this book but I love John Boyne and the faith that it was going to be worth reading kept me going. The novel is a somewhat fictionalized account of famous murderer Hawley Crippen who in the early 1900's killed his wife Cora and buried her in the basement. It was a rather famous case because he was on a boat fleeing when he was recognized and he was the first suspect caught with the aid of wireless telegraphy created by Marconi. Crippen was a pretty run of the mill wife killer but John Boyne really brings the characters to life by fleshing in a lot of backstory and I must say that by the end I was somewhat sympathetic to the plight of Crippen. The main problem for me was the time jumps. At first the book is all over the place with a lot of set up and characters to learn about it. At first I didn't really care about so and so on the boat and I wanted to get into the crime itself. By the time a certain character is reveled to not be who they pretended to be I was hooked. By the time I got past the first 100 pages I was completely invested in to the story. Even though I knew the outline of the Crippen case the book still held a lot of surprises and interesting twists. While the people in the book are long dead and with forensics being what they were at the turn of the century, the facts of the case will never be known. Boyne however presents an entertaining take on a case that has fascinated people for the last 100 years

      1 person found this helpful

    • 4/5
      I have already encountered John Boyne’s expertise at blending fact and fiction, and strewing his novels with historical events and people. This worked especially well in The Thief of Time, recounted by the extraordinary Matthieu Zela, and peppered with colourful episodes from his very long life in which he encountered a vast number of celebrated figures. He takes it to a higher level in this book, in which Zela features again, although this time in a relatively minor role.As the title suggests, the book tells the story of Hawley Crippen. Crippen is now recalled for the murder and dismemberment of his wife, his attempt to escape across the Atlantic to start a new life with his mistress, Ethel Le Neve, and the valiant pursuit by Inspector Walter Dew of Scotland Yard. In the brief acknowledgment note at the end of the book, Boyne remarks that people are often surprised to learn, or at least to be reminded, that Crippen had only committed one murder. Of course, as he immediately conceded, even one murder is one murder too many, and Boyne makes no attempt to vindicate him. The point is worthy of mention, however, because I think that Crippen has become fixed in the minds of many people, who remember the name but not the details of his crime, as one of the more prolific serial murderers. Boyne gives us an account of Crippen’s early life in America, where he struggled to free himself from the domineering influence of his devout mother. From an early age he became enchanted by science, and longed to be come a doctor. Unfortunately, circumstances conspired to thwart these aspirations, and he had to make do with pursuing correspondence courses while working night shifts in an abattoir (although this gave him ample scope to practice his surgical skills). His obsessive striving for a medical career dominated his life to the exclusion of almost everything else, and he struggled to form relationships. He did, however, find a wife, with whom he had a son, although they both quickly came to realise that they were unsuited to each other. That first marriage did not last long, with his wife succumbing to a tragic accident, after which their son was brought up by her parents. Crippen soon lost touch with his son, and seemed to find his wife’s death as much a release as a tragedy. Through an instance of great serendipity, I discovered a new word today: cacoethes, the [often desperate] urge to do something inadvisable. Crippen succumbed to a further bout of cacoethes, which led him, after having relocated to New York, to marry Cora Turner, a n aspiring music hall entertainer who had made a minor name for herself as Belle Elmore. Shortly afterwards they emigrated to London, where Crippen held down a couple of jobs, including managing an early homeopathic store. His relationship with Cora deteriorated, in parallel with her failures to fulfil her ambitions to establish herself as a leading star of the London stage. She embarked upon several affairs while Crippen himself met, and fell deeply in love with Ethel Le Neve, whom he had hired to help him in the store.And the rest is history … or mystery .. or just misery.Boyne weaves this rather sordid tale with great deftness, succeeding in overcoming the reader’s prejudice and making Crippen a largely sympathetic character. The narrative flits around, leaping forwards and backwards in time. Rather than being distracting or irksome, as can so often be the fate of stylistic flourishes, this lends the story greater depth. Boyne also lends great depth to some of the more ephemeral characters, such as Inspector Dew and Captain Kendall, master of the SS Montrose on which Crippen and Le Neve sought to escape to Canada. The overall effect is to breathe new life into a story that is already broadly familiar, and is another great success for John Boyne.
