Diana Souhami's 'Murder at Wrotham Hill' is an enthralling true crime book which grips the reader. It confirms the old adage that 'Truth is stranger than Fiction'. Diana describes the painstaking enquiry led by the celebrity detective 'Fabian of the Yard' into the murder of Dagmar Petrzywalski, an eccentric spinster, at Wrotham Hill, Kent not far from her home in (West) Kingsdown in October 1946.

The author vividly captures for us not only the personalities of the people involved in this case, but the post-war atmosphere prevailing in Britain and the everyday lives of ordinary people where very often 'make-do and mend' was a necessity but another section of the populace was deeply involved in black market activities.

I did, however, find it disturbing to read the chapter about the difficult work of Albert Pierrepoint, the executioner in connection with the Lüneburg trials of Nazi war criminals from the Belsen camp. Nevertheless, I rate this book as a 5-star read. ( )

A highly readable account of an infamous murder in the west part of Kent in the aftermath of the Second World War. It starts describing a crime & turns into a forensic analysis of the personalities involved, their motivations, psychology & a missive to the effects of capital punishment & the fragility of life. Very interesting, even to those without the interest in local history. ( )

Mini review in Oldie Review of Books Autumn 2013