    • 4/5
      This is a great fictional account of a gruesome murder that took place in England in 1910. I have seen a documentary on this subject so it was interesting to see the fact mixed with the fiction. The author did an excellent job turning this into a great mystery filled with suspense, humor, and history. The author also jumps back to before the crime and after the crime (during the chase) and this is a great way to keep the story moving. There is actual dialogue interspersed with Boyne's fiction. The novel contains many social and gender issues from the era and I found those quite intriguing as well. A great read for tans of historical fiction, especially historical fiction based on true events and facts.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 4/5
      I enjoyed this mystery novel based on real events in London early 1900's. I wished I hadn't read the jacket cover though as I felt it gave away the first mystery twist.
    • 4/5
      John Boyne's novelization of the murder of Cora Crippen, ostensibly by her husband Dr. Hawley Harvey Crippen. His telling of the tale is very interesting, and quite a bit of the capture story was factual. His take on the murder was certainly a different one also, and completely plausible. An interesting and compelling book.
    • 5/5
      A story based on facts about Dr Crippen but with a twist. A very good read.
    • 4/5
      One of my favorite things about Crippen is that it's a fictionalization of a true story. Hawley Crippen (who is a bit bug-eyed to be such a ladies man, if you ask me) really did murder his wife, and the great cross-ocean manhunt really did happen. That just makes the whole story that much more exciting for me. And it really is an exciting story, when you think about it. The book alternates between the present (that is, 1910) in which Crippen is a pursued criminal, and the past, telling his backstory and the events that foreshadow the gruesome future. The problem is that, as I was reading the book, it didn't feel as exciting as it could have. It was actually a little on the slow side. Yes, they're crossing the ocean in a steam ship, and yes, I understand that takes a long time. But really, does it need to feel that long? This book took me four days to read (which is forever for me) because it just couldn't hold my attention for long periods of time.That said, I actually do recommend this book. Boyne has a beautiful way with words, and the settings and characters are described in a way that makes them feel vividly alive. There's also a subtle humor in the social commentary that was vaguely Austen-esque, though significantly more morbid in topic than, say, Emma. So, give Crippen a try, just don't expect it to grip you and keep you at the edge of your seat the way some murder mysteries do.
    • 4/5
      A fictional telling of an actual murder which occured in London in 1910. Dr Crippen was accused of killing his wife and then fleeing the country with his lover. A Scotland Yard investigator overtakes them at sea on their way to Canada. Dr Crippen was found guilty and executed for the crime. Boyne weaves these facts, and others, together with suppositions of his own to come up with a fast-paced story about a man who is creepy enough to be capable of anything. Of course, most people think he is a pleasant, mild-mannered doctor. Very good.
    • 5/5
      A fictionalised account of the notorious wife-killer, Dr Crippen. Not a particularly high-brow read, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. The story of his miserable life and marriage was interwoven with stories of the passengers of the ship he boards for Canada to escape prosecution. It probably isn't terribly historically accurate, but I don't mind that - it isn't claiming to be anything other than fiction. If I wanted to analyse it closely, I could perhaps feel a bit aggrieved at the portrayal of women in the book, who (with one exception) pretty all portrayed as monsterous in one way or another, so often seem like cariacatures. But really it was rather a good romp of a book, which is a strange thing to say about something with a dark subject matter.
    • 3/5
      A very readable story but suffers from a basic lack of understanding of Edwardian manners and more importantly, dialogue. The result is that it fails to evoke the sense of the time. The ending is sensitively handled and two alternative versions of events are given. Although a lot of fiction has been woven into the true events, I think the story would have benefited from using some of the facts that have emerged since but were never presented during the trial. An author of Boyne's standing using a publisher of Penguin's standing shouldn't be making errors of historical fact and continuity such as having a woman wearing a brassiere in 1910, or characters being aged 14, then 15, then 14 again. Trifling details but they interrupt the suspension of disbelief.

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    Crippen - John Boyne

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